Adventures from a Time Gone By

Let's go back to the mid-20th century—1956, to be exact.

 

The world is much larger. You don't have a million online sources that instantly give you all the information you're looking for. 

 

So what do you have? There's the daily newspaper. And some radio programs, And a newfangled, amazing glowing tube in a wooden box called a "television". Those sources do give you some information.

 

But by and large, so many more things out there are completely unknown to an individual. Faraway areas of the globe still exist, and there are so many mysterious and interesting things to wonder about—perhaps especially to a wide-eyed youngster.

 

So imagine you are that 1956 youngster, eager to learn, and with a strong taste for action and adventure. Then imagine you're down at the local drug store and purchase a little package that contains a trading card and a stick of gum, for one penny. It says "ADVENTURE" on the front, and is made by a company called Gum Inc. 

When you open the package, you come across a trading card that creates a scene of suspense like this:

Look out, treasure diver!

  

The artwork is fantastic, and it comes right at you. That shark is monster-sized, and because only the shadow of the diver is in the foreground, it almost forces you to feel that you are that diver, and that's your shadow. How will you get out of this one? Will you escape? Can you escape? You'd have to know more about what's going on, so instinctively you'd flip the card over.

 

 

Legend lines the ocean floor with gold; many men, seeking the end of the rainbow, have never lived to tell the tale; perhaps victims of man-eating tiger sharks.

  

[Gulp.]

 

But if you're that adventure-loving 1950s kid, I'd bet you're going to run home and spend the next 15 minutes acting out a diving scene in your bedroom, and figuring out a way to avoid that man-eating shark. And you know what? That card is the very first one in the set.

Want to see another stunner?

From under sea to outer space. I'll say it again: In the mid-20th century, there were still so many mysterious and interesting things out there.

 

Personally, I know I would have been all over these trading cards back then. The set is known as 1956 Gum Inc. Adventure. There are 100 cards in all, and the two you've seen so far are officially part of my collection now.

 

And if the Gum Inc. name sounds familiar, I'll add that the company was founded by a man named Jacob Warren Bowman (yes, that Bowman) in 1927. They also produced the 1935 Mickey Mouse set, the 1940 Lone Ranger set, and the 1941 Superman set, to name a few.

How about another example from the Adventure set?

This one features a red-headed roller derby gal. (rrrawr) The card back mentions how these skilled derby participants "zip around slick, 45-degree turns with ease," "attain speeds up to 35 miles an hour," and "wear out a set of wheels about every 10 days." It also mentions that some of these ladies could earn $15,000 a year, which was a fantastic amount of money back then!

 

Okay, how about one more?

That's a daring mailman known as "Snowshoe Thompson". Want to know more about him?

From California to Nevada on skis, delivering important supplies to those in need, round-trip in five days. Yeah, tell me the little-kid version of you is not going to act out some adventures with that information. I know you've got that pack full of supplies slung over your shoulders already.

Ultimately, I don't know what's better: the artwork on the front of these cards, or the storytelling on the back.

And it continues throughout the set. From sports to hunting to mountain climbing to armed forces to rescues on the high seas, there's all the variety you need to fill your young, voracious appetite for knowledge of that big, mysterious, adventure-filled world out there.

 

But it's different for kids in this digital age. 

 

The internet has its positives, don't get me wrong. However, one of the negatives is that it can destroy the sense of excitement and anticipation linked with "classical" learning.

 

Let's take these trading cards for an example. Back then, you might hear about a subject, or learn just a little bit about a subject, and then what did you need to do? Go to the library. See if they have any books on the subject. Send away for a specialty magazine. Find a friend or neighbor with some information or photographs. And then maybe you fill in some blanks with your imagination.

 

That all takes effort, and it's good to feel rewarded for that effort. It might take days or weeks to get that reward. But today, that build-up of anticipation and excitement is largely lost. We have too much instant gratification. You scroll through some social media posts on whatever subject you might follow, receive a little dopamine hit, and then you're done. 

 

I'm sure there are studies that link this phenomenon to a shorter retention of information, too. Because when you instead spend so much time and effort doing the research, you hold onto the information you do discover for a longer amount of time. It's more special. You're more apt to put yourself in the position of Snowshoe Thompson as you're right there in the library, reading about him. Thinking about whether you'd be able to accomplish what he did. Feeling the satisfaction of succeeding. Bringing some much-needed medicine or supplies to someone in the wilderness. It's so much different than just sitting on your couch, searching the keywords "Snowshoe Thompson" on your phone, getting all the information you could want on him within seconds, and then saying "hmm, interesting" and moving on to whatever is next.

 

But you know what? It's alright. That sense of mystery is still out there. Use this 1956 Gum Inc. Adventure set as an example again. Even with online search tools, plus all the great trading card blogs out there, plus sites like TCDB, I had no idea these cards even existed until a couple of months ago. And I'm sure there are hundreds of trading card sets—if not thousands—that I still have no idea about, even though I've been back in the hobby for more than 10 years now.

 

So as collectors, we can still find that fresh sense of adventure. We can still get that thrill of the search. And that's reassuring.

 

Now it's your turn. Have you discovered any new sets recently? Would you have been into the Gum Inc. Adventure set if you were a kid in 1956?

 

Share in the comment section, and thanks for reading!  

A Smorgasbord! 1992 Pacific McDonald's St. Louis Cardinals

From the 1970s through the 1990s, it seemed like you could find your favorite baseball stars on food product packaging everywhere you looked: supermarkets, corner stores, restaurants, and beyond. This past year, in an effort to capture a little more nostalgia, I set a goal to expand my own collection of these "food-issue" cards. In this series I'll show the specific examples I've acquired, and share a little bit of history about the food or beverage sponsor as well. 

Previous entries can be found here.

 

It's 1992, and the St. Louis area is experiencing a cold, cold February. You and your schoolmates have had a few snow days this year, which is always fun, but those days are losing their luster. You're itching for baseball. Last year's Little League season seems like it happened a long time ago. And although you remind yourself that Spring Training is only about a month away, it seems like forever. 

 

But on this frigid afternoon, you get a little break. After you help Dad clear a fresh dusting of snow off the car and spread some rock salt on the sidewalks, he asks a simple question.

 

"You hungry?"

  

You are. So you nod your head.

 

"Hop in the car. Let's go get a burger."

 

Well, that was unexpected. But who are you to argue? You jump in the back seat and buckle up as dad starts the car. He heads into the house, gets mom, and as soon as the car warms up, the three of you drive off.

 

And if you weren't sure which burger joint you were going to, 10 minutes later you get the answer.

 

 

 

The Golden Arches.

 

Man, this is a treat. You can smell the fries as you step out of the car. Things are starting to look up.

 

And then the baseball universe confirms it.

 

On the walkway ahead of you, just outside the front door, you spot a small, rectangle-shaped object. It sure looks like the back of a baseball card, but why would it be there?

 

You get closer, and your assumption was right on. Here's what you find. 

 

 

 

 

Joe Torre? It's an old photo, but the card looks brand-new. What's going on here? Confused, you flip it over.

 

 

 

 

 

A McDonald's card??

 

Dad catches up, and you show him what you found.

 

"Hey, Joe Torre!" He says. (You're well aware that Mr. Torre was one of Dad's favorite players when he was your age.)

 

You point out the McDonald's logo on the front as he gives it back to you, and the two of you head inside with mom, who's patiently been holding the door.

 

At the front of the line, dad asks the cashier about the baseball card. She says that there's a whole set of them, designed to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Cardinals, and that they're available at McDonald's restaurants in the greater St. Louis area for $1.49 with a purchase. (The purchase helps raise money for Ronald McDonald Children's Charities.)

 

Dad looks at you and says, "We've got to get a set of these, bud." 

 

So that's what you do. As the team of McDonald's employees get busy assembling your order, you look back down at Joe Torre. 

 

There he is, smiling, in uniform, posing happily on a sunny day at the ballpark.

 

You take a deep breath. Yep, you can make it through another few weeks of winter if you had to. The card set will help. (The fries won't hurt, either.)

 

A minute later the food and the cards arrive on that trademark plastic tray, and you, mom, and dad find a booth. Eating your meal comes before even looking at the cards, you know that. And it's fine. You can wait. In fact, you wait all the way until you get in the car. You have a 10-minute ride home, and that's plenty of time to flip through the set. And it's a big one!

 

You count 55 cards in all. There are some older players in the set like Rogers Hornsby and Dizzy Dean. There are also a lot of guys you've heard Dad talk about, like Lou Brock and Bob Gibson. And then there are some newer guys, like Vince Coleman, Todd Worrell, and Ozzie Smith.

 

From the front seat, Dad says he wants some of those cards, and you're totally fine with that. Life is good.

 

 

Now let's talk about those Golden Arches. 

 

 

 

Richard and Maurice McDonald opened their first restaurant, McDonald's Bar-B-Q, in 1940. A few years later, they decided to revamp their menu, and transitioned to burgers, fries, and milkshakes. They also envisioned (and brought to fruition) a smarter, more efficient way to get food prepared in the kitchen and out to hungry customers. They dubbed it the "Speedee Service System". 

In 1953, the first franchised "McDonald's" restaurant opened, and it featured the iconic Golden Arches. Within a year or two, a salesman named Ray Kroc opened his first location. And a few years after that, Kroc had done so well that he purchased the entire company from the McDonald brothers for $2.7 million. After that, well, you could say things really took off. (If you'd like to watch a Hollywood version of the events, the 2016 film The Founder, starring Michael Keaton, is a good one.)

And if the winter has gotten you down, I hope a smiling Joe Torre up there has given you some good energy, too.

 

So how about it? Do any of you collectors have some fun childhood memories of going to McDonald's? This St. Louis Cardinals anniversary set is far from the only McDonald's set of trading cards. Do you have any others in your collection?

 

Share in the comment section, and thanks for reading. 

A Custom Card Featuring Three Gearheads

Many years ago I was flipping through television channels, and stopped at a particular show on BBC America. It featured three guys talking about cars. And bantering about cars. And arguing about cars.

 

Although I do appreciate a nice car, I've never really been a car guy. So I almost kept flipping through the channels. 

 

But I didn't.

 

I kept watching, because despite the car-heavy content, the guys seemed quite knowledgeable. And one other thing I appreciate is listening to knowledgeable people speak about the thing they're knowledgeable about. 

 

I'm glad I stayed tuned, because this show was more than car talk. Oftentimes the guys would have to take part in a challenge of some sort—buy a 1980s sports car for under £1,500, for example—and then the producers would issue a number of vehicle-related tasks and assignments that would almost inevitably end up in hilarious disaster.

Take, for example, the time they tried to create a convertible minivan: 

 

 

 

  

Or the time when they were each tasked with transforming a standard car into an amphibious one:

 

 

Those three presenters are Jeremy Clarkson, James May, and Richard Hammond. The show is called Top Gear.

 

It was an outrageous success—so much so that the buffoonery and hilarious moments like the ones you watched above were not limited to the UK. Or even to Europe. Over the years, the presenters found themselves in much farther-flung places. Vietnam. Japan. India. Africa. Bolivia. Patagonia. Even the Arctic! And some of the challenges they took on at those locations—not to mention the scenery and cinematography—resulted in absolutely phenomenal television. Top Gear, as it turned out, was much more than a show about cars.

 

 

It was about travel. And geography. And world history. And pushing oneself to limits unheard of. (And comedy. Definitely comedy.)

 

Recently, my wife and I watched a few episodes. She's also not a "car person", and she wasn't too familiar with the show. But I have to tell you, I don't think any other television program has ever provided either of us with such a combination of intrigue, information, excitement, and pure belly laughs. 

It inspired me enough to create a custom card.

 

There's Richard, Jeremy, and James, portrayed in their young days as "future stars". Instead of a fielding position under their names, you'll find a popular moniker that each of them are known by. As for the racing helmets on the bottom left, those represent a fourth character on the show—a stoic, wordless, emotionless racing driver known as The Stig.

I'm very happy with the way this card turned out. If you're a fan of Top Gear, I hope you're enjoying it as well.

If you've never watched an episode, I highly recommend searching any number of streaming services, where you can often watch episodes for free.

 

Any Top Gear fans out there? Favorite episode? Share in the comment section, and thanks for reading. 

A Happy Home for the Junk Wax Lot

In last week's post, which revealed my findings from the junk wax lot shown above, I briefly mentioned that some of the cards were potentially slotted for a good home. 

Well, it's a week later, and I'm happy to report that a great portion of the lot is officially in that good home. And there's a feel-good story behind it. If you're interested, read on.

 

After I finished going through all the cards and keeping what I wanted to keep, I reorganized them a bit, took some photos, and posted them on facebook marketplace. . . 

 

. . . for free.

 

It might seem like an odd choice, but here's what I did: 

I added a message to the listing that stated the cards really were free, but if buyers wanted to offer me a price they thought was fair, then they were welcome to do that.

 

And hoo boy, did it generate a response. Within 15 minutes, more than a dozen marketplace members contacted me with interest. Some didn't offer a price, and based on their profiles, I think quite a few of them wanted to pick up the cards for free and try to flip them for a profit. Can't blame them for that.

 

However, a few other members seemed to have a more thoughtful reason for wanting the cards, and I ended up agreeing to a deal with one of them. It was a woman who wanted to purchase the cards as a gift for her husband, and she seemed to be genuine about it. So we planned a time to meet.

 

Sweet story, right? But that's not all. 

 

The night we met up, she brought her husband along. (The cards were meant to be a surprise for him and she was going to come by herself, but she couldn't hide her excitement, and spilled the beans.) When they walked over to my car and the husband saw the cards, his eyes lit up and he was simply overjoyed. 

Soon after, though, he became a bit more subdued. 

 

He proceeded to tell me that his childhood home was lost in a fire a number of years ago, and as a result, all his cards were lost, too. What I'd done by listing the cards, and what his wife had done by offering to purchase them, did a tremendous amount of good for his card-collecting soul. It was plain to see, and it was great.

 

He was so pleased that about 10 minutes after I left the parking lot to go home, his wife messaged me again. It turns out that they were still in the lot, because her husband started looking at the cards right then and there!

 

Yeah. Trading cards can do that to you. I absolutely love the image of a dude sitting in his pickup truck at 8:00pm on a chilly weeknight, rooting through boxes of trading cards he remembers from his childhood because he can't wait until he gets home. 

I think stories like this remind us all of why we still love this hobby. I couldn't help but share.