(I miss the days when time moved slowly. Every kid sits in class agonizing about the clock moving backward. Even many adults I know do that, as they spend countless hours in mind-numbing meetings. I have very few meetings at work. Because there's no time for them. Time never moves too slowly for me. Never. It always moves too quickly. So I'd really appreciate an hour or two to sit back and relax for once. Cardboard Appreciation will be the closest I get to that today. This is the 50th in a series):
How old do you think the guy is in this photo? Thirties? Fourties? Fifties?
He is 28.
This topic has come up a number of times across the blogs. I wrote about it back in the early days of Night Owl Cards. For some reason, players of the past look older -- in many cases much older -- than players of the present who are the same age.
I haven't examined why that is a perception almost universally shared among collectors. I don't have time to do a thesis on it, so I'll just share my semi-shallow thoughts on the matter.
One of the reasons why the players seem to be so old is the nature of the card and the era in which the photo is taken. If you dressed a current young player in baseball garb of the 1950s or 1960s, with a dated baseball card design, that player would look older. That's because you associate the styles and some of the teams of that time with old stuff.
Theobald's uniform is an old-style Brewers uniform. The shape and make of the uniforrm is dated. The font for the team name is dated. The cap is dated.
Another reason is an unfamiliarity with the subject. I'm willing to bet that only a rabid Brewers fan or someone who followed baseball avidly in 1971 knows who Ron Theobald is. Theobald was the starting second baseman for a last-place Brewers team in 1971 and 1972. That was his entire major league career.
Because so few collectors know who he is, all they have to go on is his appearance on this one particular card. They haven't enjoyed the chance to see Theobald progress from a young rookie of age 23 or 24 to a retiring veteran of 38 or 39. In that situation you can truly see a player age and know when he looks young and when he looks old.
But I think the biggest reason for players of the past looking older than players of today is simply because people today look younger. There is more of an emphasis on youth today and people are always trying to look as young as possible. There are a wide variety of styles for younger people, from clothes to hair to, um, accessories. All of that makes them look Young.
In 1971, you had long hair or short hair. That was it. You were a hippie or a square. If you chose the short hair, it was probably a buzz-cut job like Mr. Theobald here. Everyone looked the same. Everyone looked like their dad.
But I also think the emphasis on youth today has actually made people younger. People just seem to be built to last better today. There is more of an emphasis on health and nutrition. Not only do people look younger and will look young longer, but they are generally taller than they once were. And we all know they're faster and stronger. These are all traits we associate with "being young."
Finally, the last reason: Life is too easy today. You may not think so, and I certainly don't think so in the rat-race I currently experience. But think about it. We've got it a lot better than folks from decades ago. My parents tell stories about what they went through growing up, and neither of them grew up poor. It was just that "middle class" meant something different then.
Also, people didn't live as long then. They died at some shockingly young ages. And they had some horrible jobs at some young ages. All you have to do is read about the histories of some older ballplayers, and the awful, menial jobs they endured -- working in coal mines, etc. And, they didn't kick back in a mansion in the offseason. They worked another job. That can't help but age a person very quickly.
All of that, I think, adds up to guys from the '50s, '60s and early '70s looking "old." But I'm sure someone walking around at the Brewers spring training camp in 1971 didn't think Theobald looked old.
This was one of the great 1972 Topps cards that I received from Patricia of Dinged Corners. I love this set and hope to complete it one day. Here are a few more of the Psychedelic Tombstone set:
Hee. Great checklist.
Thanks for the terrific "old" cards, DC, and for the Cardboard Appreciation idea. May we all stay young at heart.
How old do you think the guy is in this photo? Thirties? Fourties? Fifties?
He is 28.
This topic has come up a number of times across the blogs. I wrote about it back in the early days of Night Owl Cards. For some reason, players of the past look older -- in many cases much older -- than players of the present who are the same age.
I haven't examined why that is a perception almost universally shared among collectors. I don't have time to do a thesis on it, so I'll just share my semi-shallow thoughts on the matter.
One of the reasons why the players seem to be so old is the nature of the card and the era in which the photo is taken. If you dressed a current young player in baseball garb of the 1950s or 1960s, with a dated baseball card design, that player would look older. That's because you associate the styles and some of the teams of that time with old stuff.
Theobald's uniform is an old-style Brewers uniform. The shape and make of the uniforrm is dated. The font for the team name is dated. The cap is dated.
Another reason is an unfamiliarity with the subject. I'm willing to bet that only a rabid Brewers fan or someone who followed baseball avidly in 1971 knows who Ron Theobald is. Theobald was the starting second baseman for a last-place Brewers team in 1971 and 1972. That was his entire major league career.
Because so few collectors know who he is, all they have to go on is his appearance on this one particular card. They haven't enjoyed the chance to see Theobald progress from a young rookie of age 23 or 24 to a retiring veteran of 38 or 39. In that situation you can truly see a player age and know when he looks young and when he looks old.
But I think the biggest reason for players of the past looking older than players of today is simply because people today look younger. There is more of an emphasis on youth today and people are always trying to look as young as possible. There are a wide variety of styles for younger people, from clothes to hair to, um, accessories. All of that makes them look Young.
In 1971, you had long hair or short hair. That was it. You were a hippie or a square. If you chose the short hair, it was probably a buzz-cut job like Mr. Theobald here. Everyone looked the same. Everyone looked like their dad.
But I also think the emphasis on youth today has actually made people younger. People just seem to be built to last better today. There is more of an emphasis on health and nutrition. Not only do people look younger and will look young longer, but they are generally taller than they once were. And we all know they're faster and stronger. These are all traits we associate with "being young."
Finally, the last reason: Life is too easy today. You may not think so, and I certainly don't think so in the rat-race I currently experience. But think about it. We've got it a lot better than folks from decades ago. My parents tell stories about what they went through growing up, and neither of them grew up poor. It was just that "middle class" meant something different then.
Also, people didn't live as long then. They died at some shockingly young ages. And they had some horrible jobs at some young ages. All you have to do is read about the histories of some older ballplayers, and the awful, menial jobs they endured -- working in coal mines, etc. And, they didn't kick back in a mansion in the offseason. They worked another job. That can't help but age a person very quickly.
All of that, I think, adds up to guys from the '50s, '60s and early '70s looking "old." But I'm sure someone walking around at the Brewers spring training camp in 1971 didn't think Theobald looked old.
This was one of the great 1972 Topps cards that I received from Patricia of Dinged Corners. I love this set and hope to complete it one day. Here are a few more of the Psychedelic Tombstone set:
Thanks for the terrific "old" cards, DC, and for the Cardboard Appreciation idea. May we all stay young at heart.
Comments
Check out Dick Hughes - he's in his late 20s, but looks 30 years older, like he should be wearing overalls and driving a farm tractor!