[Joe_G.]

A minor detail, of interest to but a handful of us, but a neat little clue that supports the way Jay, myself, and others have theorized 1887 zero numbered OJs were produced. As written in the OJ book, the zero numbered cards have numbers either in black or white. The black appearing numbers are speculated to have been written directly on the cabinet cards that would be re-photographed to create the cards themselves. The white appearing numbers, however, have been speculated to be the result of black ink written directly on the original cabinet sized negative. Black on a negative will develop white.

Several of the black appearing numbers can be found on 1888 Fb cards, but until now I hadn’t located a white appearing number on any 1888 cards. The attached example of Kid Madden is the first one I’ve noticed. The number is faint and suggests the card maker attempted to remove it altogether. This is what I find interesting and telling. The fact that it was nearly wiped clean (perhaps with turpentine), coupled with what appears to be some smudging residue to the left of the number supports what we have long speculated. A little Old Judge production process history.