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The box: 2013 Panini Golden Age (hobby box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
Packs per box: 24 (plus one box-topper pack)
Cards per pack: 6
Cards in this box: 146
Base set completion: 102 of 150 (68 percent)
Duplicates: 0
Notables on base cards: Evel Knievel, Abraham Lincoln, Jackie Earle Haley, Knute Rockne, Mario Andretti, Tatum O’Neal, Elizabeth Montgomery, David Stambaugh, Lana Turner, Bobby Jones, Grace Kelly, Bobby Hull, Erin Blunt, Bob Gibson, Henry Ford, Yogi Berra, Johnny Bench, Earl Campbell, Jane Russell, Mel Ott, Johnny Carson, Eve Plumb, Sugar Ray Leonard, Rocky Marciano, Henry Winkler, Walter Cronkite, Jimmy Carter, Penny Marshall, Grantland Rice, Donna Douglas, The Three Stooges, Tris Speaker, Jean Harlow, Bo Derek
Inserts: 42 (all in gallery below with some base)
Exhibits (1) – Buck Weaver (box-topper)
White parallel (1) – Walter Cronkite
Tip Top Bread Labels (1) – Stan Musial
Bread for Energy (2) – Nancy Lopez, Thomas Hearns
Headlines (2) – McLain Earns 30th Win, Ship Sinks in Lake Superior
The Three Stooges (1) – Dizzy Doctors
DeLong (2) – Jim Kiick, Al Kaline
Playing Cards (8) – Joker, Bob Gibson, Grace Kelly, Henry Ford, Arky Vaughn, Carl Yastrzemski, Theodore Roosevelt, Dawn Wells
Americans Caramel Mini Red (1) – Henry Fonda
Americans Caramel Mini Blue (14) – Tatum O’Neal, Jim Thorpe, Red Grange, Bigfoot, Stanley Livingston, Lyndon Johnson, Jim Bottomley, Rudolph Valentino, Barry Williams, Joe Wood, Bob Gibson, Keith Hernandez, Tommy Smothers, Flight 19 Mystery
Carolina Brights Mini Green (8) – Tatum O’Neal, Red Grange, Bigfoot, Bob Gibson, Jim Bottomley, Steve Cauthen, Keith Hernandez, Fielding Yost
Carolina Brights Mini Purple (1) – Tommy Davis
Autographs/Memorabilia: 2
Historic Signatures (1) – Gary Lee Cavagnaro (Engelberg in The Bad News Bears)
Museum Age memorablia (1) – Johnny Carson
What’s Buzz-worthy: Panini America’s retro-styled Golden Age brand is one that’s been on the sidelines for the last few years, but this second release is, to this collector, the best of the three. The base set is loaded with “some of the nation’s greatest athletes, entertainers and newsmakers from the Golden Age of America” and it’s one that really showcases the retro possibilities in its inserts and autograph/memorabilia potential. There are minis and there are Exhibit box-toppers that couldn’t be more different and then there are nods to food-issue sets, historic moments and pop culture. The ink found here was good and the roster of inserts was fun. There can be better boxes — none of the notable members of The Bad News Bears were found here on either base cards, minis or autos — and there is plenty more to be found if you explore this one. The year before (strong) and the year (weaker) after are also ones to consider if you can’t find this one. The White parallel here is not the norm in every box, while a Johnny Carson hit isn’t one of the more commonly found ones (I’ve ripped many of these boxes and not seen one). This was a good rip on the mini front, too, but there are still a number of rarities out there that could make for a better box than this one.
Product Grade: A
Box Grade: A
Fun Grade: A
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