Mickey Mantle

BITS AND PIECES PEOPLE WHO work in prepress and creative have entirely too much time on their hands. At least that’s the case for the creative department at Topps, the sports card specialist, in its handling of the 2007 baseball card set that hit shelves in February. Card No. 40 in the set features New York Yankees player Derek Jeter, engaged in the at-bat of a lifetime. His audience was considerable; in the card’s background, standing in the dugout, is a 1950s vintage image of Mickey Mantle. (Last time we checked, the Mick had been dead for more than 10 years.) And if you

STRINE PRINTING had always been something of a mystery. For years, the company had avoided publicity, preferring to keep a low profile. So when the assignment to profile the pride of York, PA, came along, I fought to hide a smile. All I knew about Strine was that it prints Topps trading cards. Since a majority of my own 30-year collection was likely pressed at Strine, I knew a tour was in order. Dave Kornbau, vice president of operations, provided an extended stayover in the card division and related his own role in some of the most ballyhooed, valuable and highly desirable cards printed