So here we are, in February, the gateway between the winter and the spring. Yet, for all that, it can still be cold and rainy. Good things too, though, the bulbs start to poke up from their slumber beneath the frozen soil - and seeds appear in the shops, though, at first, only the expensive ones. The cheaper ones come later, and often contain less seeds, which, for home growing, is all you need. Commercial growers may need five hundred of one type of seed, but I do not.
This week went quite well, though I was still missing two cards on Friday, the 5th and the 7th of February - and I spent way too long writing about our first subject, but I hope you enjoy reading it anyway. Lets head there, now...
Hasbro [trade/commercial : toys : O/S - Rhode Island, USA] "G.I. Joe" (1986) 15/192
Today seems to be universally regarded as G.I. Joe Day, however I have not found out why, for the toy that is celebrated today was not actually introduced until February the 9th, at the 1964 New York City Toy Fair.
The story is said to start with Stanley Alan Weinstein, also known as Stanley Weston, who had the idea of making a toy that would encourage role play, a kind of doll for boys. He knew this idea may struggle, so he marketed it as an Action Figure. He then later sold the idea, for $100,000, to a group of toy makers, Henry, Hillel and Herman Hassenfeld, who were, understandably, better known as Hasbro.
They called their new toy G.I. Joe, despite that name being already in the public domain as a cartoon character from a comic strip, drawn by David Breger, in the 1940s, as a development of his comic strip about his own life, in which, as he went to war, so did his character become Private Breger. Now this cartoon was really popular with soldiers, so he was headhunted by the US Army to come and draw it for their magazine "Yank", with one proviso, there had to be a change of name. So Private Breger became G.I. Joe, taking his initials from the label on practically everything that was supplied to the American Forces, that being "General Issue", or "G.I." for short, and adapting the name "Joe" which was the nickname given to every soldier until their personal quirk became apparent enough to allow them to be renamed that instead of the "Joe".
Now in 1966, Hasbro allowed the United Kingdom company Palitoy to license G.I. Joe so that he could be sold over here. The only problem was that Palitoy didn`t like the name, so they called him Action Man. This was a bit of a nod to the fact that G.I. Joe had come in four forms, Action Soldier, Action Sailor, Action Pilot and Action Marine. Later there was also a G.I. Nurse, called Action Girl, but she was not so popular - though this has made her quite sought after today.
Strangely, Action Man developed features that were later used by G.I. Joe, felt for his hair and beard, and softer plastic hands to allow for better posing. But all that came later, because in the late 1960s, with the Vietnam War not going so well, and the protests against it, mothers did not want their sons to play with war toys. This led to Hasbro changing tack, and renaming the figures as an "Adventure Team", and also adding new adversaries, including aliens, and super heroes.
As far as cards, they came much later. Our set was the first to be issued, in 1986, and it came in a pack like an action figure, with a large card backing and a smaller, clear plastic blister pack attached which would have contained an action figure but now had eight cards, the top one of which was visible through the plastic, and a sticker. In all there were 192 cards and twelve stickers, which showed a character on a white background. These cards were publicised as "Series 1", but there was no series two. This has led to much confusion, because in 1987 a set of stickers were issued by Panini, but without their name, the only name appearing being Hasbro, and a lot of people think this is series two.
Also in 1987 came a set of fifty-five cards by Comic Images, these have white margins and the image is framed in a thick black border with rounded corners and a title in a cartouche which fits over the bottom border. Impel joined the issuers in 1991, with a base set of two hundred cards and twenty gold bordered "Hall of Fame" cards.
In 1993, along came a set called "G.I. Joe : Mission Search and Destroy", which is also said to be by Hasbro, and which other collectors believe to be the missing second series. However it is more likely that the Hasbro is just the standard copyright. There is also a suggestion that they are something to do with Marvel Comics, because you can get four promo cards that are prefixed with the letter "M". However the scenes are live action, not cartoon, which is odd because the first film version with live actors was not released until 2009.
1994 was the thirtieth anniversary of the first G.I. Joe figure, and Comic Images issued a host of cards to celebrate that, calling them the "Thirty Year Salute" - the base set of ninety cards are split between photos of actual G.I. Joe toys, (31 cards), covers of the comics (cards 32-41), overseas versions of the toys (cards 42-58), tributes to film and tv versions (cards 59-64). glimpses into the archives, including items that never got beyond the design stage (cards 65-77), most valuable figures (cards 78-83), and closes with a glimpse into characters that will soon be joining the squad (cards 84-89). The last card, no.90, is a checklist. As well as the base set, though, there was a promo card, and four special sets, chromium cards, a Comic Anthology, a card showing Action Nurse (only four of those were printed) and a card signed by Joe Kubert of D.C. Comics (five hundred of those were available).
The second film came along in 2013, called "G.I. Joe : Retaliation", and the cards for those, with the same name, were issued by Enter-Play, who I had never heard of but seem to have issued lots of cards. Each packet also contained one of six sheets of temporary tattoos; and on each sheet there were three small tattoos. The film makers missed a trick though, because in 2014 it was the fiftieth anniversary of G.I. Joe, and the only cards to commemorate that was a tiny issue by the G.I.Joe club, a collectors group which sadly only lasted four more years. They did at least manage to hold a convention, though, in 2016, and they issued cards there too, nine of them, one of which was a blank card for anyone to have a go at drawing a character from G.I. Joe - if used, these become one off`s and very collectable.
The only set that remains to discuss was a very limited edition produced by Super7, of San Francisco. This is a base set of twenty four cards, some of which were also issued in rainbow foil. We know little about those, though they were art drawn, by Jason Edmiston, and the packets contained six cards, whilst also saying they are the first series. They were issued in 2023 though, and as yet no second series has turned up. However, once the new film arrives on the scene, there will undoubtedly be more cards, and maybe this second series will also turn up.
Successful Farming / Goodyear [trade : magazine : USA - Des Moines, Iowa] "Ageless Iron" (1994r) Card 177
And now, a centenary, for today in 1925 Sears, Roebuck & Co. took a big risk, and moved from mailing out a catalogue to opening a physical store.
It all started in 1863 with the birth of Richard Warren Sears, in Minnesota. Now he was born into a rich family, mainly because his father seems to have had many money making schemes, the majority of which worked, until, when young master Sears was fourteen, one did not, and all the money disappeared at once. His father died shortly after too so the family had to move, and Master Sears had to go to work. I do not think this was so fast as that, for he got a job in a railway station and shortly after that a shipment came in, but the person to whom they were addressed refused to accept them. Somehow our man arranged to buy them rather than get them returned to the sender, and then he sold them to his fellow workers. He made a profit, and it was fun, so in 1896 he started a company, selling watches to the general public, maybe these were even the ones he had not sold, he called it R.W. Sears, and he sold them just above cost, so they were cheaper than any in stores.
It appears that some of the watches he had were broken, perhaps why the shipment was refused, and that led him to meeting a watch repairer, by the name of Alvah Curtis Roebuck. The two seem to have got along well, and also having a repairer meant that he could not only buy broken watches and have them fixed, but that he had someone to advise which of those watches needed less work, or were easier to repair, all adding to the profits.
The following year the company moved to Chicago, and published a mail order catalogue for watches, diamonds, and jewellery, which could be sent across America by post. The recipient would then send back an order with the money, and the goods would be despatched by post too. However, for some reason, Sears sold up in 1889, and moved to Iowa to become a banker. This did not suit him, so in 1892 he returned to Chicago and started again, with another mail order catalogue and a new name, Sears, Roebuck & Co. They also started to add in other lines, not just jewellery - mostly things that would be needed by farmers who were not in easy reach of a store, small novelties for their girlfriends, and household requirements for their wives. And a few years after it began the catalogues were five hundred pages thick.
In 1895, after a few lean years caused by a general depression across America, when people learned to live with what they had, not just buy new, Mr.Roebuck left. He did come back, but not as a partner, only in a minor role, working with advertising campaigns. In the mean time Mr. Sears had sold his half of the company to a local businessman called Aaron Nusbaum. Mr. Nusbaum then installed his brother in law, Mr. Rosenwald, to whom Mr. Sears owed some money, though strangely enough these two men got along way better, and in 1903 Mr Nusbaum left. Strangely the store was still called Sears & Roebuck, even after 1908, when Mr. Sears stepped down as president due to ill health, and Mr. Rosenwald stepped up to the big chair.
In the 1920s, business was booming, and so the company opened their first store, in Chicago, today, in 1925. It continued to prosper right through the Great Depression, and World War II, during which it sent catalogues to the forces, and it became the top American retailer.
However as it expanded it diversified, with lots of separate little companies either coming under its wing, or being set up as satellites. Eventually ir could no longer support itself, and they started selling off parts. Then, in 2005, the whole company was bought out by K-Mart in 2005. They did not do so well though, and they also sold off bits and pieces, including one of the figureheads, "Craftsman Tools", which was snapped up by Black and Decker. There were even lots of sets of cards showing the tools, and though they are regarded as commercial, for some were sold in packets in stores, if you were a member of the Sears tool club you were entitled to a free packet - and this was a regular packet, so there is no way to tell which cards were paid for and which came free. I did want one of those in here, but the card I found is amazing, because as well as the Land Rover, I have always had a bit of a yen to have a tractor, as a second car, for short journeys. Just imagine the fun of trundling into Waitrose, driving a tractor.
Anyway despite all these efforts, business continued to decline, so much so that K-Mart filed for bankruptcy. However that did get sorted out, and some of the stores even reopened, but only to close - as at the end of 2024 there were just seven stores left in America and one in Puerto Rico. Their online business is still ticking along though, and that may be the future, though it does seem sad when you think of the great excitement they must have had to open that very first store.
Now though there are cards which were issued by Sears, Roebuck & Co, this card was not - however it does show a tractor which was originally retailed by them, and this late in the day I will take it, even though the picture needs a bit of work. Instead, this set, or actually six sets, each of thirty six cards, and obviously numbered consecutively, were issued by "Successful Farming" magazine with some tie in with the Goodyear Company. That makes this card part of series four, and that was issued in 1994/95. All the tractors shown are in restored and often working order and the current owner`s name also appears.
Stollwerck [trade : chocolate : O/S - Germany] "Composers" (1905) Album 8, Gruppe 349, card III
A little music now, courtesy of Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn, who was born today, in Hamburg, Germany, in 1809.
His parents were Jewish, and they were musical, encouraging their son to play the piano as soon as he could reach the keys. In 1811 they moved to Berlin, because Hamburg was occupied by the French, and their son had his first proper piano lessons, as well as teachings in art and literature.
In 1816 the whole family converted to Christianity, the parents, Felix, and his brother and two sisters, and became Lutheran. At the sane time they added on a suffix to their surname, that being Bartholdy.
Two years later, aged nine, he played the piano in public for the first time. This was in Berlin, but the details are a bit sketchy and it is also not recorded as to whether he played his own compositions, of which there were already several, or those of another musician.
By 1829, he was an accomplished composer, friend to other musicians, and had started conducting with the orchestra, in fact he was the first person to conduct Bach`s St Matthew Passion for almost eighty years and almost certainly this led to a revival in Bach`s popularity, which had waned. The same year, he travelled to England, where he conducted the London Philharmonic Society, and also visited Scotland, where he met Sir Walter Scott. He also seems to have really taken to the wildness and beauty of the Scottish countryside, and it also inspired the concert overture called "The Hebrides", as well as his "Symphony No.3 - the Scottish Symphony". He travelled on, returning to Berlin across Europe and then going back to London, where "The Hebrides" was first performed, in 1832.
He returned frequently to Great Britain, and even met Queen Victoria, whose passion for Scotland is well known. In fact "Symphony No.3" was dedicated to her. And his "Wedding March", from "A Midsummer Night`s Dream" was first played at the wedding of the Princess Royal, though not until 1858, and he was long gone. for playing the “Wedding March” from his A Midsummer Night’s Dream at bridal processions originates from a performance of this piece at the wedding of her daughter, Victoria, Princess Royal after Mendelssohn’s death, in 1858.
In 1835 his father died, but he also met a young laday aged sixteen, and they were married two years later. Some say he delayed the wedding in order that he finish a piece of music that his father had so wanted to hear in a completed state. In 1843, he founded a conservatory at Leipzig, and continued to travel back and forth between his homeland and the United Kingdom. Then, in 1847, his beloved sister died, and he fell into a great slump. And by the end of the year he was dead, aged just thirty-eight. Recent knowledge seems to suggest that he died of the same thing as his sister, a haemorrhage of the brain, for the two had shown similar symptoms. But at the time this had not been known, and so had not been prevented. It is also now thought that it may have been hereditary.
This set seems primarily, dare I say, "composed" of musicians I do not know. These are :
- Karl Lowe [Dr. Michaelis Eichel-Kakao]
- Franz Schubert [Stollwerck`s Adler-Kakao]
- Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy [Stollwerck`s Familien-Kakao]
- Robert Schumann [Stollwerck`s Extra-Zart]
- Robert Franz [Gebruder Stollwerck A.G.]
- Franz W Abbot
I don`t know the advert on the back of Franz Abbot, yet. If you do, please tell us. It is the wording in the box along the top.
As far as the unknown composers, I can tell you that Karl Lowe is more usually known as Carl Lowe, and he was born in 1796, eventually being known as the Schubert of North Germany. That means that of the top four names, all but Franz Schubert are German, he was Austrian.
Robert Franz was also German but we know him more as Robert Franz Julius Knauth, and he wrote in a very similar way to Schumann and Schubert.
Franz W Abbot, another German, and another child prodigy, was a composer and choir master, who travelled right across Europe. He is chiefly remembered for seamlessly weaving traditional songs with classical styles, subtly changing and enhancing both at the same time.
Liebig [trade : meat extract : O/S - South America] "Le Ski" / "Skiing (1939) 6/6 - F.1404, S.1405
Another centenary now, for today in 1925 Nels Nelsen made the longest ski jump ever, some 240 feet.
Now we call him Nels Nelsen, but he was born Nils Johan Nilsen on the 3rd of June 1894, in Norway, and he was the sixth child in the family, but only the second boy. They all skied, and his brother was even the Boys World Champion.
In 1912, the family emigrated to British Columbia and Nils Nelsen became Nels Nelsen; it is not certain whether the rest of the family changed too, but we do know that his brother would not change, and kept his Norwegian name for the rest of his life.
Nels Nelsen married, had ten children, and moved to Vancouver. He also had a job, on the Canadian Pacific Railway but it seems to have been shiftwork, and the company, very kindly, allowed him to take time off for competitions. He was different to his brother, who was almost an exhibition skier, with great skill at the technical manoeuvres, for Nels` talent was in being able to judge the wind and make enormous leaps into the great unknown, seemly without a care. He was rated as the World`s best ski-jumper between the end of the First World War and the start of the 1930s, and he held the world record for five years, 1925-1930.
In 1926 he made his one and only cartophilic appearance, in Spalding’s "Champions". If you look at his jumper it says Revelstoke, and that is where his family emigrated to in 1912.
Sadly he was not allowed to take part in the 1928 Winter Olympics, simply because the officials found out he would have to work his way to Switzerland, and that was frowned on, they wanted competitors who were rich enough just to travel there. Which almost certainly means that they wanted to prevent the lower classes from beating the rich folk, hardly very sporting of them.
In 1933 Nils Nelsen lost his hand in a hunting accident, and was unable to ski. He did continue as an organiser and eventually became the president of the Western Canada Amateur Skiing Association. Sadly he died, of a heart attack in 1943, aged just forty-nine, so he never got to see the Big Hill ski slope, in Revelstoke, where he had set two of his world records, get renamed to Nels Nelsen Hill in 1948.
The French version of the six cards in this set are :
- La Montee [ascending the slopes]
- La Descente [skiing down]
- La position de Chasse - neige [the snow plow method of stopping]
- Le Christiania [a type of turn]
- La Course de Slalom [skiing a course between poles]
- Le Saut [the jump]
Now we say "in this set", because there is a set two, issued in 1940 - we call that set F.1418 or S.1422, and, rather oddly, it also contains cards of the same movements. I cannot find a French version of set two, but there are plenty of Italian ones online, which are entitled "Lo Sci" and the cards in that are :
- Salto del Trampolino [Ski Jumping]
- Kristiania [a type of turn, as above set]
- Discese a Spazzaneve [the snow plow, again as above]
- Discese diritta o Libera [free descent]
- Slalom o discesa obbligata [slalom, or governed descent]
- Salita a spina di pesce [the herringbone climb, walking uphill with your feet in a V shape
Now I have to say that I thought the last card was wrong, because I only looked at the people at the top of the hill, and I thought it might mean crossing the spine of the mountain, but look left, up the hill past them, and there is indeed someone performing this manoeuvre.
Fererro [trade : chocolate spread : O/S - Italy] "Animal Families"
This is one of the ones which confounded me, and then I discovered that it is actually World Nutella Day.
Now Nutella is a blend of hazelnut and chocolate, smoothed out into a spread just begging to be slathered on to bread, or to whatever else you can imagine. However it is but a brand, owned by the Fererro family, and yes, they do make Ferrero Rocher - in fact the chocolate filling inside one of those toothsome treats is none other than Nutella.
However it actually starts a long time ago, with a shortage of cocoa, in the early 1880s, which was ingeniously solved by a baker by the name of Pietro Fererro, who had just moved to Alba, in Italy. What he did was to take some of the hazelnuts that grew in the town and add it to just over half the usual quantity of cocoa than he would usually use. He was not sure how it would taste, but he tried it and liked it, and so he started selling it, under the name of "giandujot". He also added more cream to make a more luxurious, and more expensive, version, called "supercrema gianduja". These two blends were sold right until 1964, when his son altered the recipe, and the name, to Nutella.
Now there is a bit of controversy here, because there are three claimants for inventing the same product.
The second claimant`s story is remarkably similar to Mr. Fererro`s. This man was Michele Prochet, and he lived in Turin, Italy, in the early 1800s, where the shortage of chocolate was due to Napoleon putting a block on British goods. Mr. Prochet added chopped hazelnuts and made his stock of cocoa go a lot further. He called his product "gianduja". His claim is more or less discredited, but we remain uncertain whether it was simply because he had less money to pursue it. The similarity to the product names is very intriguing though, as both claim to have named it after a jovial chap who is part of the Commedia dell`arte. He is a humble peasant, rather too fond of drinking, and eating, and who has a definite eye for the ladies, even though he already has a steady girlfriend, called Giacometta. Originally he started out by being called Geralmo, not such a good idea, as one of Napoleon`s brothers was called Jerome, which was the same when translated into Italian. And remember, Napoleon was currently in the process of invading the area. So that character was renamed to Gioann di Doja, meaning John with the beer jug.
However this story more supports Mr. Prochet, because Gianduja is a big character in the town of Turin, the King of their Carnival, and he is even represented on one of the masks that represents the town. The only way that this could be trounced is if we find out that Mr. Fererro moved to Alba from Turin - but I have not found that out yet.
And remember that I said there were three claimants? Well the third was Daniel Kohler, who would eventually merge with Nestle, and who said that he first produced the mixture in 1830. The only difference is that he used his hazelnuts unchopped, and that was not the case with the other two.
And, just in case, though Nutella does not contain any peanuts, hazelnuts are still nuts, so always check whether they have nut allergies before you offer it to your friends.
Now this card is a sticker, and it is part of a set that I think came inside the lids of Nutella, inserted above the foil that separates the product from the open air. Around the top of the sticker there are the words "Le Famille Ours" (or the bear family), and at the bottom there are other words, namely :
- la mere (brown bear - mother)
- le pere (brown bear - father)
- la fille (brown bear - daughter)
- le fils (brown bear - son)
- le cousine : le panda (the cousin : the panda)
- la cousine : l`Ourse blanche (the cousin : the polar bear)
There could be other cousins, for there are plenty of bears out there, and also there could be other cards making up other animal families. I have not found those yet though.
Cemoi [trade : chocolate : O/S - France] "Automobiles" (1951) Un/??
Off for a drive now, for today in 1954 the Mercedes 300 SL made its debut at the New York International Motor Sports Show. It was actually a conversion, from Mercedes`1952 W.194 racing car, downgraded and made road legal. Road legal, yes, but it was, at that time, the fastest car ever available to the general public, able to reach an eye watering 162 mph, thanks to its revolutionary mechanical direct fuel injection system.
SL is not just a code, it stood for "sports leicht", and then, later, just for "super leicht" - which, quite coincidentally, were the same initials as the English translation of "super light". The reason for that was because it was constructed as a lightweight tubular frame in steel, a nod back to its racing ancestry, though at that time the tube-work had been of magnesium alloy.
It also had gull-wing doors, which made it a real head turner.
Now the company which issued this card has an intriguing story, for the name Cemoi was founded in Grenoble in 1770. However it had no factory until 1814, when one was built at Arles-sur-Tech, in the French Pyrenees, by Jules Pares. In fact it was the first factory in that area, which was more known for a monastery and a little town - and, even more than that, it was the first factory in France with the mechanical capability to make chocolate.
By the end of the nineteenth century, the factory was in the hands of two of Louis Pares’ sons-in-law. They were called Joseph Cantaloup and Émile Catala.
However, they seem to have either left, or also founded another chocolate company in 1887, known by their conjoined names, of Cantaloup-Catala, and in 1890 their chocolate was awarded a medal at the Perpignan Exposition. The two men died in the years leading up to the First World War, and Joseph Cantalop`s son, Leon, took over.
As the 1930s drew to an end, the factory was totally destroyed by fire. They combined with another of their factories, near the Tech river, also in the Pyrenees, only for that to suffer flooding. After that, in 1940, they moved to Perpignan.
Now I can confirm that the firm of Cantaloup-Catala had indeed left Cemoi, under new management, and gone off on their own. This was great until the 1960s, but then chocolate became less of a niche product, and there were many factories, with new and more exciting chocolate, including Cemoi, who were cornering the market due to their idea of printing collectable cards on to their packaging, to encourage brand loyalty.
As bankruptcy loomed for Cantaloup-Catala, a man called Georges Poirrier stepped up and bought it. He kept part of the name, and called it Cantalou. He then snapped up other chocolate makers, across Europe, through the 1970s and 1980s, including Phoscao, Aiguebelle, and Cemoi. He retired in 1983, and his son took over, adding his own son when he came of age, and in the late 1980s they had the idea of changing the name back to Cemoi, which they remembered, fondly, from their youth. And maybe they remembered the cards, too?
This is a very large set, and I am not sure if it is actually more than one set, as there are sports cars and road cars. There are also two different cars both named simply "Cadillac", but one being more modern, and perhaps a replacement. Maybe others of the set were also replaced. In addition several cards are named as different models of the same maker, and there may be more I have not found. Anyway what I have found are :
- Aston Martin
- Bugatti 251
- Cadillac
- Chevrolet (older, in blue)
- Chevrolet (more modern, in blue and yellow)
- Citroen 2 CV
- Citroen 15 CV
- Citroen D.S. 19
- Daimler Century
- Delahaye
- Fiat 600
- Ford Comete
- Ford Taunus
- Ford Vedette
- Hotchkiss Anjou
- Jaguar XK 120
- Lancia Aurelia
- Lancia Ferrari
- Maserati
- Mercury
- Opel Olympia
- Panhard Dyna 130
- Peugeot 203
- Pontiac
- Porsche Carrera
- Renault 4 CV
- Renault Prairie
- Rosengart Ariette
- Simca Aronde
- Simca Grand Sport
- Simca Versailles
- Volkswagen (Beetle)
- ZIS 110
As for the date, which may not apply to all the cards, it is looking like that was 1951. This is based on the inclusion of the Renault Prairie, shown as a passenger model, when that was only introduced in that year, before that date the name was on a van. In fact the passenger model was the van, just slightly altered to include an extra pair of doors, and rear seats. Likewise, the Rosengart Ariette only made its debut at the 1951 Paris Motor Show.
The most interesting car, because there is no Land Rover, is the last one, the ZIS-110, that being a Soviet limousine made from 1946 to about 1958/59, and which was based on a 1942 Packard. Some say it was even actually designed straight off the Packard belonging to Joseph Stalin. It was highly prized, and often given, grandly, to visiting dignitaries from what were regarded as lesser Communist states.
Van Houten [trade : chocolate : O/S - France] "Waterways" (19??) Un/6
And to close the last one that I really struggled with. What I have found is that today saw the end of the the longest siege ever endured by British Forces, but one which is seldom even remembered. Not so sure the card fits, but at this hour, it will do.
What happened was that Gibraltar was British, but during the American Revolutionary War its position made it a strategic target for both the Spanish and the French, who were fighting against us and for the United Colonies.
Spain had come into the war in June 1779, whilst France was already fighting. The first thing the Spanish did was to besiege the garrison at Gibraltar, starting in that month, and beginning with a blockade against all shipping in and out. That did not work so well, and two convoys managed to enter pretty much without any opposition at all. Their next plan was to physically gain entry to the garrison, but that was not very successful either, as the men came out and laid waste to many of the encampments and artillery that had been set up in readiness.
This led to the French diverting some of their forces, and to what became known as The Grand Assault in September 1782. some sixty thousand men, against the mere five thousand thought to be stuck in the garrison. This too failed, and disastrously. A month later, just as the men of the garrison were dangerously low on food and ammunition, a British convoy managed to squeeze past the blockade. And though the blockade was not lifted until today in 1783, they were able to cope with their restrictions and deprivations until then.
However they were inside the garrison for three years, seven months, and twelve days - which is far longer than the better known sieges of Ladysmith (three months and twenty six days). Lucknow (seven months and two days), Kabul (just eight hours) and Tobruk (seven months and seventeen days).
As for the longest siege endured by any forces, that was the first siege of Ceuta, which lasted for twenty-six years - the protagonists being Morocco, versus the Kingdom of Spain, between 1694 and 1720.
This card is one of a series showing what appear to be famous bodies of water. They all have a large picture, with a small inset map of the area. I have also seen them cut down though, to a thin size of border more like a Liebig, and this is almost certainly the result of that card having one or more damaged corners. So do be aware.
Now I do not know the correct title, and I do not have any idea of the year of issue. Hopefully someone else out there will, and can enlighten me, so that I can tell all of you.
The other cards I have seen are :
- La Manche et Douvres [the English Channel at Dover]
- Le Bosphore [the Bosphorus]
- Le Canal de Suez (Le Bassin) - [The Suez Canal - the Pool]
- Le Detroit de Gibraltar [the Straits of Gibraltar]
- Le Detroit de Malacca [the Straits of Malacca]
but there must be others. I will say that our card is by far the easiest to acquire.
This week's Cards of the Day...
began whilst the rain battering the windows, and with the news that the great Storm Eowyn was the strongest storm in a decade, with 110 mph winds, much damage, and electricity supplies cut out in many areas. Maybe I picked this theme well then, for it is National Plan for Vacation Day.
This is always on the last Tuesday in January, and the idea is a simple one, telling us to sort out our holidays before they get too full and the dates we wanted have been sold. However, with the weather and with money often being tight, and also, there is a growing debate as to whether our trips abroad are contributing to weather events like Storm Eowyn, and the fires in America.
The alternative, perhaps, is to make plans without actually going anywhere - and this is what we are going to look at this week. It is well known that looking forward to a holiday gets you all excited, looking towards doing new things, but we can do most of those things near to where we live, with a little ingenuity, and also even if we cannot get out of the house, for whatever reason, we can explore online.
Saturday, 25th January 2025
This card, of Jimmy CASE actually started us off with the way that most holidays start, climbing into the loft for the case. It is always a good idea to check that they are still serviceable, and that they still comply with the size regulations, which may have been changed since last you flew.
However if you are staying at home, you may not need to pack and unpack every day, but you can still wear your best clothes, and maybe discover things you used to enjoy wearing but had forgotten they were there.
Our "Case" of the day is James Robert Case, who was born on May the 18th, 1954, in Liverpool. He played football from a young age, and at work, and in several non-league sides, before joining Liverpool in 1973.
Now according to the Trading Card Database/JCase his "Rookie" card was the F.K.S. 1976 series of "Soccer Stars", and this could be true, because whilst he joined Liverpool in 1973 it seems that he sat on the bench for a while and only played at the end of April 1975.
Most of his cards are from his time at Liverpool, though he was not there that long, for he joined Brighton in August 1981, just in time to be featured in their strip for Panini`s "Football 82".
There are lots of stats, and a biography at LiverpoolFCHistory/JCase
This set was issued with the Daily Star newspaper, who also produced a special album to stick them in. Oddly this was their first issue, but where you would expect another set the following season, this was the only one.
In fact there was a break right until 1992, when they issued a set that some cartophilists do not rate very highly, for it is just tabs with a coloured top, on which is the name of a team - and they were designed to go in a paper sheet with slots, so that you could move the teams up and down the ladder depending on their performances that week.
After that you have to wait another ten years for a new issue - that was the 2002 "World Cup Heroes", which were issued as sheets of stickers, in with the paper, and again there was an album. That year`s World Cup was hosted by two nations South Korea and Japan. Now you might have thought that this would have led to more issues to coincide with the World Cups, but sadly it did not, the next two events passed by with not a single card. Their other issues were either booklets for the World Cups in 2014 and 2018, and with the Premier League fixtures for 2021, and a wallchart to write on for the Euros 2020 and 2024
Sunday, 26th January 2025
Here we have a map, and looking at a map is one of my favourite things to do. Now this can be a map of a place you would like to visit in the future, or of a place you have been to in the past, of which you would like to reawaken the old memories. It could even be a map of your local area, for many of us do not really explore where we live, and places do change, quite frequently.
There are also maps online which show a satellite view, and can be expanded until you can see your own car outside your house
At last I have been able to show the later version of this set, and as a Card of the Day, which will be most useful, as the bulk of the cards are available with both back designs. And, before I gallop on, you will find that earlier, 1911 version, as our Card of the Day for the 25th of June, 2024.
Lets start with the description of today`s version in our original Gallaher reference book (RB.4, issued in 1944) which reads :
1922. 100 BOY SCOUT SERIES (titled series). Size 2 1/2" x 1 1/2" approx. Numbered 1-100. Fronts, lithographed in full colours with black marginal lines and white margins. "Gallaher`s Cigarettes" in margins in blue (this blue is paler than on the previous series.). Backs, printed in sepia-brown, with descriptions and "Issued by Gallaher, Ltd, Belfast & London."
Both series of "Boy Scout " pictures were printed by A.W. Saville & Co.
NOTE - Several pictures were changed or replaced for the reprint consequently the reprint must not be regarded as identical with the first issue.
In particular variations can be noted in cards 2, 5, 8, 9, 28, 31, 33, 37, 52, 58, 59, 60, 61, 98, 100
In our World Tobacco Issues Index it gets more confusing, because the versions are in different places, the two original 1911 sets in section 1 of the Gallaher listing, covering 1908-1919 and our reprint in section 3, issues from 1921-1929, where it appears as
BOY SCOUT SERIES. Sm. Back in grey-brown. Nd. (100). See X1/Ha.630.B ... G12-43
Now those X numbers are in the Handbook to the original World Tobacco Issues Index, which was at first a separate volume, but was later reprinted under the same cover. The full listing there is :
X1/Ha.630 BOY SCOUT SERIES. The same subjects were used in two Gallaher printings in the U.K., and in a shorter series issued in Canada and U.S.A.
1. Issues in U.K. Size 64 x 38 m/m. Two backs and fronts illustrated at Fig. X1/Ha.630-A and Fig. X1/Ha.630-B Issued by Gallaher. Numbered series of 100.
A. 1911 issue. Back in grey-green. Front without framelines, see Fig. X1/Ha.630-A Back inscribed at base (a) "Belfast & London" (b) "London & Belfast".
B. 1922 issue. Back in grey-brown. Front with framelines, see Fig. X1/Ha.630-BNote: The subjects in the two printings differ at Nos. 5, 8, 9, 33, 37, 52, 58, 59, 60, 61, 98 and 100. Other numbers were redrawn in "B", in some cases with picture reversed. See C.C.N., Vol.20, pages 143-4
2. Issues in U.S.A. and Canada. Size 71 x 39 m/m. Front illustrated at Fig. X1/Ha.630-C
C. Reed Tobacco Co. Reference USA/T.45. Numbered on front. Series of 36.
D. Tuckett of Canada. Back illustrated at Fig. X1/Ha.630-D. Numbered on back. Series of 25.
E. Anonymous, with plain back. Numbered on front. No. 14 known.Note: The "C" and "E" printings are without series title, and the numbering differs from "A" and "B".
In our updated World Tobacco Issues Index there has been a further change. That reads :
BOY SCOUT SERIES. Sm. Back in grey-brown. Nd. See H.630.B ... G075-330.
Monday, 27th January 2025
This card gave us a market, though it is the rather sad Cattle Market; so this card may be changed when I can find someone with card 9 of the general Market Place. Now one of the things that collectors want to do on holiday is to go round the local shops and markets, but there is nothing to stop you either having a day trip when the weather gets warmer, either by car or by train. There are many websites which list markets and fairs, and you may well find one, near you, that you never knew existed.
Now the story of Adcock and Son seems to begin with Edward Joseph Newbegin, the father of a Norwich tobacco manufacturer, and, the son who inherited that business. However on the son`s retirement, he allowed a man called Daniel Adcock to take it over.
How this Daniel Adcock came to be in Norwich, when his father was a New York cigar manufacturer is an odd tale. Oddest of all is that Daniel Adcock had actually been born in Norwich, in November 1805, and his first adventure had involved him being held prisoner by the Spanish. The details of this are sketchy, to say the least, and most of the tale was almost certainly embroidered by Daniel Adcock. But it appears that his family had left Norwich in 1807 to emigrate to America, when he was barely two years old, and somewhere along the way they had been captured by the Spanish. Then they continued their journey and eventually arrived in New York. They were there for forty years and then returned to England, at first London, and then coming back to Norfolk, apparently on request from Edward Newbegin.
Now the tale gets a bit confused as some stories say that there was too much work for one man at Newbegins, and so he called in a partner, Samuel Denham. Others say that the Newbegin connection soon became boring and he put Samuel Denham in a factory to see if the two could make it on their own, or perhaps even as rivals to Newbegin. This latter idea is supported by the fact that Daniel Adcock had kept in touch with his contacts from New York, and started to call them in, eventually importing American and Cuban tobacco to make cigars, which they sold branded as Adcock`s "Sure Shot" Cigars. To local Norwich smokers, that name must have been pretty suggestive of a good time in the Wild West, and they were amazingly popular, so much so that Adcock became the largest tobacco name in the whole of Norwich. And also that Daniel Adcock started to use "Sure Shot" as a nickname.
When Samuel Denham died, in 1885, the business became Adcock and Son. The son was Ernest Daniel Adcock, born in 1856, when his father was fifty years old - and he was the eldest son too! He was not that interested in tobacco, his first pleasure was photography, and he had even patented a device to enable almost any photographer to be able to turn their photo into a vignetted work of art. He also had a great interest in painting, and was a talented artist, both in oils and watercolours, though he much preferred the latter, and he was a member of several clubs and societies, including the Ipswich Fine Art Circle.
In 1894 Daniel Adcock died, and the entire business became Ernest Daniel`s. He lived until 1936, and then his youngest son, Ernest Noel, took over.
In our original World Tobacco Issues Index, all the header tells us is : "Founded 1868. Cards Issued 1928-29.Trading 1956"
This is also their only set, and it is listed as :
ANCIENT NORWICH. Sm. 68 x 38. Sepia on light yellow. Nd. (12) ... A10-1
That text is identical in our updated volume, save a new card code of A150-050
Neither of these mention something quite important, and that is that the set is usually sold as a part set, of just eleven cards, missing card number 6, of Mousehold Heath, showing a windmill silhouetted against the sky. This missing card is not as a result of modern profiteering, though, for way back in 1955 it was already listed in the London Cigarette Card Company catalogue as :
ADCOCK & SON, Norwich
odds sets
12 Ancient Norwich (1928-29) ... - 70/-
11/12 Ancient Norwich (No.6 missing) 1/- 12/6
However this does mean that at this time there were enough complete sets to be able to offer them for sale on the open market.
Tuesday, 28th January 2025
Now you may be wondering why we have this card, but the answer is simple - because one of the things we most look forward to doing on our holidays is testing out other cuisines.
At one time, the only place you could get exotic food was in an exotic place. Nowadays, almost every supermarket has a section of world foods, and some of them are really simple to cook.
Easiest of all is soup, as shown on our card, though today we do not need the fish, we just tear open a packet, put it in the microwave or on the hob, and not long after we have soup. Just a quick look in one supermarket has come up with french onion (France), minestrone (Italy), mediterranean tomato (many countries), clam chowder (USA), petis pois and bacon (France), vegetable and turmeric (India), chicken and lemongrass (Thailand), beef consomme (France) and mulligatawny, which actually comes from in Tamil Nadu, in India.
As far as the maker, Revillon, they were started in Lyon, in 1898, by members of the Thomas and Pelen families. These cards are also printed by local printer Paul Fort, of Rue V Sardou in Lyon.
They stayed in that town for almost a hundred years then moved to Roanne, by the Loire river, in the 1970s.
Now this set contains twelve cards, all of recipes, and those recipes are given on the reverse of the cards. The menu is :
- Pommes de terre Frites (Chips)
- Pigeons aux Petits Pois
- Sauce blanche ou Sauce a la creme
- Potage Veloute
- Soupe de Poissons
- Un Bon Jus
- Les Poissons Meuniere
- La Potee Farmiere
- La Rapee Stephanoise
- Les Moules et la Marinere
- La Daube du Perigord
- Preparation du Riz
Wednesday, 29th January 2025
I have mentioned this set several times but have not used it. And I am always pleased to plug a gap.
Anyway, this card shows the film "French Lesson" - though this was not the title when it was released in the British Isles, we knew it as "French Without Tears", (which is used on the card as a subtitle). I have looked through lots of movie sites and I cannot find any country that called the film "French Lessons", but none of those include South Africa, so it is possible it was only used there. The film was directed by Anthony Asquith, and released in 1939. However, before that, it was a play, staged in 1936, and written by Terence Rattigan, who also co-wrote the shooting script for the movie.
Today it is chiefly remembered for the fact that Mantovani appeared in it, as himself. Our younger readers may not know him, but he was a very popular entertainer, who was born in Italy, but whose family relocated to the United Kingdom in 1912. And at one time he had a television series.
That leads me into the thought that when you go abroad, you often pick up little words that you find useful. However a card like this can actually be used to teach yourself a little of a foreign language too, for the back here has two languages (English and Afrikaans) at the same time, one above the other.
Likewise, Liebig cards, where the same card was issued in different languages, and you need only compare the backs to start to pick up a few words. Many collectors who specialise in cards of another country actually expand this over time, until they can eventually work out what most of the text on most of the cards means, and then expand their knowledge further by looking up the words they do not know online.
This set is rather curious, because the cards come in three different sizes. However only one size applied to each of the cards - and the idea behind this is that the album has spaces for large, medium, and standard sized cards, in an attempt, presumably, that it would resemble a proper illustrated book rather than a card album. Whilst some of the films are featured on more than one card, and some of the cards are in black and white but others are in colour.
There is another curiosity as well, because there was a first series, but that too was numbered from 1 to 250, just like our set, so do check up which set you are buying when you look for odds.
Now we have a home page for A. & M. Wix, as our Card of the Day for the 17th of May, 2022 and that contains the details of the issuer, as extracted from our original World Tobacco Issues Index, where the listing for this set is as follows :
CINEMA CAVALCADE. Two series, each Sm. 66 x 38 (70), Md. 76 x 56 (110), Lg. 103 x 68 (70). Each 200 black and white, 50 coloured. Nd. (250). Inscribed "Max, P.O.Box 5764, Johannesburg" ... W-70.1
- "A Series of 250"
- "2nd series of 250"
This is slightly altered in our updated version of the World Tobacco Issues Index, and it now reads :
CINEMA CAVALCADE. Two series, each Sm. 66 x 38 (70), Md. 76 x 56 (110), Lg. 103 x 68 (70). Each 200 black and white, 50 coloured. Nd. (250). Inscribed "Max, P.O.Box 5764, Johannesburg" ... W-800-130
- "A Series of 250"
- "Volume II - 2nd series of 250". Nd. 1/250
Thursday, 30th January 2025
Another new set from this issuer, what fun. This one covers modes of transport, and is even more brightly coloured than the Views of the World.
As to the reason for its inclusion, well it is the coach trip, something which many people choose as their holiday, being a break from driving. I have taken a bit of artistic licence by calling this vehicle a charabanc, but wait, or the charabanc was the first form of coach, a passenger vehicle which took a large number of passengers, at first pulled by horses, and then slowly motorised in the early twentieth century.
Today a coach is a far cry from those early days, and they have developed the luxury and comfort over everything else, simply because most of them are designed to take people a long way. They even come with reclining seats, television, wi-fi, and proper air conditioning.
However we do not have to go by luxury coach to have this kind of fun, anyone can get on a bus and go right to the end of the line for a flat fee. Though I must say that a bus is not so luxurious, with good reason, for most passengers hop on and off after just a few stops, and some people even stand all the way to save getting up (though I am not actually sure why people choose to stand when there is a seat).
I wonder if any of you have ever looked at how far you could get on your local bus? The closest stop to me has two buses, one is a circular route between St Mark's Hospital and Northwick Park Hospital, so not too far, whilst the other one goes between Ruislip station and Mill Hill Broadway station.
And how about from your nearest station, without changing trains? I had a look at my nearest stations, and whilst the ends only go out to Uxbridge, with the London ends being Aldgate or Cockfosters, if I went down to Harrow on the Hill I could actually change to a branch of the same line and get right out to Chesham and Amersham.
And I bet there`s a campsite right nearby.
Anyway, the cards in this set are :
- Ancien Fiacre [ancient coach]
- Autocar [charabanc]
- Avion [aeroplane]
- Carosse [horse drawn carriage]
- Celerette [balance bicycle]
- Chaise Chinoise [palanquin]
- Elephant [elephant]
- Locomotive [train]
- Traineau a Cheval [horse drawn sleigh]
- Traineau a Voile [sailing sledge]
- Transatlantique [ocean liner]
- Vinaigrette [sedan chair]
Friday, 31st January 2025
This card refers to something that seems to happen on holidays without us knowing why, and that is that we suddenly sleep better and longer. It happens to me too, though that is because being in a tent, in a campsite, which is often just a field, with no wi-fi, once it starts getting dark, sleep is pretty much all there is to do. Seriously though, some say that it is the new air, the altitude, the fact that suddenly we do not have to be at work or school by a certain hour, whatever, our bodies relax, though some take longer than others to do that, according to how hectic their non holiday lives really are.
Actually scientists say that we should return to sleeping with the dark and waking with the light, and reactivate our inbuilt, primitive, circadian rhythms. These are most effected by natural light, but also by the times we eat and drink, and exercise, all of which make us more stimulated, and hence, if we do those things too late, we are less likely to sleep when that night closes in.
This card shows ideal sleep - the sleep of a baby, watched over by a twinkling star. The winged packet is one of the concoctions on the back, presumably. They are as elusive as the other cards in this set, but they are :
- Marie Rose - la mort parfumee des poux et lentes. [which stumped me, for "mort" means death, however "poux et lentes" are lice and nits, so it is a lice and nit killing elixir]
- Vermifuge Lune - Poudre et sirop pour les enfants de 1 a 15 ans [vermifuge means worming, which makes me think of dogs, but I actually learn for the first time that even to this day there are such things as worming tablets for children]
- Vin de Frileuse - l`aperitif economique et delicieux de las familie le plus fort des fortificants [this is actually a wine, but it must have some kind of tonic in it to fortify and give strength]
- The des Familles - contre la constipation le Tisiane de tous les soirs [a tea, that eases constipation, safe enough to use every night. It does not say what was in it, but it may have been cascara. Even so, using it every night, especially for children, is a bit worrying]
As for Mademoiselle Lune, she is translated to Miss Moon, and she is accompanied by Grand-Mere (grandma), Papa (father), Bebe (baby) and Maman (mother). This seems a rather female-centred selection, as usually such Happy Family games comprise a Mrs, Mr, Miss and Master of each name. In addition, having five in a set is an odd number, it would need to be six. Maybe there is grandfather as well, he is just in the shed.
As for the issuer, who knows, there is no clue, though in tiny letters beneath the bottom row of lines there is a name, "Laboratoires Modernes". That seems to suggest that they were a central hub working with many chemists, and maybe they organised this set and sent it out to the chemists in order that they distribute them. But you would have thought in that case the local chemist would have had them overprinted, and that there would have been a space somewhere, perhaps even between those lines on the reverse, for this to have been easily done.
Just scraped in, and it was fun. Mind you I still have one card to insert before I press the button that publishes this. I have done it, but it did not transfer to the disc from the laptop, no idea why. Hope I did not delete it, but even then it usually stays in the bin for a while.
Thanks for tuning in, and don`t forget that if there is an event coming up which involves your sphere of interest do drop us a line, in good time, so that we can feature something that we may miss.
Look forward to hearing from you, at webmaster@card-world.co.uk