A Smorgasbord! 1986 Meadow Gold Milk Carton Sketches

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 the last weekend in March, 1986. Baseball season starts next week. You should be excited, but instead you're trying to dig yourself out of a rut. 

 

It was a long winter. You struggled without baseball on TV, or at the park. There was only so much indoor "pretend" practice you we able to take. And worst of all, your grades have slipped a little.

 

As a result, you've got no Ding Dongs, no Ho Hos, no Drake's cakes. Even the cereal mom's been buying lately hasn't featured any baseball cards on the back panel, or inside. 

 

No doubt about it, you've been in a winter slump.

 

You shuffle down to the kitchen and grab a box of whatever cereal is in the cupboard, and mom takes out the carton of milk and puts it on the kitchen table. You pry open the triangular top, and halfheartedly pour the milk into your bowl. But then you put down the carton and get a big surprise.

Pete Rose is staring directly at you!

 

You see those dotted lines and know what you need to do. Well, first you point out to mom that Mr. Rose is back there. Then you ask her if you can keep the container once it's empty and cut out the card. She says as long as you finish your cereal and milk, it's a deal.

Can I go play baseball?

You don't even know where that second question came from. Your mouth just opened, and there it was. You're pushing it now, and sense mom's impending stare-down. Suddenly you're just hoping she doesn't take that milk carton away.

But she says yes.

 

Bolstered by the determined energy radiating from Pete Rose's illustrated face (and the promise of a new card for your collection), you wolf down your cereal, thank mom, grab your bat and mitt, and swing open the kitchen's screen door. There are buds on the trees. There's a scent of sweet dew and grass clippings in the air. And that little hint of warmth from the mid-morning sun reassures you. Spring is here. Baseball is back. Just thinking about the new Little League season that's going to start in a couple of weeks is giving you butterflies in your stomach. 

 

You hop on your dirt bike, start pedaling down to the baseball fields, and take in all that fresh oxygen with gusto. You didn't even call your friends before you left the house. Didn't need to. You know at least a few of them will be there.

 

You stow your bike against the backstop with the others, and as you wait for your turn to hit, you wonder what other players might be featured on those milk cartons. You might even ask mom if you can go to the supermarket with her next time. But the thing is, she'll know something's up. And she means business at the supermarket. The idea of you spending a minute or two flipping around carton after carton of milk to see which player is featured on the back? Probably not going to fly with her. But still, you might ask.

Regardless, a few hours pass, and you've gotten your fill of baseball for the day. (You hit a couple of good liners and picked some short-hops in the infield.) You get home, satisfied, happy, stained with grass and infield dirt, and see this waiting for you on the kitchen counter:

 

 

 

Mom washed out the carton and broke it down for you!

That mom, I tell you what. You'd better pick up your grades this marking period, that's for sure.

 

As for Meadow Gold Dairy, they've been around since 1901 (founded in Topeka, Kansas). Things really got swinging for the company in the 1940s, when refrigerated milk trucks came onto the scene, and the milkman became one of the most popular guys in town.

The company would then move headquarters farther west. Today they have a whole line of dairy products, and serve states like Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Nevada.

 

Check out this vintage ad from the 1950s.

 

 

Oh, and as for the Meadow Gold milk carton checklist? It was 12 players deep, and included most of the guys you'd expect to see in 1986: Boggs, Brett, Mattingly, Gooden, Ripken, Schmidt, and the like.

Have any of you readers seen these Meadow Gold milk carton cards before? Think you might pick one up for your collection?

Share in the comment section, and thanks for reading!

Another WRIPP Card from Gavin!

Back in July, I shared two super-cool pieces of 1/1 cardart that Gavin from Baseball Card Breakdown sent to me. Both of them featured Bo Jackson's 1988 Topps card, re-imagined as Donruss variations, all done by Gavin's hand.

 

What I didn't share was that he included one more card in that envelope. And it was also a 1/1. 

It was another card from his Warhol Rose Infinite Parallels Project! (Also known as WRIPP.) Appropriately, it features Bo Jackson. This time he's superimposed with the Hit King. And both of them are staring you down. Pretty cool effect.

 

Gavin started the WRIPP earlier this year, and the most fun part about it is that anyone can join in. Shortly after he announced the project, I tried my hand at a couple of WRIPP cards and sent them to Gavin. In return, he sent me one of his versions. So now, with the addition of the Pete Rose/Bo Jackson parallel above, I'm very happy to have two WRIPP cards from Gavin in my collection. I might have to create a few more to send out to people as well.

I encourage all of you readers and collectors to visit Gavin's original WRIPP post, download the template he created, and try a couple of parallels of your own. You can create your design digitally and then print it out, or you can print out the starter template and then use any type of media you'd like on top of that: colored pencils, markers, ink pens, newspaper print, stickers, anything.

 

We've got a long way to go on this project—forever, in fact—so I really do hope you'll create some WRIPP cards, number them 1/1, and send them out to friends and fellow collectors.

Here's what the back of Gavin's WRIPP cards look like:

You can style your card backs similarly or differently, but it helps to indicate that it's a WRIPP card and a 1/1.

So have fun with it, and share your designs with the blogosphere. Maybe one day you'll receive a WRIPP card in the mail, too.

Thanks for another cool piece of art, Gavin, and thanks for reading, everyone.

My Contribution to the WRIPP (Warhol Rose Infinite Parallels Project)

Back in April, Gavin from Baseball Card Breakdown introduced us to the Warhol Rose Infinite Parallels Project, or "WRIPP" for short.

 

As you can see from that blog post, Gavin took Andy Warhol's original Pete Rose screenprint from 1985, pared it down to a basic template in baseball card size, and began creating some variations—or parallels, as we know them in the hobby.

These parallels would be special one-of-ones, completely unique, designed to be sent out to friends, fellow collectors, and fellow bloggers as part of trade packages. And the coolest part?

Gavin has encouraged all of us to create our own one-of-one parallels to add to the project! (Hence the "infinite" portion of the WRIPP acronym.)

Well that was enough for me. I downloaded the template from Gavin's blog post and soon got to work.

Here's my first contribution to the WRIPP:

 

I call it the "Victorian Wallpaper" variation. The wallpaper design behind Mr. Rose features roses. Cheesy, but effective.

As for the card back, I kept it simple.

 

 

 

I wanted to get Gavin's branding in there, so I placed the WRIPP logo he designed on the top of the card. Other than that, I just listed the name of the parallel, wrote my blog name and the "1/1" mark in red ink, and added a great quote from Mr. Rose himself at the bottom. Done.

 

 

But wait. There's more!

 

 

I created a second parallel. If you collected cards at any point during the late 1980s or early 1990s, you'll know exactly what I decided to call this one:

 

 

 

 

Yep, it's a reverse-negative version!

I'm sure something like this could have theoretically gotten by the quality control team at the WRIPP production facility, because Rose was a switch-hitter.

 

But nostalgia and printing errors aside, now that I had two parallels completed, the next question was what to do with them.

 

Well, being that these were my first two designs, I thought it would only be right if they went to Gavin himself. It wasn't long before he and I agreed on a trade. I sent Gavin the two parallels, along with a few of my other custom cards of his choice. In return, I received these beauties:

 

First, this sweet 1/1 created by Gavin himself.

 

 

It's hard to tell from the photo, but there's mixed media involved there, and the card has more than one level of texture. Pretty cool!

 

Here's the back of the card:

 

 

 

 

Got to love that "CONFIDENTIAL" stamp.

 

Also included were these six cards:

 

 

 

 

 

I'm a big fan of Mystery Science Theater 3000, and Gavin happened to have some "movie poster" inserts that were released as part of an MST3K card set just a few years ago. The particular movies featured on the cards above are from some of my all-time favorite episodes. (If you've never seen the show, I highly recommend it.)

But before I start quoting lines from The Pumaman or Diabolik, let's get back to the WRIPP.

I encourage all of you to go to Gavin's original post again, download the card template, and get to work on your own one-of-one parallels. You can create your designs digitally, or use any physical medium you'd like: colored pencils, crayons, markers, ink, you name it.

 

And if you do create some and send them out to your collecting buddies, be sure to share a photo.

Hope you'll join the fun!

1986 Topps Tattoos are Pop Art

Recently I came across a 1986 offering from Topps that I was not aware of back then:

 

Topps Tattoos.

 

 

Topps Tattoos?

 

Yes. Topps Tattoos. Turns out they were sold in wax packs, with one continuous folded sheet of 18 tattoos inside. (Plus a stick of gum.) After some additional research, it turns out Topps also released a tattoo product in 1960, 1964, and 1971.

 

If I'd seen these on shelves at the local stationery store or drug store when I was a kid back in 1986, I'm sure I would have asked my mom if I could have a pack or two. All these years later, I'm happy to have the panels pictured above in my collection.

 

I'm not going to apply any of the tattoos anywhere on my person, but here are the instructions anyway, straight from a wax wrapper:

 

 

 

Let's have another look at the panel of tattoos above and talk about the design, though, because I do appreciate it.

 

Does it remind you of any works from the pop art era? Roy Lichtenstein's brightly colored comic book–style works come to mind. As does Andy Warhol's work. The Campbell's soup cans. Marylin Monroe. Pete Rose. 

 

And so I thought it would be fun to do a little pop-art tribute using a couple of the baseball players on my sheet of tattoos. But which ones?

 

Pete Rose had already been featured in some actual pop art, so he was out. Scott McGregor had the Magnum P.I. mustache and Cecil Cooper was sporting the '80s dad beard—both solid options. But I had to go with Mookie Wilson as my first choice because he's the happiest baseball player of the group.

 

Just look at him smiling in all those primary and secondary colors and tell me you're not happy now, too. 

 

 

  

 

For the second choice I went with Bruce Bochte, because what better way to capture the 1980s than to feature that pair of eyeglasses four separate times?

 

It was a fun time to be a young baseball fan. Fun players. Fun products. And this was a fun little project.

Do any of you collectors remember Topps Tattoos? Do you have any in your collection? Share in the comment section, and thanks for reading, as always!

 

From the Favorites Box: Pete Rose, 1986 Fleer #191

A series where I post some thoughts about favorite cards. Previous cards in the series are available here.

Here's Pete Rose, representing his Cincinnati team with a red warm-up jacket, red helmet, red batting gloves, and almost a smile.

1986 Fleer #191, Pete Rose

More accurately, perhaps it's the look of determination that comes before some hard work in the batting cage (or the look of fulfillment that comes after).

Why do I say that? 

Look closely at the barrel of his bat:

Is it just me, or has the black paint been completely worn off around the sweet spot?

How many batting practice sessions does it take to even do that?

It reminds me of a story:

During my college hockey days, our home rink was also the practice rink of the New York Islanders. We'd have our practices early in the morning, and on rare occasion the Islanders would come on for a practice afterward. If we didn't have to immediately get to class, a few of us would hang around, sit in the stands, and watch the professionals go through their drills. It was a treat.

And who do you think was often the first player on the ice? 

The healthy scratches? 

No. 

The backup goalie? 

No. 

The recent call-up from the minor leagues? 

No. 

It was Ziggy Palffy. 

At the time Mr. Palffy was a star, scoring more than 40 goals per year. He was by far the best player the Islanders had. 

And there he was, stepping onto the ice as soon as the Zamboni drove off.

It goes to show that talent might give you a chance at the professional ranks, but only hard work will get you there and keep you there year after year. And if you're gunning to become the player with the most hits in the history of Major League Baseball, like Mr. Rose did in 1985 (the year this picture was likely taken), you put in that hard work for more than two decades. Until the paint wears off the barrel of your bat.

For sticking to that work ethic no matter who you are, and having the physical evidence to show for it, 1986 Fleer #191 has a place in my box of favorite cards.

Completed Set: 1986 Topps Baseball

Ah, 1986 Topps Baseball.

It's the set that doesn't garner much attention from collectors, because almost all of the rookie star power appears in the 1986 Topps Traded set. (Barry Bonds, Bobby Bonilla, Jose Canseco, Will Clark, Andres Galarraga, Bo Jackson, Wally Joyner, Kevin Mitchell, wow.)

For many collectors, this leaves poor Cecil Fielder pretty much all by himself as the rookie draw in the standard set. 

I'd also give honorable mentions to Ozzie Guillen (#254), Teddy Higuera (#347), Vince Coleman (#370), Mariano Duncan (#602), and Harold Reynolds (#769).

Regardless, it's really a shame that the set is overlooked, because the photography, although not spectacular, is a bit underrated.

Same goes for the design itself. Look at Cecil Fielder's card again. 

The thick color-matched team name placed on top of the even thicker black color bar really does catch the eye. Combine that with the remaining white border and you get a card design that works very well for just about any team, as you'll see in many of the images here.

In addition, the first few cards in the set commemorate one of the all-time achievements in baseball history: Pete Rose's career hit record. 

There's a nice little write-up on the back of each card, documenting some of Rose's highlights from each year featured on the front.

And there's even one more positive attribute of 1986 Topps:

Because it's often overlooked (and undervalued), it's quite easy to assemble the entire set of 792 cards. You can find numerous collectors who'd be happy to give you a tall stack of them. And if you want the "original experience", wax packs are still available and affordable. You can buy a few, open them, and add some cards to your set that way. 1986 fun at near-1986 prices!

Now that we've got some good energy going, let's flip through a bunch of the grade-A cards in the set:

You still have your share of classic posed shots, of course.

And headshots.

Some of the game-action shots are excellent.

As are some of the candid shots.

The Team Leader cards are quite attractive, too.

And the catchers? You'd be hard pressed to find six images like these in any other set of the era.

Here are some fun shots, because baseball is fun.

And finally, a peculiar shot that features John Wathan putting his morning bagel on a baseball bat for some reason. I think one day I might try eating a bagel this way. 

Here's an example of a card back. Note the Talkin' Baseball factoid that runs across the bottom (when space allows).

Want an example of a solid design effort? There are six different Talkin' Baseball cartoon guys. Along with the one above, here are the other five:

And here's the Spring Fever Baseball game piece that was inserted in each wax pack.

So you see? 1986 Topps Baseball isn't so bad. It has its detractors, and that's fine, especially when you consider what the set could have been if Topps had managed to squeeze in some of those star rookies. But it's still a good set, and I'm happy to have finally completed it.

What are your thoughts on the 1986 Topps set? Share in the comment section.

And thanks for reading.