Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly - S10E21 - Too Many Turk Brodas: Trading Card Marketing

Episode Date: May 27, 2021

This week, we trace the history of trading cards. For over 150 years, companies have used trading cards to entice customers to buy their products. From cigarette cards to bubble gum cards for Batman, sports teams and even the Gulf War, trading cards are big business. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hi, it's Terry O'Reilly. As you may know, we've been producing a lot of bonus episodes while under the influences on hiatus. They're called the Beatleology Interviews, where I talk to people who knew the Beatles, work with them, love them, and the authors who write about them. Well, the Beatleology Interviews have become a hit, so we are spinning it out to be a standalone podcast series. You've already heard conversations with people like actors Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and Beatles confidant Astrid Kershaw. But coming up, I talk to May Pang, who dated John Lennon in the mid-70s. I talk to double fantasy guitarist Earl Slick, Apple Records creative director John Kosh. I'll be talking to Jan Hayworth,

who designed the Sgt. Pepper album cover. Very cool. And I'll talk to singer Dion, who is one of only five people still alive who were on the Sgt. Pepper cover. And two of those people were Beatles. The stories they tell are amazing. So thank you for making this series such a success. And please, do me a favor, follow the Beatleology interviews on your podcast app. You don't even have to be a huge Beatles fan, you just have to love storytelling.

Subscribe now, and don't miss a single beat. This is an apostrophe podcast production. Your teeth look whiter than no nose. You're not you when you're hungry. You're a good hand with all teeth. You're under the influence with Terry O'Reilly. Take me out to the ball game. Take me out with the crowd.

Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack. There are very few people who wouldn't recognize that famous song. But do you know what the song is actually about? Yes, it's about wanting to go to a baseball game. But did you know it's actually a song about a girl named Katie Casey trying to convince her boyfriend to take her to a ball game instead of out to a show? Here's the part of the song you rarely hear. Katie, Katie was baseball mad Had the fever and had it bad

Just to root for the hometown Through every zoo, Katie blew On a Saturday, her young foe Called to see if she'd like to go To see a show. But Miss Kate said, no, I'll tell you what you can do. Take me out to the ball game. Baseball is a sport with legendary players and die-hard fans.

It's also a very collectible sport. Baseball trading cards are some of the most valuable trading cards in the world. Recently, the Topps Trading Card Company issued a new baseball card that collectors gobbled up. The card was only available for a 24-hour period and it featured a pitcher throwing a ball. That pitcher was the president of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. His name is Anthony Fauci. Dr. Fauci threw out the first ceremonial pitch on opening day of Major League Baseball's 2020 season. It was a game between the New York Yankees and Washington at a pandemic-emptied Nationals park. The 79-year-old Fauci wore a Washington Nationals jersey,

hat, and face mask. Dr. Fauci, when you're ready, it's your pitch. The self-described baseball superfan threw a wild pitch that went so far left that it almost hit the photographers who were trying to capture the moment. Some fans said the good doctor did that on purpose

because he didn't want anyone to catch anything. Others said he intentionally flattened his curve. In spite of questionable pitching, Fauci's baseball card set an all-time print-run record for a limited edition, selling 51,512 cards. The Fauci card sold for $9.99 that day.

But looking at it now on eBay, prices go all the way up to $2,400. The Fauci trading card is now a valuable collectible. Trading cards have a valuable place in the history of marketing, too. Many companies use trading cards to entice customers to buy their products or come into their stores. Companies hope trading cards would lead to customer loyalty. Customers hope cards would lead to complete sets. Trading cards have gone from a quaint hobby to a $5 billion market annually. And that's a lot of peanuts and Cracker Jacks.

You're under the influence. The history of trading cards did not begin in the 20th century. You have to jump back about 50 years, to around 1850, and you have to hop across the ocean to France. A Paris department store called Au Bon Marché began handing out what were then called trade cards. The store gave a different card to the children of its customers each week. The cards were beautifully illustrated, often showing scenes of children

and animals and princesses. On the flip side, there was an advertisement selling items like fine linen or perfume. It was a very effective marketing idea because the children became enamored with the trade cards and wanted to collect them all so parents had to keep shopping at au bon marché when business started to drop at rival department stores they started

issuing trade cards too Over in Germany around 1870, the Liebig company invented a process called meat extraction. Essentially, the innovation was to extract and preserve the nutrients and flavors of beef in the form of a paste and later bouillon cubes. To entice sales, the company began producing beautifully colored, highly detailed, lithographed cards. Each set of six had a theme that ranged from

historical events to marvels of the world to exotic flowers. The trade cards had a dual purpose. The first was to persuade customers to start collecting the cards, therefore ensuring loyalty. The second, and more interesting strategic reason, was the recipes on the back of the cards. The Liebig company needed to persuade customers to start using meat extract. It was a bold, new product,

aimed mostly at the lower classes who couldn't afford fresh meat. But the cards were of such high quality, even the upper class collected and traded them. The company produced those cards for over 100 years. The trade cards were a huge success for the Liebig company, who would eventually change its name to OXO. When other forms of advertising appeared near the end of the 1800s, like mass magazines,

trade cards became less popular. But they would soon find their second wave of popularity with tobacco companies. Interesting to note that cards in cigarette packages were first created not to encourage collecting, but as a way to add stiffness to packaging, so the cigarettes wouldn't be crushed or bent. But then tobacco companies realized they were missing an opportunity, and that printed cards

could become collectible and therefore encourage brand loyalty. Here's something you may not know. The first printed tobacco card in history featured a man named John George Edward Henry Douglas Sutherland Campbell. How's that for a handle? This well-educated gentleman was married to the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria. He was the 9th Duke of Argyle and had the courtesy title of Marquis of Lorne. That last title may sound familiar to history buffs.

Between 1878 and 1883, the Marquis of Lorne served as the Governor General of Canada. He was very well liked and his fame gave rise to the popularity of Lorne as a first name among Canadians. In 1879, the Thomas Hall cigarette manufacturer of New York decided to include a tobacco card featuring the Marquis of Lorne inside their Marquis of Lorne cigarettes. The brand didn't last long, and that has made the Lorne of Marquis tobacco card very valuable. Only four copies are known to exist. Two are in museums, and two others are in private collections. One was sold in 2009 for over $15,000. The importance of this card cannot be overstated. It was the precursor of all trading cards to come as it was the first trading card to be inserted into the packaging. Prior to that, all trading cards were handed out over the counter.

Soon, over 300 companies began inserting thousands of cards into their products. Tobacco cards became so popular, boys started smoking at very young ages. These same boys started breaking into stores to steal the cigarettes just to get the trading cards. Some adults tried to enact laws in their towns preventing the cards from being sold in cigarette packages in order to stop children from taking up the habit.

But the tobacco companies were powerful and the cards were selling a lot of cigarettes. Tobacco companies then began experimenting with various images on the cards, like baseball players. In 1886, the Goodwin Tobacco Company created what has become known as the first official baseball card set, featuring sepia-tone photos of 12 players from the New York Giants by the early 1900s there was a full-fledged baseball card collecting frenzy smokers could collect from 75 different baseball card series in 1909 the American Tobacco Company printed cards with photos of baseball players on one side and ads for its 16 cigarette brands on the other.

Collectors generally consider this set the most desirable set of the 20th century. Even though they were printed on good thick stock, most did not survive over the years. But one card in particular has become incredibly valuable, and it has a great story. Honus Wagner was a shortstop who played most of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Wagner was considered the best player in the league at the time, with eight batting titles, a National League record that has not been broken to this day. He would be one of the first five players later inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Ty Cobb called him the greatest star to ever take to the diamond. When the American Tobacco Company issued its baseball cards in 1909, Wagner's card was extremely popular. But soon after, Honus Wagner requested that his card be pulled from circulation and production of the card be stopped. Two theories exist as to why. The first suggests that Wagner, a non-smoker, didn't want his image associated with cigarettes,

especially since kids looked up to him. The other theory is more likely. Wagner wasn't happy with the money the American Tobacco Company was offering to pay him for his image. Apparently, Wagner had done advertisements for other tobacco products previously, so his reluctance was probably not anti-tobacco. But of the hundreds of thousands of baseball cards issued at that time,

only about 200 Honus Wagner cards were printed before they were pulled. And only a handful have survived, one of which was owned by Wayne Gretzky. Back in 1991, the Wainer and Bruce McNall purchased a Honus Wagner baseball card for $451,000. Four years later, Gretzky sold the card to Walmart for $500,000 to be used as a grand prize in a promotional contest.

A Florida postal worker won that prize and auctioned it at Christie's for $640,000. The Gretzky-Wagner card would change hands several times after that and last sold for $2.8 million. A different Honus-Wagner card recently sold

for $3.25 million. But that record price was recently broken. Mickey Mantle's 1952 rookie card sold for $5.8 million not long ago. And by the way, Gretzky's own rookie card

just set a new record for hockey cards, a mint one sold for the smokin' price of $3.75 million. Back in the 1930s, the St. Lawrence Starch Company was looking for a way to encourage people to buy their products during the Depression. Located in Port Credit, Ontario, the company manufactured several products, including cornstarch, gluten feed, and one particular product called Beehive Golden Corn

Syrup. In 1934, the company hit on a great marketing idea. It decided to issue hockey cards with big black and white photos of Toronto Maple Leafs. The original cards featured Charlie Conacher, Harvey Jackson, King Clancy, and Joe Primo. A few Montreal Canadians were included too. All customers had to do to get a hockey card was to send in a proof-of-purchase collar label from a St. Lawrence company product. Their most popular product was beehive corn syrup. A two-pound beehive collar label could be redeemed for one card, a five-pound label could be redeemed for two hockey cards, and a ten-pounder would get you three.

It was one of the first times in history hockey cards were used as a marketing promotion. It was an inexpensive idea for the company because the cards were cheap to produce and the players weren't paid cash. Instead, they found six tins of beehive corn syrup in their lockers. During that difficult decade in the 30s,

the hockey cards made beehive sales quadruple. The cards became so popular, kids would rummage through garbage cans and dumpsters just to find extra labels. Back then, customers could request specific players' cards when they mailed in their labels. And, of course, the most popular players had the most requests. But that's where collecting becomes interesting.

Those beehive cards are still prized to this day, and it's not the most popular players that are the most valuable, it's the least popular players. Reason? There were fewer cards produced. For example, a player named Cy Wentworth is the most valuable card in the collection. You've probably never heard of Cy Wentworth, but his rare card is worth around $8,000.

If you had the entire Beehive hockey card collection today, it would be worth more than $75,000. Back in the 30s, Beehive cards were the only way to see what your hockey heroes looked like because hockey was only on radio. Kids couldn't get enough of them. Including one kid named Gordie Howe. When Gordie Howe

was a hockey-crazed kid, he collected beehive hockey cards. There were 120 hockey cards in total, and he was on a mission to collect the full set. In his biography titled Mr. Hockey, Gordy tells an amusing story. He would constantly send in beehive labels his mother would give him or ones he could get from neighbors.

And like other kids, he would request the cards he needed to complete his collection. But whenever Beehive would run out of a certain player's card, they would send you a Turk Broda card. Broda was the top goaltender for the Maple Leafs. And because he was so popular, they printed a lot of Turk Broda cards. And Gordy would trade his Broda cards for other players to fill out his prized collection. So when the mailman came to Gordie Howe's house with a letter from Beehive, Gordie's heart would race.

Then he would open it, and his heart would drop. It would be yet another darn Broda card. Soon, much to Gordie's dismay, he had dozens of unwanted Turk Broda cards. A few years later, 18-year-old Gordie Howe played his first NHL game with the Detroit Red Wings on October 16, 1946. The Red Wings were playing the Toronto Maple Leafs.

During that game, Gordie scored his first NHL goal. He picked up a pass at the Toronto Blue line, muscled his way to the net, and slapped it in over the shoulder of the goalie. That goalie was Turk Broda. And we'll be right back.

You're listening to Season 10 of Under the Influence. if you're enjoying this episode you might also like comic book advertising season 7 episode 7 you'll find it in our archives wherever you download your pods After the Second World War, trading cards would experience a boom again in the 1950s and 60s. And it wasn't just sports cards this time. An Elvis Presley series was issued in 1956, making that the first time trading cards were produced for a popular singer. The Beatles had several

different trading card series for sale in 1964. Demand was so great, Topps had to delay production of its 1964 baseball set to satisfy orders. Then came cards for James Bond, the Monkees,

and TV shows like The Green Hornet and Batman. I remember collecting Batman cards when the TV show was at its peak in 1966, hoping I would get the full set. They were like honey, sweet and sticky, keeping me loyal to the show. In 1977, the Topps Trading Card Company issued a 66-card series for a new movie called Star Wars. Science fiction was a tough sell in trading cards.

Topps had produced a Star Trek series the year before and it had flopped. But Topps decided to take one more chance on Star Wars. One problem was that there were barely enough Star Wars photos to fill a 66 card set.

Topps tried everything to stretch the thin imagery inventory. They flopped, cropped, and airbrushed. They even borrowed the space background from the failed Star Trek card series.

And because most of the available photos were done before the special effects were added, none of the cards had spectacular visuals. While the Star Wars card set would become one of the most collectible sets of the era, there was one card that stood out. Topps would release five Star Wars sets in 1977, each distinguished by a different border color. But the fourth series with the green trim contains the most infamous Star Wars trading card. It was card number 207 and it featured C-3PO.

It appears that the droid is excited in that unexpected way. It has become known as the Goldenrod card, if you catch my drift. Google it. Somehow, in the rush to produce the Star Wars cards, this image somehow snuck through and was produced. There are several theories as to how this happened.

One theory was that a prankster airbrushed an anatomically incorrect appendage to the card somewhere during the printing process, which Topps denies. Another theory was that it was a gag photo done on the set of Star Wars, and in the rush to produce the cards, Topps was oblivious to the offending detail. But the most plausible story was that C-3PO had a wardrobe malfunction. Actor Anthony Daniels, who played C-3PO, said the costume had become compromised in the previous oil bath scene

and the warm liquid caused a section of the costume to separate. Two things to note about that infamous card. First, when Topps became aware of the problem, it discontinued the card, airbrushed the offending protuberance out, and released a limited number of reprints. Just as the least popular hockey cards are often the most valuable,

the same thing happened here. The cleaned up card is more valuable than the whistling card because fewer were issued. Second point. Actor Anthony Daniels says if you find card 207 signed by him, it's a fake.

He says he would never ever sign that card, adding, As a protocol droid skilled in etiquette, C-3PO would never ever appear as excited as that in public. That particular force wouldn't be with him. If you're looking for flexible workouts, Peloton's got you covered. Summer runs or playoff season meditations, whatever your vibe, Peloton has thousands of classes built to push you.

We know how life goes. New father, new routines, new locations. What matters is that you have something there to adapt with you, whether you need a challenge or rest. And Peloton has everything you need, whenever you need it. Find your push. Find your power. Peloton. Visit Peloton at onepeloton.ca. There have been many odd trading card sets produced over the years. Saturday Night Live has trading cards.

Singer Cyndi Lauper has trading cards. The TV show Saved by the Bell has a set, followed by Saved by the Bell, The College Years trading cards. Strangely, The Andy Griffith show got its own set produced in 1990. But possibly one of the most unusual was the Operation Desert Storm trading cards. The San Francisco Chronicle called the Gulf War the first brand-centric war,

consciously tailored for the mass media. Many believed the conflict was programmed to be a TV war, as bombers flew over the Baghdad sky at 7 p.m. in prime time. News programs had highlight reels. Operation Desert Storm was even a marketable name. Viewers got televised updates from General Schwarzkopf and Colin Powell. It was a war with Nielsen ratings.

And in 1991, an Operation Desert Storm trading card frenzy swept the nation. It wasn't the first time a war had been featured on trading cards, but Topps became

the first company to issue war trading cards during an active conflict. Stores sold out of the cards in hours. They compiled customer waiting lists. Tops could not print cards fast enough. Kids were trading a Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney card number 2 for a carpet-bombing card number 90.

Weapon cards gave detailed descriptions with information provided by the Pentagon. Soon, other trading card companies got in on the action. Reportedly, a portion of the revenues went to veteran groups. Like cigarette cards and Batman cards, they too were designed to market a product. That product was patriotism. Recently, there was an altercation in the parking lot outside a Target store in Milwaukee. Two collectors got into a scuffle over a trading card.

A gun was brandished. Police were called. Trading card fever A gun was brandished. Police were called. Trading card fever has exploded during the pandemic. Companies that grade trading cards have tripled their fees to keep from being overwhelmed with submissions. It's not just physical cards that are selling. There are now NFTs, non-fungible tokens. Think of them as virtual trading cards that can be bought and sold,

but have no tangible form. Like physical cards, a company issues a certain number of digital cards that have serial numbers. The lower the number, the more valuable the card. Each virtual card has been tokenized to create a certificate of ownership on a blockchain ledger. That certificate cannot be copied or deleted. A virtual card of LeBron James dunking recently sold for $210,000.

It's the new world of digital collectibles. But when you distill it all down, it's still the same dynamic as it was in 1850. Trading cards promote a product, fans collect the cards. Companies hope to fuel loyalty, fans hope to collect the full set. Some collect for the joy of it, some collect for the cash in it. But they all do it for the thrill of the chase. You just hope you don't get stuck with too many Turk Brodas when you're under the influence. I'm Terry O'Reilly.

This episode was recorded in the Terrestrial Mobile Recording Studio. Producer, Debbie O'Reilly. Sound Engineer, Keith Oman. Theme music by Ari Posner and Ian Lefevre. Research, Susan Kendall. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter at Terry O'Influence. See you next week. Remember, a Turk Broda is still worth 10 Dick Cheneys. Always ensure your token is not fungible. Offer only valid in Goose Bay, Labrador. See you next week.