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Posted By: MacDisciple

In 1972 I was 10 years old and sent a letter to Topps Chewing Gum. I enclosed a nickel and asked if they could sell me a Tom Seaver card because mine was wearing out. In return I received a letter from Sy Berger (I think), two cards of Tom Seaver, my nickel, and the address for Card Collector's Company, but I don't think I ordered anything until 1974 or 1975.

Mostly, I used to send no more than $5.00 each time for probably up to 20 cards. I would order common numbers from different years without having any idea who they were, from Bowman to Topps, 1950s to the present issue. I just liked getting examples of all the different issues, but preferred certain years as well. When I figured out that Topps assigned the better players to card numbers ending in zero, I ended up getting some pretty good players. My orders would be something like: 1964 Topps #13, 20, 180; 1968 Topps #250, 280. I had no idea what I would get until I opened the package. Orders would take 7 to 10 days it seemed.

When I got a little bolder, I bought a 1967 Seaver rookie in mint condition. It couldn't have cost more than $2.00, I am thinking it was 25-cents. I also remember buying a lot of 500 mint 1967 Topps assorted which included a good number of high numbers, and a lot of 200 assorted 1969 Topps which included two Nolan Ryan cards. Both lots could not have been more than $10.00. My biggest purchase was probably a T205 Zack Wheat. I don't remember what it cost.

I do remember something about a warehouse fire and that cards with smoke damage were discounted. Around 1975 I started attending a bi-annual card shows in NY city usually at the Roosevelt Hotel. Mostly I stuck to buying star cards of the Mets, Yankeees, and Cincinatti Reds. Years later, they turned out to be a great investment.

During the early 1980s, Card Collector's Company was sold to a dealer in NYC - I don't know the name. I visited the small storefront in NYC's Greenwich Village area on a couple of occassions in 1983/1984. I was really disappointed by their inventory and started to get suspicious that the owner wasn't Richard Gelman, though I never asked. Also, at the same time, CCC was running ads on the inside front cover of SCD. Their inventory was largely reprints and the famous Fun Food buttons, and there was something else I didn't like about them...they didn't seem honest.

It was great to see the scan of the Card Collectors Company catalog. It brought back some sweet memories. Thx.