Further Thoughts about Red Cobb with Cobb back

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Posted By: Frank Wakefield

Well I once, years ago, thought of the Ty Cobb wTC back card as a T206. When I learned they had glossy fronts, I wondered about it... and why no other players, just Ty.

For some reason I thought Ty, or some friend of his, got a "Ty Cobb" brand tobacco product going (which had to involve Ty's agreement so he either was in on ownership to some extent himself, or he got paid for it), and they got some cards printed. Not very many, or we'd see lots of them. Maybe only a few were printed as a novelty for the owners. At that point in time, cards weren't a necessary component for a product to be competitive. Since the cards look like the T213s, I used to perceive them as contemporary, which would have been after T206 and after the American Tobacco Trust.

So I like Richard's idea of T213-4. Hadn't thought of that, seems reasonable. Seems a great idea!

Scot is right on with the idea that The TC w TC back card doesn't meet the criteria of other T206s, it shouldn't be in the set.

Ted Z points out how the card even feels different, and in times past it was not considered part of T206.


I recall the first time I held a T213 Coupon card. I thought it was a funny T206, looked like them. Same size. But the blue names, the crackly coating on the front. And "Coupon" backs have the same style and period feel as does Cycle, Carolina Brights, Old Mill... Coupon fits right in. But when I get done thinking about how much a Coupon card was like a T206, I could see that it wasn't one.

And that is what we have here. Wanting it to be part of it doesn't make it so. And it might be good one day if the guidebooks gave it a separate designation.

Frank.