New 1991 Upper Deck hologram variation discovered! That’s 5 different types now!

This weekend I came across a small collection of Nolan Ryan stuff. Mainly just base junk with some oddball sprinkled in, but as always, I flipped over the 1991 Upper Decks included, to see if any of the rarer hologram types were printed on back.This time it was a hologram that looked familiar but didn’t fit any of the 4 known types. It turns out, its the hologram UD used for it’s 1990-issued, Comic Ball 1 set. Keep in mind that these variations scan terribly, but in person are easily recognizable:

Ughh. Those scans are awful, but the best I can get for the time being. The actual pattern is what appears to be a series of trophies, the words “upper deck” and “90.” And the Comic Ball set is the only UD issue that I could find matching this. Pretty fitting that I find this variety on a Nolan Ryan card when he would eventually become a spokesman for the Comic Ball line in 1991.

To recap the already-known hologram varieties (see my in-depth, previous blog on them for details):

-1990 MLB type: This hologram is the exact same one used on UD’s 1990 cards. A pattern of baseballs shows up when held under the light.

-1990-91 NHL type: This hologram has a crossed hockey sticks and ’90-91′ pattern if held under the light.

-1991 MLB, NHL, NBA, NFL type: This hologram is the most common, and shows a pattern of ‘1991 Upper Deck’ when held under a light source.

-1992 MLB type: This hologram depicts a pattern of UD’s diamond-logo and is commonly found on most 1992 issued card sets. Funny that these were being found on 1991 cards!

Confirm or Debunk: 1990-91 Fleer Dan Majerle #150A “1988”

Periodically, I’ll be posting short blogs about cards (usually errors or variations) that are listed in the major price guides like Beckett and SCD that I have yet to confirm whether they actually exist or not. There is a pretty lengthy list but since I’ve recently been able to confirm the existence of another 1990-91 Fleer Basketball variation, I figure that this card deserves some focus tonight:

1990-91 Fleer Dan Majerle #150A with “award in 1988.” in text on back.

(corrected version #150b)

The Beckett annual price guide lists this card, yet I have never found one in all my travels. I’ve always checked the back of this card whenever Ive come across one and they always say “award in 1989” on back. Several collectors have messaged me over the years asking if I have a copy for sale and many more have had it listed in their wantlists that they would email to me – this is usually an indicator of one of two things: It doesnt exist or exists in such low quantity (if in any quantity) that it may possibly be a proof or it’s just that rare. To add to the mystery, I’ve purchased several copies of this card from dealers via beckett.com, naxcom (sportsbuy), etc and a refund for them always followed shortly after.

Can anyone confirm this card exists? Maybe a Majerle collector has some info on it? If you have a scan of one, please send me a message or post a link in the comments section, I’ll gladly repost it in this blog with a “Confirmed by” credit to you.