Bad Camera Productions Presents: A Winter's Trip To Dodger Stadium

Aloha, everybody, 

Dodger Stadium was holding a special Winter Holiday sale at their Top of the Park giftshop, and they were were tossing in the promise of Dodgers autographs and the chance to check out the 1981 World Series trophy. That was enough for me, so I headed off to the stadium. 

It was a Saturday afternoon, but LA traffic is plenty thick no matter the day or time. 

Rats, a detour! Being Saturday, it turned out there was some kind of parade right on the street I needed access to. They closed off Broadway, which meant I couldn't get to Vin Scully Avenue. I had to reroute around the maze of tiny hilltop streets that surround the stadium. 

I eventually made it, and the Dodger signing autographs in the giftshop was Derrel Thomas, a member of the 1981 World Series championship team. 

Thomas played for a number of organizations, including perhaps the entire NL West. He also holds the distinction of playing every position on the field, except for pitching. 

Derrel beamed a great smile and was very friendly. He was gracious enough to sign two cards for me today - as I classified them to him, "one with your ever-lovin' smile, and one with you in action." 

As you can see above, Thomas is listed as playing outfield (I suppose this refers to all fields) and second base. 

It looks like Thomas adds a little arrowhead at the end of his signature. Is it something pointing upward, or perhaps a playful devil's tail? I wish I'd noticed at the time and asked him about it. 

I also had the thrill of seeing the 1981 World Series trophy up close, with no glass between us. 

I also bought myself something from the giftshop, but that will go under the Christmas tree, not to be opened until the 25th. 

I was done baseball shopping, so I popped outside to get a peek at the hallowed field. On one of the walls, I noticed this plaque, honoring Hammerin' Hank Aaron. 

It says Aaron hit his last home run (number 676) at Dodger Stadium on April 15, 1973. It's amazing that Hank ended with 755 homers, but he never hit another at Chavez Ravine. BTW, the Dodgers won that game 6-2. 

Out on the field, there were some youth baseball teams having practice. What a thrill to be a kid and practice at Dodger Stadium. I wondered if there were former Dodgers down there giving tips. 

Time to leave the magic of Dodger Stadium and head back into the reality of the city...but first, fish tacos on the way home! 

Aloha! 

Is your Cardboard World Customized?

Aloha, everybody, 

Are you familiar with King of all Customs, Gavin from Baseball Card Breakdown? If you don't know his blog and his work, you should. Homeboy knows his way around customs, I'll tell you that.  

Some custom card makers are content to whip up a few wacky pieces here and there, but Gavin is constantly honing his craft, perfecting his artwork, and expanding the medium. 

His latest project has been creating customs with the end goal of having them autographed. He's been having some measure of success, and I'm very happy to have a couple of his most recent works of cardboard art in my collection. 

Aint this a beauty? G tells us the story of this card here. 

The photo is taken from the Penguin's monster home run in Game 3 of the 1981 World Series. The semi-blurred flash of a magical moment in time is forever captured in the imagery. The perspective could not be more perfect than this one - showcasing the classic outfield pavilions and the old-time Dodgers DiamondVision scoreboard. 

Here's the backside...
 

 Gavin made three of these babies:

1. Mandated for King of all Bloggers, Sir Night Owl
2. A keeper for himself, and 
3. One up for trade. 

BAMMM!!!!! I jumped hard.

It's well known blogosphere lore that Night Owl's favorite Dodger is Ron Cey. I figure few beyond my loyalest readers know the Penguin is my all-time Dodgers favorite as well. 

Strange thing is, in all of my collecting travels, I have never acquired a Ron Cey autograph. I've run across him a couple of times at Dodger Stadium, and was unfortunately unprepared to get an auto both times. So I wanted that card.

(Aside for GCRL Jim: Gavin mentioned to me that he hoped this Cey card would inspire a trade between the two of you. So heads up, Jim, Gavin's interested in trading.) 

When Gavin sent a Cey card off to Night Owl, he included a second Dodgers-related custom card, a faux vintage Vin Scully. Guess what Gavin added to our trade? 

BLAMMO!!!! My very own vintage Scully! 

Just as important to my Dodgers experience - in fact, more so than that of Ron Cey - is my "relationship" to Vin Scully. I doubt fans from other cities can fathom how a fan can feel connected to a baseball announcer like Dodger fans do to Vin Scully. It's surreal. I'll have to drop a blog post about that one day. 

Today, however, is about Gavin's art. This card feels like authentic vintage. It's complete with bends, soft corners, the right patina, and again, the perfect photograph. 
 

When I was an artist back in the day (I'm a painter), I used to make fun of how overused the word "visceral" is in the art world. This time the word fits. 

Gavin had produced a Scully custom before, and having now received this new one, I'm seizing upon the opportunity to riff off of an idea that Night Owl had, which he called Start to Finish.  

In Start to Finish one compares a players first card issue with his last. Let's use the Scully customs and see how that plays out...

The vintage Scully shows us the young redhead in a humble radio booth in long-gone Ebbets Field, Brooklyn, NY. The enjoyment and excitement he finds in his work is evident in young Scully's face. 

The other card is an 88 year-old Scully at the end of his career, solidly established at the summit of the baseball broadcasting world. 

He's still thin, now sporting a World Series championship ring, and  displaying that ever-present Hollywood smile and his trademark shock of red hair. 

From a small broadcast booth to the diamond of Chavez Ravine, Vin Scully absolutely rules on (custom) cardboard. 

And a Ron Cey autograph aint too shabby, either. 

 

Aloha!