The official Mickey Mantle Pickup Thread. All Mick, all the time!

[swarmee]

1963 Post - [Base] #15 - Mickey Mantle [Poor]
Courtesy of COMC.com

Here's my latest pickup (only $33), and a good question. Why is the 1963 Post Mantle so much rarer than the 1963 Jell-O? This is the first Post that COMC has had in 10 years, compared to about 20 of the Jell-O in the same timeframe.
https://www.comc.com/Cards,sr,=1963+...mantle,ot,i100

Only 6 Posts on the PSA Auction Prices Realized, and even Auth ones have sold for $267 in the past.

https://www.psacard.com/auctionprice.../values/654430

Usually the Post cards are much more prevalent, for other players. Did Post just screw up and put The Mick on a low selling cereal or was he short-printed that year? Was there a hoarder at one time, who cleared the market in the 80s/90s?

[clydepepper]

1969 Topps 500- MICKEY MANTLE PSA-6.jpg

[mickey7mantle7]

Deleted

[swarmee]

Those are some super high eye appeal cards. Really well registered with clean surfaces. Can't even figure out what made the top two 5s instead of 7s.

[mickey7mantle7]

Originally Posted by swarmee

Those are some super high eye appeal cards. Really well registered with clean surfaces. Can't even figure out what made the top two 5s instead of 7s.

I agree Swarmee...i agree...

[brian1961]

Originally Posted by swarmee

1963 Post - [Base] #15 - Mickey Mantle [Poor]
Courtesy of COMC.com

Here's my latest pickup (only $33), and a good question. Why is the 1963 Post Mantle so much rarer than the 1963 Jell-O? This is the first Post that COMC has had in 10 years, compared to about 20 of the Jell-O in the same timeframe.
https://www.comc.com/Cards,sr,=1963+...mantle,ot,i100

Only 6 Posts on the PSA Auction Prices Realized, and even Auth ones have sold for $267 in the past.

https://www.psacard.com/auctionprice.../values/654430

Usually the Post cards are much more prevalent, for other players. Did Post just screw up and put The Mick on a low selling cereal or was he short-printed that year? Was there a hoarder at one time, who cleared the market in the 80s/90s?

Good afternoon, John. Congratulations upon your acquiring one of the tougher Mickey Mantles. I devoted chapter 15 of my book on immediate post-war regional / food issues to this very question. Both Mantle and Roger Maris are exceedingly difficult in the 1963 Post Cereal set, whereas their respective JELL-O cards are easy-weezy.

Would you care to purchase a copy of NEVER CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN to see what I had to say about it? Of course, it would cost you $30 postpaid, a mere three bucks less than you paid for your Mick. That would kinda sting. Being an honest man, I have to say your guess is correct---Mr. Mantle was printed on a very, very, very non-kid cereal.

Regardless of what you decide, nice pick-up.

For what it's worth, bro, when I attended the major shows I was privileged to attend from 1972 - 1977, I collected regional - food, Topps test issues, and other superstars. Mickey's beautiful 1962 Post Cereal was "all over the place"; however, his elegant 1963 Post I say a whopping one time! I failed to bag it then, as my funds were running low by the time I spotted it. I had to wait 25 long years 'til '98-'99 to win one in a Mastro Fine Sports Auction. It was a regal graded beauty, and worth the wait!

Hope I didn't bore you. Have a swell day and thanks for sharing with us.

---Brian Powell

P.S. --- John, I neglected to mention the title of that fifteenth chapter: Now You See Them, Now You Don't ---- 1963 Post Cereal Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle

[swarmee]

I figured you might know the answer. I do need to purchase your book. I'll send a PM.

[bswhiten]

Love seeing all of the Mantle pickups on this thread!
Picked up the blue back 52-55 Dormand Mick Bat on shoulder postcard.
I knew SCD listed the blue & green variation of the 53 Dormand Mantle Bat on shoulder, but didn't realize the other differences until i had it in hand.

Blue compared to green back:
Front
-Zoomed out image
-Auto is larger
-The color is unique on the blue compared to the green and giants - hard to tell unless under magnification

Back
-Blue color and smaller & different type font than others
-Long dash after Mick's weight on blue not on others
-Number at center bottom is different (anyone know what those numbers meant?)

Picked up one of the HI coasters i didn't have to add to the others.

A nice 55 Exhibits PC back "Mutoscope" recently arrived from PSA And just got back a bunch of the new Jumbo slabs.

[DJCollector1]

So I started working on a Mickey Mantle "display piece" for my living room. (Hence the inclusion in this thread)


Here are a few recent snags.......











Nothing Earth-shattering, but I am mostly looking for decent eye-appeal cards in mid to low grades raw. I am saving my higher grade stuff for my PC to be tucked away. There won't be any "PSA 9s" in my display, but thats by design.

More to come shortly.

[Bestdj777]

Ben, great stuff. Congrats! Is there a variation with the Giant and mid size or just the regular size?

[KendallCat]

Been working for a while to try to find some centered Mantles from the 50’s and here is my collection to date. Hardest to find have been he 56 and 57, and the 58 is one of the best I have seen in any grade.

[bswhiten]

Originally Posted by Bestdj777

Ben, great stuff. Congrats! Is there a variation with the Giant and mid size or just the regular size?

The only difference in my largest ones is the photo is a bit (1/4") higher on one.

[AustinMike]

Originally Posted by bswhiten

Love seeing all of the Mantle pickups on this thread!
Picked up the blue back 52-55 Dormand Mick Bat on shoulder postcard.
I knew SCD listed the blue & green variation of the 53 Dormand Mantle Bat on shoulder, but didn't realize the other differences until i had it in hand.

Blue compared to green back:
Front
-Zoomed out image
-Auto is larger
-The color is unique on the blue compared to the green and giants - hard to tell unless under magnification

Back
-Blue color and smaller & different type font than others
-Long dash after Mick's weight on blue not on others
-Number at center bottom is different (anyone know what those numbers meant?)

Picked up one of the HI coasters i didn't have to add to the others.

A nice 55 Exhibits PC back "Mutoscope" recently arrived from PSA And just got back a bunch of the new Jumbo slabs.

Ben, as always, very interesting. Forced me to take a closer look at my small Dormund post cards. I have three of them.

The top one I got first. Then later on I picked up the second one in a group lot and noticed that the color was different from the first. I didn't bother looking any closer. The card on the bottom is the one I got last. I picked it up because of the writing on the back and post mark. I see now that I have three variations of the post card. In the top card, on the back bottom left is the same marking as on the larger post cards. It has a K in a diamond to the left of the publishing information. Same number in the center back as in the larger cards. The middle one does not have the K but has the same number in the back center. The bottom one does not have the K, has a different number, and as you noticed, is blue and not green. Based on the post mark date, it is probably earlier than the others.

[clydepepper]

1963 Topps 200- MICKEY MANTLE EXMT-NM.jpg

[bswhiten]

Originally Posted by AustinMike

Ben, as always, very interesting. Forced me to take a closer look at my small Dormund post cards. I have three of them.

The top one I got first. Then later on I picked up the second one in a group lot and noticed that the color was different from the first. I didn't bother looking any closer. The card on the bottom is the one I got last. I picked it up because of the writing on the back and post mark. I see now that I have three variations of the post card. In the top card, on the back bottom left is the same marking as on the larger post cards. It has a K in a diamond to the left of the publishing information. Same number in the center back as in the larger cards. The middle one does not have the K but has the same number in the back center. The bottom one does not have the K, has a different number, and as you noticed, is blue and not green. Based on the post mark date, it is probably earlier than the others.

Ha...I didn't see the K difference but luckily I have that one on my graded example! Nice catch.
The color photo of my "K" PC looks washed out compared to the other two.

BTW I love the written note on the PC! Awesome.

[Bestdj777]

Originally Posted by bswhiten

Ha...I didn't see the K difference but luckily I have that one on my graded example! Nice catch.
The color photo of my "K" PC looks washed out compared to the other two.

BTW I love the written note on the PC! Awesome.

Nice, my green one with a “K” looks washed out as well, so probably how it was produced. Fortunately, I’m a hoarder and had two of the three. Now to find the green without the K...