1960′s Rock Stars The Rolling Stones Procol Harum Jimi Hendrix Traffic Beach Boys Mister Softee Trading Cards

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This 1960’s pop star trading card set, issued by ice cream retailer Mister Softee, features many legendary bands, such as The Beatles, seen holding the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Band album; Rolling Stones, including the late Brian Jones; Procol Harum, best remembered for their timeless classic Whiter Shade of Pale; and Traffic, founded by the multi talented Stevie Winwood. This set also includes The Flowerpot Men, who scored chart success with their single Let's Go To San Francisco. One card also features a band whose name is derived from those of the band members: Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich. At their peak, they even spent more weeks in the UK singles chart than the Beatles.

British female singers from the swinging sixties are well represented in this set, including international superstar Dusty Springfield, Sandie Shaw with her shoes swung over her shoulder, the loud mouthed Glaswegian pop star Lulu and Cilla Black, who went from a singing icon to one of British televisions highest paid presenters.

This set also includes a number of American superstars, including Jimi Hendrix, considered by many to be the greatest electric guitarist in the world; John and Scott from the Walker Brothers; the singer-song writer Gene Pitney; the all American Beach Boys group and a card devoted to each of the members of the Monkees, who had their own television show.

Also featured is the perennial favourite Tom Jones; the multi talented Georgie Fame; folk singer Donovan and Engelbert Humperdinck, whose career changed for the better when he changed his name. This set devotes two cards to stars that bravely left popular groups and opted for solo careers: Alan Price, a talented musician who split from the Animals and Paul Jones, who was originally from the chart topping band Manfred Mann.

Mister Softee, Lord Neilson's Star Cards, 1968 (24 cards)

Includes:Jimi Hendrix, Gene Pitney, Procol Harum, Micky Dolenz, Sandie Shaw, Beach Boys, The Beatles, Paul Jones, Tom Jones, John Walker, Scott Walker, The Rolling Stones, Lulu, Traffic, Alan Price, Engelbert Humperdinck, Georgie Fame, Dusty Springfield, Donovan, Davy Jones, Cilla Black, The Flowerpot Men, Mike Nesmith

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1940's 1930's Pin-ups Betty Grable Carole Lombard Vintage Erotica Risque Eleanor Powell Paulette Goddard Adele Jergens Cigarette Cards

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This set is unusual for glamour cards in that it is full colour. Normally these types of sets are black and white or printed in a sepia style. Perhaps this set marks the trend of that time towards Technicolor movies, like Gone with the Wind and The Wizard of Oz, instead of traditional black-and-white. It features a number of icons: the world’s greatest tap dancer and pin-up girl, burlesque beauties and even some lesser known starlets and chorus girls who’d be long since forgotten if it wasn’t for this beautiful set of 1930’s cigarette cards. Below are some of the most notable stars in this set:

Carole Lombard

Listed as one of the greatest stars of all time by the American Film Institute and earning a whopping salary to match, Lombard’s career was cut short by a tragic crash of TWA flight 3 in 1942,

Eleanor Powell’s

Called “the world’s greatest tap dancer” due to her machine gun footwork, Powell danced her way to the top, starring alongside Fred Astaire. Powell was considered the only female dancer ever capable of out-dancing Astaire.

Betty Grable

After appearing in many small parts in the 1930s, Grable went on to become one of the greatest box office draws of the 1940s. Her iconic bathing suit photo made her the number one pin-up girl of the WW2 era. Her legs were famously insured for $1,000,000.

Paulette Goddard

Paulette Goddard was a major star of the Paramount Studio in the 1940s and was romantically involved with Charlie Chaplin from 1936-1942. She appeared in Chaplin’s films Modern Times and The Great Dictator. Ironically, although her relationship with Chaplin obviously gave her career a boost it ruined her chances of starring as Scarlett O’Hara in the classic film Gone With the Wind, because of questions surrounding her marital status with Chaplin.

Adele Jergens

After being named the Number One Show Girl in New York City and “Miss World’s Fairest” at the 1939 New York World’s Fair, she eventually landed a movie contract. Her chorus girl past meant that she tended to be type cast as burlesque dancers and blonde floozies. She even played Marilyn Monroe’s mother in Ladies of the Chorus (1948) despite the fact that she was only nine years older than Monroe.

Godphrey Phillips, Beauties of Today, 2nd Series, 1940 (36 cards)

Includes:Dorothy Dawes, Tania Weller, Constance Bergen, Frances Drake, Carole Lombard, Susi Lanner, Patricia Ellis, Betty Grable, Augusta Thoms, Betty Furness, Eleanor Powell, Mary Kidd, Lita Chevret, Mary Maquire, Margaret Gredon, Movita Gastenada, Dorothy Lamour, Mlle L'ardy, Paulette Goddard, Mlle De Sainte Marie, Evelyn Kelly, Hazel Lombard, Azalie Cecil, Adele Jergens, Jean Morgan, Audrene Brier, Sonja Levkova, Polly Walters, Adrienne Ames, Suzanne Kaaren, Nini Peters, Paulette Maszaros, Eleanor Whitney, Mary Carlisle, Janice Jarratt, Edith Zeisler

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German WW2 Weapons Panzerkampfwagen Mk iv Tank Blitzkrieg MP38 Submachine Gun V1 V2 Rockets Trading Cards

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Nothing was safe from WW2, even cigarette cards. Supply ships were attacked and blocked by the German navy, leading to severe paper rationing, which continued well into the 1950s in the United Kingdom. Although cigarette card production came to a virtual stand-still in the war years, many military card sets were issued before the war. The problem with these pre-war sets is that rapid technological advancements meant that many of the weapons featured were either upgraded or completely obsolete by the time of the war.

However, we know from WW1, that even when cards continued to be produced well into the war they were heavily censored and infused with propaganda. Although this has a nostalgic charm in itself, it does tend to distort our view of the frontline. I recently reviewed a set of WD and HO Wills’ Military Motors, 1916. Anyone seeing these cards could be forgiven for thinking that the allies’ land transportation was quite advanced. This is a bit puzzling since the lack of effective land mobility is often cited as one of the major problems with the war.

WW1 cigarette cards give us numerous examples of early propaganda, such as the patriotic Wills’ miniature Recruitment Posters and the very dark war cartoons of Louis Raemaeker, which I reviewed recently. Raemaeker was a very imaginative and passionate cartoonist, but I do think he went a little bit too far in suggesting that the German people and soldiers were demonic and preyed solely on the weak and vulnerable. I’m sure there would have been cases of atrocities committed on both sides. It makes you wonder whether the Allies’ very dark WW1 propaganda became a self fulfilling prophecy in WW2, feeding the cycle of violence by creating insane war leaders like Hitler. Hitler stated in his book Mein Kampf that “...it became evident what immense results could be obtained by a correct application of propaganda”

Although hardly any card sets were issued during WW2 and the pre-war sets give us a rather incomplete picture of weapons during that time, a number of retrospective sets were issued decades later, like the series we are about to review in this blog. We often get a clearer picture of conflict as the mists of war lift.

The magazine “Battle Picture Weekly” issued five card sets on “Weapons of World War II” in the mid 1970’s, each focusing on a different country. These sets are quite rare and not even listed in the main cigarette card and trading card price guide.

This particular card set is perhaps the most controversial since it is devoted to German armaments. It includes the infamous Panzerkampfwagen Mk4 tank that played an important role in Germany’s Blitzreig strategy, helping them to quickly overrun Europe in 1940. The Germans revealed the true potential of the machine gun in WW1 and, according to one of the cards in this set, “carried on the deadly tradition in the Second World War” with guns like the MG36 dual purpose machine gun. This card series also reveals that the 88 MM A.A. gun was “... feared and admired by the British in North Africa”. At 25 feet long, this gun “could fire to a maximum effective height of 14,680 meters and to 10,600 metres horizontally”. If that wasn’t far enough then the V2 rocket, a weapon developed towards the end of the war and aptly featured on the last card of this set, might be the answer, with a range of up to 210 miles.

I will be reviewing the other WW2 weapon card sets issued by Battle Picture Weekly soon.

Trading Cards,Battle Picture Weekly,Weapons of World War II, Germany (16 cards), 1970s

Includes:88MM Anti-Aircraft Gun, Junkers JU 87 Stuka Dive Bomber, mp38 Submachine Gun, Panther Tank, Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck Anti-Tank Weapons, Grizzly Bear Self Propelled Gun SP Gun, mg36 Machine Gun Dual Purpose, Nebelwerfer Rocket Launcher, Scharnhorst Battle Cruiser, Panzerkampfwagen Mk iv Blitzkrieg Attack,Type VIIC U-Boat, Hanomag Halftrack 37mm AA Gun Anti-Aircraft Gun, ME 109E 1 Fighter, Junkers JU 88 G 6 Night Fighter Version, Bohler 75mm Recoilless Gun, vergeltungswaffe v2 V1 or Revenge Weapon V 1 and 2 Rockets (Doodlebug)

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17th Century English Civil War Token 1653 Tower Hamlets London St Katherines Dairy Maid Deary Made Oliver Cromwell

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Tokens are a form of coinage produced by private businesses and institutions. They often come about when the government or monarch fails to mint enough coinage. This is a clear example of how the flexible free market comes to the rescue when centrally controlled monetary systems collapse. This commonly occurs during conflict, especially civil wars. The Industrial Revolution also provided the ideal conditions for tokens to flourish. The rapid flow of people from agricultural to industrial jobs put a massive strain on the availability of low denomination coinage.

The token featured in this blog was issued in 1653, in the aftermath of English Civil War. For many centuries, only the Monarch was allowed to issue money and anyone violating this law could be put to death. However, since Oliver Cromwell removed the king, Charles I, this no longer applied. Since there was no risk of execution and the long war had resulted in a shortage of coins, token production took off rapidly among 17th century merchants.

This particular token was issued by someone with the initials W.W. The rules on spelling seemed to be a lot more forgiving in the 17th century as most words inscribed on tokens are spelt phonetically. This is probably why it states “deary made” instead of dairy maid on the obverse of the token. The token also reveals a picture of a woman churning milk. I’m guessing the issuer owned a dairy, although one internet source
implies that it could be the name of a tavern.

Another interesting internet article reveals that the use of merchant signs was essential along the labyrinth of unnamed alleys and unnumbered houses in 17th century London. It also states that these signs became so important to customers that, when a new trader moved into the vacated premises, they might keep the sign even if it bore no relationship to their trade. Of course you can imagine how confusing this can be for the token collector in trying to identify what line of business the token issuer was in.

The creative spelling on this token also makes it difficult to identify the location of the issuer. Luckily, I found a website by the Tower Hamlets Numismatists Society that has done this job for me. So the inscription on the reverse of the token, “S. KATHERNS”, in fact refers to St Katherines, which is located in a part of London that is now known as Tower Hamlets.

Please contact me if you have any more information, thank you.

English Civil War Token Deary Made 1653 Tower Hamlets St Katherines

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What Was The Earliest Movie? History of Cinema Magic Lantern Thomas Edison Louis Le Prince Lumière brothers Oldest Movie Cigarette Card

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The Earliest Movie Tobacco Card / Trading Card (Circa 1901)?

Above is a picture of one of the earliest movie related tobacco cards ever issued . In fact, it could be the first. It features the American inventor Thomas Edison and was issued by Ogdens Limited, circa 1901. If you know of any earlier cinema related trading cards or tobacco cards please feel free to comment, but I’ve got a feeling that this card is going to be hard to beat.

The Earliest Movie Ever Made

Whether they were conscious of it or not, the western world was caught up in a race to invent the first motion picture in the late 19th century. Winston Churchill once said that “History is written by the victors.” Hollywood wouldn’t just write history, it would broadcast it worldwide, dominating popular culture and politics for decades. A new global power would rise up from the ashes of the old British Empire. Instead of invading physical space it would take over the virtual countries of our mind. Children in every nation would memorize songs by their favourite US pop singers and demand their own version of the consumerist, American dream.

Trying to untangle the complicated web of weird and wonderful inventions that helped contribute to modern cinema is mission impossible, but here goes:

With a name like magic lantern, it’s no wonder 18th century magicians and charlatans were quick to use this early optical instrument of illusion. Their shows would have terrified and hoodwinked their superstitious audiences. The lanterns could project ghostly images of long lost relatives. Simple animation effects could be created, but they bear little resemblance to the CGI blockbuster movies of today.

Mechanisms that create the illusion of motion from a series of static pictures were first developed in the 1830s: the Stroboscope, invented by Simon von Stampfer in Austria; Phenakistoscope , by Joseph Plateau in Belgium and the modern zoetrope, developed by William Horner in Britain.

In 1877 Eadweard J. Muybridge adapted these early motion machines for use with photographic images. Muybridge traced the galloping movement of a horse using a series of 24 cameras triggered by trip wires. He then used his zoopraxiscope to view the horse in motion.

The earliest surviving motion picture was filmed by the Frenchman Louis Le Prince in 1888 at Roundhay, Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK. He mysteriously vanished before he could demonstrate his latest invention in the USA in 1890. Due to the ruthless nature of patent disputes between Europe and the United States, many interesting conspiracy theories have arisen.

William Friese-Greene, a British inventor, developed the chronophotographic camera. It was apparently capable of taking up to ten photographs per second using perforated celluloid film. Friese-Greene gave a public demonstration in 1890. The low frame rate and unreliability failed to impress and Greene filed for bankruptcy soon after.

Thomas Edison and William Kennedy Laurie Dickson gave a public demonstration of their movie viewer, the Kinetoscope, in 1893. Its major draw-back was that the film could only be viewed by one person at a time, through a peep hole. This prompted the inventor Charles Francis Jenkins to develop the Phantascope movie projector , allowing whole groups to view moving pictures at once.

Auguste and Louis Lumière invented the cinematograph. It combined the camera, printer, and projector into one machine. The Lumière brothers held their first demonstration in front of a paying public audience in Paris, 1895.

Ogden Guinea Gold , General Interest Thomas Edison (Cinema History)

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