I mentioned previously that I wasn't able to chase these cards as a kid since we didn't buy the products, but there is more. We started going to card shows in 1975. These events were nothing like today's events. In 1975 there might have been people selling newer cards, but I don't remember much about that.
What I remember is seeing stacks and stacks of old baseball cards everywhere. Some people had albums and pages of some kind, but most of the cards were just in stacks on the dealer tables. My normal $20 - 35 would certainly all be spent, but I don't think I ever bought a card newer than 1969.
Once a dealer was treating us like we didn't know our stuff so we asked him about a 1933 Goudey Lou Gehrig. I wasn't going to spend all of my money on one card but when he told us $50 we debated for a while whether we should pool our money and buy it. No, I was (and still am) too cheap to do that. I rarely spent more than $2 on any card. Instead I bought a bunch of cheap cards that probably had soft corners.
Back to the Lou Gehrig card, one of my favorites.
#14 - Lou Gehrig
Great photos on the front and back. He died from a paralyzing disease which caused him to retire after the 1939 season. His 2,130 games streak is mentioned too.
The career highlights start by mentioning Wally Pipp and his headache. Gehrig played every day until asking manager Joe McCarthy to take him out in early May of 1939. He stayed with the team all season, but he never played again.
After his retirement he was immediately named to the Hall of Fame in a Special Election. No vote counts are shown on baseball-reference.com. Only one other player has been named to the Hall of Fame via a Special Election - Roberto Clemente.
The card mentions Lou Gehrig day and Babe's 60-homer season when Gehrig took home the MVP Award.
One last Gehrig story. About 30 years ago I had my hands on a Ruth/Gehrig ball and a ball from the entire Yankees team from one of those years. How? A friend's grandmother was a classmate and friend of Gehrig's from Columbia University. It was cool to hold them knowing that they were authentic. Those baseballs weren't going to leave that family, which is awesome. I wonder if they still have them? If they lived in my area I would certainly find out.
One of my all-time favorite Kellogg's cards.
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