Collectible Classics hosts 900-plus lot auction in

Collectible Classics will conduct another collector-friendly on-line and telephone auction June 5-7. The Pittsburgh-area company, owned by John and Judy Burk, specializes in lots that sell for $600 or less.

A total of 240 higher-end lots highlight the first day's offerings, including a 1936 R312 near set, a 1936 R311 glossy partial set and a 1952 Bowman complete set. The 19th century is well represented by Old Judge cards, Goodwin album pages, an 1886 International League program with Moxie and Kimball's advertising and a scarce cabinet photo of Joe Gunson, one of the creators of the padded catcher's mitt.

Day 1 features more than 35 lots of graded baseball cards ranging from Old Judges to 1970s Topps and Kellogg's. There also is an extensive selection of team-issued and team-related cards and photos.

Increasingly, autographs are a strong component of Collectible Classics' auctions. This auction is no exception, with autographs of Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Barry Bonds, Johnny Bench, Cal Ripken, baseball pioneer John T. Brush, Sadaharu Oh, Buck Leonard, George Halas as a baseball player and many more. The Mantle autographs are on an oversized limited-edition print from Topps artwork and a magnificent Baseball Magazine premium. A signed 1984 official Baseball Hall of Fame induction group photo also is up for auction.

Several Babe Ruth lots are offered, including a restored 1930s Bosch vacuum tube radio with baseball finials and Ruth bust added and an original display ad for The Babe and I by Ruth's wife.

Football, hockey, boxing and basketball selections round out the first day. Key items are footballs autographed by Emitt Smith, Jerry Rice and members of the 2001 AFC Pro Bowl squad, a huge photo of the 1940 Duquesne University football team, a 1952-53 Juniors Blue Tint partial hockey set, a Sport magazine autographed by Maurice Richard, memorabilia signed by Ezzard Charles, Joe Frazier and Archie Moore, and a basketball beautifully autographed by Bill Walton.

Autographs dominate the June 6 auction - specifically, more than 150 signed issues of Time, Life and Sports Illustrated. These issues are offered individually.

Some of the top autographed magazines come from the world of boxing, including one Time signed by Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier, another by Ali as Cassius Clay and two Sports Illustrated by Ali. Among the most dramatic magazines are issues of Life autographed by Johnny Lujack, Doak Walker, Doc Blanchard and Glenn Davis.

Baseball, auto racing, horse racing, the Olympics, hockey, golf, tennis and non-sports also are represented among these autographs. Early unsigned issues of these magazines, including the first two issues of Sports Illustrated, also will be auctioned, as well as bound volumes of 1930s Mid-Week Pictorials.

Additional baseball cards, graded and ungraded, 19th-century woodcuts, a large selection of books, including the 1938 History of Baseball in the California and Pacific Leagues, 1847-1938, and football cards, memorabilia and autographs will also be available on the second day.

The auction concludes June 7 with more than 400 lots with minimum bids of $50 or less. These card, autograph and memorabilia lots represent the full range of sports from the 19th century to the present. Many of the items are unusual - an autograph of Joe Greene as a college player, an 1862 newspaper with a report on the New York Knickerbockers baseball team, a vintage left-handed catcher's glove and a book autographed by Charlie Grimm and personalized to Pittsburgh Pirates broadcaster Bob Prince.

Non-sport cards and memorabilia are offered on all three days of the auction. Top items are a scarce political pin with Teddy Roosevelt, a 1958 Kentucky State Fair program, a collection of magazines with Marilyn Monroe covers, various drawings of Humphrey Bogart and groups of 1950s and earlier cards.

To see highlights from this auction, see Collectible Classics' full color advertisement on page 21 of this issue of SCD. The Collectible Classics auction is online at www.auctionscc.com. A free catalog is available by calling 724-446-3079 or e-mailing jburkj@comcast.net.