Since 1985 in a town called Royal Oak, Michigan which is a suburb of Detroit when a young man age 10 along with his older brother 13 & mother set forth on a Sunday skipping church to attend a comic/Sport card show. This young man was seeking some new cards to add to his collection mainly Pete Rose & any other Cincinnati Reds cards from 1985. While his older brother was seeking Marvel Comic G.I. Joe #2. Well...during the show the young man's mother called him over to look at something she had found. What she found was baseball cards the young man tried not to look like he knew the crazy lady & did his best to avoid her during this conversation. He said it was up to her what she should do about it. So the mother pulled them out of the trash container placed them in a box then later in the car she handed them over for the young man to see what all in it.
In the box he saw cards ranging from 1966 Topps & 1967 Topps also including a 1957 Al Kaline & a 1958 Topps Billy Martin they went well with his 2 other pick ups from the show a 1966 Topps Pete Rose & a 1985 Fleer Update an upcoming pitcher Tom Browning rookie card of the Reds.
My Rose still sits in my old bedroom at my parents house on a bookshelf.
The Infamous 1957 Kaline that's in my PC that mom rescued.
In 1985 I only thought he was an ex-manager of the Tigers I didn't know he played for them as well until I read "Damn Yankee The Billy Martin Story" By Maury Allen. I read it so much in junior high that the librarian gave me the book for my graduation present in 1993.
5 years had passed since that show bringing us to 1990 it was then the young man decided to make sets for his collection when it was suggested by his mother that he take a chance to make the 1967 Topps Set. So it was one of the earliest sets he was making. As many of my readers have read about the task at hand & numerous times I have told the story about this caper well this last Wednesday most of you wished me a Happy Area 51 Birthday & again I can't thank you enough my readers & those of you whom left comments about it then on Friday prior to going to my new job (I still love it as of this writing lol) I stopped at Rocket Sports Cards in Howell,Michigan to finish paying off the last card that is featured on top of this posting. My 1967 Topps if you don't count that blasted card #128 Ed Spiezio rubbed out name variant is completed.
It's free again from its shackles. Heres the front view of it.
The back view from its shackles still.
As you can see its a perfect fit in its spot with the others.
I am now awaiting to hear back from SCG about the card from being eliminated from its database so they can remove it from its population reports. So I asked some of my friends whom I have contacts with on Friday what should I do with the label strip do I put it in the set so when ya go through the binder you can see what it would grade as if I never took out of its shackles let me know my reader what I should do put it in the binder or not. Also let me know what ya think of this journey my next big vintage set as most of you know is to complete the 1968 Topps set which of the date this published I am down to finding 55 cards after starting it 6 months ago & I am hoping that it doesn't take as long as the 1967 set did. Also as you read this I am heading to my favorite show in Livonia Michigan to continue to look for that card that I mentioned about otherwise like I said its complete. Until then I am reminded that what Rogers Hornsby once said about signing autographs for little kids "Any Ballplayer who doesn't sign autographs for little kids ain't an American, He's a Communist."
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