newer collectors have stepped into the Planet of the Apes trading card scene. And Ebay card
sellers are pushing their "Apes cards" to cash in on the excitement.
This isn't necessarily a
bad thing, however, be aware that some sellers are not informed about
the cards they are selling
and others are being downright dishonest.
Planet
of the Apes card were printed in 1969 and 1975. The 1969 set is by far
the more
valuable
of the two. The 1969 set can command up to $200.00 for a top grade set,
and the 1975 set
routinely
sells in the neighborhood of $25.00. Both card sets feature ape
characters which only
a Planet of the Apes expert
can distinguish.
Many sellers who are otherwise
not familiar with Planet of the Apes cards are apparently noticing
on the back of ALL CARDS
FROM BOTH SETS a copyright notice dated 1967. Therefore,
many sellers are (wrongly)
assuming that their cards (no matter the actual year), must be from
the earlier set.
The 1967 copyright located
on the cards refers to the copyright of the film. Not the copyright
of the cards.
The easiest way to distinguish
between a 1969 card and a 1975 card is to turn the card over and
look at the back.
If you see this type of back,
it is a 1969 card:
All 1969 cards have green
colored backs with repeating ape graphics as pictured above.
If you see this type of back,
it is a 1975 card:
All 1975 cards have "puzzle
piece backs" with text.
Make sure you know what you
are getting to avoid disappointment. Ask the seller if
ALL CARDS IN THE AUCTION
have one or the other type of back.
As for the wrapper, this
is easy to distinguish. All 1969 wrappers feature an illustration of two
ape heads. All 1975 wrappers
feature an ape carrying a rifle and feature a banner that says
"All New TV Series!" Naturally,
the "TV Series" wrappers can not possibly be from 1969 as the
TV show did not air before
1975.
Some sellers are relying
on your lack of ability to distinguish between the two sets. I have
recently (with no mention
of this website) sent 4 e-mails to Ebay sellers advising them of their
mistakes. NONE changed their
listing. One really can't blame them. They probably have no idea
what the actual truth is,
and who wants to lose out on a good sale_ Others, like the guy who
was selling the wrapper
that clearly states "All New TV Series" as a 1969 wrapper wrote me that
a friend of his told him
that it was from 1969 and he wanted to stick by it.
Of course he did.
In the end, it's up to the
buyer of Planet of the Apes cards to determine what they are buying.
Many sellers, for whatever
reason(s), cannot be relied on to distinguish between the 1969 set
and the 1975 set.
Text by Bob Esposito
