Innholdsfortegnelse for June 15, 2023 i Sports Collectors Digest

LEADING OFF I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all-time leading rusher. This column was supposed to be about Smith’s remarkable memorabilia collection and the Notable Live company he started to sell his own collectibles and help other professional athletes. Then Jim Brown, one of the greatest players in the history of the NFL, passed away on May 18. If there is one man Smith would step aside for, it’s the man who paved the way for him and other great NFL running backs. Smith is the only NFL player to rush for more than 18,000 yards, 6,000 more than Brown. Yet, Jim Brown was widely regarded as not only the best running back of all time, but arguably the greatest…

NOTE: If you have a show listing, follow the style below and send to jowens@aimmedia.com. ALABAMA June 10-11 AL, Huntsville. The Flip Sports Card & Collectibles Trade Show, Von Braun Center — East Hall. SH: Sat: 10am-5pm; Sun: 11am-5pm. T: 300 ($150) A: $10 first hour; $7 after. Contact: Daniel TheFlip-TradeShow@Gmail.com June 17 AL, Scottsboro. Scottsboro Sports Card & Memorabilia Show, Goose Pond Civic Center, 1165 Ed Hembree Dr., Scottsboro, AL 35769. SH: 9am-2pm. T: 150. A: Free. Contact: Stephen Moore 256-599-0989, Stephen@jacksonssports-cards.com – www.jacksonssportscards.com June 24-25 AL, Trussville (East Birmingham). The Flip Sports Card & Collectibles Trade Show, Trussville Civic Center, 5381 Trussville Clay Rd, Trussville, AL 35173. SH: Sat: 10am-5pm; Sun: 11am-4pm. T: 135+ ($120-160). A: $6. Contact: Daniel TheFlipTradeShow@Gmail.com; July 8 AL, Daphne. Gulf Coast Card Show,…

THE HOBBY IS THE PEOPLE Brody the Kid's collecting resume reads like a grizzled hobby veteran. He is 15 years old. His passion, drive and work ethic inspire even a lifer like myself. I became aware of Brody and his social media content in early 2018 and got to know him through online conversations and interactions. Seeing a 9-year-old create the hobby content he was doing was beyond impressive. While I was in the hobby at 9 there was no way this shy kid from Brooklyn could've pulled off what Brody was producing, even if social media existed in 1981. We made plans to meet at the 2018 National Sports Collectors Convention, which was in Brody's backyard of Chicago. I also got to meet his parents, Dennis and Sheri. Many…

BY LARRY CANALE larrycanale@comcast.net Pro football in the 1950s and ’60s was a different game than today. The past few decades have brought rules changes, expansion, a far more explosive passing game, and scheduling differences (the current 17-game season vs. 12 and then 14 in the 1950s and ’60s). As a result, the statistics we see now vs. those in Jim Brown’s era are an apples-and-oranges situation. To wit: Brown was the NFL’s all-time rushing leader when he retired in 1965. Today, he’s not even in the top 10. His total of 12,312 rushing yards has been surpassed by Emmitt Smith, Walter Payton and even Frank Gore, along with seven others. But make no mistake: Jim Brown is the NFL’s all-time best running back and maybe its best all-around player.…

Feelin’ the vibe. Workin’ the room. Jazz music legend Charlie Parker, a 1930s-50s saxophonist, bandleader and composer, did it all while being a tremendous improviser. No surprise Parker had a great deal to do with a classic jazz style known for improvisation, a brisk pace and rapid chord changes: bebop. Some also called it rebop or just bop. Whatever you named that genre, it bounced. Among college and pro basketball superstars who worked the hardwood while blending incredible improv skills, a fast-paced tempo and quick court changes, colorfully dribbling, passing and shooting the ball, the name Pete Maravich hits the right notes for many hoops fans. The fact that “Pistol” Pete played several of his NBA seasons in the 1970s with the Jazz (both in New Orleans and later Utah)…

EDITOR’S NOTE SCD encourages a diversity of voices and views. Please limit letters to 200-400 words and include your name, city and state. SCD reserves the right to edit all letters for length and clarity. Please email letters to jowens@aimmedia.com. The news article on Jim Brown’s death says that Brown is “arguably” the best football player of all time. In my opinion, there is no argument. He is and was the greatest, with no apologies to Tom Brady, Jim Thorpe, Walter Payton or anyone else. As a youngster living in Chicago, I grew up a Cleveland Browns fan because I idolized Otto Graham. When I went to college, I even chose Northwestern over the University of Chicago because of Graham. I thought at that time that no player would ever…

With great fanfare, Topps announced in 2021 that it was returning to the basketball arena, again issuing NBA cards after a hiatus of more than a decade. Topps is commencing what might be called its fourth “generation” of hoops cards. The third generation lasted from 1992-2010 and included countless sets and cards, many of them high-tech and premium series with names such as Chrome, Platinum, Finest and Pristine. As to be expected from their names, all of them cost much more than the few cents that first- and second-generation packs went for. The cards were too numerous and expensive for the average collector and appealed mainly to speculators looking for the next hot rookie investment. Of course, Topps’ first generation of basketball cards consisted of the single set of 80…

Nat Turner didn’t have a lot of money growing up to purchase high-end sports cards. He enjoyed heading to local card shops around The Woodlands, Texas to pick up packs of basketball and baseball cards. Turner found enjoyment in collecting base and insert cards of NBA greats Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. It wasn’t until the upstart entrepreneur sold his first company, Invite Media, when he was in his early 20s that he had some money to play with. Turner co-founded the company that Google purchased for a reported $70 million in 2010. “Without thinking, I literally just started buying one of every Jordan and Kobe card because I couldn’t afford them as a kid,” Turner told Sports Collectors Digest. “It was this weird like release where I was buying…