Lot 184. Billy Martin Signed Photo Framed with “Billy Bopped in Topless Bar.” The autograph on the 8” x 9” color photo is gem mint 10. The photo is framed to 15” x 22 ½” with a portion of an entertaining page from the May 8, 1988 New York Daily News. The page contains a Bill Gallo cartoon with an image of a battered Martin, and it carries the sub-headline “Forty stitches to repair ear of the Yank skipper in ‘unprovoked’ rest room attack.” The frame has numerous scuffs. Cleveland general manager Frank Lane said of Martin, “He’s the kind of guy you’d like to kill if he’s playing for the other team, but you’d like 10 of him on your side.” Martin was in his fifth turn at managing the Yankees when the fight occurred. In a 1987 poll of 600 former major league players, Martin came out as the eighth best manager of all time, ahead of Sparky Anderson, Whitey Herzog and Tommy Lasorda. He was killed in a car accident in 1989 at the age of 61. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $102.
Lot 203. Ozzie Smith Autographed Bat. The signature of the Hall of Fame shortstop is mint 9 on an nm-m 34” Rawlings Adirondack Big Stick Professional Model. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $50.
Lot 229. Babe Ruth Original Circa 1940s Vintage 8” x 10” Sepia Photo. A smiling Babe and two smaller men pose outside the Hilltop Restaurant, which specializes in “steak & chicken dinners.” The photo is slightly colorized, with red added to the men’s cheeks and blue added to a man’s tie and the restaurant sign. There is a crease in the sign, lesser creases primarily toward the border and several tiny scuffs in the lower left. This photo should give the winning bidder at least one good smile a day.
Winning Bid $138.
Lot 230. 1948 Exacta Babe Ruth Men’s Watch. The face of this colorful watch is nm-m with a superb image of the New York Yankees great. The watch shows wear on the back, has a metal elastic band and appears to be in good working order. An ageless timepiece!
Winning Bid $240.
Lot 231. Joe DiMaggio in a 1943 Army Panoramic Photo. On Feb. 17, 1943, DiMaggio enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces. This 10” x 30 ½” photo shows him a month later, on March 16, 1943, as part of a squadron at Santa Ana Army Air Base in California. DiMaggio is clearly visible in the top or back row, sixth from the left. The sepia photo shows excellent contrast and displays well. Up close, it shows a series of vertical creases about every 1 ¼” that extend from the bottom as much as about 5” into the photo. The creases, apparently created when the photo was rolled, are not evident from several feet away, and they are well away from DiMaggio’s image. The photo is in a vintage frame that shows its age. Unusual collectible featuring the Yankee Clipper.
Winning Bid $110.
Lot 232. “Little Johnny Strikeout” Featuring Joe DiMaggio. This 1949 two-record set from Capitol Records tells the story of an 11-year-old boy who had major difficulty making contact as a batter. DiMaggio is pictured on the album cover and in multiple images inside. A series of 10 photos show “how Joe hits the ball.” The thin-paper album has a tear along the spine, is separated along one outer edge, has creases primarily along the edges on the front and has a ½” tear on the back cover, where Bozo the Clown is pictured. Inside, “$1.00” and “$2.00” are written on the white overhang area. The album displays well, and the 78 rpm records are very listenable with some expected scratches and light surface noise. Delightful cover image of DiMaggio.
Winning Bid $50.
Lot 233. 9 Signed Photos of Yankees – Berra, Lyle, Mattingly, Winfield, Etc. The signatures are gem mint 10s, all on 8” x 10” color photos, except for Bauer, whose photo is 8” x 9”. The photos are ex-m and better. Personalizations are to “Rich” or “Richie.” The signers are Hank Bauer (personalized) Yogi Berra, Jim Bouton (pers.), Al Leiter (dated 11/8/87), Ed Lopat (pers.), Sparky Lyle, Gil McDougald (pers.), Don Mattingly and Dave Winfield (pers.). Bauer and Lopat are deceased. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $65.
Lot 234. Autographs of Mickey Mantle, Whitey Ford, Duke Mass, 9 More 1960 NY Yankees. The signatures are on a 4” x 5” section of paper taped to a heavier card. Besides Mantle, Ford and Maas, the page is signed by John Blanchard, Bill Short, Fred Kipp, Elmer Valo, Eli Grba, Ralph Terry, Frank Crosetti, Art Ditmar and Ryne Duren. The Valo signature in pencil is nm 7. The others are nm-m 8 to gem mint 10. The Mantle and Ford autographs are among the strongest. Valo’s signature in a Yankees’ context is unusual; he played for New York in only eight games. Maas is a relatively tough autograph; he passed away in 1976. The autograph page has tape that barely touches the Maas and Short autographs and has a slightly greater impact on Ditmar’s and Duren’s. One corner is chipped, and the pages shows several folds and a tear that affects Terry’s autograph. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $113.
Lot 235. New York Yankees 1950s-60 Photo Collection of 25 with Stengel, Howard and Ford. A total of 27 photos, including nine from the 1950s, 16 from the 1960s, one from 1970 and one from 1981. Sources are the Chicago Times, the New York News, International News, AP and, predominantly, UPI. Elston Howard is in 10 of the photos, Stengel in nine and Ford in one. Photos capture Howard making a play in the 1958 World Series, coaching Yogi Berra’s son, playing basketball and playing table tennis with his son. In one photo, he is shown with Ralph Houk, and in another, with Ford and Roy Hamey, the Yankees’ general manager. Stengel is pictured receiving an award, celebrating his 50th season in baseball, making out a lineup card, signing a two-year contract in 1950 and talking with Capt. Felipe Guerra Matos, sports director of Cuba. Most of the Stengel photos show crop marks, photo editing or both; they average g. One Howard photo has a chipped corner, and the photo of Howard with Ford has an L-shaped 1” tear at the top, minor paper loss and multiple creases. Other highlights include Bob Turley and John Gabler, Jim Bouton and Al Downing working out, Johnny Keane coaching Whitey Ford’s son, Joe Torre playing catch with a handicapped child (1966 photo), Reggie Jackson and Marvin Miller at a press conference during the 1981 baseball strike, and actress Lee Remick in a promotional photo for Damn Yankees with Yankees president Michael Burke. The photos are 7” x 9” and larger. Excluding the six already described, they average ex to ex-m; any creases are almost always away from the central image area, which has an ex or better appearance. Almost all have captions or other descriptions.
Winning Bid $75.
Lot 236. 5 New York Yankees Display Items. 1. United Press broadside (10 ¾” x 12”) marking the end of Lou Gehrig’s consecutive game streak in 1939. Framed to 14 ½” x 16 ¾”. 2. Oct. 10, 1961 New York Daily News page celebrating the Yankees’ 1961 World Championship. Ralph Houk is pictured with Reds’ losing manager Fred Hutchinson. The page is matted and framed to 14 ½” x 18”. 3. 1960 Ballantine Beer 14” x 22” broadside promoting a dinner for the Yankees. It is free of stains and displays well with creases at the top. 4. Ballantine Beer 10 ½” x 13 ½” bar plaque featuring Mel Allen, g-vg. 5. Reproduction broadside, framed to 14” x 22”, for the 1932 Yankees-Cubs World Series, ex with water stains along the bottom edge and a small corner chip in the glass.
Winning Bid $68.
Lot 278. 1952 Topps “Look ‘N See” Set of 135 Including Babe Ruth. Key cards are #1 F. D. Roosevelt f, 4 Lincoln p-f, 6 Teddy Roosevelt ex-m+, 9 Washington g, 15 Ruth vg-ex, 30 Lindbergh f-g, 32 MacArthur vg-ex and 82 Rembrandt f-g. The other cards are. Ex-m+: 1 card. Ex-m: 3. Ex+: 1. Ex: 3. Vg-ex: 5. Vg: 13. G-vg: 23. G: 37. F-g: 22. F: 14. P-f: 5.
Winning Bid $489.
