1979 Calbee Japanese Baseball #5, Kyosuke Sasaki

This close-up batting portrait shows Japanese veteran Kyosuke Sasaki in the colorful, Expos-like uniform for one of Osaka's two teams of that era, the Kintetsu Buffaloes. That star-crossed franchise later merged with Orix BlueWave, starting play as Orix Buffaloes in 2005. (If the BlueWave name sounds familiar, it's best known in America as Ichiro's pre-MLB team.)

Such a serious face, grrrr! A better look at Kintetsu's full uniform appears on this Calbee card from a 1975-76 set. 

1975-76 Calbee (JC4) #558

Sasaki logged a decade with these Buffaloes and wore #5, hence its card number. The card back talks about his team's opportunities and personal record, including what might be a jab at year-to-year batting inconsistency. He straightened things out with three straight .300+ campaigns (1978-80) and retired after 1981, moving into new roles as coach and manager. The rest of his card's a general invitation for collectors to mail in names of their favorite players, with a promise Calbee would publish popular choices later that year.

The company produced a modest 48 cards for this set and four different players share #5, all guys who wore that uniform number for their squads. Give the TCDB checklist's paucity of gallery images, I assume 1979's somewhat harder to find than other 1970s Calbee sets.

• Adrian Garrett (Hiroshima Toyo Carp)
• Yasunori Ishima (Chunichi Dragons)
• Kyosuke Sasaki (Kintetsu Buffaloes)
• Fujio Sumi (Yakult Swallows)

Cards for Kyosuke Sasaki include the 1979 TCMA Japanese Pro Baseball set (set profile) and what looks like an early 1970s Buffaloes team issue.

Value: This Calbee card cost $3.65 on eBay, about what I expect for overseas singles of lesser-known guys. The priciest Buffaloes player from any year might be Hideo Nomo, ace of their staff prior to his move to LA in 1995, and 1979's top Calbee card is likely slugger Sadaharu Oh.

Fakes/reprints: Sadaharu Oh might be 1979's one player with counterfeit risk. Type collectors should stick to someone lower-profile or work with a dealer who knows Japanese issues well.

1949-50 World Wide Gum NHL Ice Stars Wrappers #5, Milton "Milt" Schmidt

My main goal remains to finish a collection of baseball #5s, but Oh Boy, some other sports prove too interesting to ignore!

Many prewar collectors consider Canadian card company World Wide Gum (WWG) a close sibling of Boston-based Goudey Gum, based on their well-known card sets. WWG licensed multiple years of Big League Gum cards from Goudey, as well as popular products like the one-cent standby Oh Boy Gum. That particular penny gum sold well for decades, long enough that WWG innovated in their own way by printing hockey profiles inside wrappers in English and French. Their set of 48 includes many stars from that 1949-50 season (TCDB set gallery).

Bruins center/centre Milton Schmidt, whose #15 they since retired, sandwiched 17 NHL seasons around three years of Canadian military service for WWII. He won the Hart Memorial Trophy as NHL MVP a season after this particular wrapper came out and remained connected to the Boston organization for over 70 years, passing at age 98 in 2017.

While I'm sure many Schmidt autographs exist, signed Ice Stars wrappers must be few and far between.  I spotted this scan on an auction site some years back and PSA's autograph registry shows one certified signed #5, so this appears to be the sole example! It would be amazing indeed to add this type to my collection.

Value: It remains hard to value things seen in such small quantities. As a well-known Hall of Famer, scarce Milt Schmidt cards will command a high price. Lesser-known wrappers from this set could be more reasonable.

Fakes / reprints: I'm not sure if reprinting or faking a set so obscure would be worth the time and effort. Be sure to purchase something this rare from a dealer or collector you trust.

Baseball TTM from Richard Billings (Dec 1972 Sport Grafica cover story)

How many of these Sport Grafica magazines are still around? At least one I picked up from eBay to feed my research into Grafica winter league photo sets. This 15-Dec issue sits about halfway through their 1972-73 season (set profile).

Richard Billings (career stats) satisfied my autograph request in less than two weeks with this handwritten letter.

Thanks for your letter. How did you get this magazine? More importantly, why would you want this magazine? I still have a couple of those magazines that I brought back from Maracaibo, Venezuela, but never really knew the translation. I appreciate you translating this for me, Rich Billings

Mr. Billings garnered this cover story thanks to his Yogi-like role as player-manager, taking over Las Aguilas de Zulia after Larry Doby failed to find success.

Expand to enjoy Google's stab at translation

A leader of men and mustaches

This writer made key points about how catchers track pitchers as they tire and why managers need great assistant coaches. Reading between the lines, Billings might've leaned on his staff's expertise in ways Doby failed to do. Its closing note about Richard's ability to motivate players and inspire positivity explains how he became a Venezuelan fan favorite across multiple seasons in Maricaibo.

Richard's onfield interview from June 1972 mentions his Venezuelan club and gives you a feel for his personality. This 1974-75 winter league "sticker" (set profile) shows some Las Aguilas uniform and ballpark.

Thanks again to Mr. Billings! Always fun to add something so unusual to one's collection.

1972-73 Sport Grafico Venezuelan Winter League Baseball #5, Manny (J. Marcano) Trillo

The deeper I look into 1970s baseball, the more its collectibles reflect an era of complex regional relationships for sports and its fans. Today's 1972-73 Venezuelan winter league set contains dozens of familiar names competing in a country far fewer Americans would visit today. Local magazine Sport Gráfico covered those leagues in detail, making them a natural fit for baseball collectibles.

At time of writing, offered at $350 OBO on eBay 

This November 1972 issue celebrates Gonzalo Marquez's productive late-season hitting for the first of Oakland's three consecutive World Championships and shows off their classic gold-and-green look. 

This set's #5 features Venezuelan native and future four-time MLB All-Star Manny Trillo.

Let's look at several nine-player sheets Gráfico printed that year, starting the 18 players from 24-Nov. Dwight Evans and Dick Pole fans, rejoice! (Also see Dewey's more colorful 1972 Topps knockoff card from that winter season.)

"Recorta por la linea de puntos" means "cut along the dotted line."

The 1972-73 set includes several umpires, distinct in their black-billed caps. #130 Armando Rodriguez officiated for two decades in Venezeula and several other pro leagues.

"Joven el deporte es vida" translates as "youth sports is life," a Gráfico motto

Note Grafico jumbled player numbers within each issue and 24-Nov ranges from #25 Pole to #138 Bumbry.

• 25 Dick Pole
• 32 Bobby Mitchell
• 41 Enrique Gonzalez
• 67 Dwight Evans
• 84 Faustino Zabala
• 94 Jim Holt
• 99 Luis Rodriguez
• 104 Juan Francia
• 109 Jose Lopez
• 113 Larry Bittner (Biittner)
• 116 Francisco Borges
• 120 Luis Rivas
• 121 Simon Barreto
• 123 Bruce Heinbechner
• 126 Iran Paz
• 130 Armando Rodriguez
• 133 Hector Artiles
• 138 Al Bumbry

More Gráfico player photos hit newsstands on January 5, 1973.

As of writing, offered at $200 OBO on eBay

Its photos include Dagoberto (Bert) Campaneris, who also starred for the aforementioned 1970s Oakland A's champions, and played all nine positions in one game on September 8, 1965 (box score).

This issue's numbers page tailed off somewhat, leaving a blank next to ex-Padres manager Preston Gomez. Number #252 went to Venezuelan star and Big Red Machine stalwart, Dave Concepcion, kittycorner from Bill "Spaceman" Lee.

It appears Gráfico pulled a number altogether to leave that blank, so I think its checklist contains 251 players. At least they kept the ocular intensity of #233 Rafael Alvarez!

That leaves 17 total players for 5-Jan's sheets.

• NNO Harold McRae
• 196 Richard Henniger
• 201 Barry Lersch
• 206 Ramon Webster
• 212 Harold Hunter
• 219 Charles Murray
• 221 Dagoberto Campaneris
• 223 Jose Carvajal
• 231 George Manz
• 232 Duriel Durand
• 233 Rafael Alvarez
• 242 Garry Raziano
• 243 Preston Gomez
• 248 Bill Lee
• 249 Emilio Rodriguez
• 251 Rafael Camejo
• 252 David Concepcion

Google's translation of this Spanish trading card catalog hints why we see that "unfinished" page.

"Series edited and produced by the magazine Sport Gráfico...inserted in the aforementioned magazine, with weekly 18 cut-out cards and 18 spaces numbered for the preparation of the album. The first came with magazine No. 387, dated 14th October, 1972, and the last one with No. 400 of 5th January, 1973. There were 14 in total for a set of 252 pieces and 13 for the preparation of the album. One was missing to complete it and that's why it remained at 234."

Date TBD for these sheets, who eBay scans are missing its dated Sport Grafico cover.

• ?? Enrique Guterriez
• 10 Alexis Corro
• 30 Ken Forsch
• 43 Graciano Ravelo
• 65 Gustaso Sposito
• 77 Olinto Rojas
• 80 Edward Janson
• 87 Juan Loaiza
• 89 Armando Chacon
• 92 Alfredo Ortiz
• 95 Urbano Lugo
• 101 Pablo Torrealba
• 107 Victor Colina
• 108 Dick Lange
• 111 Jose Martinez
• 115 Franklyn Moreno
• 118 Alberto Cambero
• 144 Virgilio Mata

My collection consists of one issue from 15-Dec, featuring Venezuelan fan favorite Dick Billings, who signed it by mail in October 2024!

This issue contains two blank album pages, #145-162.

#159 Teodoro Obregón notes his "ocho hits seguidos" (eight consecutive hits), a nice feat for any pro player.

Photo sheets from 15-December include personal faves Diego Segui and Jose Cardenal. #29 Walt "No Neck" Williams features one of this set's better portraits.

#174 Camilo Pascual continued to pitch in Venezuelan leagues after his major league career ended in 1971.

Of 15-Dec's 18 players, five in bold fit into its centerfold album. Others go with ealier or later issues.

• 13 Toby Harrah
• 28 Walter Williams
• 82 Carlos Avila
• 97 Lew Krausse
• 125 Pablo Torrealba
• 134 Diego Segui
• 139 John Lowenstein
• 145 Arquilio Freites
• 148 Leopoldo Tovar
• 160 Elias Lugo
• 161 Evangelista Nuñez
• 162 Leonel Carrion
• 165 Pancho Lopez
• 167 Jose Cardenal
• 168 Charles Day
• 172 Nelson Caras
• 174 Camilo Pascual
• 177 Ed Sprague

The cover of 19-Jan issue #402 celebrated league champs Caracas.

Album pages run #19-36, a late date for these early set numbers.

Its photo sheets include the aforementioned Richard Billings. Sorry to say the lower quality of available scans leave some names unclear.

As before, some of its numbers fit into the issue's own #19-36 number range.

• 3 V. Acosta
• 4 Richard Billings
• 8 Ely Infante
• 20 Digoberto Mendoza
• 22 Alfonso Collazo
• 26 Neudo Morales
• 31 Antonio Correa
• 34 Oswaldo Troconis
• 36 Remigio ??
• 40 Ossie Virgil
• 49 Hector Fultiro
• 50 Con. Escobar
• 61 C. Torieto
• 74 Carlde Pascual
• 75 Francisco Navas
• ?? Damaso Blanco
• ?? Nelson Garcia
• ?? Juan J. Rivas Frim

I'll update this post as more complete photo and album sheets surface. If you enjoy vintage Venezuelan ball, check out Historias del beisbol en Venezuela at Facebook, where I found Enos Cabell's .380 batting average from that 1972-73 season and plenty more.

Value: I bought my 15-Dec issue on eBay for $50, which came with two complete sheets. While I know of online scans for #5 Trillo, the card itself proves elusive.

Fakes / reprints: Modern counterfeits exist for at least one other South American set, so purchase hard-to-find type cards like these from dealers you trust.

2021 and 2023 TTM autographs from Vern Law and Pittsburgh's fielding safety helmets

Our hobby's fortunate several 1950s veterans remain with us who sign through the mail (TTM) in 2023. Pittsburgh Pirate pitcher Vern Law's own history goes all the way back to 1951 Bowman and he signs for $10/card to support his son's cancer care and no doubt pay other living costs that come from being 93 years old. Check out some of those card inscriptions! (Comeback Player of the Year, Lou Gehrig Award, 1960 World Series Champ, Cy Young, 2x All-Star, etc.)

My 2021 return from Vern Law

Edited letter from Vern: "Our son is home with us and is doing quite well under the circumstances, as when the doctor opened up his chest he couldn't believe he was still alive with all the damage he saw -- he spent 7 straight hours repairing all the damage -- it was a marathon operation -- it's hard to just watch 7 jours of TV let alone working on an intense operation like that. To me it's a miracle and an answer to prayers."

Last month, I found four more cards at New England's biggest annual show, including two 1953 Topps Archives "expansion" series and a 1979 TCMA Japan Pro Baseball card from two years coaching the Seibu Lions in Japan, and asked him about that experience. (I majored in Japanese, so like to know how others intersect with their culture.)

Vern: "I enjoyed my 2 years there in Japan. They wanted me to sign a ten year contract -- I said no -- as if you don't like me you can send me home -- if I don't like you I stay home. I was promised they'd take care of my taxes -- etc. -- they did care of Japanese tax, but not US taxes, so with that problem -- I stayed home and coached here at Brigham Young University. The kids were great to work with and with what I taught them they won the Championship in 1981 [ed note: they won in 1982] so I did have a good impact on the way the pitchers approached how to get their hitters out. Their system was totally different than ours."

Several mid-50s cards show Vern wearing Pittsburgh's on-field safety helmet, the same style later sported full-time by select players like John Olerud.

While Pittsburgh failed to get player buy-in for this protection back in the 1950s, enough guys wore it during spring training to show up on many 1950s Pirate cards. I'm surprised their MLB uniform history lacks those details!

Keith Olbermann's baseball blog, Baseball Nerd, covered Branch Rickey and Pirate fielding helmets in detail in 2013, in the context of contemporary and vintage pitchers struck by line drives. 

Pirates fans could build a solid collection of fielding helmets without spending more than a few bucks per card! Let me know if you take on that challenge.

1923-24 Tomás Gutiérrez (Cuban cigars) Baseball #5, Dave Brown

While my type collection might never include this hobby rarity, it deserves a profile on its own merits and for those of its subject, Dave Brown.

First excelling on independent teams in the 1910s, Brown's star burned brightest for Rube Foster's American Giants, winner of the first three Negro National League titles (1920-22). He might well reach the Hall of Fame, given sufficient time and career examination by their election committee.

Havana-based tobacco company Tomás Gutiérrez published this set of 1923-24 winter league players and each back explains that collectors of complete sets could redeem them for a display album. Hake's Auctions sold one SGC-graded collection of all 84 known numbers in 2014. That listing and this Flickr album provide good pictures of most cards.

The collector album shows players by team, two pages each, with Brown's photo taken against a studio backdrop, while others stood next to an outdoor stadium or building.

1923-24 Santa Clara team (detail from Christie's album auction)

Gutiérrez released this set at a high point for Cuban winter league ball, as explained in Brown's SABR profile by Frederick C. Bush.

"[Dave] Brown, [Oliver] Marcell, and [Bill] Holland were three of the numerous Negro League players who joined the Santa Clara squad for the 1923-24 Cuban winter season...finishing in first place with a 36-11 record. In fact, this Santa Clara squad came to be “[c]onsidered as the most dominant team ever in the history of Cuban baseball by amassing an 11½ game bulge over their nearest rival." Bill Holland led the team and league in wins with a 10-2 record, Rube Currie contributed an 8-2 mark, and Brown finished with a 7-3 ledger.

The 1923-24 Cuban season was such a popular success that fans clamored for more baseball, and a special season, named Gran Premio, was quickly arranged. Santa Clara finished with a 13-12 record that enabled it to edge out Almendares by a slim half-game margin. Brown (4-2) and Holland (4-3) tied for the team lead in wins in this second season."

A handful of graded examples exist for almost #1-85, with none at all known for #84. I've seen just one #5 Dave Brown card in person. Given that scarcity, my shot at this type card will rest on good "chance" fortune, good "money" fortune, or some of each!

Value: In today's market, you can expect to pay hundreds for individual cards and far higher for Hall of Famers, reflecting its quality player selection and good images for that era. Brown will cost me thousands, if that opportunity even presents itself.

Fakes / reprints: I know of no official reprints. Many Negro League collectors possess considerable knowledge about this era's sets and players, making it risky to attempt fakery in such a niche market. Perhaps some exist that are good enough to slip by everyone!

1927-28 Mallorquina Cuban Baseball #5, Oliver Marcelle

As best I can tell, baseball existed in Cuba as long as Cuba and baseball each existed. Its professional league started in 1878, just two years after our National League. Cubans love to play it, they play it well, and Cuban ballplayers remain touchstones for American political conversation.

When baseball writers first talked about integrating the American game, Negro League star Oliver Marcelle came up as a risky choice, enough so that baseball's HOF site titled their profile, "The Talent and the Temper of Oliver Marcelle."

While little-known today in the USA, Oliver played a key role on one of Cuba's all-time teams and local fans will know his name as Americans might memorize the 1927 Yankees lineup. (Marcelle did more with a bat than equivalent New York third basemen Joe Dugan, so advantage Cuba.)

This card's back stamp appears to advertise flavored cigarillos from Mallorquina, who used baseball to promote Cuban products much as American tobacco did for decades. This set included 100 players from that winter's three pro teams on a single print sheet, cut along those white print gutters, and distributed players one-per-pack.

This amazing proof sheet shows the set's flow of photos, grouped by team. Almendares players, with Marcelle at #5, occupy most of its first row. Find a full checklist at CubanBaseballCards.com.

HOFer Willie Foster shows off my favorite league uniform, with Cuba's flag flying from its eponymous C. His squad somehow came in last in that winter's Cuban league, despite being named Cuba.

Value: Singles from this hard-to-find set cost $100 and up, depending on which way the wind's blowing. HOFers could run you a lot more. (I have yet to find #5 Marcelle for my type collection, so borrowed a friend's scans.)

Fakes/reprints: I encouraged the owner of that complete sheet to create direct-to-collector reprints for others to enjoy. While none yet exist to my knowledge, there's a nonzero chance someone reprinted its Negro League HOFers.

1933 World Wide Gum Sea Raider Gum #5, Fight For Supremacy

Yarrrrrrrrrr!

Sea Raider Gum, a 48-card set of pirates and the seafaring life, fits into a family with three siblings from 1932 and 1933: World Wide Gum's Jungle Gum (wildlife), Goudey's Big League Gum (baseball), and Indian Gum (western). All use similar layouts and art style, which implies a design approach shared across two companies: World Wide Gum (pirates and wildlife) and Goudey Gum (western and baseball).

1933 World Wide Gum Sea Raider Gum #5, Fight For Supremacy

1932 World Wide Gum Jungle Gum #13, Hooded Cobra

1932 - 1940 Goudey Indian Gum #87, Kichai Tribe

1933 Goudey Big League Gum #155, Joe Judge

Placing all four sets in order proves tricky. Sea Raider Gum bears a © 1933 seal on the front, as does Big League Gum and some Indian Gum cards. Jungle Gum omits © and any dates. Some catalogs place Jungle Gum in 1930, which seems an obvious error, as chewing gum recipes suitable for packing with cards came along two years later. 1932 or 1933 makes better sense, given its similarity to those three dated sets.

1933 Goudey Big League Gum (back detail)

Big League Gum card backs declare "made by the originators of Indian Gum," so we know Goudey released their western life cards before baseball. I think Indian Gum debuted in late 1932, thanks to this on-card reference and 1970 memories of an original 1933 collector.

Most 1930s gum companies distributed groups of 24 cards at a time, giving them flexibility to end production and avoid piling up excess inventory when kids stopped buying. It feels logical that Goudey and WWG released their four sets in this order.

1. 1932 Jungle Gum: Two series of 24 cards (48 total) by World Wide Gum in Boston. Never appeared under Goudey name.
2. 1932 - 1940 Indian Gum: Multi-year set distributed in groups of 24 (216 total) by Goudey. Never appeared under World Wide Gum name.
3. 1933 Sea Raider Gum: Two series of 24 cards (48 total) by World Wide Gum, printed in Boston (#1-24) and Montreal (#1-48). Never appeared under Goudey name.
4. 1933 Big League Gum: Ten series of 24 cards (#1-240) by Goudey. World Wide Gum printed 94 of these cards in Montreal under their name for Canadian distribution and did more or less the same in 1934 (using a mix of 1933 & 1934 designs).

Links between Indian and Sea Raider Gum

Indian Gum and Sea Raider Gum share commonalities beyond their nostalgic (and often bloody) themes. One group of Indian Gum (#25-48) appeared with either blue or red banners, an exception to the red banner seen on all other series.

1932 - 1940 Goudey Indian Gum (blue front)

These blue Indian Gum fronts lack © 1933 insignia and could well come from a simultaneous print run with Sea Raiders, which itself went through four variations. Kevin Glew's PSA set profile includes this handy breakdown.

World Wide Gum printed Sea Raider Gum's first series in Boston and Montreal, followed by #25-48 just in Montreal. Their unusual combo of "Printed in U.S.A." and "Montreal" tells us WWG made a significant move during production.

Origins of World Wide Gum

Hobby tradition calls World Wide Gum "Canadian Goudey" as an assumed north-of-the-border subsidiary. Was it? I investigated that question in "What we call 'Canadian Goudey'" and found more nuance.

If World Wide Gum behaved as a subsidiary, you'd expect Goudey sets to appear in Canada. World Wide Gum seems more like the 1960s-90s Topps and O-Pee-Chee relationship. WWG created their own stuff, licensed what they wanted from Goudey, and left behind what they didn't.

Recall that Goudey Gum founder (and Canadian native) Enos Goudey sold his gum company to a larger manufacturer in 1932. Companies going through this kind of transition often lose employees that don't want to work under new owners. My Canadian Goudey article described how a group of former Goudey Gum staffers, led by Alvin Livingstone, launched card competitor National Chicle in late 1933. DeLong Gum, founded by Goudey Gum's ex-treasurer, followed the same path.

I think this 1932 sale also kicked off World Wide Gum and plans for card production in Quebec to take advantage of Enos Goudey's Canadian connections. As shown above, Sea Raider Gum headed north mid-production. I find it interesting WWG licensed Big League Gum for 1933 and not Indian Gum, given that set's American success, and posit a theory why later in this post.

Yo ho ho and barrel of numbers

Cards printed in Montreal appear in English or English/French, as on this Pirate's Legacy treasure map. (Whether pirates ever made maps remains a separate issue.)

Sea Raiders #45, Pirate's Legacy (Bilingual)

Look close at that text footer. Sea Raider Gum claimed "a series of 192," a common overstatement of set size used by Goudey and World Wide Gum in the 1930s. Its Boston wrapper claimed "series of 240." Was that indeed what they had in mind?

1933 World Wide Gum Sea Raider(s) Gum wrapper (Boston)

Indian Gum provides a comparison. As it sold more cards, Goudey accelerated set sizes throughout the decade, adding new groups of 24 cards with updated "series of" text on their card back footers.

Starting with "series of 192," which could well have hit stores in mid-1933, Goudey overstated the amount of available cards by a considerable margin. They also changed its approach to numbering, as "Series of 192" contains just 48 skip-numbered cards from #25 to #141, a clear attempt to imply kids could fill gaps that didn't exist.

Even after promising a "series of 312" by its last series, released around 1940, Indian Gum contains just 216 different cards. If you pursue a master set, many numbers include multiple back variations thanks to those series sizes.

While shorter at just 48 cards, Sea Raider Gum took the same approach. I bet this "series of 192 cards" coincided with an Indian Gum run of similar advertised size.

So why just 48 cards?

Kids like pirates and seafaring stuff, so I doubt Sea Raiders failed to sell. They're exciting just to look at!

Sea Raiders Gum #3, Pirate Galleon

Earlier, we asked why World Wide Gum didn't release Indian Gum in Canada, given its ongoing sales and growth in America. I think they lacked resources for multiple sets and ran into a unique situation that year. Their move from Boston to Montreal implies significant work getting a new location off the ground. I propose this 1933 timeline, based on Goudey and WWG sets released that year.

• Jan/Feb: Start printing Sea Raiders Gum #1-24 in Boston
• Mar/Apr: Move to Montreal underway, #1-24 printing in each location
• May: Print #25-48 in Montreal with English and bilingual backs
• May/June: WWG sees high American demand for Big League Gum and licenses four of Goudey's sheets for printing in Montreal, which halts work on Sea Raiders Gum
• June/July/Aug: Print and distribute Big League Gum #1-94 with English and bilingual backs
• Sept/Oct/Nov/Dec: Design, print, and distribute Ice Kings Gum #1-72, a WWG-made hockey set

That fall transition to hockey would occupy World Wide Gum until they licensed more of Goudey's Big League Gum cards for springtime 1934. (Check out "Clue 7" in Jason Schwartz's An alternative history of 1933 Goudey for details of WWG's hybrid 1934 baseball set.)

I find it reasonable that 1933's baseball hype machine, driven by Chicago's "Game of the Century," kept Sea Raider Gum from going further. If Big League Gum sold at a more modest rate, we might've seen no WWG baseball and instead enjoy many more pirate cards today.

What about the set itself?

Like Jungle Gum, Indian Gum, and Big League Gum, Sea Raider Gum contains colorful and exciting poses, some of the best in prewar collecting.

Sea Raiders Gum #13, Walking The Plank

Most conceptions of pirate dress came from Howard Pyle's Book of Pirates, a posthumous collection of the prolific artist's seafaring art. Some Sea Raiders cards approximate Pyle's sophisticated scenes and others, like #13, copied him without hesitation.

Walking The Plank, Howard Pyle (1887)

It helps that Pyle's work remained popular across generations and you can flip through scanned editions of his Book of Pirates online. Much of WWG's art copied Pyle and others borrowed from 19th century etchings.

Sea Raider Gum #42, Alwilda

I use a Google spreadsheet to track Sea Raiders card art and welcome your help matching them to sources. Much of Sea Raider Gum's second series art could be inventions of WWG artists to make up for lack of available pictures by Howard Pyle. Many pirates exist as mythic or puffed-up figures, making their caricatures hard to verify as legitimate. Alwilda, for example, fares better as legend than pirate.

Stars of the set

Blackbeard, Captain Kidd, and other pirates of renown rank high with collectors. Kidd's own story runs thick with international and personal complications well beyond what a single card back can describe.

Sea Raiders Gum #2, Captain Kidd (Boston)

My #5 proved cheaper than a "star" like Kidd because it talks about pirate behavior and not an infamous character.

Sea Raider Gum #5, Fight For Supremacy (Boston, with ghosted front ink)

I think World Wide Gum's short run of Sea Raiders produced perhaps one-hundredth of Goudey's seven years of Indian Gum, based on what remains in the market today. A deep-pocketed buyer could acquire thousands of Indian Gum cards, some in large auction lots, yet collectors struggle to finish one series of Sea Raiders. Unless you enjoy years of hunting, I recommend sticking to a type card that appeals to you.

Value: Low-grade commons fetch $20 and higher, depending on its subject. Due to hobby scarcity and competition from map collectors, #45 Pirate's Legacy will run you hundreds for even a low-grade example.

Fakes/reprints: No set reprints exist that I know of. Some cards (like the map) fetch high dollar amounts, so could be vulnerable to counterfeiting. Stick to dealers you trust when looking for its pricier cards.