|
Jim Thorpe 1912 Postcard, 1932 Original Wire Photo.
Lot 281. Jim Thorpe 1912 Postcard, 1932 Original Wire Photo. The pundits at ESPN selected Thorpe as the seventh best North American athlete of the 20th century. Somehow, seven guys, mostly one-sport wonders, beat him out. At the 1912 Olympics, Thorpe won the decathlon and the pentathlon. As a football player at the Carlisle Indian School, which played the nation’s top college teams, he scored 25 touchdowns and 198 points. He helped to establish the American Professional Football Association, which eventually became the NFL. In six years as a part-time major league outfielder, he batted .252. But at ESPN, at least, he wasn’t as good as the century’s “best,” a superb basketball player who simply struck out in baseball and competed only in basketball at the Olympics. The postcard, titled “Thorpe of Carlisle, PA., ‘The Greatest Athlete of All Times,’” shows Thorpe as a shot-putter for the Indians. It is p-f with clipped upper corners and soiling. The sepia wire photo from Acme Newspictures shows Thorpe in full Indian regalia with Josephine McKim, who won the bronze medal in the 400-meter freestyle at the 1928 Olympics and gold in the 4 x 100-meter freestyle relay at the 1932 Olympics. Thorpe and McKim are participating in an “Air Cruise” to promote the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Ex 6” x 8” photo with caption attached. Great items representing the seventh best athlete of the 20th century.
Winning Bid $264.
Back to List
|
|
|
|
