Send2Press Newswire

Baseball Mementoes Remain Strong in a Weak Economy

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 11:48:56 GMT

BRONX, N.Y., April 7 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- Baseball memorabilia guru Brian Cataquet, who runs Tobeeecat Auctions, a well known online sports card and memorabilia company, has received hundreds of emails from baseball fan collectors who are a little wary about their sports investments, asking the same question. "Has the weak economy hurt the baseball card and memorabilia industry?" To answer this question in one word, the answer is, No!

In an economy that is currently labeled a "Danger Zone," with the Stock Market over the last several months falling over 1,000 points. Households in foreclosures totaling 900,000 in the U.S., that's over 76% from last year, the sales of baseball cards/memorabilia remain firm.

While retail sales dropped to 0.4% in December, a record low since 2002, Baseball cards and memorabilia sales have actually soared in prices. For example, in a December Sports Auction that took place in Chicago, a 1912 Jim Thorpe candy baseball card called a Colgan's Chip sold for $51,896. A 1952 Mickey Mantle rookie card in Near Mint sold for $34,156, A 1955 Topps card set in near mint sold for $50,476. A 1910 Pittsburgh Pirates Card set called Tip Top Bread which featured 25 members of the Pirates including Honus Wagner sold for $69,253.

In January 2008 when statements like "Stocks fall, Recession ahead" or "U.S. Heading for a Deep Recession" were being said, baseball memorabilia skyrocketed in sales. Look at these figures. In a sports auction that took place at Sotheby's in New York City in Jan. '08 a 1917 Ty Cobb game used bat sold for $87,114. A 1921 Babe Ruth game used bat sold for $79,015. A 1965 Mickey Mantle bat sold for $26,698. Jimmie Foxx's 1939 game used bat sold for $24,216. Barry Bonds 754 home run ball sold for $26,936. Even photographs were selling at an all time record high. A 1920's Miller Huggins (Yankees manager) autograph photograph fetched $18,574.00.

According to Cataquet, "At this present moment there is currently an auction taking place ending in two weeks in New Jersey which features a Cigarette card of Honus Wagner (T206) that grades poor and the bid is at $150,000 which I believe will sell for close to $250,000. In that same auction there is a 1914 Babe Ruth card that has a bid of over $155,000 and I believe that card will fetch for over $220,000. So baseball collectors do not worry the current state of the baseball card and memorabilia market is strong. In a better economy it would be even stronger for vintage baseball. With all this said during a weak economy, this shows you the strength and importance of our national game in this country."

About Brian Cataquet
Brian Cataquet is a leading expert in the field of vintage baseball cards and vintage sports memorabilia. His website is www.BrianCataquet.com. To contact Brian (718) 409-6429.

All trademarks acknowledged.

Copyright © 2008 Send2Press® Newswire, a unit of Neotrope®
TAGS: Send2Press Newswire, memorabilia guru Brian Cataquet, Tobeeecat Auctions New York

Limited Edition Pope Trading Cards Feature Pope Benedict XVI

Tue, 10 May 2005 15:24:00 GMT

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - May 10 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- Paradigm Trading Cards announced this week their release 'A New Pope,' a special, limited edition trading card set celebrating the life of Pope Benedict XVI. This set follows the highly successful release of a set Pope John Paul II. Each of the 20 trading cards in the set chronicles the new Pope's early years, life in the church, and the first few days as Pope.

Photo Caption: Paradigm Trading Cards limited edition set of 20 trading cards featuring life of Pope Benedict XVI.

"The New Pope trading cards are a response to our customers. Both our retail outlets and our customers have been asking for Benedict XVI trading cards since the day we released our Pope John Paul II set," said Mark Currier, President of Paradigm Trading Cards. "People around the world want to learn more about Benedict XVI. What better way could there be for young people to learn about the new Pope. Trading cards have been educational in nature since they where first produced."

This is a limited production run. The sets will be produced for the next six months. On November 15, 2005 the printing plates will be destroyed and the sets will never be produced again. Each trading card set has an Official Certificate of Authenticity.

"When we released our John Paul II trading card set we expected a good response but we were still taken back by the amount of orders we received from around the world. Based on the initial enthusiasm and excitement concerning our release of Benedict the XVI, this release has the potential to be one of the most successful trading card sets ever released," added Currier.

The Paradigm Trading Card Company is committed to chronicling and honoring the lives of men and women who have a tremendous impact on the world we live in.

For additional information please visit: www.benedictxvitradingcards.com

Lunar New Year Collection Issued

Tue, 01 Feb 2005 11:16:00 GMT

WASHINGTON, D.C. /Send2Press Newswire/ -- The USPS has authorized licensee Hallmark Group Ltd. (www.lunarcollection.com) to strike all 12 Lunar New Year Stamp designs as solid silver ingots, layered with pure gold. These famous stamps, featuring the 12 animals of the Chinese lunar cycle, have been designed by celebrated Chinese-American artist Clarence Lee over a 12-year period. To mark the completion of the series, the stamp series was reissued this year by the USPS as a unique double-sided sheet containing twenty four 37-cent lunar stamps.

Photo caption: John E. Potter, U.S. Postmaster General, with Clarence Lee, designer of The Lunar New Year Collection.

The Lunar stamps comprise one of the most important and popular series ever issued by the USPS, and were inspired by the tremendous contribution made by Asian Americans to the development and life of the country over the past 200 years. More than that, they are a celebration of an ancient culture, and a tradition tracing back 2,000 years.

The collection of 12 solid silver gold-layered ingots, presented in a classic Chinese lacquered cabinet, is distributed under license by the Hallmark Group, and is limited to only 18,800 sets worldwide, so they are real collector items. In addition, each successful subscriber gets a souvenir sheet of the newly issued stamps personally signed by the artist.

The sales brochure, again designed by Clarence Lee, is itself a work of art.

Chinese Lunar New Year begins on February 9th.

More information: www.lunarcollection.com