1953-1955 Louis Dormand postcard of Billy Pierce

Here is an item I didn't think I'd be able to add to my Billy Pierce collection. Louis Dormand was a photographer based in New York in the 40s and 50s. He worked in many areas but the one of most interest to baseball collectors are his postcards of players taken at Yankee Stadium and Ebbets Field. Most of the cards in his baseball checklist are Yanks and Dodgers but there are a few other players included and Pierce is one of them. These cards were reportedly used by players to answer autograph requests. They were also sold at the stadiums.

The Dormands are an interesting item. Check out the current eBay listings. Prices are all over the map. They range from $5 to $10 for a Gil Hodges or a Johnny Sain to many hundreds for some of the others. Scarcity is certainly a factor. There was an 'attic stash' of Gil Hodges cards discovered some years back and thus his cards are very common. I own an Allie Reynolds Dormand (my father's favorite Yankee pitcher). I paid next to nothing for it at a show a few years back.

Billy Pierce's Dormand has been one of the pricier examples. I hadn't seen one for under $200. There is one on eBay at this moment with a $285 asking price. That's why when I got my email alert from eBay with a new listing of a Dormand Pierce for about ONE TENTH of that I jumped on it instantly.

And I couldn't be happier. These are beautiful items. Here is the back and below that I have a crop of the 'business' side of the back.

Here is the Pierce as it came to me and before I broke it out of it's plastic prison.

Most sources list 45 cards in the set including variations. But the 'skip-numbering' (no 131 or 137) makes me think there were probably others. there are also some un-numbered/blank backed variations. They might be the ones sold at the stadiums. That's pure speculation on my part.

1953-1955 Dormand Baseball Series Postcard Checklist

101 Phil Rizzuto
101 Phil Rizzuto (Jumbo 6 x 9)
102 Yogi Berra
103 Ed Lopat
104 Hank Bauer
105 Joe Collins (Patch)
105 Joe Collins (No Patch)
106 Ralph Houk
107 Bill Miller
108 Ray Scarborough
109 Allie Reynolds
110 Gil McDougald
110 Gil McDougald (Signature Variation)
111 Mickey Mantle (Batting Left)
111 Mickey Mantle (BL Jumbo 6 x 9)
111 Mickey Mantle (Bat on Shoulder)
111 Mickey Mantle (BS Jumbo 6 x 9)
112 Johnny Mize
113 Casey Stengel MG
114 Bobby Shantz
115 Whitey Ford
116 Johnny Sain (Pose Variation)
116 Johnny Sain
117 Jim McDonald
118 Gene Woodling
119 Charlie Silvera
120 Don Bollweg
121 Billy Pierce
122 Chico Carrasquel
123 Willie Miranda
124 Carl Erskine
125 Roy Campanella
126 Jerry Coleman
127 Pee Wee Reese
128 Carl Furillo
129 Gil Hodges
130 Billy Martin
132 Irv Noren
133 Enos Slaughter
134 Tom Gorman
135 Eddie Robinson
136 Frank Crosetti CO
138 Jim Konstanty
139 Elston Howard
140 Bill Skowron

If I were to chase another one it would be the Campanella. I have an online image but I have yet to see a listing for one. Campy and the other Dodgers in the checklist are shown posing at Yankee Stadium. The bunting hanging along the upper stands indicates the pictures were taken at a World Series. Since the Yankees and Bums played three times in the early 50s that would be the logical answer.