[DrMitchJ]

Growing up "Hoss" Clarke was the fixture at second base for the Yankees. Interesting low, wide batting stance often imitated by little leaguer Yankee fans throughout NYC and the surrounding 'burbs! Good glove, better speed, weaker bat .. But then SS and 2nd base weren't 'power positions'. 'Hoss' and 'The Stick' (Gene Michaels) were a decent Double Play Combo, and Phil Rizzutto always praised their defense. When I was a kid, I cherished my Yankee cards and tried not to flip them or trade them or anything, but accidents happened, rubber bands snapped, cigar boxes fell over, so some of my Horace Clarke cards took a real beating. When I started back into the hobby, I wanted to re-collect and upgrade my Horace Clarke collection ... For old times sake. they were cheap and plentiful. Actually had really good luck with most from the 2011 Diamond Dig contest. Man, I was dumb and traded lots of the Diamond Die Cuts away for old cards, stupidly assuming these were going to be beautiful mint file copies stored in the Topps vault, untouched by human hand ... Only to learn the painful truth ... If they were untouched by human hands, then some chimps and apes had a go with every card I 'won' .... What a freakin' crapfest that turned out to be ... But I digress.
Started buying on eBay. Picked up some beauties, some auto cards, but WTF? His rookie card listed pretty darned high in Beckett! Damn, a high numbered SP. Surely they will sell cheaper on 'the bay' ... WTF? Consistently selling for 2-3X higher than Beckett BV ... This had to be some kind of cruel joke ... These were Horace Clarke cards!! Who'd be interested in him?
Anyway, to make a long story excruciatingly longer, I've been tracking this card for nearly 2 years, refusing to pay 3X BV and not get suckered into buying a beat to crap copy from some scammer at Mint BV price. Sure, I missed a bunch of decent copies being stubborn (me? Stubborn? Getattahere! ) or losing an auction by 50 cents outbid by some faceless, nameless Horace Clarke Nemesis!
But finally ... In my possession ... My Topps 1966 #547 .....
To be continued ....

[bbniner80]

Congrats! That has to be a good feeling!

[Hofcollector]

I really wish I had known you were looking for one...

[Phillies_Joe]

We can't be believing any old crackpot sprouting off about picking up a card without showing it off!!!!

Great stuff DrM, your a good story teller. A lot of us had the same problem with the diamond dig contest (I think they use the left over cards, put a stamp on them and put them in hobby boxes now) I am in the same position about one particular, non-earth shattering card. Again, not overpaying for it, but it will become the cornerstone of my collection story. Can't wait to see your Horace.

[DrMitchJ]

I really wish I had known you were looking for one...

Figures
It's been the only card I ever listed in my 'wants' section, too.
Oh well. Depending on condition, there's always room for another

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We can't be believing any old crackpot sprouting off about picking up a card without showing it off!!!!

Great stuff DrM, your a good story teller. A lot of us had the same problem with the diamond dig contest (I think they use the left over cards, put a stamp on them and put them in hobby boxes now) I am in the same position about one particular, non-earth shattering card. Again, not overpaying for it, but it will become the cornerstone of my collection story. Can't wait to see your Horace.

LOL
WELL, now since you demanded it, here ya'go!
First, a little Horace Clarke retrospective ...
Here are 1967-1974 ... Enjoy


Here are some autos (authenticated by James Spence)



Here's the Holy Grail of "Hoss" Collectors all over America!

Pretty clean, centering is better than most, 3 corners are really sharp, the forth is slightly dinged. So all and all, a nice copy. I was just hesitant to buy it because its graded by ...

Sports Card Guaranty! I've heard mixed things, but looks pretty accurate to me.
What do you think?

[ne12bc12]

Can't wait to see. Congrats on the pick up.

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oh, I see now. Must have been adding the pic while I was typing. Never heard of SGC?

[franciscomarina]

Congratulations. That was the last card I got to finish that set. I had to pay a premiun to get the card.

[Phillies_Joe]

Congrats! I'm always most fond of the '68 & 70 sets, but that looks great. Enjoy!

[bamyanks]

Dr.Mitch, it's so great hearing another Yankee fans story and odessy concerning Yankee cards. Horace came up when I was getting along to junior high and high school, but I sure do remember him and Michaels making double plays. I sure liked your story and love reading your posts. Practically all my vintage got thrown out (yes, the dreaded mom) but I know I had a 62 Roger Maris that showed his 61 homeruns. So as I got into my 30's and 40's, I would mention that to mom every once in a while. :-) Anyway, thanks again for the post and the scans, they sure brought back some memories for me.

[DrMitchJ]

Can't wait to see. Congrats on the pick up.

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oh, I see now. Must have been adding the pic while I was typing. Never heard of SGC?

I never saw much of SGC, but contemplating removing it and resubmitting it to PSA or BGS. I wonder how that would work out? I probably damage the card breaking it out of the holder

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Congratulations. That was the last card I got to finish that set. I had to pay a premiun to get the card.

Yep, like I said, the selling price took me by surprise.

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Congrats! I'm always most fond of the '68 & 70 sets, but that looks great. Enjoy!

My big card buying as a kid was late 1967 through early 1973. I quit or greatly reduced by 73 and was pretty much done until 84. So I have a warm & fuzzy feeling for 68-72 cards and get suckered into buying Archives all the time. 1966 was a weak design, IMO ... And it's the design for this year's Heritage. Perhaps why I'm not as enthusiastic as last year?

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Dr.Mitch, it's so great hearing another Yankee fans story and odessy concerning Yankee cards. Horace came up when I was getting along to junior high and high school, but I sure do remember him and Michaels making double plays. I sure liked your story and love reading your posts. Practically all my vintage got thrown out (yes, the dreaded mom) but I know I had a 62 Roger Maris that showed his 61 homeruns. So as I got into my 30's and 40's, I would mention that to mom every once in a while. :-) Anyway, thanks again for the post and the scans, they sure brought back some memories for me.

Thank you kindly, sir! I appreciate knowing that my efforts of recollecting and writing weren't a waste of time!
I'm sure we all have 'dreaded Mom stories' ... Luckily for me, and at the chagrin of my wife, my mother never threw out my crap, so I have most of my original collections. I was to blame for anything lost ... stuff I sold, traded, broke, ripped, etc, etc. I was always my own worst enemy