Hall of Famer's on TV

I've been on a bit of a vintage kick lately, including my first exposure to Topps' memorable 1966-67 set:

The television set is probably one of the most well known designs among all pre-'80s hockey cards (helped, no doubt, by the fact that the set includes Bobby Orr's rookie card). I'd never seen one of these in person but I decided to take plunge into an eBay auction because Harry Howell is an alumni of the Guelph Biltmores. 

These really should be cheesy, but they actually work. The colors in the crowd are  vivid and help make the card pop. I'm not sure if I'd like this design on a modern card, but it's pretty fantastic as a memento of the 1960's. 

As you can see, the television theme continues on the back. Part of what appealed to me was the fact that the writeup actually references Howell's time with the Biltmores (which was the New York Rangers farm club in the '50s and '60's. The franchise is now the OHL's Kitchener Rangers). You'll note that the NHL Trophies category is blank -- if memory serves, he went on to win the Norris trophy the year this set was released. In fact, he was ultimately inducted into the Hall of Fame, one of four Biltmore alumni to enshrined (along with Andy Bathgate, Rod Gilbert and Jean Ratelle). 

Ahh, the siren song of combined shipping. Since I was already committed to buying Harry Howell, I ended up picking up two other cards from the '66 set -- including this Red Kelly, another Hall of Famer. 

Interesting thing about Red Kelly: He was a Norris-winning defenseman for Detroit who was eventually traded to Toronto, where he he was moved to center and formed a successful line with Frank Mahovlich. He also holds the record for most Stanley Cup rings of any player who never played with the Montreal Canadiens and the only player to have been part of two of the nine recognized dynasties in NHL history. 

Interesting thing about the card: The game image in the background of the TV "screen" is the exact same in each of these cards. The only difference is where the foreground headshot is placed. Take a look at the anonymous Toronto Maple Leaf skating to the right over Kelly's left shoulder. You can just barely see the top of his head picking out from over Harry Howell's left shoulder in the first card.

And the other card I wound up with was Hubert Jacques "Pit" Martin. Unlike Howell and Kelly, he never made the Hall of Fame. But he was a very good player for many years. He's also the owner of one of my favorite hockey names of all time. (The nickname "Pit" apparently came from a character in a French comic strip.)

Pit is positioned in between where Harry Howell and Red Kelly were in their cards. In addition to the Maple Leaf skater on the right, you can see the coach of the opposing team (must be either the Red wings or the Black Hawks) on the left (over Martin's right shoulder). He appears to be rocking a fantastic zipper sweater. 

I really do like these cards, although it would have been nice if the background images varied a bit. I definitely wouldn't mind picking up more of these in the future.