On Monday I mentioned that Ryan (SumoMenkoMan) sent me a large, heavy box last week... but hadn't had the opportunity to crack it open. Well, I just opened it up a few hours ago... and it instantly reminded me of one of those sports card packages that West and Lewis would put together to tear those Social Security checks from all of those loving grandmothers out there looking to buy something cool and collectible for their grandchild.
See for yourself:
Okay. So he didn't exactly send me a box of 1988 to 1992 Fleer factory sets or a 1,000ct. box of random cards that might contain a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle.
No. This care package was way, way cooler. He carefully packaged a little bit of everything into this box. There were back issues of Tuff Stuff, unopened boxes, unopened packs, autographs, super shiny singles, and even some bookmarks.
There was so much stuff, I've made the executive decision to write a few different posts featuring items from this box. I definitely plan on opening up a couple of the boxes to celebrate my upcoming birthday and I look forward to reading (and possibly reviewing) the three Tuff Stuff issues from 1992.
As for today, I thought I'd take a closer look at a few singles he sent my way and imagine Don and Eddy commentating on each one.
Card #1: 1991 Silver Star Holograms #NNO
Eddy. Eddy. Eddy. What the heck is this card? And are you seeing the numbering on this beauty? This is a one of a kind card Eddy! One of a kind! You will never find another copy of this card with the number 009804 stamped on it. This card will easily put your grandchildren through college in a few short years.
Card #2: 1990 Holsum Bread #8
Oh my gosh Eddy! Do you know how rare this card is? Do you know how many loaves of bread you'd need to buy in order to guarantee yourself a Rickey Henderson? It wouldn't surprise me if this is the only Holsum Rickey Henderson in existence.
Card #3: 2019 Archives Fan Favorites Autograph #FFA-JL
Card #4: 1996 Danbury Mint #46
Eddy. How would you like to own a card made of 24kt gold? If this card featured Bip Roberts, it would be worth at least $1000 based on just the value of gold alone. However. When you consider that this is Mickey F'n Cochrane... this card is easily worth twice that amount to the right collector.
Card #5: 1994 Sport Shots Rancho Cucamonga Quakes #1
Okay. Sit down folks. I've saved the best for last. Are you seated? Eddy. Are you ready to bust out your credit card? Because what I'm about to show you is something so rare, so unique, and so weird... you won't even find it listed in Beckett.
This card features the last known dinosaur on the planet. Just that fact alone makes this card worth hundreds of dollars. But when you look at the back, you'll notice that Tremor offers you health tips. If this isn't a priceless item... I don't know what is.
I cannot recommend this enough. Don't buy one of these packages. Buy ten and just sit back and watch these items soar in value. Hey Don... how can Shop at Home afford to sell these packages at such amazing prices? They can't Eddy. We're losing money on every single one of these surprise boxes. In fact, I'm sure we'll be out of a job and out of the hobby within a few years.
But if we're lucky, maybe we can sign on with a wrestling company or something.
Okay... enough of my impersonations. Here's your question of the day...
Did you every watch Shop at Home? Did you ever purchase anything from them?
Thanks Ryan for this awesome care package. It sure took me back to the 90's when Don West and Eddy Lewis were the kings of late night television.
Happy Saturday and sayonara!
25 comments:
No. No.
Interesting that there are autographed ump cards. They should make a Denkinger and have him misspell his name.
Awesome assortment of goodies! I especially like the Jerry Layne autograph card. He is from my area of Ohio. Short story for you. His dad was a customer of ours at a grocery store I worked at about 10 years ago. If you are ever thinking about trading this card, I would listen.
Back in 1992 I watch HSN and bought the UD Fanfest set.
That's quite the haul of goodies!
You definitely took the contents of that box to a whole other level. Hope there are some goodies in there that can continue to spark joy!
I *loved* watching Don West on Shop At Home. I'd watch all night. I wasn't even collecting then, but it was a fun way to see some cards and vicariously "rip" some stuff, and he was just so amazingly over the top. It was clear to me that the stuff wasn't nearly as valuable as he said, but that was part of the fun.
Your parody of him needs at least one "if you're not on the line right now..." and a couple of "this is the BEST DEAL we've ever offered in terms of..."s! B^)
No, I never bought anything from him, and I never would, but if he were on right now, I'd watch!
Not the foggiest idea of what you're referencing.
I loved watching Don West peddle cards. The original Gary Vee! I never bought anything, but my grandma always bought me those Danbury Mint cards from magazines.
I love seeing those old Tuff Stuffs!
No and no.
I would watch them occasionally if I was up late at night and nothing else was on. I knew better than to order from them, snake oil salesmen.
Wow, very generous of Ryan! Can't wait to see what's in the 2020 Topps flagship baseball and Donruss Pop-Ups pack.
I did catch a few glimpses of those HSN guys--couldn't stomach them and their deception.
Their schtick got repetitive real fast, but it was neat seeing cards being sold over the TV.
I was too young to order anything from the network but was always tempted by the assorted 'high roller' grab bag products Don West would hype to death.
Ken Goldin would usually call in to talk about the great investment you could make by ordering a particular package.
Through the 1990s, there may have been other, similar shows would have athletes on [peddling memorabilia].
I did see some segments but never ordered anything. It coincided with my college years when I was pretty much only buying Topps flagship
I'm looking foward to seeing the Turtles cards.
Mascot cards are always cool. Tremor is a great name.
Hah! Those YouTube clips are fantastic. I haven't ever ordered products from home shopping networks, but I do remember watching for a few minutes here and there with my friends and making fun of either the products or the people trying to promote and sell the products.
Funny post. I look forward to seeing the rest of the contents.
Awesome care package man. Can't wait to see what's in those boxes.
Don West "Topps only made 20 of this card...and we have 25 of them here today...call now, I don't care what you're doing...call before it's too late...if you're on hold for 4 hours, consider yourself lucky...hang on the line to get this deal!!!!"
elliptical man - i'm sure cardinals fans would love to add an autograph of him to their collections
ohiotim - if i ever get a double, i'll let you know, but i'm pretty sure you can grab his signature for a few bucks on ebay
johnnystradingspot - nice. that's the hologram set, right? if it is, it's gorgeous
nachos grande - yeah... ryan definitely hooked it up
sumomenkoman - definitely made my day when i opened it up. can't wait to tear into those packs/boxes. thanks again buddy
bret alan - good call. i'd encourage as many bloggers who are interested to do their very best parody of those guys. and if they came back on the television, i'd totally watch them too.
night owl - if you ever need some entertainment, check out their videos on youtube. they essentially were used car salesmen selling sports cards on late night television
the lost collector - lucky. i'd love to own a complete set of those danbury mint gold cards. they're awesome!
sg488 - it's a good thing you never purchased anything from them, but i would encourage anyone who has never experienced don west to check him out.
corky - snake oil salesmen. i like that comparison
bbcardz - i'll be opening both of them in the near future. just need some time to sit down and relax
laurens - i remember when goldin would call in and plug his autographed stuff. good times.
gcrl - i was in college too. even my non-collecting friends would watch it
jongudmund - i'll definitely open up 3 of the tmnt packs. i'm keeping one sealed for the collection
gregory - i wish the yt videos were longer and of higher quality. if they were, i'd probably make a playlist and watch them while sorting cards
gtt - i'll slowly roll out the rest of this care package. stay tuned
troublewiththecurve.net - awesome impersonation! you're spot on.
I remember staying up all night watching those two. I talked my mom into buying a set off shop at home back in the day, but don't remember what it was. Those were the good old days.
reds card collector - i might have pulled one or two allnighters, but we'd also just record it (on vhs tapes) and watch them in our free time.
He always sends you the coolest stuff! I didn't have shop at home in my youth
I know nothing of Don and Eddy but this was freakin' hilarious to read! Thanks to Ryan for providing subject matter!
sport card collectors - yeah. i've gotta pay him back in food, since he has pretty much every possible sumo card i can possibly dig up. lol
a cracked bat - if you need some quality entertainment, look up don and eddy on youtube. they're quite the salesmen.
I never watched Don West on the the home shopping channel, my only exposure to him was his run as an announcer in TNA (now Impact) Wrestling back in the 2000s. His enthusiasm was perfect for the pro wrestling environment.
adam - i've never seen him play the role of announcer, but was pretty stoked to see that he has autographs in some of those tna products.
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