c 1921-1923 UNIVERSAL TOY & NOVELTY CO. BASEBALL STRIP CARDS

-
I collected cards for over 45 years.  I was given this card to me by my great grandfather over 40 years ago.  I have been searching for years to determine if there are others out there. No one at any show could ever produce one that was similar or close. This may be one and only. I have had many offers over the years. But I could not part with this card. What do you think it is? Any help appreciated. 



This is an uncatalogued, 4 in 1 card, made for/by Universal Toy & Novelty Co out of Chicago, ILL. A 6 in 1 card has also been found. In 1925, Universal Toy & Novelty distributed catalogued (W504) team sets of strip cards of The Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Yankees, New York Giants and Washington Senators. This grouping of 4 in 1's, similar to the later 1935 Goudey 4 in 1's, is not listed in the Standard Catalog of Vintage Baseball Cards. 
At a minimum, Universal Toy put these cards in a "Universal Surprise Box" toy, which was full of little booklets, toys, actor strip cards and even a 4 in 1 card of boxers. It is entirely possible, of course, that Universal Toy distributed these cards in other fashions. 
SCG (Sportscard Guaranty) seems to be the only grading company that has validated and graded these examples. A graded, cut out, Ty Cobb is currently on E-bay listed for $300. There is no doubt that any examples of this group of cards are rare. 

Your sheet contains Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, Dave Bancroft and Grover Cleveland Alexander. 
Other known produced players were: Babe Ruth, Zach Wheat, Tris Speaker, Ray Schalk, Lee Meadows, Steve O' Neil, Eddie Collins, Heine Groh and Rabbit Maranville. 

I have provided you a picture of the Universal Surprise Box and contents from net54baseball.com, a great forum site. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Denkert Signature Model Baseball Gloves - Ultimate Resource

-
Image
Denkert Sporting Goods Company made signature model baseball gloves from the 1920's thru the 1960's out of Johnstown and Gloversville, NY. I have compiled a listing of over 546 player-endorsed glove models manufactured by Denkert. Their Pro Master, Pro Maker and Sure Trap models were also made for private brands  It would only make sense that being located in New York, Denkert would have a Mickey Mantle endorsement. In fact, 24 different Mantle models have been discovered, including exclusive store models. Denkert did not get a lot of endorsements from other major stars, but, seemed to sign contracts with minor stars such as Pee Wee Reese, Al Rosen, Phil Rizzuto, Bill Skowron (18 known models), Bobby Richardson and Red Schoendienst. Reese was a favorite, having no less than 25 different model numbers over the years. They also got endorsements from more common players than most other glove makers such as Vic Wertz, Danny O'Connell, Del Rice, Jim Landis, Chet La...
Read more

STARKIE'S JOLLY NIGGER BANK - ORIGINAL IDENTIFIED v. OLD REPRODUCTION

-
In the process of liquidating a living estate, we came upon a rare and original Starkie's Jolly Nigger (Moves Ears) Mechanical Bank. The bank was patented in 1920 by Robert Eastwood Starkie of Burnley, England (British Pat No 152,588). All known banks were made of Aluminum. In 1945, a patent was issued to Robert Patterson Starkie for a similar bank. This is the bank that is most often seen in Antique and Collectible circles and is often mistaken for the original from 1920, even by major auction houses. At first glance from the front, the banks look identical. However, there are at least 8 differences: 1) Original: Ears are located closer to the eyes. A "V" shaped section from the back half of the casting fits into a "V" groove in the front half. Later Version: Ears are located in the middle of the castings. 2) Original: Back has the inscription: "Starkie's Pat No 152,588" Later Version: Blank back. 3) Original: Base plate has circular holes and is ...
Read more