Lot # 96: Rare 1934 Dizzy Dean and Daffy Dean Beech-Nut Tobacco Advertising Display

Starting Bid: $750.00

Bids: 25 (Bid History)

Time Left: Auction closed
Lot / Auction Closed




This lot is closed. Bidding is not allowed.

Item was in Auction "Spring, 2022 Premier Auction",
which ran from 3/16/2022 9:00 PM to
4/2/2022 9:00 PM



The 1934 baseball season was one of the greatest ever played, and the pitching performances of St. Louis Cardinals brothers Dizzy and "Daffy" Dean were a big part of the reason why.  While the pair's 49 combined wins is a statistic that is easy to digest, it was the Cardinals' stretch run that saw the Dean brothers lift the entire team onto their backs and carry them to a championship.  In order to finish one game ahead of the New York Giants in the National League, the Cardinals won 18 of their last 23 games.  In the team's last 29 games, a Dean brother pitched in 19, starting 14 and winning 11 with two saves.  Paul Dean pitched two extra-inning complete games and they combined for 11 complete games in September alone.  In a doubleheader against Brooklyn, Dizzy pitched a one-hit shutout in the first game, and Paul followed up with a no hitter, prompting Dizzy's famous quote "If I'd a-known you was gonna throw a no-hitter, I'd a-throwed one too!"  A Dean brother went on to win all four World Series games, each brother responsible for two.  Their performances in 1934 are among the greatest in baseball history.  The Dean Brothers' popularity swelled throughout the season, and endorsements piled up.  Among them was this - an enormous, full-color cardboard display, featuring the Dean Brothers' endorsement of Lorillard's Beech-Nut chewing tobacco.

Its popularity and desirability among collectors of sports advertising displays is almost without parallel; it remains one of the most highly sought-after displays in the entire hobby.  It is also quite rare in any condition.  Similar to the Union-Leader tobacco display we featured in a 2019 auction, this example is not as rare but equally desirable and in many ways more attractive.  The piece is enormous, measuring 31" across at its widest by 42" in height.  The piece exhibits some wear, and has undergone considerable restoration to conserve the piece, replace missing paper and stabilize worn areas, and to rebuild a large portion of the upper-left corner of the baseball glove.  What is extremely helpful here is that one can see obvious areas where the restoration took place, because the original piece was featured in our Fall, 2020 auction as lot number 54 (visit https://bid.loveofthegameauctions.com/bids/bidplace?itemid=22908).  That piece was sold unrestored; the winning bidder wisely had the necessary professional repairs made without overdoing it; there are still areas of fading and wear, but torn areas have been repaired and areas that had been dissolving and peeling away have been stabilized to protect the entire piece.  The result is a wonderful display - one of the most desirable in the entire hobby.

Views: 685