Johnny's album: The Lindbergh kidnapping

Most of the items on these pages focus on the Lindbergh baby kidnapping, primarily from the conviction of Bruno Hauptmann for the crime.

The top article is from when the baby was first kidnapped, and chronicles the life and career of Lindbergh. The bottom is photos of Lindbergh and Hauptmann from the end of the trial.

On the other side, we can see that the article on top folds over, revealing an article about a proposal to develop the Great Salt Lake. The article on the page is mostly the Hauptmann guilty verdict, which was delivered on February 13, 1935. Hauptmann was executed the following year. The photo on that page is of Lindbergh getting his annual military physical at Mitchel Field on Long Island, only about a mile from Roosevelt Field, where he took off on his transatlantic flight. On this page there is also an inspirational anecdote and a couple of inspirational quotes.

 

Wallet Card at Federal Express

A couple of years ago an old sign was revealed on Manhattan's Duane Street. It's a sign for "Federal Express", the former name of the company that has been called FedEx for over 30 years. This sign and logo must date to earlier than 1994, when the company changed it's name and logo. This is a hard plastic awning with the sign firmly attached, explaining why it's been such a survivor despite other signs covering it for decades.

 

Street trade

I started a new job which puts me closer to midtown, which means closer to Al's table to do some street trading. I picked out 10 cards and needed all 10!

The Robin Yount card is probably the coolest one here, and I didn't even realize it was serial numbered until later. Ryan McMahon is a lousy player on this Yankees team that played real lousy in this ALDS loss, but I'll always have a little fondness for him, as I saw him get a walkoff hit at a game I went to. That Edgar Martinez card is somehow my first ever 2004 Finest card.

Time Travel Bonus

My time travel trade with Diamond Jesters this month came with an unexpected Yankees bonus! I had sent Matt a few extra Red Sox cards last time, and he sent me this really nice serial numbered Ron Guidry card!

It makes it hard to hate the Red Sox when they have fans like this. And how embarrassing must it be for Red Sox fans to lose so badly to the Yankees, and then have the Yankees revealed to be complete pretenders when matched up against a good team?

Everything from the time travel section this week was football. And why waste time thinking about a team that might commit more errors than hits this series, when I can enjoy the 3-1, sole-possession-of-first-place Giants? It may not be sustainable but it sure is fun. Ironically almost all of these cards are from the Giants' opponent this week, from back when they had a name even stupider than "Commanders".

Cake or gum? 1977 Butch Wynegar

Last time it was a 4-0 win for Topps. Will Hostess get votes here?

Judging by the background these photos look to have been taken at the same time, but differences in the way the photos were lit or developed make the Hostess card seem much darker, and makes Wynegar's uniform much bluer there.

Wynegar was an excellent fielding catcher with a little bit of pop in his bat. In 1976 he was the youngest ever All-Star (20 years, 212 days), and finished behind just Mark Fidrych in the Rookie of the Year voting. He was solid for a while in Minnesota, but after starting the 1982 season hitting .209, he was traded to the Yankees. Wynegar did not adapt well to the stresses of playing in the Bronx, and left the team in mid-season 1986. He returned to baseball for the Angels, retiring in 1988. Overall he hit .255 with 65 HR and 506 RBI in 1,301 games. Wynegar stayed in baseball after his playing days, coaching for various minor league teams, and appears to now be retired.

Wood vs. Wood #355

Last time it was a 4-3 win for 1987. Will it win again here?

I need a new copy of this 1962 Topps Steve Barber card, so I can send this one to Sir Nailhead. Anyone got an extra? Nice Yankee Stadium shot here. Barber had some great seasons for the Orioles in the early 1960s. A two-time All Star, he led the AL with 8 shutouts in 1962 and won 20 games in 1963. Despite not having a huge workload (only three 200+ inning seasons) he was hampered by injuries after a great early start to his career. He was traded to the Yankees mid-1967 and had stints with the Pilots, Cubs, Braves, Angels and Giants, without regaining his All Star form. Overall in 466 games (272 starts) he went 121-106 with a 3.36 ERA. After his playing career he was a school bus driver in Nevada. He died in 2007.

Don Carman delivers a pitch in spring training. Carman came up with the Phillies as a reliever, and had very good seasons as a setup man in 1985 and 1986. He then converted to starting where he had much more limited success. After leading the NL in losses in 1989 he was returned to the bullpen, where he was unable to match his previous form with the Phillies, and in brief stints with Cincinnati and Texas. Overall in 342 games (102 starts) he went 53-54 with 11 saves and a 4.11 ERA. He is now a sports psychologist for the Boras Corporation.
 

1981 Topps Ron Pruitt

 

The front: Topps goes for the extreme closeup here.

The back: Pruitt hit 21 home runs for Anchorage, a record at the time.

The player: Pruitt was a backup catcher for four teams over nine seasons, six of them with Cleveland. In 341 games he hit .269 with 12 HR and 92 RBI.

The man: After his playing career Pruitt was a youth and college baseball coach. He is now retired.

My collection: I have five of his cards, from 1977 to 1981. I would be interested in trading for 1982 Valley National Bank Phoenix Giants #13.

1976 SSPC Danny Frisella

 

The card, in brief: Great hatless photo, you can see why his nickname was "Bear".

Playing career, in brief: An excellent set-up reliever, Frisella pitched for five teams over ten seasons, six of those seasons with the Mets. In 351 games he went 36-40 with 57 saves and a 3.32 ERA. He started 1976 with the Cardinals but was traded to the Brewers in June, for whom he went 5-2 with 9 saves and a 2.74 ERA. He would have been a big part of the Brewers' bullpen in 1977, but on January 1 of that year he was tragically killed in a dune buggy accident. 

My collection: I have 11 of his cards, from 1968 to 1977. I would be interested in trading for 1971 Dell Today's Stamps #NNO. 

Wallet Card at Gilda's Club

This is hardly one of the oldest signs I've shown in this series, but it is interesting, and it looks like it's in danger of disappearing.

In 1995, six years after Gilda Radner died of cancer, her husband Gene Wilder and several other New Yorkers created Gilda's Club to help families affected by cancer. The organization has grown to many chapters nationwide, but in recent years has rebranded as Red Door International, perhaps because younger generations don't know who Gilda was. It looks like, as part of the rebrand, the building is being remodeled, and the painted sign with the cartoon of Gilda Radner on the side of the building is likely a casualty.

 

Ryan Gosling beats Boston

I was watching the sixth inning on TV with my son, and when Cody Bellinger came up to the plate he shouted "Ryan Gosling!" Yeah, I guess I can see it.

Anyway, Bellinger made the Red Sox pay for walking Ben Rice by hitting a 3-run HR to put the game away.

I don't understand why the Yankees play Tampa next and not Cleveland. Well, they're sure not going to score 9 runs a game against the Rays, or hold them hitless with runners on base, but this Boston series sure was fun.