ATTENTION KMART SHOPPERS....Anyone who was around in the 1980's and 90's remembers the Blue Light Special. Made famous by Kmart, it was quite the sales gimmick. If you were inside a store and standing near the aisle when a special was announced, it is quite possible your life was in danger. Getting run over by shoppers trying to get an item on special for 15 minutes would be a terrible way to go. I didn't shop at Kmart all that much, but I would have been there more often if they would have put baseball cards on special.
Despite the lack of card specials I still appreciate a few of these Kmart box sets. The sets remain very affordable and are perhaps considered an oddball by most collectors. Which I am fine with. Many collectors are missing out on some great, quality cards here.
Who wouldn't want a super glossy Tony Gwynn? Great photo, well cropped and nicely designed.
A great photo of Puckett. This is better than his 1990 Topps regular issue.
A couple more to show off. Ripken taking batting practice is a cool shot, and Ozzie's card is somewhat reminiscent of his regular card from the 1990 Topps set.
Here's a look at the backside of the card. Clean, high contrast and easy to read.
There's even a manager card! Tony LaRussa and Roger Craig. These managers faced off in the Bay area World Series which had a bit of a scary moment.
A look at the back of the card. Back in 1990, it's incredible to think that LaRussa had "only" 851 wins under his belt. He has added nearly 2000 more since then!
This may be the best Kmart set yet. These have a glossy finish that makes Tiffany cards look dull. The 33 card set is split evenly between the NL and AL, and the manager card is a nice touch.
I've been to card shows where dealers try to ask $5 or more but as luck would have it, I landed this set on special for a whole $1! It was still in the original plastic wrap. Of course I couldn't resist opening this to hold a few gems. The only glaring omissions from the set are Griffey Jr, and Eric Davis, but there are plenty of stars to make up for that.
Now the only question left is...do I chew the gum? 😋
My brother worked at Kmart as a teenager, he had all kinds of blue light special stories, it became a family joke. ... I am partial to the first Kmart set, from 1982. That was quite the sensation at the time. A boxed set? What was that?
ReplyDeleteI'd beg my parents to let me stay in the car when they went to Kmart. Didn't want to risk any of my classmates seeing me shop there. But they must have forced me to go in, because I remember them having pallets filled with the 1982 box sets.
ReplyDeleteBy the time 1990 rolled around, I was a senior in high school and Kmart wasn't even on my radar, so I completed missed out on this set. I'd be pretty stoked if I found one at a show or flea market for a buck.
I spent a fair amount of time at Kmart after about 1994 or so, and I don't recall them doing the blue light thing. Must've stopped by then, or maybe they were only doing it at certain stores.
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