By Chris Olds | Beckett Sports Card Monthly Editor

Missy Franklin stands an imposing 6-foot-1 but she’s just 17 years old and a fan of Justin Bieber.

Oh, and she’s also an Olympic gold medalist, winning the 100-meter backstroke on Monday, who might be looking for another possible medal tonight during the London Games.

And that has meant added attention to her autographed cards in the 2012 Topps U.S. Olympic Team product that is the place of all places to find certified autographs of the stars of this year’s games (as long as they wear red, white and blue).

Franklin has four autographed cards in the product and a total of just 18 cards (need a checklist or OPG? click here).  Her autographs have previously sold for as much as $300 with the cheapest being the standard autograph at $200 or less.

In all, it will cost collectors more than $1,100 to own most of her cards.

Oh, and if you’re wondering, her autographs are hotter than Bieber’s right now — you can find a certified autograph of Biebs for $120 or less (2011 Americana Private Signings).

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Sports Card Monthly magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

We recently found a redemption card for a Sandy Koufax autograph in a pack of 2012 Topps Tier One baseball cards and asked you guys what you would do to win it.

Now, after nearly 150 entries, we want you to pick the winner. We have narrowed it down to three:

– Greg Perez, who visited Dodger Stadium and recruited former Dodgers Billy Ashley and Kenny Lofton for their support.

– Ryan Kalmoe, who sang a Justin Bieber song for the world to see.

– Gregory Zakwin, a diehard Dodgers fan who documented his quest for a Matt Kemp autograph and promised he’d do even more for Koufax.

Perez’s video is above, while the others’ entries are after the jump. Check them out and cast your vote. Voting ends at 11:59 p.m. Central time on Aug. 7, 2012 — the 40th anniversary of Koufax’s induction into the Hall of Fame.

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Click here to view the embedded video.

Greg Perez wrote:

I have been collecting cards since I was 10 and I have been collecting autographs since I was 18. I am now 31. What would I do for a Sandy Koufax autograph? I would go to spring training and to Dodger games just to try to get him to sign for me. Luck has never been on my side as I’ve never ran into him at either. So I live an hour and a half or so from Dodger Stadium. I would actually go to a Dodger vs. Mets game on June 29 to see if I could get some support so Beckett.com could pick my video that I made at Dodger Stadium. While I did not run into Koufax, I did run into some folks that may sound familiar, Billy Ashley, Kenny Lofton and Fernando Valenzuela. Check out my six-hour stadium visit. Its just a video under three minutes. While I couldn’t get many employees on video, stadium policy I guess, I did get some former players on it. In case you can’t hear who my favorite Dodger is besides Koufax, it’s Andre Ethier because he is very fan-friendly and he decided to stay in L.A.

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Click here to view the embedded video.

Ryan Kalmoe wrote:

What would I do for a Sandy Koufax autograph? The most despicable thing I can possibly imagine: attend every Justin Bieber concert for the remainder of my life.

Now, on to more pleasant things, my favorite Dodger of all times is easily Van Lingle Mungo. Anyone who is as notorious for fighting and drinking as Mungo has to make the top of the list. Being retired Navy, I can deeply appreciate what Mungo was doing and to a lesser degree why. Plus, what a great last name, Mungo!

Challenge accepted. Please find the enclosed link to my YouTube Video where I have taken steps to prove my dedication to what I would do for the Koufax autograph. I’ve even upped the ante: I am now a Bieleber.

Gregory Zakwin wrote:

Ok, I’ll start with the second question. My favorite Dodger is The Bison, Matt Kemp, with Clayton Kershaw a very close second (I’m anxiously awaiting all of Kemp’s autos going live this year). I’ve been extremely fortunate to meet both numerous times, which is more than I can say for the great Sandy Koufax, whom I have never met. But would do a TON to meet.

I would camp out for weeks, nay months, to meet the great Koufax. I once camped out 14 hours to meet Kemp, but Koufax is just on an entirely different stratosphere. I would fight tooth and nail to hold my spot against the hoards of Dodgers fans that cut in line now just to meet guys like Uribe, Loney or Javy Guerra. With Sandy, it would be war. I would miss school, work, and whatever social life I currently have to meet a true living legend and a man with such mass appeal across all walks of life. As a Dodgers fan, fan of baseball history, and Jew, it’s basically the holy grail of athletes.

I would grow a beard during said waiting time in solidarity with my fellow fans. It would be my Dandy Sandy playoff beard. And it would be magnificent. But not nearly as magnificent as the moment when I would get to shake Sandy’s hand, get a picture with the lefty, and politely ask for a sweet-spot signed ball to display on my mantle.

Right next to that beard.

And that’s just what I’d do for an in-person autograph and the experience of a lifetime (next to being trapped on a desert island with Alison Brie, Kate Upton, Erin Hawksworth, and nothing but time on our hands). For a certified autograph on that slick white redemption cardboard that will eventually be produced, well, I would go into vast detail about how I would do the impossible to win a Sandy Signature: follow the rules you’ve laid down to a tee.

I don’t have a video of my campout for Kemp, but I did write about it (link here). And I can assure you a Koufax Campout Post would be a gillyun times more epic.

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Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

Join Beckett Media’s Bryan Hornbeck and Andrew Tolentino as they rip into a box of 2011 Panini Justin Bieber 2.0 cards in this latest edition of Box Busters.

What will they find inside? It’s worth the wait …

What is it and how can you own it? Watch and find out …

Join Beckett Media’s Chris Olds and Bryan Hornbeck as they rip into a pair of 2011 Panini Americana boxes in this latest edition of Box Busters.

What will they find inside? Watch and find out …

By Chris Olds | Beckett Sports Card Monthly Editor | Commentary

One of the reasons I look forward to non-sport, celebrity-laden sets such as 2011 Panini Americana each time they arrive is the fact that the boxes are just so full of surprises.

While some of this year’s pre-hyped additions are nowhere to be found — Michael J. Fox failed to make pack-out, for example, what would have been his first certified autograph card — there are always fun things to be found in sets that have so much variety in them because they simply aren’t like anything else.

Sometimes, they’re just one of a few cards — or no previous cards — for a signer. Sometimes it’s just the latest way to get an autograph that might have been tough in the past like Pamela Anderson here. (She’s had a couple previous Panini cards but this brand might be your best bet at landing one at a reasonable price.)

Here’s a rundown of cards already pulled from packs that caught my eye — with some one-liners and factoids where worthy.

ESPN’s Michelle Beadle brings some quirk from time to time on SportsNation and this is her first card. Have you seen her airdrums? And what about a Gunslingers memorabilia card?

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I’ve always wanted a Leslie Neilsen dual autograph — just not with Nielsen … and Nielsen. I like to think this is one last joke left for us by the funnyman who died late last year.

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It took a couple years, but “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair finally has an Americana autographed memorabilia card. He was a retail-only short-printed autograph in 2009, which was also the year where then-Donruss acquired a pair of his match-used trunks — complete with “RF” patch on the front. (They’ve been waiting to make the cut into a set all this time … ) This card won’t be plentiful but it should be pricey. Oh, I forgot to mention … woooooooo!

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Three words, boys and girls … “Sweep the leg!” … You have a problem with that?

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There are a lot of multi-signed cards in this year’s Americana that aren’t all that plentiful, which could make for tough finds down the line when there’s not a ton busted on eBay. One card that caught my eye? This Noel Neill-Margot Kidder card — aka Lois Lane and Lois Lane. I could be wrong, but I don’t think this has happened before.

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Collecting Confession: I am 72 percent sure I love this card of Veronica Corningstone.

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I won’t can’t quote a Bieber song, so I’m not starting now. But I will say that I haven’t seen an autograph with that many legible letters in a long, long time in the sports world.

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I’d reference that one show that starts with an “E” here but we all know what E really stands for. And that’s all I need to say about that. (And if that somehow makes sense, well, I’m sorry. I don’t watch Entourage — but had to show off this card … ok?)

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Click here. Now enjoy that stuck in your head the rest of the day. (On a different note, this is probably a card my mom would really appreciate. I don’t think I could say that often.)

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On a more somber note, the two Coreys can be found as autographs in this one, despite Haim‘s death last year. Same with a limited number of David Carradine autographs as well as others in the set.

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Seriously, Panini has to have a Hellboy fan on its staff somewhere … there are at least four cast members on the checklist, maybe more. (Not that there are any complaints about this one.)

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Candyman? Candyman. Candyman? Candyman. Cand … wait, I’m not going there. No way …

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

]]> http://www.beckett.com/news/2011/08/cardboard-commentary-2011-panini-americana-autographs/feed/ 5 http://www.beckett.com/news/2011/03/first-look-2011-panini-americana/ http://www.beckett.com/news/2011/03/first-look-2011-panini-americana/#comments Thu, 10 Mar 2011 23:39:01 +0000 chrisolds http://www.beckett.com/news/?p=30077

By Chris Olds | Editor

The stars of the big screen (and the small screen) are back on cardboard.

Panini America unveiled its plans for 2011 Panini Americana on Thursday, the latest installment of the long-running non-sport brand that began in 2007.

Each $25 hobby pack will include one autograph or memorabilia card inside with boxes containing four packs when it arrives in June. Each box will include inserts from the Screen Gems, Prime Time Stars and the Matinee Legends sets as well as a parallel insert.

Among this year’s autograph subjects are Justin Bieber, Pamela Anderson, Selma Blair, Linda Hamilton and the late Jane Russell. As with past Americana releases, one can expect to find memorabilia cards for icons such as John Wayne, James Dean, Marilyn Monroe and Charlie Chaplin.

It appears that autograph cards from at least three sets in the product will be limited to 99 or fewer copies, while the memorabilia cards will be limited to 225 or fewer copies.

See more images after the jump.