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From www.CheckOutMyCards.com, this is a 1959 Topps football card of a player who was a man among boys in his era, defensive tackle Gene “Big Daddy” Lipscomb. At 6’6″ and 284 lbs., he was a giant and a massive force on the line for the teams he played with, and worked as a pro wrestler during the off-season. Lipscomb didn’t attend college, and began his pro career when he signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Rams in 1953. He was traded to Baltimore in 1956 and blossomed there, playing 5 seasons, including the Colts’ 1958 championship year. He finished his career in Pittsburgh, playing 2 years with the Steelers. He was a 3-time Pro Bowler and was named MVP of the Pro Bowl game twice. In fact, the 1962 Pro Bowl game was the last game he ever played, and he was named MVP. Unfortunately, he died of a heroin overdose in May of 1963.

1988 Fleer basketball card of former NBA player Dennis Rodman. “The Worm” was known for his flamboyance on and off the court, and for being one of the top defenders and rebounders of his era. He has been ridiculed and called many things during and after his career, but one title he deserves is “winner”. Rodman was one of the “Bad Boy” Detroit Pistons when they won consecutive NBA titles in 1989 and 1990, then helped Michael Jordan and Chicago win 3 titles after being traded to the Bulls. He was an NBA  All-Defensive Team member 7 times, and also led the league in rebounding 7 times, and ranks among the greatest defensive power forwards in league history.

1963 Topps baseball card of former Dodgers’ pitcher Don Drysdale, who teamed with Sandy Koufax to give the Dodgers one of the top starting pitching tandems in baseball history. Drysdale broke in with the Dodgers in 1956, when they were still in Brooklyn, but had most of his success in Los Angeles in the 1960s. He was known for having a mean streak and brushing back hitters, and once owned the major league record for consecutive shutout innings pitched, 58, that was ultimately broken by another Dodger – Orel Hershiser. He won the Cy Young Award as baseball’s best pitcher in 1962, was a 9-time All Star, and played on 3 World Series winning teams with the Dodgers. After his playing days were over, Drysdale enjoyed a successful broadcasting career, not only on baseball telecasts but on ABC’s Wide World of Sports, and also on L.A. Rams football games, teaming with Dick Enberg. He grew up in California and one of his high school baseball teammates was actor Robert Redford. Also, in the Disney movie Herbie The Love Bug, Herbie’s car number was 53, in honor of Drysdale. The big righthander was inducted into baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1984, and he died of a heart attack in 1993.

1959 Topps hockey card of defenseman Harry Howell, known for his longevity as his pro hockey career spanned 25 seasons. Howell played 17 of those seasons with the New York Rangers, gaining a reputation as a steady, “stay-at-home” style of defenseman. He was a seven time NHL All Star, and was elected to hockey’s Hall of Fame in 1979. Howell won the Norris Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s best defenseman, in 1967, the last year of play for the league’s “original six”, before 6 expansion teams were added. Howell also coached briefly with the Minnesota North Stars, and in 1990, finally won the Stanley Cup ring that had eluded him his entire playing career, while serving as a scout for the Edmonton Oilers.

We have featured, in past posts, the football cards of former Monday Night Football analysts, including Frank Gifford, Don Meredith and Dan Dierdorf. With another MNF game coming up tonight, here is the 1966 Philadelphia card of former Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras, who also worked on the Monday Night telecasts. Karras had an outstanding NFL career with the Lions, and despite being suspended for the entire 1963 season, along with Paul Hornung, for gambling, was a 4-time Pro Bowler who was also elected to the All Decade team for the 1960s. While he was still playing, Karras had a lead role in the movie Paper Lion, the story of writer George Plimpton’s short-lived attempt to try out with the Lions,  which led to him going into acting after his football days were over. He worked on MNF alongside Gifford and Howard Cosell for 3 seasons, and was successful as a television actor, in the series Webster, and in movies, most notably Victor/Victoria and Mel Brooks’ Blazing Saddles.

From www.CheckOutMyCards.com , this is a 1961 Fleer “in action” basketball card of Jack Twyman of the old Cincinnati Royals. A product of the University of Cincinnati, Twyman started his 11 year  NBA career with the Rochester Royals and returned to his college roots when that franchise moved to the southern Ohio city. A six-time NBA all-star, Twyman had a great career, and was voted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1983, but he is best remembered for his relationship with teammate Maurice Stokes. Stokes became paralyzed when he suffered a head injury in the final game of the 1958 season, and Twyman took it upon himself to organize fundraisers to help with Stokes’ medical care. He went so far as to become Stokes’ legal guardian, an amazing gesture considering Stokes was African American, and segregation and racial discrimination were an accepted way of  life in those times. Twyman’s charitable efforts continued after Stokes’ death, as his foundation raised money to help needy former players from the game’s early years, and continue to this day in the form of a charity golf tournament featuring NBA players. Twyman also was an NBA broadcast analyst at one time, working alongside Chris Schenkel on ABC telecasts in the 1960s and ’70s.

Henry Aaron is one of the greatest baseball players of all time, yet this is the second time we have posted an example on the “Classic Sports Card of The Day” of an Aaron card released with an error. An earlier post featured an Aaron card that had an “action” picture on it that was actually Willie Mays sliding into home plate, not Aaron. On this card, the image is reversed. “Hammerin’ Hank” was a right-handed batter, not left-handed,  and his number on the jersey that is partially visible is obviously backwards. The old school Milwaukee Braves logo on the sleeve is pretty sweet, but it too is reversed. Aaron ,of course, is considered by many baseball purists to still be the greatest home run hitter of all time, despite being bypassed in the steroid era. His career HR total was amassed despite the fact that he never hit more than 47 in a single season, a tribute to his consistency and longevity.

1965 Topps hockey card of Hall of Fame goaltender Eddie Giacomin. His professional playing career spanned from 1959 until 1978, with his rookie season in the NHL being in ’65, when he was acquired by the New York Rangers in a trade. Giacomin became a Ranger fan favorite, and his jersey #1 has been retired by the team. When the Rangers started a youth movement in 1975, he was waived and claimed by the Detroit Red Wings, and in his first game back at Madison Square Garden as the Wings’ goalie, the Ranger fans chanted “Eddie, Eddie” all during the game, while booing their own team. Giacomin never played on a Stanley Cup winning team in his career, but is still considered one of the great goalies of all time, and was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1987.

From www.CheckOutMyCards.com , this 1956 Topps football card of Philadelphia Eagle Hall of Famer Chuck Bednarik is a classic example of a “Huckabuck” style of card. The “Huckabuck” pose, which John Madden talked about all the time during his years as a football broadcaster, involved linemen running or diving menacingly into the camera, or in the case of skill position players, posing in a running, throwing, catching or kicking position. This type of card was a staple of cards in the early years of pro football. Bednarik, nicknamed “Concrete Charlie” for his rugged style of play, was the last of the two-way players in the NFL, playing both center on offense and linebacker on defense. He was a 10-time All Pro, voted to the NFL All Decade team for the 1950s and the NFL 75th Anniversary All Time team. He not only played on the Eagles’ 1960 championship team that handed Vince Lombardi his only postseason loss, but tackled Jim Taylor on the 8 yard line on the last play of the game to preserve the win for his team.

1987 Fleer basketball card of former Atlanta Hawks’ superstar Dominique Wilkins. Originally drafted by the Utah Jazz, Wilkins was traded shortly after being picked, and became the face of the Atlanta franchise for over a decade. He was a 9-time NBA All Star, and one of the league’s most prolific scorers and dunkers. He won the NBA Slam Dunk contest twice, and earned the nickname “The Human Highlight Film”. A serious Achilles tendon injury slowed his career in the 1990s, and he kicked around the NBA and played in Europe at the end of his career, but was voted into the Hall of Fame in 2006.