I came across an oddball Topps set from the 1990s and
was immediately interested. The set is the 1997 Topps Screen Plays, a small set
that is made up of 20 base cards plus 6 premium cards and is distributed in tin
film cans. The cards are made of dura clear and are motion cards, including 24
frames to complete the scene.
I came across a seller who was selling a 5 tin lot with
an opening bid of $4.99 plus $6.95 shipping. I tossed up a small bid and won
with the $4.99 opening bid. I figured that since there are only 20 cards on the
list and me opening 5 cans I had a 1:4 chance of pulling the Griffey card.
Really not bad when you consider it breaks down to $2.39/tin. The shipping
alone cost the guy $10.35 so he basically lost money on the sale.
Alas Griffey was not among the tins I opened and I am
left hunting down the two Griffey cards, he also is on the 6 card premium
checklist, and 5 tins of players I do not collect.
I opened all of the tins to see who they were but I am
only showing one because I will be using these tins in an upcoming contest. The
packaging is unique and used for display. The tins do contain the player but
they are covered by a large circular card of the same player (reverse side up
so you do not know who it is) that once removed you see who you pulled. Inside
the tin is a foam insert that is designed to hold both the card and the metal
tin cover. The card has a peel away cling to both sides so you have to peel it
off. Sadly the first tin I opened, Mark
McGwire, the foam insert had already begun to break down and the material was
all over the inside of the tin and coated the card. The remaining 4 tins still
have their foam insert intact and still usable as a display and the cards still
have the peel away clings but the McGwire foam insert was destroyed and I only
removed the peel clings off of the McGwire card to see what they looked like.
I am considering including the 5 Screen Play packs (tins
and cards) as a prize for a competition around my 7th blogversary in
June. Only then will I reveal who the other 4 tins contain.
