OK, I had planned to continue this series with a post a week and then promptly forgot about it last week. Let's get back on that horse!
As a reminder, this is where I try to determine the best on-card element for each major set release starting with the 1950s. It's devoted only to the card front or back, it has nothing to do with who is in the set or what the set consists of, etc.
Today, we're handling the 1960s, which is a pretty simple task -- for the most part.
1960
1960 Fleer Greats
Best on-card element: Full-color photos of the greats of yore. This had to be the first time collectors saw some of these old-time players in color on cards that weren't strictly paintings, although I believe there was some painting going on with these.
1960 Leaf
Best on-card element: I'm not being very objective here but for me the best thing about '60 Leaf is that it's the template for the 1977 TCMA Galasso Glossy Greats set, which I adore. I know the black-and-white of 1960 Leaf gets panned a lot but all see is a look I desperately wanted to own in the late '70s.
1960 Topps
Best on-card element: It's the last time that Topps issued a full flagship set of horizontal cards. As long as Topps (or whoever) continues to refuse to commit to horizontal, this will be '60 Topps' legacy.
Best on-card element runner-up: This is the first Topps set with a full run of manager cards (16 cards).
1961
1961 Fleer Greats
Best on-card element: Having a tough time with this as absolutely nothing stands out. The clip-art style is fun but I don't think it's that noteworthy. How about the card number on the back appearing within a trophy cup? It's got to be the first and only time that's happened.
1961 Topps
Best on-card element: This was the first set to feature the rookie trophy/cup on the base design (in the 1960 set, rookie all-stars received their own design but with the trophy).
1962
1962 Topps
Best on-card element: The wood borders.
Seldom do we think about how certain decisions continue to impact cards today. Sure, there is the rookie trophy in 1961 but these wood borders that Topps chose in 1962 spawned the wood borders in 1987 Topps, which became the go-to set for a legion of collectors in the late 1980s, causing Topps to bury collectors with '87 Topps tributes in modern sets and those wood borders just keeping going on and on and on and on. Sometimes I think that the wood paneling in the basement rec room where I lived during the '70s is still there.
1963
1963 Fleer
Best on-card element: Shh! I like this set better than 1963 Topps! But without getting personal, I'll say the most noted on-card element is the position drawing (which is HUGE), which is the precursor for what Topps would do in 1973 and 1976.
1963 Topps
Best on-card element: Picture-in-picture, long before TV viewers knew it was a thing.
1964
1964 Topps
Best on-card element: First set with a team banner in the design. As someone who first collected in 1975, a team over the top of the design makes sense to me. What team does he play for? "TIGERS" You can't mistake it, no questions left.
Best on-card element runner-up: The scratch-offs on the back. Topps had some cajones in 1964 asking collectors to take the edge of a coin and scratch the card into submission.
1965
1965 Topps
Best on-card element: Pennant flags. Best on-card element of all-time? You're damn right.
Best on-card runner-up: The backs are blue! Still love that.
1966
1966 Topps
Best on-card element: An easily readable card? I don't know. I have struggled with this set my whole life.
1967
1967 Topps
Best on-card element: I've said this a few times before but the design for '67 Topps gives you the best view of what baseball in the 1960s looks like. I think '61 and '66 probably do the same thing but '67 just seems to do it the best. I love looking at the backgrounds of these cards.
Best on-card element runner-up: Not really a "best" because I don't think these work that well on cards, but this is the first vertical card back since 1953 Topps.
1968
1968 Topps
Best on-card element: Well, it won't be those burlap borders. Topps' minimalist approach in the '60s sometimes makes this difficult. I'm going with the team-position color circle, which I always enjoyed and apparently Topps did, too, as it would return in 1969, except as a name-position circle.
1969
1969 Topps
Best on-card element: Going with the debut of players from the Expos, Padres, Royals and Pilots. This verges on "content" rather than card construction but you did see Expos on your cards!
I don't know what else it could be, Topps had a lot of problems in 1969. I do like the larger cartoons on the back, although that's only for players with a limited number of stats.
All right, that's probably the last one of these posts that won't take me like five hours to do.
Yeah, we'll see if this returns next week.
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