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Gadzooks, That's a Lot of Gum!

Most readers are probably not old enough to have been walking through grocery stores in the 1960's and remember the boxes of Bazooka Bubble Gum that would be on the shelves begging young collectors to rummage through the display scouring the backs looking for their favorite players.  Unlike the sealed Topps packs of the day which were a mystery until you opened the packs, the Bazooka Series displayed all of the players on the outside of the box.  So youngsters would have a field day when they would find a hoard of boxes on the shelf.

Issued from 1959 through 1971, Bazooka cards were issued in panels on the backs of boxes of Bazooka Bubble Gum and featured plenty of star power and enough gum to keep a young lad's jaw well exercised. The 1959 Bazooka Set is probably the toughest of the Bazooka Baseball Sets and features Mickey Mantle, but finding original boxes and uncut panels of any year can prove exceedingly difficult.

Selection on a Shelf

One of the great things about the boxes is that almost every single one featured a major star. While some boxes may have flown off of the shelves in hometown cities, there really weren't any "commons" boxes. Sure, you'd have a hard time finding Willie Mays in the Bay Area or Hank Aaron in Milwaukee. Yastrzemski boxes sold off of Boston shelves as quickly as Kaline in Detroit. Mickey Mantle, well, besides probably being the first boxes off of shelves in New York and New Jersey, boxes featuring "The Mick" rarely stayed on any shelves across the country.

We Purchased A Few More Complete Sets

Recently, we were lucky enough to have won several complete sets in panel form at auction. The sets that we purchased were 1963, 1964 and 1967. We've always loved these cards and purchase them whenever we get the chance, much like this 1961 Bazooka Set that we wrote about over the summer.  We fell that many of the Bazooka cards are often overlooked and therefore, undervalued in the marketplace.

Bazooka boxes were more than just vessels carrying 20 or more pieces of Bazooka Bubble Gum wrapped with Bazooka Joe Comics (another item kids of the day would collect and redeem for Bazooka Joe rewards). Unlike unopened Topps packs of the day, the Bazooka boxes let you know that players you were getting as there were three cards on the back. The three cards were bordered by dotted lines and were intended to be removed from the box and cut into single cards.

We'd still love to find some original 1959 Bazooka Baseball and Football cards and panels as well as the 1971 Bazooka Hockey Panels.  In fact, if you have any cards, panels or boxes from these years, please contact us -- we are very interested in purchasing them!

1963 Bazooka

In 1963 and 1964, Bazooka issued the set on 12 different panels, totaling 36 individual cards with the singles measuring 1 9/16" by 2 1/2".

1963 Bazooka Checklist

1964 Bazooka

The 1964 Set was similar to the 1963 issue and although many of the same players were used, the images were different than the previous release.

1964 Bazooka Checklist

1967 Bazooka

In 1967, the set was issued on 16 different panels (totaling 48 single cards) with the singles measuring 1 9/16" by 2 1/2".  While the 1964 Set was similar to the 1963 issue and although many of the same players were used, the images were different than the previous release, this was not the case a few years later when in 1966 and 1967, Bazooka expanded the set to included 48 players. Unlike the 1963-1965 sets, where many stars were assigned the same card number but had a different photo each year, Bazooka incorporated the same card numbers and playing images for more than three dozen players. In 1967 Bazooka set kept 8 of the 16 panels identical with the only changes being two variations (Frank Robinson was issued in a batting pose – changed from a portrait shot in 1966 and Dean Chance was listed with Minnesota rather than his previous squad in California) and the following players featured in the 1966 set being replaced in 1967: 1 Sandy Koufax, 2 Willie Horton, 9 Ed Kranepool, 13 Roy McMillan, 18 Vern Law, 29 Milt Pappas, 33 Bill Skowron and 37 Jim Grant.

1967 Bazooka Checklist

Schedule an Appointment to Meet Just Collect at a Show Near You

Just Collect travels to several shows on a regular basis. In the New York area, we often attend the White Plains Show at the Westchester County Center in White Plains, NY. If you're in the New England area, you can make an appointment to meet with one of our specialists when we're in the area for the Shriner's Show at the Aleppo Auditorium in Wilmington, MA. We also visit the Metro-DC area when we attend the CSA Show in Chantilly, VA. If you're in the South Jersey or Delaware area, you can also schedule appointments while we're in the Philadelphia area when we do The Philly Show in Valley Forge, PA.

We set up at The National Sports Collectors Convention every year and this year, it will be at the Stephens Convention Center in the Rosemont section of Chicago, IL and it has also been in Cleveland, Atlantic City and Baltimore in recent years. Additionally, we travel to the Sports Card and Memorabilia Expo in Mississauga, Ontario for those of you in the Toronto area that want to meet with us in Canada.

We would love to meet with you and schedule a private appointment to assess and value your collection while we are in your area, so please check out our show and travel schedule to see when Just Collect will be in your area!

Our Buying Philosophy

We've run into a wide range of people and collections over the past decade. Although we are known for buying vintage sports cards and especially vintage basketball cards, we are also extremely interested in buying non-sports cards, also!

Every collection and every collector is different and we treat EVERY collection with the respect and attention that we show for our own collections. We understand that many have put their heart and soul into building their collection. So when you're ready to sell, Just Collect understands the feelings that you're going through and we will work with you to help you reach a decision that is a WIN/WIN, because if you're not happy, we're not happy.

Won't They Be Worth More if I Grade Them Myself

We discuss all of the selling options with everyone that we meet with. In most cases, selling the collection on their own will put the most money on the bottom line, but it will also take an large commitment of time and energy and one that most are not ready or able to undertake. Another misconception is that grading the collection will return more money. When I hear people say, "You're just going to grade them and get ten times the money," I almost cringe. Grading a collection can be a money losing proposition, especially if you don't know what you're doing. And most times, we grade very few, if any cards, from average collections that we buy.

We value a collection based upon the condition and the value. If a card is worth $100 in a PSA 7 NM, we're going to value it at $100 whether it is ungraded or graded. You can spend hundreds or thousands of dollars grading your cards, but we're still valuing them the same and paying the same regardless of how much you've invested in grading them.

We Are Always Buying

Just Collect is always buying vintage sports and non-sports cards from 1879 to 1979 as well as select modern cards. If you have a collection that you are considering selling, contact us today to discuss your collection and get our industry leading purchase offer. If you have a collection that you want appraised, please contact us and we would be happy to discuss your collection and help you understand the real cash value of your collection in the current marketplace.

Don't hesitate to check out our Google Reviews left by many of the great people that have considered selling collections to Just Col

The "1963-67 Bazooka Complete Sets in Uncut Panels w/ 3 Mickey Mantles!" Video: