Curious about 1973 Topps distribution

[nolemmings]

My posts in another thread on distribution of 1973 Topps has sparked me to ask others who collected cards that year what they remember about obtaining them. I no longer actively collect much post-war, so I was surprised to see how there seems to be incomplete and/or inaccurate information about this set, which seems to me to have been issued not that long ago–at least not so long that there should be much mystery.

As I mentioned elsewhere, the cards were issued in one 660 card series in southern Minnesota in 1973. http://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=184104 At least one other board member recalls similar distribution in the Boston area. Please chime in with your recollections.

The so-called high numbers were clearly printed in the winter of 1972, as evidenced by the lack of player-team changes that should have been noted and made. In addition to those I mentioned in the other thread, I have since found at least two more. Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda was traded to the Red Sox by Oakland on January 18, 1973, yet his high #545 shows him in an A’s uniform and captioned with Oakland. Similarly, lesser-known pitcher Rickey Clark went from California to Philadelphia on January 29, 1973, yet he is shown in high number 636 still on the Angels. Contrast this to 1972, where a trade involving Bob Burda to Boston in late March was caught so that his high number card depicts and captions him with his new team and Ron Hansen, who never played for the Royals until being signed April 2, 1972, is nonetheless shown wearing full Royals gear in the high-numbered series (See also the McLain and Carlton traded cards). Clearly the presses stopped early in 1973 (perhaps before New Years), giving Topps the opportunity and ability to distribute all the cards at once. This also may have allowed them to devote time in the Spring for developing their various test issues from that year.

An all-at-once distribution makes sense for other reasons too. First, Topps released its complete football card set all at once for the first time in 1973, so it clearly had the idea and the ability to do so that year. If football why not baseball? Moreover, the FB card set was Topps’ largest by double or so, meaning they would have needed extra time to print the cards—which takes us back to the printing starting early because the baseball presses had fully run. Finally, I now see from the SCD catalogue that our neighbors up North issued the nearly identical (except for text) 1973 OPC baseball set of 660 cards all at once, so again the idea and ability were in place by at least the Spring. All of this confirms what some of us experienced first-hand– that the 1973 Topps baseball set was distributed all at once in certain parts of the country.

Despite this, some guides and resources seem confused and uncertain when describing this set. For one thing, Ron Erbe’s book from 1981 claims the cards were released in two series, one with card numbers 1-528 and then a second with high numbers 529-660. Erbe was writing from Iowa–who knows, maybe there was some different distribution there, although that seems lacking in evidence.

The SCD guide claims that the blue team card checklists are “generally accepted” as having been inserted in the high-numbered series, as well as being available by mail order. Generally accepted? It’s only been 40 years and there were millions of these cards produced, yet no one can state authoritatively whether these checklists were or were not in the high-series packs? By the way, I have never owned a blue team checklist, and yet assembled nearly three full sets of 1973's at the time. I submit that the only way for us “all 660 in one series” collectors to acquire these was by mail. For those of you here who collected by series in 1973, were the blue checklists in the high-series wax packs? Cellos?

Some online sources suggest that the “all 660 in one series” wrappers that are sometimes seen were issued only when the high numbers were distributed. I am skeptical, and instead believe that these sources simply haven’t accounted for the fact that some parts of the country had the whole set available all along, and are struggling for an explanation. I suppose they could have been issued in this manner also, but I would have been steamed as a kid if I waited all summer for the last series and then had to rip packs that were stuffed with retread cards from prior series I’d already put together, getting what, possibly 2 out of 10 high-series cards? Not a great marketing strategy for Topps. I suppose there could have been some sort of Christmas card packs assembled a la some sets from a little earlier in that era, but I have not heard anyone make claim to having seen such a promotion.

Anyway, those are my musings for now. Hopefully Mr. Lemke, Mr. Hornish and those others here who remember the 1973 cards can add to this discussion.

[moeson]

As a teenager living in NYC back in 1973, I used to buy rack pack boxes from a toy wholesaler on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. I recall that one of the three rack pack panes would feature cards from the next series. So 1/3 of the cards in a Series Four rack pack box would be from Series 5. I just checked a May 1973 The Trader Speaks issue which had an ad from a NY dealer selling 1973 sets for $6.99 plus 95c postage, which covered the mailing for individual series as they got released!

[nolemmings]

Thanks Howie. I completely forgot about rack packs. Seems there are many on ebay right now in the Christmas/Holiday header category, so there is that. As for those, I believe it was established that those were third-party issued and not directly from Topps, but it's been a long time since I saw a discussion on those, so I could be wrong.

There are also rack packs as you described on Ebay right now--thanks for the heads up. One of them also appears to have all low numbers in all three panes, so it seems that some may have been limited to each series.

I do not recall buying any racks in 1973, or any before 1975 for that matter. In my town the store that sold wax did not sell racks, and conversely, I'm pretty sure the stores that sold racks (I can think of three, including Woolworths) did not sell wax. Man this stuff brings back great memories! Thanks again.

[mattsedate]

Originally Posted by moeson

As a teenager living in NYC back in 1973, I used to buy rack pack boxes from a toy wholesaler on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. I recall that one of the three rack pack panes would feature cards from the next series. So 1/3 of the cards in a Series Four rack pack box would be from Series 5. I just checked a May 1973 The Trader Speaks issue which had an ad from a NY dealer selling 1973 sets for $6.99 plus 95c postage, which covered the mailing for individual series as they got released!

That's cool.

[toppcat]

The Bill Haber comments earlier in this thread are interesting. I like his list of veterans and scrubs not included in the set on the basis they might not make the big club but some of them were non-Topps signers like Rusty Staub who was an established player/star and also was not in the 1972 set.

[bigfanNY]

As a 12 year old in 1973 I was the only kid in my neighborhood my age still collecting cards that year and I remember wax coming out in series and Racks with two sections with one series and one section with another. And I do remember that I completed my set earlier than the year before. 1972 I had to rush to get packs before Football cards came out. In 73 I was complete by early summer. As for Blue checklists they were not in my area (NJ) and when I came across some at a show the next year I was all over them and have liked them ever since. How cool is Hank Aaron shagging a fly with his shades. Great set.
Jonathan

[nolemmings]

Thought I'd move the discussion about 1973 Topps from the other thread back over here-- for future reference that thread is http://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=190826

Dave's box topper insert shown above is important because it talks about the "One Series Baseball with all 660 cards" being new to '73 and tells "Mr. Retailer" that he'll get "more sales, more profits all season long". IMO, this shows that the cards were not sold with just the last series or after the season but right from the get go, which is what some of us have said all along.

It looks to me as though the printing of series 1 and 2 took place on November 29, 1972 or so, and the remaining cards were printed in the following three weeks. From October 28 to November 28, 1972, there were 42 players in the 1973 Topps set who changed teams, and all of them show correctly with their new clubs regardless of their card numbers. On November 29 and 30, there were another 26 players from the '73 set who changed teams. However, if those players' cards were issued in Series 1 or Series 2, they were stuck on their old teams, whereas those numbered 265 or higher made the change, even if they were part of the same trade. In total 12 stayed with the old and 14 showed the new team. This suggests to me that Series 1 and 2 were printed on the 29th, with Series 3-5 thereafter. There were no trades in December, 1972 involving players found in the 1973 set, so it's hard to say exactly when Series 3-5 were printed using player/team selection. However, Orlando Cepeda was released from the A's on December 18, 1972, and he is a high number card in the 1973 set (recall that Haber mentioned he regretted that Cepeda had been waived but glad the Red Sox had picked him up in January). This suggests that as of December 18 when Cepeda was let go Topps had finished printing Series 3-5. No player movement after that date was reflected on any card found in the 1973 set--by then the set was in the can, so to speak. Thus, any Spring training shots you may find in the '73 set would have been taken the preceding Spring or before.

[onlyvintage62]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

My posts in another thread on distribution of 1973 Topps has sparked me to ask others who collected cards that year what they remember about obtaining them. I no longer actively collect much post-war, so I was surprised to see how there seems to be incomplete and/or inaccurate information about this set, which seems to me to have been issued not that long ago–at least not so long that there should be much mystery.

As I mentioned elsewhere, the cards were issued in one 660 card series in southern Minnesota in 1973. http://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=184104 At least one other board member recalls similar distribution in the Boston area. Please chime in with your recollections.

The so-called high numbers were clearly printed in the winter of 1972, as evidenced by the lack of player-team changes that should have been noted and made. In addition to those I mentioned in the other thread, I have since found at least two more. Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda was traded to the Red Sox by Oakland on January 18, 1973, yet his high #545 shows him in an A’s uniform and captioned with Oakland. Similarly, lesser-known pitcher Rickey Clark went from California to Philadelphia on January 29, 1973, yet he is shown in high number 636 still on the Angels. Contrast this to 1972, where a trade involving Bob Burda to Boston in late March was caught so that his high number card depicts and captions him with his new team and Ron Hansen, who never played for the Royals until being signed April 2, 1972, is nonetheless shown wearing full Royals gear in the high-numbered series (See also the McLain and Carlton traded cards). Clearly the presses stopped early in 1973 (perhaps before New Years), giving Topps the opportunity and ability to distribute all the cards at once. This also may have allowed them to devote time in the Spring for developing their various test issues from that year.

An all-at-once distribution makes sense for other reasons too. First, Topps released its complete football card set all at once for the first time in 1973, so it clearly had the idea and the ability to do so that year. If football why not baseball? Moreover, the FB card set was Topps’ largest by double or so, meaning they would have needed extra time to print the cards—which takes us back to the printing starting early because the baseball presses had fully run. Finally, I now see from the SCD catalogue that our neighbors up North issued the nearly identical (except for text) 1973 OPC baseball set of 660 cards all at once, so again the idea and ability were in place by at least the Spring. All of this confirms what some of us experienced first-hand– that the 1973 Topps baseball set was distributed all at once in certain parts of the country.

Despite this, some guides and resources seem confused and uncertain when describing this set. For one thing, Ron Erbe’s book from 1981 claims the cards were released in two series, one with card numbers 1-528 and then a second with high numbers 529-660. Erbe was writing from Iowa–who knows, maybe there was some different distribution there, although that seems lacking in evidence.

The SCD guide claims that the blue team card checklists are “generally accepted” as having been inserted in the high-numbered series, as well as being available by mail order. Generally accepted? It’s only been 40 years and there were millions of these cards produced, yet no one can state authoritatively whether these checklists were or were not in the high-series packs? By the way, I have never owned a blue team checklist, and yet assembled nearly three full sets of 1973's at the time. I submit that the only way for us “all 660 in one series” collectors to acquire these was by mail. For those of you here who collected by series in 1973, were the blue checklists in the high-series wax packs? Cellos?

Some online sources suggest that the “all 660 in one series” wrappers that are sometimes seen were issued only when the high numbers were distributed. I am skeptical, and instead believe that these sources simply haven’t accounted for the fact that some parts of the country had the whole set available all along, and are struggling for an explanation. I suppose they could have been issued in this manner also, but I would have been steamed as a kid if I waited all summer for the last series and then had to rip packs that were stuffed with retread cards from prior series I’d already put together, getting what, possibly 2 out of 10 high-series cards? Not a great marketing strategy for Topps. I suppose there could have been some sort of Christmas card packs assembled a la some sets from a little earlier in that era, but I have not heard anyone make claim to having seen such a promotion.

Anyway, those are my musings for now. Hopefully Mr. Lemke, Mr. Hornish and those others here who remember the 1973 cards can add to this discussion.

Well Done!!!

[Rich Klein]

I am convinced, and this is only based on what I personally saw, that these blue checklists were issued only in the five series packs which included all 660cards. Nearly 20 years ago, I found a nice bunch at Orlando Sports Cards for $1 each and the owner told me he got them all the time from locals. Since those Florida packs were all inclusive. I always believed that with the cards I saw there and in Ohio (another place where all the series were distributed at the same time) they were included in the five series packs.

The other reason I believe that is they were almost impossible in the New York Metropolitan area and we almost never saw those cards in any of the 1973 collections we bought and I bought tons of 1973's over the years.

Just my opinion

Rich

[ALR-bishop]

I stopped piecing together my sets by packs and singles in 1971 and after that just bought sets, so no expertise on the underlying question. It has always been my impression that Topps did "issue" the cards in series, at least in most places. But that would not mean Topps did not issue them all at once in certain locals, since I think Todd is right that the set may have all been produced at one time. Since Topps clearly went to full distribution in 1974, maybe they were testing the different distribution method in some areas

As Todd mentioned Topps often tested and experimented with new ideas on a regional or geographic basis. In 1973, in addition to its base set Topps tried out
Candy Lids, Comics, Pin Ups, the Team Checklists and the 53 Reprints ( although the latter may have just been an item created for a function or Banquet).

[ALR-bishop]

And see what is said about the Team Checklists and the 600 packs in here

http://www.1973baseballcards.com/?p=36

[frankh8147]

Top 3 favorite Topps sets- 1952, 1956, and 1972
Least favorite- 1957, 1967, 1968

[toppcat]

Given the wide (yet limited) range of places with "All 660" packs described in this thread, it seems possible to me that Topps was testing how to do a full distribution through each of the major hubs they had at the time (three plus NY I believe) while at the same time issuing the cards in series elsewhere. Kind of like priming the pump of the jobbers as there would seemingly have to be a lot more cases of cards going to each one all at once in the "All 660" distribution. They were compressing four months of distribution into one big wave essentially, which was major change for all parties.

Can't recall if the 73's came out earlier than normal, which was usually around March 1 but I vaguely remember them being issued in series but also having a couple of Blue checklists. When I started collecting again in '81 after laying off in '76, the Blue checklists were familiar to me. I was buying packs (mostly racks but some packs from the ice cream man) on Long Island in '73 as a kid but the Blue checklists could have come from a year end dumping of cards at Newberry's or Woolworth's by Topps and I also spent summers in Massachusetts then so who knows?

A team checklist in just the "All 660" packs makes some sense though as Topps would usually try to churn each upcoming series by lagging earlier series compared to the regular checklists by 22 cards or so. But if you had all 660 cards at once, perhaos they changed tactics to let the kids know all the cards issued from their favorite team to keep them hunting.

[Rickyy]

I don't recall seeing any blue team checklists at all when I was actually piecing the set together as a kid back in N. Calif in 1973...and I bought tons of packs. I do specifically recall buying a mixed series rack pack at a toy store in Sunnyvale, CA back then. It contained a mixture of Semi High and High Number cards.

Ricky Y

[esquiresports]

Maybe everyone knows this or it's been written in this thread, but Topps definitely distributed in series (one through five) and an all-in-one series. OPC is all-in-one series only. I do not know where the all series boxes were released. They are relatively uncommon in my experience.

Note how the OPC box says "team checklist in every pack." If this carried over to the Topps version, it could explain the source of the blue checklists.

I am attaching photos of my second series box (labeled as such), my fourth series box (black "hey kids") tab, and empty all-series box (pink "hey kids" tab and note the all series designation on the box side). I know first series had a tab that said "1st Series" because I lost out on an auction for one. Still sad about that.

I am also attaching an empty OPC box and OPC pack. The Topps version of this pack is very similar looking, but I don't own one.

[blackandgold]

I love these threads that take me back to my childhood of busting packs. I could be wrong, but in my little town in north central PA, I believe the 1973's were still done in series. I got very few high numbers.
The grocery store sold wax all the time, and once in a great while would have rack packs. However, for cello, I had to wait until my parents went to the town 15 miles away to grab those. I would spend the whole time in that store searching the cellos for Pirates on the top or bottom. And that store sold only cellos. Strange the things you remember !

[Lueth2048]

For a long time I believed that 1973 was the first Topps set issued in one series. I was nine in 1973 and it was the second set that I collected. I lived in the Cleveland area and I remember 1973 being issued all at once and the blue checklist cards being available all summer. I also remember Topps commercials from that year touting the end of series distribution.

I remember older kids in the neighborhood saying that collecting in 1973 was a lot easier then in years past. I know in 1972, at least, that the high numbers reached our neighborhood because I remember getting some of the traded cards.