Prosperity At Home, Prestige Abroad

This is my latest, oldest and definitely coolest Presidential campaign button. It's from 1900 and features Republican candidates William McKinley and Teddy Roosevelt. They defeated the Democratic ticket headed by Williams Jennings Bryan. I've seen it for sale for upwards of $75 but I got this one for $30 shipped. It looks better in person than it does in my scan.

McKinley defeated Bryan in 1896 and the two met again in 1900. McKinley and Roosevelt won that election but in September of 1901 McKinley was assassinated and Teddy took the Presidency. I don't really know a whole lot about McKinley but Teddy Roosevelt was one bad ass dude. Lots has been written about him but I can recommend two books that I've read: The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt by Edmund Morris and River of Doubt by Candice Miller. That one is especially good. It's the story of Roosevelt's exploration of the Amazon. You can get them both dirt cheap on Amazon.

There is a famous campaign poster from McKinley's 1900 campaign that features the same slogan as the button.

I've picked up lots of campaign buttons in the last few months. It has sure cut into my card budget!

Ain't the beer cold!

And the Orioles have clinched a post season berth. The world is a weird and wonderful place sometimes. yes?

To celebrate I'm posting a bunch of Orioles cards from my Picasa folders.

T206 Jack Dunn Baltimore Orioles

Jack Dunn played and managed in organized baseball from 1895 until his death at the age of 56 in 1928. Much of that time was spent as the owner and manager of the Baltimore Orioles of the Eastern and International Leagues. As a player he had some outstanding seasons as a pitcher for Brooklyn before the turn of the century. He transformed himself to a third baseman and outfielder in 1901 with the Orioles of the American League. He went on to play with the New York Giants and serve as player/manager of minor league Providence club before purchasing the Orioles in 1907. He won seven straight IL pennants beginning in 1919. His teams featured stars such as Babe Ruth, Lefty Grove, and Max Bishop. Dunn was an interesting guy and his SABR bio makes for great reading.

Looks like Jack is posing with his back to the infield trying to haul in a pop-up over his shoulder on the T206. It's part of my collection of the minor league Orioles included in this milestone set.

Oriole Fever!!!

I've tried to keep an even keel when it comes to this year's Oriole club and the amazing run they've been on but now, with the final weekend and last half dozen games upon us and the O's still in the thick of it I can't help but get wound up. I think seeing the O's on the cover of SI has really driven it home for me. The Orioles are THIS CLOSE!!!

And so for luck I'm putting up the '70 Earl Weaver. Maybe the old guy can work a little bit of 'Oriole Magic' again. I just know he's at home puttering around his tomato garden and fretting about his club.

Go Orioles!!

1960 Leaf Brooks Robinson & Luis Aparicio

For a set of black and white cards the '60 Leaf cards have a weird aesthetic appeal for me. I think some of it is due to the 'aura' that surrounds each players head. Here is 'St. Brooks' and done below is 'St. Luis'.

It's not a very popular set it seems. Leaf went head to head with Topps and included a marble in their packs instead of gum. I remember having (or at least seeing) these when I was a young collector but I don't recall the packs or the marble. The checklist doesn't have a ton of stars among the 144 players but you will find Duke Snider among the dozen or so Hall of Famers.

The PSA site has a pretty thorough (and wicked) critique of the set. I think they are a little harsh but they do make some good points along side the insights. I have a handful of the cards including these two and while I like them I can't see myself chasing the rest.

Chris Stufflestreet, Quite a guy

It's been a busy last seven days and I was away from this place for most of it. Needless to say I was surprised and saddened to read of Chris Stufflestreet's death last week. I'd had some correspondence with Chris through the years as he has been well known in vintage card circles for years. When I began blogging the '59 Topps set Chris was helpful through his voluminous online resources and in answering questions I posed to him. He was always ready to set me straight with a comment or email when I "stuck my foot in it". I really appreciated his thoughtfulness and considered him a friend even though we never met in person. 

On the net Chris seemed to be everywhere. He had a couple of regular baseball card blogs, two music blogs and my favorite Stufflestreet spot... the Vintage Card site which contains a wealth of info on sets going back to the hobby's earliest days.

Chris was not yet 40 and leaves behind a daughter. As others have said far more eloquently on other blogs... RIP, Chris. You'll be missed.

My own little tribute to Chris consists of my posting some vintage cards including three of my collection of '73s and a few others. I'm pretty sure he'd have appreciated them.

1973/74 Linnett Portaits, Paul Blair & Brooks Robinson

Sports art. I've discussed it before. Charles Linnett did these portraits and they were sold in packs of three. He produced them for just about every professional team at the time. I've had these two for so long I can't remember how I got them.

Linnett's daughters are in the design business these days. Their dad died in 2006. They commented on a Bobby Orr portrait which was shown on another blog a few years back. Here is a checklist of the baseball portraits.

Here is a pic I found of the original packaging: