Card of the Day: 1991 Fleer Cleveland Indians Team Logo Stickers

The True Meaning Behind Panini’s Jousting Knight Logo

Maybe the joust is used to poke you in the eyes so you don’t have to look at the long list of unfulfilled redemption cards?

Its coming. We all know it. Any day now an official announcement will be made stating that Fanatics will be purchasing Panini America. I thought perhaps something would be announced during the 2022 Industry Summit. But nothing of importance came out of that event. All I saw there were people giving awards to each other.

Upper Deck would be Fanatics next target as I believe they would love to add the NHL, Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan, and Tiger Woods to their portfolio. People will complain about a monopoly. They will even threaten to never open another Fanatics-made product again. But they will. The boycotts and threats rarely last. I remember people saying the exact same things about products such as Prizm, and we all know how that went.

Have you ever wondered why Panini’s logo features a jousting cartoon knight? Panini’s origins go back to Modena, Italy. The company was founded by two brothers Benito and Giuseppe Panini in the early 1960s. Giuseppe Panini, who loved riddles and puzzles, invented his own crossword puzzles under the pseudonym “The Knight”. In the 1970s there was a magazine for Panini sticker collectors whose mascot was Pipino The Knight.

Looking closer you’ll see the letters “EPM”. They stand for “Edizioni Panini Modena”. “Edizioni” is Italian for “Editions”, “Panini” is obviously for the founders, and “Modena” is the city in Italy where the company was first established.

Usually overlooked, this little dude continues to appear on Panini packaging for now.

Just for fun, here are a few other images of Pipino The Knight found on pins/buttons from the 1970s. These were made for promotional purposes and club members.

Pin Highlight: 2002 U.S. Open Bethpage Black, New York Golf Tournament Logo Pin

The 2002 U.S. Open Golf Tournament was played in Farmingdale, New York on the Bethpage State Park, Black Course.  Logo pins for the event began to surface well in advance (a good 9+ months prior).  A major change was made that make earlier versions of the pin much more desirable.

At first, the pins initially released featured the skyline of New York City in the background.  Both of the World Trade Center Twin Towers can be seen.

After the events of September 11, 2001 the decision to stop selling this pin was made.  A new pin emerged which lacked the city skyline.

Earlier pins that contain both World Trade Center Twin Towers carry a hefty premium.

Pin Highlight: 2019 American Alliance of Football Arizona Hotshots #19 Retirement Logo Pin

In case you haven’t heard, the AAF or American Alliance of Football is shutting it’s doors.  They couldn’t even make it through their first full season.  A whole hodgepodge of reasons are to blame for it’s demise.  In an announcement, they stated a small staff will stay on in an attempt to restructure the league.  This leaves a very tiny opening for there to be a second season.  Its going to take an Oscar-winning dog-and-pony show to win over new investors.

The AAF and it’s teams had lots of merchandise to buy.  Unfortunately, officially licensed pins were not on the menu.  As tight as their budget seems to have been, I’m guessing pins were out of the question.

Members of the media and high-ranking league executives were seen on television wearing AAF logo pins.  But these were not sold to the public.  I inquired about them to the AAF, but never heard back.

The only AAF team to issue a pin was the Arizona Hotshots.  You could not buy it online.  In order to obtain one, you needed to attend their home game on 3/3/19.  During that game they retired the #19 in honor of the 19 firefighters lost in the 2013 Yarnell Hill Fire.  In-person, and only at that game could you purchase this pin.  As expected, a few have shown-up on the secondary market.  $35 seems to be the going rate… for now.

2019 LLWS Logo Announced + Franco’s Pin

Little League has officially announced what the logo for the 2019 Little League World Series plans to look like.  Each year it changes.  I like the look of it this year as the colors are brighter.  The 2019 Little League World Series takes place August 15-25.

For years I’ve been collecting Little League pins.  I’ve said on numerous occasions that its incredibly difficult to locate pins given out by ESPN.  One pin with ESPN’s name on it was made specifically for sale in Little League’s gift shop.  That’s the easiest one to find.  Other than that I can only find them on eBay.  These things are like Bigfoot, Yeti, or that Panini redemption you’ve been waiting on.  You never know if they’ll show up.

During the Little League World Series last year, I saw an ESPN pin popup which I think is really cool.  Franco’s Lounge is an Italian restaurant in downtown Williamsport.  It has been around for decades.  Apparently someone from ESPN must really enjoy eating there because they featured the restaurant on their pin last summer.  Its a two-piece puzzle pin.  A sign that says “Gone To Franco’s” hangs off of a Robo-Cam on the top part.  The bottom looks just like the front entrance to Franco’s Lounge.  Red crab and all.

Someone that works for ESPN hands these pins out.  Who that individual(s) might be is a complete mystery.  The name “Fletcher HD” can be read on a lot of these Robo-Cam pins.  I highly doubt that’s the name of whoever is distributing them.  Fletcher is a company that ESPN leases cameras from for certain events.

When this pin set hits the secondary market, be ready to spend $50-$60.

Card of the Day: Los Angeles Rams Logo 1967 Philadelphia #96

Card of the Day: Hank Blalock 2004 Upper Deck SP Game-Used Patch Logo Threads

Astros ’18 Topps Update Patch Contest! – NOW CLOSED

This contest is for a Carlos Correa 2018 Topps Update Series MLB Postseason Logo Manufactured Patch Gold Parallel #’ed/99.  Good luck!!!

Contest Details:

• This contest will end Friday, November 30, 2018 @ 8:00 p.m. EST.
• To enter, please leave a comment in this post.
• You can enter once per day.
• The winner will be selected at random.
• Please provide a valid e-mail address when entering.
• The winner will receive an e-mail when the contest is over.
• The winner has one week to send me their contact information or the contest will be held again.
• Once the contest is over, I will need the winner’s mailing address so I can ship them this card for FREE!!!

“Pin-Up” of the Week: 2017 Little League World Series Logo Pin

Officially this pin doesn’t exist yet, but its coming very soon.  Little League recently showed off what the logo will look like for the World Series this year.  We’re only about six months away until Williamsport is flooded with baseball fans from all over the world.  The 2017 Little League World Series takes place 8/17 to 8/27.

Little League pins are highly sought after.  Its around those ten days when the games are being played that new pins surface.  Local businesses throughout Williamsport produce tons of pins.  They’re either sold or given away.  4th Street was a goldmine last year.

I’ll probably find my way up their again this summer.  If I have anymore Sports Card Info pins left I’ll take them with me.  By then, I might need to order some more from Wilson Trophy.

“Pin-Up” of the Week: Arnold Palmer’s Multi-Colored Golf Umbrella Logo Pin

Arnold Palmer’s multi-colored golf umbrella is one of the most recognized logos in the world.  Throughout the 50’s and 60’s his golf career really began to take off.  From a business point of view, it made sense to setup Arnold Palmer Enterprises, Inc.  After much discussion and legal consultation, they landed on using a multi-colored golf umbrella as the company’s logo.  You could easily say that Arnold Palmer was the first globally known golfer.  His brand stands for pure excellence.

You can find the classic umbrella logo on all kinds of merchandise.  Among all of the items, simple lapel pins are the most popular.  Its not uncommon for employees of ‘APE’ to carry pins in their pockets to hand out during events.  Even Arnold Palmer himself use to throw a few in his golf bag to giveaway.  You would think that his official shop would have pins for sale, but I don’t see any.  I believe the pins are used for promotional purposes.  They usually come affixed to a black piece of cardboard.  Underneath the pin it says “With Compliments” followed by an Arnold Palmer facsimile signature.

Mr. Palmer was a true classy guy.  He enjoyed interacting with his fans “Arnie’s Army” as much as possible.  When signing his autograph, he always made sure it was legible.  Many other professional athletes could learn a lesson or two from him.