September 16, 2018, Gonzaga Hall, Milwaukee, WI

It was nice to be back at Gonzaga after missing the August show for a family vacation. I was surprised at the small crowd. Usually this show is packed to the gills. Though, over the years I have observed that all shows suffer from attendance during football season. Despite the smaller than usual crowd, my sales were quite good.

Jerome got things going for me with a nice purchase of 1956 and 1957 Topps baseball. Paul purchased some 1975-76 Topps hockey and a 1975 Topps George Brett rookie. You know, I don't know how many times people come up to me and say hockey does not sell in Milwaukee -- NOT TRUE! There might not be an NHL team in Milwaukee but there are quite a few NHL fans and card collectors. I sell a great deal of vintage hockey cards in Milwaukee. 

Back to my sales, George purchased some 1963 Fleer baseball. Matt, a graphic artist who has promised to design me a logo (where's my logo Matt!) purchased some 1977 and 1978 Topps football. Lately, I have been selling a lot of late 1970's football cards. A semi-regular customer purchased some 1967 Topps baseball.

A guy who told me he was visiting from Minneapolis purchased some 1973 Topps football. Jim, Milwaukee's biggest Roberto Clemente fan, purchased some 1953 Topps baseball. A regular customer purchased some 1979 Topps baseball. A gentleman wearing a St. Louis Browns hat purchased some 1975 Topps minis. Tim was in town from Madison and purchased a bunch of stuff. Thanks Tim!

I know I sold more stuff but I didn't write everything down. I try but get distracted. On the buying front, I picked up some T206s and T207s along with a 1975-76 Indiana Pacers ABA Media Guide.

I know I have quite a few shows that I need too blog. I am not sure if I'll have time this week to drop another blog. I'll try. Work and family keep me crazy busy. My next show at the Four Points Sheraton, 5311 S. Howell, is coming up on November 3, 2018. Show runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Once again, we will be in two rooms. I have some new dealers and picked up some new wax to give away. Just two more shows left at the Sheraton, Nov. 3 and Dec. 1. I am skipping January. My first show in 2019 will be on February 2, 2019, at the new location - The Salvation Army Community Center, 8853 S. Howell, in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. The community center is on the same road as the Sheraton, just a mile or two south of there. What a difference a new location makes! The community center is very excited to host my card show and we are going to have their youth group run a concession stand as a fundraiser for their sports leagues. The concession stand is going to be a tremendous addition to the show, can't wait! In the meantime, come on out on November 3rd!!!

Four Points Sheraton, Milwaukee, September 1, 2018

Wow! Time flies! Seems like yesterday that Mark Smith and I were planning for a monthly Saturday show at the Milwaukee Clarion. The first show took place in September of 2014 and we had a tremendous response. The show was strong until June 2015 when it seemed like the bottom fell out. Mark dropped out after May because the drive from Michigan was just too much. I really sputtered until September of 2015 when I promoted my first anniversary with free doughnuts. I learned that Milwaukee sports collectors love doughnuts, especially the free kind. The room was packed that September and I have not had one mulligan of a show since August of 2015. Support from both dealers and collectors has been tremendous!

We have had a lot of fun these past four years. Each show after that September 2015 one saw more and more doughnuts and included coffee. We had all sorts of holiday parties where I brought out sandwiches. Then at the end of 2017 the Clarion was sold to the Marriott Corp. who renamed the hotel the Four Points Sheraton. I was so distraught when Marriott fired Clarion manager Jeff Weaver. Jeff was my greatest champion. He hooked me up with former Packers Dave Robinson and Gilbert Brown. Man, that was fun having those guys sign autographs.

I figured Jeff might have a problem with all the food I was bringing into the show... but he never said a word. He would come into the show and look for autographs for his collection. I think it was September or October of last year when the Marriott replaced Jeff with Jake. Ugh! Jake began his assault on my show from the get-go. We fought over the food. He said I couldn't bring in food. I showed him my contract which had no clause stating I could not bring in any food. I continued to bring in food and he bitched about it every month. I think it was the October or November show where Jake set up the room and did not give me any chairs. I went into a storeroom and found a bunch of chairs and carried most of them into the room myself. I have some elderly folks and others with various disabilities. I need to have chairs in the room.

The Marriott wanted to increase my room rental fee for 2018 and ban food unless I purchased it at quadruple the price from the hotel. Thankfully, Betsy Ignasiak was still there and she gave me a contract at my usual rate, though she had to place the no-food clause in the contract. 

The free food was such a hit, I was worried that the lack of food would kill the show. I decided to give away free wax instead of food. There was nothing in the contract that stated I could not giveaway non-food items. I skipped January and held my first 2018 show in February. The wax was a hit. Everyone loved it. It also seemed to draw in more families with kids.

By April, Betsy and Jake were gone and I had to deal with Stephanie, who, like Jake, went after me right away. She demanded that I give her my credit card number and pay for the room in advance. Well, the prior three-plus years, I always paid in cash after the show. I never missed a payment and there was never a problem. Well, most show days, Stephanie was not around and I ended up spending an hour or so after each show trying to find a hotel employee to pay. So I gave in and gave Stephanie my credit card number.

Then Stephanie called in April and said that my June show was cancelled. The hotel had an event taking all the rooms. I told her that I didn't care what else was going on at the hotel. I had a contract and I have spent time and money promoting my June show. I suggested we hold the show in the hotel's restaurant. She said no. Well, I am generally a very nice guy except for when I'm screwed with. I have no patience for people who think they can treat me like garbage. I put on my lawyer hat and drew up a breach of contract lawsuit and sent it to her. No response. I then put on my newspaper reporter hat (I was a newspaper reporter for 11 years prior to entering law school) and drew up a nasty press release announcing the situation to the world. I figured the May show would be my last at the hotel. My press release struck a nerve and got me a meeting with the Marriott Corp. regional director during the May show. 

I guess these Marriott folks have a culture of screwing people over and treating everyone like crap. The first thing the regional director says to me is that they never cancelled my June event. My response was that you better be willing to say that under oath before a judge because I have a lawsuit ready to go. As you all know, I am an attorney in real life and spend most every day in a court room. I was prepared to file my lawsuit in the 19th Judicial Circuit located in Lake County, Illinois.

So after a bit of an argument, the regional director suggested we hold my June show in the restaurant -- my suggestion to Stephanie two months earlier. I was so relieved that the June show would go on that I ceased being argumentative and thanked the regional director, who suggested we do lunch, which has never happened.

After the meeting, I thought maybe my troubles with the hotel were over. Not so! That same day, Stephanie brought me a new contract with terrible terms making me responsible for anything and everything that could go wrong in the hotel and out in the parking lot. The new contract also stated that the hotel could cancel my event at anytime without notice. I read the contract and tossed it into the trash. My current contract is still valid, they cannot force me to sign a new one.

I was very apprehensive before the June show. My trust in these folks was completely gone. I had also posted on various websites that the May show was my last. I tried to get the word out that the show was still on.

To my surprise, the restaurant was set up beautifully for the June show. They had given me many more tables than I had asked for and I was able to give most of the dealers an extra table at no extra charge. We also had a very nice crowd and a wonderful day. Stephanie was no where to be found. I met a new manager that day. Seems like everyone who works at the hotel is some sort of manager. I have actually never seen that new manager again.

The show went on all summer with no problems, even though I was expecting Stephanie to pull something. At the August show, I learned Stephanie was gone. Woot! I had been looking for a new location to host the show in 2019 and not having any luck. I figured I could renew at the Sheraton for 2019. The new manager I met in August told me she does not handle event bookings and gave me an email for the new event manager. Turns out the new event manager does not work for the hotel, instead, she works for a management company based in Huntley, Illinois, called Bask Development. Same old story with Bask Development. I sent the event manager an email. No response. Three weeks later I emailed the new manager I met at the August show and told her that the event manager is unresponsive. I immediately got a call from the event manager. I asked to renew for 2019. She said NO! I argued that my event is usually the only event in the hotel and asked why would  she say no. She responded that they no longer allow events to book more than a few months in advance. I told her I needed to book for the whole year so I could properly promote my event. She said she would talk to her manager. A week later, she emailed stating I can't book in advance.

                                                         BREAKING NEWS!
After a painstaking search, I have found a new location! The last show at the Four Points Sheraton will take place on December 1, 2018. I am not going to hold a show in January, 2019. The first 2019 show will take place on Saturday, February 2, 2019, at the Salvation Army Community Center, 8853 S. Howell Ave., in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Generally, the show will continue on the first Saturday of the month in 2019. However, like January, there are a few more months I am taking off, namely July and August. The 2019 schedule will be as follows: February 2, March 2, April 6, May 4, June 1, September 7, October 5, November 2, and December 7. 

This show will go on! These past four years have been tremendous! The anniversary show in September had a ton of dealers and was well attended. See my purchases, pictured below.

​I decided to try do something unique for the anniversary show and created a prize table manned by my son Kolby. I had a table full of great items like autographs, packs of cards, modern and vintage cards, lots, publications and bobbles. Folks were invited to pull a ticket out of a box and receive the prize on the ticket. I think the customers that partook enjoyed the prize table. Though, I observed that not everyone participated. I don't think I made it clear that I was giving away all the stuff on the prize table for free. I took home a lot of the stuff that I wanted to giveaway. What are your thoughts on the prize table? Was it a bad idea? Confusing? Did you like it? Should I do it again?

Anyway, I really thought of closing down the show this past spring but my enthusiasm for the show has been renewed by the tremendous support I have been receiving from both customers and dealers. I am very excited to move the show to the Salvation Army Community Center next year. In the meantime, I have two more shows set for 2018 at the Four Points Sheraton -- November 3rd and December 1st. I hope to see everyone at those shows!! A big thank you to everyone who has supported my show these past four years. I would not have been able to do this at all without all the customers and dealers. It is a really nice referendum on how I do things. Initially I sought to create a Saturday show, with free admission, and a unique edge, which I think I've accomplished... thanks to you!!! Cheers!!!  

Oh, and no thanks to the Four Points Sheraton, Marriott Corp. and Bask Development!!

Orland Park Civic Center, August 19, 2018

My family went for one last summer vacation during the week prior to the Orland show. Unfortunately, I had to miss the August Gonzaga show. We went up to Minneapolis and hung out at the Mall of America. Shopping malls may be dying all across the country but not at the Mall of America. That place is amazingly massive and filled with hundreds of shops and thousands of people.

This was me and my daughter's second trip to the Mall of America and the first for my wife and son. My daughter and I hit it a few years ago when we were in town for a card show. Then and now we barely scratched the surface.

Upon arrival, we dined at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville Restaurant which was okay. It was about what you would expect for a chain restaurant located in a mall. The wife and the son spent most of the day in the mall's indoor amusement park. The daughter and I shopped, mostly for her. I was impressed to learn that the mall has four Lid stores, you know the shops that sell baseball caps. I was unimpressed to learn that the inventory did not vary between the stores.

We also spent a day at the Minneapolis Zoo which is about as good of a zoo as there is. I got some good exercise in between the mall and the zoo. All in all, we had a nice time.

Back home at the Orland show, I was surprised at how light the crowd was. This was certainly the smallest crowd of the year. As a result, I had my slowest Orland show of the year. Nevetheless, I did sell a few cards.

A father and son team got things going. The son purchased some 1959 Topps baseball while the father purchased some 1961s. A regular purchased some early Bowman baseball and a 1933 Goudey Lon Warneke.

Larry purchased some 1974 Topps baseball. Rick purchased some 1975 Topps football. I put out my publications at this show and sold a Sport Magazine from the 1960's with Mickey Mantle on the cover. A regular purchased a 1966 Topps Don Sutton rookie and a 1957 Topps football Frank Gifford.

Dan purchased some 1954 Bowman baseball. A Cubs fan purchased some 1980-81 Topps hockey. A long-time customer purchased some 1960 Fleer baseball. Joel purchased some 1975 Fleer football and some 1960 Fleer baseball. Will purchased some 1963 Topps baseball. I know I sold some more cards but I got chatty and forgot to write them down.

On the buying front, I picked up a real nice box of baseball stars from the 1960s. Quick day, capped off with another fine meal at the sub shop with Will and Joe.

Time for a rant, the subject today: Graded Cards.

I first observed graded cards about 20 year ago. My initial thoughts, that I was fully qualified to grade my cards without the assistance of a third party, has not changed. I did not foresee how graded cards would affect the pricing of cards. The prices for high grade vintage cards have gone through the roof and these cards are no longer accessible to the regular collector. They have become luxury items for the rich.

While many folks claim that graded cards have helped stem the tide of fraud, I have to disagree. There are many fraudsters out there popping out high grade cards from their slab and replacing them with low graded cards or fakes and selling them on eBay. In addition, the grading process is heavily flawed and dishonest. PSA is prone to damage cards submitted for grading. To cover their tracks, the employees at PSA slab and give these damaged cards high grades. I was victimized by PSA years ago, when I submitted an absolutely beautiful and flawless 1953 Topps Roy Campanella. I gave the card to PSA staffers at the long defunct Sports Fest in Schaumburg, Illinois. A month or so later, I received my card slabbed in the mail. There was a huge crease in the middle of the top edge. Obviously, some moronic PSA staffer placed the card in a box with other cards then dug his or her thumb into the top edge when pulling a group of the cards out of the box. The card which should have been an 8 or 9 received a 5. With the crease, the card was more like a 2.

I see the PSA booth at all the big shows and it is staffed with young folks from California who are not card hobbyists. These kids don't care about your cards. They are just there to get paid. So, in my opinion, PSA is a sad joke and a detriment to the hobby.

If you follow the online threads about PSA on certain card collecting sites, you will read all sorts of PSA horror stories. The biggest PSA story concerns the Gretzky T206 Wagner in which convicted felon Bill Mastro admitted to trimming the card. There is conflicting accounts as to whether PSA knew the card was trimmed when they gave it an 8. 

Many believe that PSA gives better grades to its best customers such as large auction houses. Recently, the Miami Herald published a story in which a reporter gave some fake autographs to PSA which slabbed them and graded them as authentic.

The loser in this whole grading/PSA saga is the average collector who thinks he is buying a legitimately graded card or autograph when in fact he is not. As PSA continues to grow and influence the hobby, so does its negative impact. I personally view PSA as this monster lurking behind the scenes. 

Since they ruined my '53 Campanella, I've hardly submitted any cards. Recently, PSA slapped me in the face and I vow to NEVER submit a card to them again. My newest gripe about PSA concerns their online forum. For the past four years, I have been posting information regarding my Milwaukee show on the forum. I never took advantage and bumped my post like some other guys. I just put it out there and let people naturally respond. Over the years, a few guys came into the show as a result of my post on the PSA forum.

In August, I received the following message from one of the moderators of the PSA forum:

"Hi,

I just wanted to let you know we do not permit advertising of any kind on the boards. Your latest thread is unique in that it is a show ad primarily, so I just wanted to reach out to explain before just removing.

We certainly want to promote and support more show attendance, but the reason we do not allow ads on the site is because it then becomes a free for all. We just want to ensure the site doesn’t become a place to filter through a bunch of spam. 

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation moving forward.

Jackie"

So who is Jackie? Does she collect cards? As a card collector do you feel that information regarding shows are spam? As I said before, I have been posting info about my show monthly for the past four years without incident. I have not had a single collector accuse my posts of being spam. As a result of this latest insult from PSA, I will never again do any sort of business with them.  PSA has really taken much of the joy of collecting out of the hobby. Going forward, let's take back our hobby and boycott PSA! I know grading is a necessary evil these days so I plan to support the alternative grading companies such as SGC and Beckett. I hope you will as well. @#!$% you PSA!! 

​Come out to my show at the Four Points Sheraton, 5311 S. Howell, in Milwaukee on Saturday, October 6, 2018, and let's talk about PSA!