Perhaps best known as the artist behind the 1970s Fleer World Series issues, sports artist R.G. Laughlin created several baseball sets of his own during the 1970s as well. Perhaps the best-known is the "Old Time Black Stars" issue of 1974. Using illustrations based on photos, and featuring card artwork of brown and tan, the set features 36 players from the Negro Leagues.  Though Laughlin's name does not appear anywhere on the cards, the art and illustrations are unmistakable (and his subsequent 1978 "Long Ago Black Stars" issue, which uses virtually identical art, confirms the suspicion).  The set has grown in popularity as the great players of the Negro Leagues have become more widely-known; the scarcity of original Caribbean issues have led collectors to sets such as this when looking for key Hall of Famers and stars.  We have been fortunate enough to receive a complete, high-grade set of the cards, barely touched since their year of issue.  We elected to submit the key cards to PSA, and offer the remaining cards here.

Offered here is a collection of 15 sharp, ungraded cards from the 1974 Laughlin Old-Time Black Stars set.

Included:

Smoky Joe Williams (HOF), Rap Dixon, Oliver Marcell (erroneously spelled "Marcelle" on the card), Bingo DeMoss, John Beckwith, Jelly Gardner, Jimmie Lyons, Dave Malarcher, Spottswood "Spot" Poles, Grant "Home Run" Johnson, Charlie Grant, Cannonball Dick Redding, Fats Jenkins, Bill Monroe, and Dan McClellan.

While some cards (Redding, Dixon, McClellan) are printed off-center, all have sharp edges and nice corners. A great start to this tough yet important set.