Dandy Daves and Davids

 My name is David.  Growing up that's all I ever remember being called.  At some point in college that changed and I started going, in greater part, by "Dave".  After that I reverted back and have always gone by the original.  The funny thing is, lots of people, particularly acquaintances and people I see in my job, automatically call me Dave. Though I find it interesting, I really don't mind.  I see it as a friendly nickname. I have no stories like that about all the guys below.  You'd have to ask them. 

Here's 3 NBA Hall of Famers.  All three were picked for both the 50th and 75th NBA Anniversary Teams.  All three were two time NBA Champs.

In 2016, Hall of Famer Dave Keon was voted the greatest Maple Leaf of all time.  He won four Stanley Cups in the 1960's.  Um, they haven't won one since.

If I'm correct there are only two baseball Hall of Famers with my given name, Dave Winfield and Dave Bancroft.  Incidentally, both of their Hall of Fame plaques list them as David.

I do have a story about Dave Winfield that relates to his name.  Click here.

This guy was sure fun to watch.  

While maybe not quite Hall worthy,  David Cone did have an outstanding career.

Sorry for the missing back.

Big Papi.  Hall of Fame?  We'll see.

You can't think about The Big Red Machine without thinking of Dave Concepcion.  You can make a Hall of Fame argument for him.  Some do.

I grew up a Cubs fan but the Orioles were on TV a lot during my childhood.  I have an affinity, particularly for the great American League teams of the era.  Dave, or Davey -- the way I think of him, comes to mind as readily as Brooks, Frank and Boog. 

Dave McNally was part of the Orioles great starting pitching staffs of the sixties and seventies.  From 1968-1973 he went 117-65 with a 2.91 ERA --and he wasn't even the ace of the team.

The Cobra was a fearsome hitter with a great arm.  Should he be in the Hall of Fame?  Talk among yourselves.

Rags had a great career, first as a starter and reliever, then as a pitching coach.

That's a lot of star power!  Who did I miss?

Thanks for reading.

Fountains -- Paris to Chicago

"Parc of Versailles -- The  Basin of Latone, a grand waterworks' day"

I haven't figured out how to date these old French postcards but I assume it's from the early 20th century.

Buckingham Fountain in Chicago's Grant Park was inspired by the French Fountain at Versailles.

Here's an RPPC (Real Photo Post Card) of Buckingham Fountain with the Chicago skyline to the west. It had to be taken previous to 1931 when this card was sent. I'll go into more detail about this Chicago landmark in a future post. I probably have at least another dozen different cards.

A Cup of Joe

Name a famous athlete named Joe. The first one that comes to my mind is Joltin' Joe DiMaggio.  Do people still remember him as Mr. Coffee?  I do.  

Here are another handful of Hall of Fame Joe's.

Torre and McCarthy rank #5 and #8 on the list of winningest managers in baseball history.  They led their teams to 4,451 wins.  They went to 15 World Series and won 11.  Of yeah, Joe Torre was a 9 time all-star as a player.

T

Another Joe-ish Hall of Famer, Morgan was a 10 time All-Star and 2 time World Series Champion.

I have a couple of football Joe's.   The first Joe that comes to mind is no average Joe by any stretch of the imagination.  Another New York icon, "Broadway Joe" led his AFL Jets to the shocking Super Bowl III win in 1969.

While not as charismatic as Namath, Joe Montana had the more spectacular career, winning 4 Super Bowls in San Francisco.

Who are your top Joe's?

Postcard -- Paris 1913

 What a great card!  It's Paris at the tail end of the Belle Epoque.  The title is  "Paris -- Notre-Dame Vue de L'ile Saint-Louis" (Notre Dame Seen from Saint Louis Island).  I love the painting.  It looks like late afternoon at the end of a rainy day.  

I don't speak any French (I took Spanish in school).  Here's what I can make out using Google:

My dear Loulou.    We ____ very good    Arrived and went for a short walk before going to sleep. I can't make out the last part.  The corner says: Your father--- kiss you too  

This is the street  in Brussels, Belgium that contains 329 Rue des Palais.  It looks seedy only partially I think because the street is torn up.  Note the Midas Muffler shop on the corner.  

There is a mixture of old and new on the block.  I have no idea if even any of the older structures date from 1913.  Speaking of that date, 1913:

Belgium hosted a World's Fair in the City of Ghent.

My first thoughts on seeing the date, 1913, was "I wonder what was going to happen to Mademoiselle Laurent".  It was about a year and a half after she received this postcard that the Germans invaded her country.  

It will remain a mystery what happened to Loulou and her Papa.  If they survived the next four years, there was a good chance they would face many more challenges in the following decades.    

Thanks for visiting.

Look Who's Back!

 No, not me.  Ron Santo!  The Hall of Fame 3rd baseman hasn't had a Topps presence in about a decade.  This Bazooka card, which I love, is the last base card I remember seeing.  There was a card in the 2016 Wrigley Field set.  There was also a giveaway or two.  Other than that, it appears that Panini held the exclusive right to produce Ron Santo cards.  I do own a small number of them but I bought them begrudgingly.  

2010 Topps Bazooka #35

 Holy Cow!  Topps Turkey Red Ron Santo in base and Chrome Versions.

2020 Topps Update Turkey Red #TR-30

2020 Topps Update Turkey Red Chrome #TRC-30

Art cards sets are always uneven. I looked at the artist's website and he's done some really nice work.
I don't know about this one.   He was a Mets batboy.   Sorry Mr. G. Everyone's a critic.

2020 Topps Gallery #MA-10

This was not a base card and I had misgivings about the price.  It is a really nice looking card.  

2020 Topps Heritage 1971 Greatest Moments Top Loader #55

This is not a Ron Santo card.  

The cards that make up the puzzle are pretty nice on their own, so, bonus!  (Nobody says that anymore.)

This is OK.  Shea, right?

2021 Topps Heritage Stars Bubble Gum Candy Lid # 18

Nice looking card.  I do prefer the photos of young Ron Santo.

2021 Topps Museum Collection #9

I am definitely not a completest at this point in my collecting life.  I'll gladly settle for this blue bordered variation.  I think there's an amethyst/purple one.  Someone else can have mine. 

2021 Topps Museum Collection #9 Blue Border 021/150

Man, did Topps give me shpilkes on this one.  I knew there was a chance Ronnie would appear in this set but the checklist wasn't released until just before the set came out.  I was very excited when it was confirmed.  This is Santo's first appearance in Allen and Ginter's 16th year.

2021 Topps Allen & Ginter #86

2020 Topps Allen & Ginter Silver Foil #86

I had to have the this one.  Pretty sharp! 

2021 Allen &Ginter X #86

Here are the three mini versions.

There have of course been been some relic and auto cards issued in recent sets.  They're not in my current budget and at any rate I have my share of both.  For the money I'd rather pick up the OPC's I'm missing.  I hope Topps will be releasing a few more base cards in upcoming sets.   Gypsy Queen? 

Thanks for visiting.