Thursday, September 30, 2010

ONE SHEET, ONE SET - 1969/70 Topps

One of my favorite blog topics has been sitting on the sidelines for far too long.

Time to bring back another one for the season.

My 'One Sheet, One Set' project has grown quite a bit over the past year. I have now cataloged over 250 different one sheets and am hoping to have things organized to a point that I can take a list with me and aggressively look for lots of base cards this year.

Who'd have thunk it? Base cards.....fun!

Anyways, this sheet comes from some pickups at last spring's giant card show here in town. It is currently the oldest 'set' I have completed and I loved the fact that I could look through cards this old with the possible intention of buying.


1969/70 Topps

This is a simple 132 card set put out by Topps which at the time was the US equivalent of O-Pee-Chee (which was the brand of choice for me growing up. I guess it had to be since there was nothing else at the local convenience store).

Immediately I am drawn, disgusted (call it what you want) by the hideous looking backgrounds in the player photos.

This was a time period where I was guessing that just getting the photos of all the players was a task and a half. I can only imagine the photographer and his crew.

"OK guys, split up into two groups. Half of you in front of the blue wall and half in front of the green."

"Some of the guys are already on the ice."

"Aaarrrrgghhhh! I'll get them later. OK, now line up and one at a time give me your best 7-year-old hockey pose."

"How's this?"

"No, no. We want you looking at the camera, not out into space. Look like you're a fierce hockey player."

"What?"

"C'mon! I don't have all day! How about a sneer?

"Do I need to tie up my skates for this?"

"A stare? Anything! OK, Gary Jarrett.....a little too much there."

"Can I change walls? I like green."

"Work with me guys! Anything! Just look at the camera!"

"Wha?"

CLICK "Whatever.......NEXT!"

Absolutely boring photo selections. But I guess action shots were not a priority. Most people didn't even know what one was.


The design of the card isn't much better. I kind of like it when looking at it in context of the era. It's a simple setup with a thin black border for the photo, a cartoon stick on the right side, the position is listed in a puck in the bottom right corner and the team logo is placed on top of the photo in the top left.

The player name and team nickname are clearly (and boringly) placed along the bottom. Simple Card Designing 101.

What I do like about it though is cards that have stood the test of time, are jet white in color and have four sharp corners look really nice. As soon as a card gets dinged or worn or is off center with the cut....it really looks bad.


The back of the card has its pros and cons. I really like the colors. The rounded corners of the blue background is nice and the text at the top is well placed.

While I like the player blurbs, I think it should have been swapped with the stats. Full career stats would have been nice (although again, not often used in this era of cards). I do like the font used for the stats though....so small points there.

The content of the info is cool. It's nice learning something about a player that actually makes you go "Huh.....I didn't know that."

Some card backs have a place for a stamp to be placed. Obviously one could obtain the stamps and stick them on. 2 of my 8 cards have this and neither have the stamp. Whew! That would have wrecked the card.

Overall, a nice set. Nothing to write home about and definitely not the set of choice for the 60's or the 70's.

For the price, if you're going for a vintage set, I'd recommend passing on this one.

1.5 out of 5

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