1948 Leaf Knock-Out Boxing Card # 98 Harry Forbes (VG/EX)

Description: 1948 Leaf Knock-Out Boxing Card # 98 Harry Forbes (VG/EX) The 1948 Leaf Boxing set consists of 50 skip-numbered cards, each 2-3/8" by 2-7/8". The set features pugilists from the 1800s through the 1940s. Each card bears a posed likeness of the athlete, most with a neon-like red or blue background and rectangle at the bottom edge identifying his name. Key fighters include Jack Dempsey (#1), Jim Jeffries (#9), Tony Zale (#15), Abe Attell (#25), Max Schmeling (#32), Jack Sharkey (#38), Joe Louis (#48), James J. Corbett (#55), Bob Fitzsimmons (#63), Sugar Ray Robinson (#64), Georges Carpentier (#67), Gene Tunney (#73), John L Sullivan (#101) and Jake LaMotta (#102). Rocky Graziano (#50) is an exceedingly scarce short print and nearly impossible to secure in any grade, making the set “complete” at 49 cards. The coarse cardstock of the product also limits high-grade examples.It's the "Honus Wagner" of boxing cards.And that's not a description that hobby experts use lightly.But that's how rare, mysterious and desirable the 1948 Leaf Rocky Graziano card (#50) has become."The Graziano card is far and away the most valuable, most special, most iconic boxing card rarity, and I think that it is the Honus Wagner of boxing cards," said Rob Lifson, president of Robert Edward Auctions, who sold a PSA EX 5 example for $41,125 in 2011.Mile High Card Company president Brian Drent, who auctioned cards from the No. 1, 1948 Leaf Boxing set on the PSA Set Registry in October 2012, shares similar thoughts about the Graziano card."It is the marquee card of boxing cards for sure," said Drent, whose company sold a PSA VG-EX 4 for $23,477.51 in October 2012. "I mean it's an extraordinarily difficult card. That's the only time I've ever owned one. It's one of those cards that just grabs your attention."Less than 10 Graziano singles have surfaced and six have been graded by PSA.Why there are so few Graziano cards is one of those great hobby mysteries. Ted Zanidakis, who collected 1948 Leaf Boxing cards when they first came out, was told that Graziano asked for his card to be removed from the set."He didn't want his picture on the cards, so he told them to remove it pretty quickly," said Zanidakis. "I was told that the Graziano card was in the lower-most [right] corner of the sheet and that they replaced him with Arturo Godoy."Lifson, who researched the card extensively when he was preparing to auction the PSA 5 example, offers a similar explanation."We speculated in the [auction catalog] write-up that perhaps it was because Graziano wanted money to appear in the set," explained Lifson. "Part of the reason why we speculated that is because he did not appear in the 1951 Topps Ringside set. We don't think that is a coincidence. He was a really big name and he had marketing power. He was paid to endorse products and maybe they [the card manufacturers] weren't paying anything, or maybe what they were paying was too nominal for his agents to accept."Drent and his Mile High staff also researched the Graziano card thoroughly when they sold their PSA 4 example. He has heard all kinds of theories about this card, ranging from it potentially being a salesman's sample that was distributed around New York to it being on the original print sheet until a dispute (likely over money) erupted between Graziano and Leaf that led to Graziano being replaced in the set.Lifson has heard similar theories. He believes that the Graziano may have been part of an early test run of the series."If the [1948 Leaf Boxing cards] were printed on sheets of 49 cards and that's how they were made, where do you get the Graziano? Where do you get that 50th card?" questioned Lifson. "The answer is that Graziano probably was originally on the sheet and was in a very limited, preliminary test run of some kind. And before they went into larger production quantities, they had to dot their i's and cross their t's and Graziano's camp was not cooperating, so they replaced Graziano with another card."If what Zanidakis heard about the Graziano originally being located on the bottom right-edge of the sheet is correct, that would help explain why the few Graziano cards that have been uncovered have centering issues. Cards located on the edge of a print sheet - especially a bottom-corner position - are generally more susceptible to miscuts. A PSA EX-MT+ 6.5 has been the highest graded copy so far.The good thing about having a rare and iconic card like the Graziano in a set is that it brings prestige to the issue. The bad thing is that the Graziano is so valuable and elusive that some collectors may never be able to find or afford one."I'm not giving up on the Graziano card, but it might have to wait until I'm retirement age," said Dave Williams, whose No. 8 Current Finest, 1948 Leaf Boxing set on the PSA Set Registry is missing this iconic card. "Right now I have all kinds of expenses and I have grandkids, so I'm not sure that I could justify spending tens of thousands of dollars on a Graziano at this point."But even without the Graziano single, this 50-card set - the first full-scale boxing set after World War II - still offers a fascinating glimpse into boxing history."There's a great selection of boxers in this set," noted Zanidakis. "They go all the way back to the earliest part of the 20th century. They go back almost five decades."Measuring 2-3/8" by 2-7/8" each, the 1948 Leaf Boxing cards are similar to Leaf's baseball and football pasteboards from the same year. Most of the white-bordered fronts present a boxer's likeness against a bright red or blue background, with their name highlighted in a rectangular strip across the bottom.The backs of the cards highlight the card number in black text at the top, beside the boxer's name and above a list of the titles they have held. The boxer's vitals (e.g., Best Weight, Born, Height, etc.) ensue, followed by biographical information that in some cases revealed the boxer's real name. For example, the card backs of Jackie Fields (#18) and Kid Chocolate (#19) indicate that their true identities are Jacob Finklestein and Eligio Sardinas, respectively.The card backs also house some interesting trivia about the boxers. You'll discover, for example, that Beau Jack (#13) was once a shoe shine boy in an Atlanta golf club and that John Sullivan (#102) earned only $125,000 in the ring, but "more than a million on theatrical and lecture tours."The bottoms of the card backs showcase an ad that encourages collectors to amass five wrappers and send those, along with 25 cents, to a Leaf address in Chicago to receive a "beautiful, specially designed" 32-page album to store their cards.It's important to note that the backs can be found in either white or gray stock. Robert Edward Auctions sold one 49-card set (no Graziano) of each (white backs and gray backs) for $12,925 in 2011. Zanidakis believes that the white backs were printed in 1948 and the gray backs were produced in 1949."My theory on why they exist in both the white and gray cardboard is because in 1949 Leaf switched to a gray colored stock," said Zanidakis. "And I think they went and printed the entire set again in 1949 because the cards were so popular."Zanidakis says neither back is particularly difficult to find. And it doesn't matter if the card backs are white, gray or a combination of both for the Basic Set on the PSA Set Registry.The 1948 Leaf Boxing cards can also be found with wrong backs."There are all kinds of wrong backs," noted Zanidakis. "Leaf was notorious for having wrong backs. All three sports sets [1948 Leaf Baseball, Football and Boxing] are notorious for misprints, wrong backs, blank backs and all kinds of things like that."The 1948 Leaf Boxing cards were printed on 49-card (seven rows of seven cards) sheets. Zanidakis remembers opening one-cent packs as a kid. The packs are branded "Knock Out" in large, red lettering and the cards were released in one series. But the fact that the cards were skip-numbered complicated matters. Though there are only 50 cards, the card numbers on the backs range from #1 to #102.1Jack Dempsey2Sammy Angott3Benny Leonard7Mickey Walker8Arturo Godoy9Jim Jeffries13Beau Jack13Beau Jack (Wrong Back)15Tony Zale17Jack Johnson18Jackie Fields19Kid Chocolate20Harry Greb24Sammy Mandell25Abe Attell27Tommy Loughran29Jimmy McLarnin32Max Schmeling33John Henry Lewis35Henry Armstrong36Melio Bettini (Bettina)38Jack Sharkey42Marcel Cerdan44Bob Montgomery44Bob Montgomery (Wrong Back)47Billy Conn47Freddy Steele (Wrong Back)48Joe Louis50Rocky Graziano51Willie Pep55James J. Corbett57Chalky Wright57Chalky Wright (Wrong Back)58Barney Ross60Gus Lesnevich63Bob L. Fitzsimmons64Ray Robinson64Ray Robinson (Wrong Back)65Al Hostak67Georges Carpentier69Jess Willard71Freddy Steele73Gene Tunney74Fred Apostoli77Tony Canzoneri78Johnny Coulon80Ceferino Garcia82Fritzi Zivic88Lou Ambers90Primo Carnera93Max Baer95Tony Christoforidis98Harry Forbes101John L. Sullivan102Jake La Motta We believe that all our listings are 100% Original and Authentic unless otherwise noted. They are all covered by a 30 Day Money Back Guarantee, if for whatever reason you are not happy with your purchase we will exchange it, replace it, discount it or you can return it for a full refund. Standard/Combined 1st Class Shipping via USPS is $3.95 for the first card and $0.15 for each additional card, with a max. of (40) items per invoice. Subject to change as postal rates continue to increase. Estimated delivery is 3-5 days. Subject to change as postal delivery schedules continue to increase. Please see shipping tab for current postage rates. Please see all of our other ads & visit our store for some great deals on both New & Vintage cards, comics and more. Get your copy of the DC Rebirth or the All New, All Different Marvel Series before they are gone! Yes! We are always buying & accepting consignments. 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Price: 14.95 USD

Location: Madison, Alabama

End Time: 2024-12-21T20:03:53.000Z

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