Every once in a while we like to mix it up with a smorgasbord of potpourri. If that is, in fact, a thing.
(Ed. Note: It is!...depending on your thoughts on the AI overview)
Before we get into the miscellany, I do want to note that there will be very little Fanatics Fest talk in here… because the Fickles didn’t go. There was no reason other than we just didn’t – vacation, NYCC taking priority, etc. But we heard good things! And we’ll get into that in a little bit… But first, we start with the produce section at your local grocery store…
What I’m Buying
1. Dole Bananas (39¢ a banana)
I know a lot of people complain that their various algorithms know too much about them, but shoutout to Instagram for somehow knowing I needed to extend my Panini World Cup soccer sticker experience with… Dole bananas.
Full disclosure: I live in an area where I can choose every day whether to go to Trader Joes, Stop & Shop, or Whole Foods. I get my milk and bananas from Trader Joe’s, and now I may peruse the Stop & Shop selection for the stickers to fill out my sheet (which can be found here).
Is there anything to this beyond the joy of finding elusive stickers for the sheet with the kids, who are now in danger of potassium poisoning? If that’s even a thing (Ed. Note: it…maybe is?). Yes – a new sense of purpose in buying bananas. I needed this. Thank you, Dole.
2. Not Tom Brady stuff
Oh man, the pile on has begun. While reviews overall for Fanatics Fest were great, Tom Brady’s cringe-inducing theatrics have everyone from Dave Portnoy to Front Office Sports questioning his legacy (and hopefully in the next few days he comes out with a Mike Tyson-esque “legacy” quote to counter all this).
But will it affect his card prices?
On that, I’m not 100% sure. Brady is shrewd, if nothing else. For instance, if he does do anything with WWE, he’s just created a debut patch 1/1 and a slew of Topps Now cards, inserts, football SSPs, etc.. And we already know he’s down for cool card stuff – remember his Expos cards from 2023?
Still, it’s performative cornball stuff and super-fake and obvious in its fake-ness. Just one man’s opinion (plus most of the internet, but what do they know?), but I can’t fault Brady for the advice he’s getting to do it. If he could act better, or if it wasn’t Logan Paul, maybe we’d be viewing it all differently. And people covering it like “Tom Brady slapped Logan Paul!” over and over, repeating the same clickbait-y headline in all our feeds despite us all knowing it’s fake – it seems more like a good idea that backfired than anything else.
Also, his partner in all of this, Logan Paul, knows collectibles and stunts. He gets the idea of publicity better than most. He’s actually a talented athlete. Let this play out and maybe we’ll forget about the cornball origins. Brady will be fine, he owns a football team, he’s having some fun. But we’re not buying anything of his right now because the general consensus here is “GROAN” and consensus is what drives most markets!
3. Fruity Pebbles 1971 original animation cel ($25-ish with shipping)
I’ve been told I have “enough” animation cels “for now” so let me share this one with all of you, because for $15, even if it’s fake (and I think it’s real, for whatever that’s worth), it’s a steal as a piece of easily-framed artwork for your home.
“The Flintstones Fruity Pebbles 1971 Production Animation Commercial Pencil Cel”
That’s an original Fred Flinstone at Mister Sprocket prices, people!
4. Congo’s Zinaida Serebriakova erotic art stamps ($30)
Every once in a while a post will go viral featuring a Serebriakova self-portrait that was painted in 1909 but looks like a modern piece of art:
In 2014, for reasons we cannot track down (but maybe we’ll try for a future newsletter), the Democratic Republic of Congo issued a set of stamps that featured the self-portrait.. .alongside several other “erotic” works that are relatively tame but still feature enough Renaissance-style nudity for it to take the place of our bi-weekly Marge Simpson Playboy reference. For $30, they can be yours on eBay.
We’re filing this one under “100% not going to appreciate in value, but it’s a cool thing to hang on the wall” and cross-filing it under “oddities,” which makes up most of our collection.
5. The JG Auctions “America’s Story” Collection, Part 1 ($25-100)
There are still three weeks left in this auction, but it’s never too early to “star” a few cool things and hope nobody bids so you can swoop in on the last day and get some unique stuff. I still haven’t figured out how to game the JG system – do I bid $25 early because the next bid for someone would be $30 and maybe that’s a bridge too far for them? Do I wait and hope it sits at $25 or $30 because I’ll pay $40? I cannot help you there, because mostly all my strategies have failed, but I CAN point out a few cool things among the 750 items. NOTE: I’m leaving one thing off my list because I selfishly want/need to win it. Please forgive me. I still love you all.
Ulysses Grant-related letter from the Civil War ($50 bid): It’s not Grant himself, but I’m always in for a letter from 1861 requesting more roast beef.
Union Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside carte de viste ($25 opening bid): I’m not a huge carte de viste guy, but this is the person “sideburns” were named after.
J. Edgar Hoover autographed letter ($35 opening bid): The first time I ever heard of J. Edgar Hoover was in the movie “Clue.” Since then I’ve obviously learned more about him, but a starting bid of $35 for such an iconic American character? It seems low. Maybe it’ll fly up to $100; for now, a $35 bid – if it sneaks through – could be a steal.
21 NASA autographs from 1980 ($200 starting bid): I have no idea what’s going on here, why the photo is starting at $200, or why JG has it valued between $700-1,200. One of the things I love about these “historical” auctions is researching this type of weirdness. It’s likely a “pass” for me at 200 – but a “probably bid” at $25. I will, however, spend the next few weeks with a recurring calendar alert to look this up.
Before we go, I would like to give a special nod to “Scumbag Collector” – featured on “Last Pod on the Left.” You may have already seen this, If not…
Have a great week everyone!! If you have any NASA insight, feel free to hit us up!!!
