A Likely Story

When I first set out on this series I didn't think it would take four full posts to cover all of the potential Tatoo subjects and I was right!  Friend o'the Archive Lonnie Cummins has sent me enough information on these sets (and some others) since my first two posts back in late September and early October that a review of prior images looks to be in order and an eventual fifth post will surely follow at some distant point.  This serves as a reminder that my more current posts on a topic are more correct and precise as this blog is often a sounding board for the anechoic nebula rotating in my brain and my musings get refined when more information comes in  But I digress......

I mapped out all of the possible original Tatoo subjects that got sucked into 1981's 24 Tattoo set last time out and ended up with a list of 80 possibilities when I started drafting this week's entry; thanks to Lonnie's sleuthing a handful now appear to have been included in some of the four Popeye Tattoo sets issued by Topps from 1958-66 but having said that, I can't rule out their origins in the original 1948-53 issues of Tatoo.  So this is even bigger than the mess I expected it to be by this point.

There could easily be a couple more or a few less than 80 as a handful do appear to be from 1968's 21 Tattoos (the first Topps larger sized issue in this vein) but from what I've seen of that1968 set, it mostly had its own designs.  A couple of designs I thought might be associated with Monster Tatoo from 1962 could be mixed in, or vice-versa.  It's really hard to tell with a number of these.

Some of my unknown subjects in the last post are probably from 21 Tattoos, again with possible exceptions either way as I've seen only three or four of the 16 sheets from '68.

I won't excise them from the 24 Tattoo sheets to show here (boy it's been a schlep-and-a-half already just eyeballing all of those subjects) and you can track the coordinates from the post last week.  However, since my dad was Navy veteran, I'll just show their emblem as an example of a likely original subject, with a "flip" showing the "applied" version:

Here are the 80 likely additional subjects.

ACE OF HEARTS

AERIAL BOMB

ALIEN WAVING

ALLIGATOR

AMERICAN INDIAN BRAVE WITH FEATHERS

ANCHOR

ARROW GAG

ARTISTS PALETTE

BANJO

BANJO WITH MUSICAL NOTES

BASEBALL HITTER LEGS CROSSED

BASEBALL HITTER LEGS OPEN

BISON

BOY WITH APPLE AND ARROW

BUFFALO BILL

CLOWN

CLOWN STANDING

CLOWN WITH BOWTIE

COCHISE

COMPASS

COWBOY WITH SIX SHOOTERS

DEVIL COSTUME

DIVER

DOLLAR BILL

ELEPHANT

EXECUTIONER

EXPLORER WITH BUSHY MUSTACHE

EYE

FIRE EATER

FLORIDA CONF. BATTLE FLAG

GENIE

GREAT DANE

GYPSY MAN

HANDLE WITH CARE

HEART WITH DAGGER

HOURGLASS

ICE CREAM CONE

JET PLANE

JOLLY ROGER

KEY

LIBERTY BELL

LIGHTNING BOLT

LION ROARING

LIPS

MATADOR

MEDAL FOR BRAVERY

MEDAL OF HONOR

MERMAID

MUSICAL NOTES

OPEN COCKPIT RACE CAR

PANTHER

PORPOISE WITH COMPASS

RATTLESNAKE

ROCKET LAUNCH

ROCKET ON INCLINED LAUNCHER

ROCKET WITH CLOUDS

RUNNER

SAILOR WITH SPYGLASS

SAINT BERNARD

SEAHORSE NO SPIKES

SILVER STAR

SITTING BULL

SMILING FISH

SNAKE LADY

SPACESHIP

SPACESHIP FLOTILLA

STRONGMAN MUSCULAR

STRONGMAN THIN

SUBMARINE

TECUMSEH

TEST PILOT YELLOW HELMET

TRAIN

TRAINED SEAL

TWO HEARTS WITH RIBBON

US NAVY EMBLEM

WHITE HAIRED MAN WITH HAT

WOLF

WOMAN

WORM IN APPLE

WRISTWATCH

I previously counted and (hopefully) confirmed 136 Tatoo subjects and associated artworks so this haul brings us to a potential 216-ish but that count remains fungible.  That fits the Topps Vault numbering scheme but I suspect more lurk out there and that the Vault has art from the other sets mixed into their numbering.  

I could easily see the Aces of Diamonds and Clubs, possibly George Washington, Abe Lincoln, U.S. Grant, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower and Annie Oakley being available, plus several more generic subjects like cowboys and athletes.  Probably some American Flags would be in there too and it would not surprise me if more Confederate State flags popped up. Maybe there actually are 250 different across the "100" and "150" issues!  Eisenhower (as "Ike") does appear in at least one later set and I'm also going to have to unravel the Davy Crockett Tatoo subjects, although I am reasonably sure those stand on their own.

As mentioned previously, we'll never get to a true count but we can keep adding to the Tatoo checklist--and others--, so stay tuned!

Sheets Getting Real

After a bit of a pause to gather more information, the deciphering of the aboriginal Topps Tatoo issues continues today, with a look well past the 1948-53 sets in order to determine what a checklist might look like. First, let's look at the full list of tatoo/tattoo issues that Topps came out with in order to determine a potential universe of subjects (self-contained gum tab wrappers unless indicated):

• 1948 Tatoo
• 1949 Tatoo
• 1953 Tatoo
• 1955 Davy Crockett Tatoo
• 1957 Popeye Tattoo
• 1958 Popeye "New Series" Tattoo
• 1959 Woody Woodpecker Tatoo
• 1960 Popeye Mystery Color Tattoo
• 1960 Magic Tatoo
• 1960 Baseball Tattoo 
• 1961 Superman Tattoo
• 1962 Monster Tatoo (of relevance)
• 1963 Astroboy Tattoo
• 1963 Walt Disney Character Tattoo
• 1964 Baseball Photo Tattoo
• 1965 Tom & Jerry Tattoo
• 1966 Mighty Mouse And His Pals Tattoo
• 1966 Popeye Tattoo (commodity code confirms date for this and subsequent issues)
• 1967 Comic Book Tattoo
• 1967 Dr. Doolittle Tattoo
• 1968 21 Tattoos (folded sheet/accordion hybrid)
• 1969 Archie Tattoo (accordion style)
• 1970 Bugs Bunny Tattoo (accordion style)
• 1971 Baseball Tattoo (accordion style)
• 1971 TV Cartoon Tattoos (accordion style)
• 1973 Wacky Packages Tattoo
• 1975 Bugs Bunny Road Runner Tattoos (stick gum wrapper)
• 1975 Monster Tattoo
• 1981 24 Tattoos (folded sheet/accordion hybrid)

Take some of those dates with a little salt but that's pretty much a continuous run from 1948 through 1975 (in fact it's an average of exactly one set per year) that looks to have finally ended only when it was not possible to sell such a product for two cents (such pricing starting with Wacky Packages Tattoo) or a nickel (accordion and hybrid styles) anymore.  Topps went to a 25 cent package for the much bigger 24 Tattoos in 1981 and then issued many more tattoo sets thereafter with the higher price points apparently finding a sweet spot that solved the 1970's post oil crisis profit problem. Anyhoo....

One thing that is not clear to me is the origin of the dating of the 1953 Tatoo set. The 1948 set is documented in Topps sales and advertising literature and the 1949 set is as well (to a degree).  But I've never found anything to date the 1953's and it may be as simple as one of the early hobby publications reported on these and I just haven't stumbled across the reference.  I also think it's possible that there was something of a continuous run of these little novelties from 1948-54 or so, than is described in hobby literature then and now. Why wouldn't you keep a cheaply produced novelty like Tatoo in production during the baby boom?

A generic, unlicensed Davy Crockett Tatoo came around in 1955 and then Popeye caught up with the cartoons that had been packaged up for TV in the fall of 1956 some time in '57. This began an impressive run of tattoos featuring everybody's Spinach guzzling sailor, with Topps issuing three distinct sets under a licensing deal with King Features Syndicate (KFS). Then new, made-for-TV Popeye cartoons debuted in 1960 and Topps moved on as a new licensing deal was probably needed because of the newly created cartoons. They certainly went all in on licensed comic and animation themed tattoos once they tasted the profits Popeye generated.

They did revisit Popeye in 1966 with a new (or possibly reissued) tattoo set in the wake of a 1965 re-syndication that was by all accounts, a massive televison success.  When it comes to tattoo issues though, the Baseball issues of 1960 and 1964 reign supreme with collectors, as does 1962's Monster Tatoo, although the latter does not seem to have been all that popular when issued. What Monster Tattoo has going for it is fabulous Jack Davis artwork-artwork so good it joined a host of old Tatoo images in 1981's 24 Tattoos. The 1968 21 Tattoos issue also reused a bunch but also had new designs.  So far, I've checked only two of the sixteen 21 Tatoos sheets but the designs match up with the original Tatoo subjects

24 Tattoos cost a quarter per pack, for which you got a sheet of 24 tattoos. With 12 sheets that made 288 impressions and almost all of them were culled from either Tatoo or the Monster Tatoo sets. I think this is why some of the Topps Vault numbering on original art extends into the 200's. I'm going to feature all 12 sheets here, so be warned!

I'll need a matrix reference system to go through all of this and it's a little tricky as there are some tattoos that are half the size of the others and several that repeat across the sheets (I'll sort those out in a recap at the end).  For Sheet #1, it would look like this and it's worth noting all sheets have the same array:

	A	B	C	D
1		Top		Top
		Bottom		Bottom
2		Top	Top
		Bottom	Bottom
3		Top	Top
		Bottom	Bottom
4		Top	Top
		Bottom	Bottom

So on Sheet #1, below, 1A would be the monster in the upper left corner, whereas 1B Top is Uncle Sam. Each master sheet has 8 large tattoos and 16 small ones. I'll take each sheet one-by-one and try to determine:

• Repeat Tatoo subjects
• Likely Repeat Tatoo subjects (based upon their design) highlighted in green
• Known Art subjects (without confirmed Tatoo) including Benjamin's illos.
• Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects
• Unknown subjects

I'd say the top three categories are all at least potentially "original" Tatoo-worthy; the first obviously is, with subjects from the second and third categories remaining to be confirmed as originals. Off we go with the first sheet:

SHEET 1

9 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 1B Top, 1C, 1D Bottom, 2A, 2C Top, 2D, 4A, 4B Bottom, 4D
8 Likely Repeats: 2B Top, 2C Bottom, 3A, 3B Top, 3B Bottom, 3C Bottom, 4C Top, 4C Bottom
1 Known Art Subject: 2B Bottom
6 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1A, 1B Bottom, 1D Top, 3C Top, 3D, 4B Top

You will see immediately on Sheet 2 that subjects within this set repeat as well (the Flying Saucer is in slot 4 D bottom above and 2A below).

SHEET 2

4 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 1A, 2A, 2D, 4B Top
11 Likely Repeats: 1B Top, 1D Top, 2B Top, 2C Bottom, 3A, 3B Bottom, 3C Top, 3C Bottom, 4A, 4B Bottom, 4D
1 Known Art Subject: 1C
7 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1B Bottom, 2B Bottom, 2C Top, 3B Top, 3D, 4C Top, 4C Bottom
1 Unknown: 1D Bottom

NB: 2B (Strongman) seems to be taken from the display box/canister art for Tatoo, while 4D (Porpoise with Compass) seems to match a very badly abused and washed out Tatoo I've seen on eBay.

SHEET 3

4 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 2A, 2C Bottom, 2D (seen but not scanned on Tatoo), 3C Bottom
12 Likely Repeats: 1B Top, 1B Bottom, 1C, 1D Top, 1D Bottom, 2B Top, 2B Bottom, 3B Bottom, 4A, 4B Top, 4C Bottom, 4D
1 Known Art Subjects: 3A
7 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: A1, 2C Top, 3B Top, 3C Top, 3D, 4B Bottom, 4C Top

SHEET 4

7 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 1A, 1D Top, 2A, 3A (just missing tethers here), 3D, 4B Top, 4C Bottom
6 Likely Repeats:  2C Top, 2C Bottom, 3B Bottom, 4A, 4B Bottom, 4C Top
10 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1B Top, 1C, 1D Bottom, 2B Top, 2B Bottom, 2D, 3B Top, 3C Top, 3C Bottom, 4D
1 Unknown: 1B

SHEET 5

4 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 1B Bottom, 2A, 3A, 4A
11 Likely Repeats: 1C, 1D Top, 1D Bottom,  2C Top, 2C Bottom, 2D, 3B Top, 3B Bottom, 3D (seen but not scanned on Tatoo), 4B Top, 4D
9 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1A, 1B Top, 2B Top, 2B Bottom, 3C Top, 3C Bottom, 4B Bottom, 4C Top, 4C Bottom

SHEET 6

3
 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 1A , 1D Top, 3B Top
12 Likely Repeats: 1B Top, 1B Bottom, 2A, 2B Top, 2B Bottom, 2C Top, 3A, 3C Top, 3C Bottom, 3D. 4B Top, 4C Top
1 Known Art Subject: 4A
8 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1C, 1D Bottom, 2C Bottom, 2D, 3B Bottom, 4B Bottom, 4C Bottom, 4D

SHEET 7

3 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 2B Top, 2C Bottom, 3C Bottom
13 Likely Repeats: 1A, 1B Bottom, 1C, 1D Top, 2A, 2B Bottom, 3A, 3B Top, 3C Top, 3D, 4A, 4B Top, 4C Bottom, 4D
7 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1B Top, 2C Top, 2D, 3A Top, 4B Bottom, 4C Top, 4D
1 Unknown: 1D Bottom

SHEET 8

9 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 1C, 1D Bottom, 2B Bottom, 2C Bottom, 3B Top, 3B Bottom, 3C Top, 3C Bottom, 3D
7 Likely Repeats: 1B Bottom, 2A, 2B Top, 2C Top, 2D, 4B Bottom, 4C Bottom
8 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1A, 1B Top, 1D Top, 3A, 4A, 4B Top, 4C Top, 4D

SHEET 9

13 Likely Repeats: 1B Top, 1C, 1D Top, 2A, 2B Top, 2C Bottom, 3A, 3B Top, 3C Top, 3D, 4B Top, 4B Bottom, 4D
10 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1A, 1 B Bottom, 2B Bottom, 2C Top, 2D, 3B Bottom, 3C Bottom, 4A (repeats, same as 2C Top), 4C Top, 4C Bottom
1 Unknown: 1D Bottom

SHEET 10

10 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 1A, 1C, 1D Bottom, 2A, 2B Top (without clouds here), 3B Top (without musical notes here), 3B Bottom, 3B Top, 3D, 4C Top

6 Likely Repeats: 1B Top, 2C Bottom, 2D, 3C Bottom, 4B Bottom, 4D
1 Known Art Subject: 2C Top
6 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1B Bottom, 1D Top, 2B Bottom, 4A, 4B Top, 4C Bottom
1 Unknown: 3A

SHEET 11

10 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 1B Top, 1D Top, 2A, 2B Top (without "motion lines" here), 3A, 3B Top, 3C Bottom, 3D, 4A, 4B Top
6 Likely Repeats: 1A, 2B Bottom, 2C Top, 2D, 3B Bottom, 4C Top
1 Known Art Subject: 2B Top,
7 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1C, 1D Bottom, 2C Bottom, 3C Top, 4B Bottom, 4C Bottom, 4D

SHEET 12

5 Repeat Tatoo Subjects: 2A, 2C Bottom (without "motion lines" here), 3C Top, 4A (mirrored here), 4 C Bottom (without background here)
10 Likely Repeats: 1A, 1B Bottom, 1C, 1D Top, 1D Bottom, 2C Top, 3A, 3D, 4B Top, 4D
8 Repeat Monster Tatoo subjects: 1B Top, 2B Top, 2B Bottom, 2D, 2B Bottom, 2C Bottom, 4B Bottom, 4C Top
1 Unknown: 3B Top (could be a Monster Tatoo)

Whew!

Now for the fun part.  The "likely subjects" that were in the original Tatoo issues are pretty numerous.  I could be off on a couple I have assigned to Monster Tatoo (all noted here in what I believe is a set of 96 but there are hardly any scans at that site) and the chance any subject I have identified as "unknown" could be in either Tatoo, Monster Tatoo or just culled from something more obscure (Sputnik for example could be from 21 Tattoos), is high. One or two gun or cowboy-themed subjects could be from the extremely obscure Davy Crockett Tatoos but after they issued that rare set the Topps tattoo issues are almost all licensed products (Davy was generic) and I doubt any of those were repeated here.

What we are left with then are the likely original issue Tatoos where I can't find a corresponding single.  I doubt we'll ever truly know how many subjects were created originally and there is no way to tell what the "official" set counts mean.  100 + 100 + 150 = a potential universe of 350 subjects but we know Topps repeated some of those, reissuing them in larger sizes as they went along through 1953 or thereabouts.  Of course the bottom number is theoretically 150 but I'd say the true answer lies in between.

I'll break this all down in the final post in this series, creating a checklist of possible Tatoos that should at least show a nodding acquaintance to fact.

All Lined Up

Continuing on from last week's attempt to corral and checklist the related 1948, 1949 & 1953 Tatoo issues, a fair number of original art pieces from the set have survived. These little plain ink drawings fall into four main categories:

• Matching known issued subjects
• Likely matching as yet unidentified issued subjects
• Subjects probably pulled from release
• Red Herrings

Some if not all of these originated from the Topps Vault. The first category is not something I'll rehash too deeply here except to note that Topps assigned a number to each drawing it sold, as memorialized on the corresponding COA.  These range from #1-202 (at least) and one number repeats for unknown reasons.  I've not seen any "mirrored" images in the art proper (not that I expected to) so Topps merely copied a piece of original art to issue it a second time in altered format. Theoretically, anything that was to show properly words or numbers once the tatoo was applied would be "backwards" on the artwork.

This brings us back to the question of how many different subjects exist.  The 1948 and reissued 1949 set (slightly larger in dimension) presumably contain the same advertised 100 subjects.  I base this on the idea that when Topps reissued their 1949 Flags of All Nations/Soldiers of the World and License Plate sets a year later in a larger size, the used the same art. It gets a bit harder though with the 1953 issue ( in a larger size again than 1949's release) which was advertised as having 150 subjects. I have some thoughts on the issue dates as well, which I'll get into in a future post.

We also have other questions that arise. Did the first 100 subjects get reissued with 50 additional ones in 1953? Are mirrored subjects included in the Topps counts? Are the "official" counts believable?  Where a subject was issued in one orientation and there is corresponding line art in the opposite one, does that mean both versions are possible to find as an issued Tatoo? You can see the problems with trying to figure all of this out!

Then there is the matter of the 1981 24 Tattoos set, which reused art from these sets and others that Topps issued in the 60's, especially 1962's Monster Tatoo.  Those will be looked at next time I re-engage (I'll break this up a little for ya next week) as there is a lot of (fertile) ground to cover there.

Here is an example of an issued Tatoo and the corresponding artwork that obviously matches it. The Totem Pole is a mirrored subject as both left and right looking variants were issued.  These also show how spot color would be applied differently on each "mirror," making me think they are all included in the Topps set totals:

Topps Vault assigned that line art number 76.

I've identified 21 pieces of original art, of which four were probably not part of the set, another that was seemingly was intended for display box or advertising art, and three or four that may have been rejected.  In addition, Chris Benjamin in his Sport-Americana Guide to the Non-Sports Cards No.2 showed 28 subjects in his overview of these sets but for most part I can't tell if they were actual Tatoos, or original art (I suspect the latter). In any event, while only a handful of the Benjamin illustrations match issued Tatoos and I will not treat them as art here as I used his "unmatched" examples in part one - I assume he knew what he was talking about!

Here's the art-with the Topps Vault numbering in brackets. Some may have been rejected, they are marked on the price with a penciled X. Others are cutouts and don't follow the pattern of rectangular artwork with lightly penciled border lines (which I don't always show in my scans).

Aircraft Carrier (118) - Likely rejected.

American Indian Portrait (85)  - Possibly not from Tatoo 

Cloud with Puffing Face (107) - Possibly not from Tatoo. Boy this one looks familiar 

from somewhere else but I can't place it at present.  Any thoughts out there?

Elephant (110) - Possible Woody Gelman handwriting, hard to tell.

Empire State Building (109) - Possible Gelman scrawl again. 

Football Punter - From BST Auctions, no number associated.  

However, we get a nice glimpse of the back:

Frankenstein (86) - I believe this is from 1962's  Monster Tatoo (UPDATE: 11/10/20-it appears in one of the Popeye Tattoo sets).

Leopard (2)

Lion Cub (115) - The pencil comment says "Not Cartoon" with
remnants of an "X" so I think this was rejected.

Marching Band Drummer (54)

Outboard Motor Boat (112) - That scrawl is not Woody's.

Pirate with Dagger (1) - Note small whited out area.

Purple Heart (117) - I believe this was an original Tatoo as it's in 24 Tattoos

Seabird on Anchor (97) - Possibly rejected, can't tell if that's an "X" or not. This seems 

like it should be a military insignia or logo but I can't quite place it.

Sedan with Chrome (86) - Not sure what's going on above it though.

Shark (111) - Notes off to the side may not be "vintage" but these are the holders Topps Vault used.

Sportscar (113) - Positioning of two other subjects seems to be penciled.  

"Medal of Honor" above and "Ford Jet" below, or is the bottom one describing this drawing?

Strongman with Banner - I believe this is a drawing intended or used for display and/or advertising purposes. The pencil notes say "Solomon & Gelman - 1 neg. glossy same size"

Tarzan (108) - The dark border appears unique, I wonder if this was meant for 

another set?  Lightly titled in pencil, not in Woody''s hand.

Uncle Sam (98) - Serious eyebrow action, likely rejected.

United Nations (105) - The Secretariat Building, which dominates, was not inhabited until 

August of 1950, so this may have been an added "150" subject or for something else.
It's an oddity as well with the glue remnants and lack of rectangular art board.

Wrestlers (114) - Pencil says "Rocca", not sure if this was intended for another set, rejected or what. It almost matches a 1955 Hocus Focus subject featuring Rocca but it's not the same image.

I think that's 12 that are Tatoo subjects, so added to the 123 other, we are at 135. Many more to come if my theory about 24 Tatoos proves out next time we meet a couple of weeks hence (taking a brief Tatoo break).

Triple Tatoo Tales

(UPDATE 10/2/20-Friend o'the Archive Lonnie Cummins deciphered a puzzle for me and I've amended this post as respects the exterior wrapper graphics. No change has bene made to the listing of subjects.)

Well I didn't win the lot, dagnabbit, but a whole lotta Topps Tatoos were sold on eBay recently and there was enough content in the auction to allow me to take a real stab at checklisting this thrice  issued set.  You can click on the links on the right side of this post to see my prior musings on these BTW.

Initially put out in 1948, Tatoo was the first Topps "novelty" issue and seemingly quite popular.  A reissue occurred in 1949 and another in 1953, each time in a slightly larger size. I think it's possible it was sold almost continuously from 1948-53 but need to verify this during the "interregnum" to be sure.

Here are the three recognized issues, with their sizes growing each time:

It's believed one or both of the 1948 and '49 varieties came in both traditional counter-top/gum vender penny tabs but also "Tourist" pouches, as detailed by Chris Benjamin in The Sport Americana Price Guide to The Non Sports Cards No.2. 

I am not aware of a Tourist Pouch ever popping up for sale, nor do I have a huge amount of confidence in the commonly accepted dating of each size and variety of wrap beyond the 1948 "text instructions" version, so we may never know.

As for the checklist, I started with the below "macro" scans then identified individual images. If you look closely many of these are "mirrored" and I think Topps possibly took advantage of this to cheaply increase the advertised set size from 100 to 150.  But, as always, we'll get to some alternate information that impacts this theory down the line.

You will note the size variances. This precludes my ability to determine which set had which scans so the checklist that will be presented here in a subsequent post, will encompass all of the different issues. Today I will show you all of the subjects I extracted from these four scans, plus one from my collection and a number from Chris Benjamin's book which are in black and white and where I can't swear to the orientation of the "horizontal" subjects he illustrates. Intriguingly, most of the subjects Benjamin included in his guide are not in the eBay lot. I believe these eBay scans all to be "notch up", meaning they are oriented correctly.

I've applied my own naming and identification conventions, probably messing up a couple that relate to US Military Service logos (some of the detail is pretty hard to make out on these but others seem to be oh-so-close) so corrections are welcomed.  You will see how easy it was for Topps to mirror an image pretty quickly. A change of spot color would sometimes accompany a mirrored image but this was not always the case.

Here's the single scans, line art and a full checklist will be presented a couple of outings from now:

8 Ball

      Ace of Spades

American Eagle Facing Left, Facing Right (mirrored)

American Flag      

              

American Indian Dancing

 American Indian with Full Headdress

  American Indian With Tall Headdress 

    Archer

Artillery

      Atlas Supporting The World Facing Left, Facing Right (mirrored)

Baseball Hitter

     

 Baseball Pitcher

Basketball Player Left Handed (there is right handed original line art known so mirrored) Note reversed number 2 on uniform, looks like a 5 here

Battleship

 Beefeater Portrait

 Blimp Tethered

Bomber Dropping Bombs Flying Left, Flying Right (mirrored)

 Bowler Left Handed, Right Handed

Boxer Gloves Left, Gloves Right (mirrored)-note spot color changes

Butterfly

Cannon

Castle

 Chef

Clown

Cobra

Cocktail Glasses

 Coiled Snake

Conquistador

 Cowboy on Horse Waving Hat

 Cowboy with Kerchief

 Cowboy with Scarf

Crossed Flags with Torch

 Crossed Rifles

 Diamond Ring

 Dinosaur

Dwight D. Eisenhower

 Eagle with Sword in Talons

 Eiffel Tower

Explorer with Van Dyke Beard

 Fighter Plane Battle Facing Down, Facing Up (mirrored)

 Fire Engine

Fish and hook

 Flying Fish

 Giraffe

 Gondolier

 Gorilla

Greyhound

 Hand with Cigarette

 Hand with Torch

 Human Cannonball

Jefferson Davis

 Jester Facing Left, Facing Right (mirrored)

 Jet Pilot with Helmet and Oxygen

 Jockey on Horse

 Kangaroo

Knight in Armor with Shield

 Laughing Superhero with Helmet Facing Left, Facing Right (mirrored)

 Lighthouse

Lightning Bolt

 Lion

Lion with Mountain Backdrop (eBay single)

 Marine Corps Logo

Military Rank Insignia Blank Middle, Red Middle (same subject with color changed)

 Parachutist

Pilot Wings With Stars Atop

Pipe Smoker

Pirate Portrait


Pirate with Sword

 Prop Plane Facing Left, Facing Right (mirrored)

PT Boat Correct, Reversed (Mirrored, you choose which one is reversed!)

 Race Car

 Robert E. Lee

 Rocket Hurtling Pointed Left, Pointed Right (mirrored)

 Roman Boat

 Roman Centurion Facing Left, Facing Right (mirrored)

Sailing Ship Facing Left, Facing Right (mirrored)

 Saxophone

 Sea Serpent

  Seahorse Facing  Left, Facing Right (mirrored)

 Sedan

Skier

 Skull and Crossbones

 Soldier Saluting

 Soldier with Rifle Shooting Left, Shooting Right (mirrored)

 Spaceship

 Squid

 Swami with Crystal Ball

 Tank Shooting

Telephone

Tennis Player Left Handed, Right Handed

 Top Hat with Cane and Gloves

 Top Hatted Masked Man

 Totem Pole Eyes Look Left, Eyes Look Right (mirrored)

 Tribal Warrior

Two Hearts with Cupid's Arrow

 Uncle Sam

 Union Jack

 US - Georgia State Flag Three Bard Facing Down, Facing Up (mirrored) similar to both flags but identical to neither

 Volcano Erupting

 Whale

 Witch

 

Woman's Portrait

I make that a count of 121. That figure will increase when I review the line art next week. There's also the matter of 1981's 24 Tattoos, which repeat a large number of designs from these sets (and some others in between such as 1968's 21 Tattoos) and appears to include a huge amount of subjects that probably debuted here as well but are as yet unconfirmed.

There's two subjects I found on eBay but have been unable to find again: "Sailor with Spyglass" and "Snake Lady". There is another where the washed out remnants of the tatoo are very faint but matches up with an image later seen in 24 Tattoos, "Porpoise with Compass". As all three of those are found in 24 Tattoos but without confirmed Tatoo scans presently, I'll leave them off this visual checklist. So that's 123 so far counting mirrors and Benjamin's examples.

More next time!