1966 & 1968 Mantles - Same Photoshoot??

[JollyElm]

It was mentioned in the pickup thread how similar the 1966 and 1968 Mantle Topps cards were, so I decided to put something together for everyone's edification.

This gif was created because I have always been convinced that the 1966 and 1968 shots were taken only moments apart at The Stadium. One with the stands in the background and then, "Hey, Mick, we need some better aesthetics. Let's shift this around a little to see the blue skies and a bit of the skyline. Winner! Winner! Chicken dinner!" The stance is so ridiculously similar that it almost seems like he was standing on a 'Lazy Susan' and the photog simply spun him a tad to face the other direction.

Just focus your eyes on the dark shirt in the foreground covering his arm/elbow and see how perfectly the two match. That's what I concentrated on in making this (albeit quick) comparison. (You can also see the identical areas of shirt hanging in front of his belt and matching folds and wrinkles all over the place.)



Don't want to get too far ahead of my skis, but I say case closed!