Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
It's an astonishing collection. Hats off to him. What has me wondering is exactly what a young Joel Platt or a young Barry Halper said to the families of sports legends to persuade the families to give them some of these items.
"Hello, Mrs. Wagner, you don't know me, but I'm a teenage collector of sports memorabilia, and even though I'm too young to have seen your late husband play, I would really, really, love for you to give me some of his game used equipment, trophies, and uniforms. " "Sure thing, young man, here are some of family heirlooms. Can I help you get them into your car? Or would you prefer to take our car?"
|
You have to remove your modern collecting ideology. Keep in mind that in the 1950s and 1960s other than cards, there was no built-in hobby for memorabilia like in the present day - especially game worn/used items. There are numerous examples throughout the years of jerseys worn by very famous players being recycled to farm clubs and minor league teams. These were utilitarian items... not collectibles. The overwhelming majority of people put very little to no monetary value on these pieces, including the families of ex-players. Sure, items were kept for posterity or as souvenirs, but the thinking that these items had market value didn't exist to most, hence, they were easy to give away, with most families probably just thankful that someone took an interest in their relative.
A further footnote may relate to the general custom in the past of gifting items by the players themselves, something somewhat lost in today's heavily-monetized era.
Case in point, imagine an athlete trying to charge for autographs during the 1950s.... now imagine athletes NOT charging for autographs today....
it's a completely different hobby now.