Vintage Card Of The Month: 1968 A & BC Superman In The Jungle

This month’s VCoM comes from the 1968 A &BC Superman In The Jungle release, a card set that was released in the UK. This is my second 1968 A & BC Superman In The Jungle card, the last one I posted in September last year.

What draws me to the set, besides being a Superman set, is the interesting history that the set has. In 1968 the set was released in England and it drew interest from Topps which went on to create a test set based on the set but in the end decided not to release the set. You can find some of the Topps Test Proof cards, I would suggest sticking with ones that have been graded so you know they are not counterfeit, and they can run up to $100 each and because they are only proofs that were never intended to be released that are usually graded very low or just “A”.

The reason I selected this specific card is twofold, Superman is blasting a python with his heat vison which is always cool and second because Topps selected this specific card to recreate in the 2013 Topps 75^th Anniversary release so of course I had to own both the original and the Topps 75^th Anniversary version.

You will notice there is a difference between the cards with the original 1968 A &BC card being smaller, pink background and issues with the coloring. Here are the cards together for comparison.

I have never seen the 1968 Topps Test Issue of this card but I would eventually love to pick it up to complete the trilogy.

 

Vintage Card Of The Month: 1968 A & BC Superman In The Jungle Awesome Apparition

This month’s VCoM comes from the U.K. in the form of the 1968 A & BC Superman In The Jungle release. In the 1960s Superman was the top guy in the super hero world and there were multiple Superman sets being released around the world. Topps even tossed their hat in the ringer and worked with A & BC to release a “Test” set in the U.S. before the regular release in the U.K. Topps never moved on past the test set but A & BC moved on with their set, which is the set from which my card comes.

The set contains a 66-card checklist with each card depicting a beautifully colored Superman in various African environments like the jungle, rivers and lakes. He fights snakes, rhinos, leopards and even a fire breathing dragon. The set war marginally popular and Topps even included a “Test” Jungle card in their recent 75^th Anniversary release.

The card cost $8.25, which is on the low end for these cards, and is graded a PSA 5. I would love to add more cards from the set to my collection as well as some cards from Topps Test set as long as the price is right. I wish there were subgrades so I could see where the problem is that caused this card to be a mid-grade. Besides the back being cut off-center (top to bottom) this card is in beautiful condition with squared corners and edges, smooth surface and bright colors.