The final baseball card set issued by Bowman prior to being acquired by Topps and the brand discontinued, the 1955 issue was an elaborate one, a 320-card set picturing a full-color photo of each player inside the screen of a stylized color television, an innovation that by the mid-1950s had taken hold. Each card reverse contained biographical and statistical information, as well as some basic information or an anecdote on each player. Presented here is a collector-grade complete set - a special set, consigned by a loyal consignor who has contributed at least one piece to each auction since our first.
A condition breakdown of the set is approximately 9% VG/EX with a handful better, 22% VG, 29% GOOD, 24% FAIR, and 15% POOR. The cards are generally well-handled, with many creased and wrinkled. A few have writing or tape on the reverse, and as one would expect, a few suffer from centering or print issues common with Bowman cards. A breakdown of the key cards is as follows:
#1 Wilhelm (F), #10 Rizzuto (G), #22 Campanella (F), #23 Kaline (F), #25 Minoso (G), #29 Schoendienst (F), #33 Fox (P), #37 Reese (F), #38 Wynn (P), #59 Ford (P), #60 Slaughter (F - tape on reverse), #89 Boudreau (F), #103 Mathews (F), #130 Ashburn (F), #134 Feller (F), #158 Hodges (P), #168 Berra (F - tape on reverse), #171 Roberts (F), #179 Aaron (P), #184 Mays (P), #191 Lemon (F), #197 Kiner (G), #202 Mantle (P - heavy trim), #242 Banks (P), #213 Kell (P), #265 Barlik (P), #283 Chylak (G), #303 Conlan (P), #308 Lopez (P). In addition, 7 cards have been graded by PSA. Those cards are as follows #226 McKinley (PSA GOOD 2), #228 Phillips (PSA VG-EX 4 MK), #259 Mossi (PSA VG-EX 4), #267 Honochick (PSA VG 3), #281 Berry (PSA VG 3), #293 Gorman (PSA VG-EX 4), and #320 Susce Jr. (PSA VG 3). Of the variations, card #48 has the Milt Bolling back, #101 has Orioles on the front, #132 has the misspelled name "Kueen", #157 has the Braves photo on front, #195 has no traded line, and #204 has the Milt Bolling back.
This is a collector's set, filled with well-loved cards that were assembled by a longtime hobbyist who was more concerned with completion than condition, but an interesting and entertaining set just the same. 320 cards total.