Collection that’s one in a million (dollars)

By David Mullen

A modern office building rests inconspicuously off Valley View Lane and State Highway 183 in the shadow of the control towers of DFW Airport. It is the world headquarters of Heritage Auctions, the home base to a first-class collection of sports and historical memorabilia that is the envy of collectors everywhere.

 In a room no bigger than the cabin of a private plane, a cache of more than $6 million worth of items is proudly on display. Included in the cache is a flight cap worn by Amelia Earhart from her first crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. The final destination of the cap and the other prized items are still unknown.

On Saturday, Feb. 26 and Sunday, Feb. 27, the Winter Platinum Night Sports Auction will commence with two separate one-day sales. The collection (sometimes referred to as material) can be viewed at ha.com. “This auction represents the best of the best for sports collectors,” said Chris Ivy, director of sports auctions. “Everything in here is going to sell for five, six, even seven figures.”

For more than three decades, Heritage has been an industry leader in the sale of high-end sports and historical collectibles. Trading cards are graded by professionals, signatures are validated and game worn memorabilia is thoroughly researched.

“Authentication is key for all of this material,” said Ivy. “Every autographed piece we sell is vetted by third party experts. And a lot of the game worn materials are photo-matched to be on the athlete during the game and these items sell for a premium.” 

This auction is heavy on rare baseball items. In honor of Friday, April 15, the 75th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in professional baseball, Heritage has amassed an impressive collection of Robinson items, including a copy of his book “Wait Till Next Year” with a note to his Brooklyn Dodgers teammate Pee Wee Reese, a signed photo of Robinson circa 1950 and a rare 1948 Leaf Jackie Robinson rookie card valued at more than $300,000.

A questionnaire from the American Baseball Bureau filled out by Robinson in 1946 has a line item stating, “Ambition in baseball …,” on which he wrote “to open doors for Negroes in organized ball.” The questionnaire already has a starting bid of more than $1.4 million.

“We also have his [Robinson’s] debut ticket from April 15, 1947 — Opening Day — when he actually broke the color barrier and opened for the Brooklyn Dodgers,” Ivy said. The ticket stub will sell for more than $100,000.

Baseball memorabilia remains the most collected. “It [Baseball] always has its place in history,” Ivy said. “Football is the most popular sport in America right now. Basketball is one of the most popular sports internationally. Soccer still holds the reins there. But baseball has always been ‘America’s Pastime.’ It is one of the first sports we followed as a nation. It is number one as far as sports collectibles is concerned because it is a game that is so intertwined with our history and statistics.”

Former Dallas resident Mickey Mantle’s 1952 Topps baseball card in excellent condition is expected to fetch more than $1.5 million. A signed Mantle jersey is expected to go for more than $1 million. A pair, or better, the pair of 1986 Michael Jordan Nike Air Jordan 1 sneakers are expected to go for more than $1 million. 

“These Jordan game worn sneakers are amazing,” Ivy said. “They are the only Air Jordan 1’s that are known — they are photo-matched — to be worn by Jordan in a game. He wore these on April 1, 1986, when he was coming back from an injury. So, they had modified the sole of the shoe. There is a defect in the shoe, which allowed us to photo-match it to him wearing it in the game. He played in that game for 26 minutes and scored 28 points.” 

The collection has several Dallas-specific items, like a signed game worn Dirk Nowitzki jersey and the puck from Dallas Stars’ Brett Hull’s 600th goal dated December 31, 1999. “Being in Dallas, we get our fair share of Dallas-related items,” Ivy said. “There is definitely a lot of local interest in those pieces. We have several items that will generate a lot of local interest.

“We have Tony Dorsett’s college jersey from 1976, the year he won the Heisman [Trophy]. We have some historical items as well. We have Jack Ruby’s fingerprints that are included in this auction from when he was arrested.” Ruby’s print card from the “Sheriff’s Office. Dallas, Texas” is estimated at $40,000 or $4,444 per digit. Ruby only had nine fingers. One was bitten off in a barroom fight.

Other non-sports related items in the auction include a signed Marilyn Monroe photograph estimated to be worth more than $30,000. As far as the Earhart flight cap, “This is from her first flight crossing the Atlantic,” Ivy said. “She wasn’t the pilot, but she rode as a passenger. She was the first female to cross the Atlantic as a passenger in 1928. The cap was given to our consignor’s grandmother in Cleveland at one of her flying events. It had her [Earhart’s] name written in it, but no one could prove it was hers. We were able to verify Earhart wore it by photo-matching.”

For someone that has dealt with tens of millions of dollars of collectibles throughout his 18-year career at Heritage, Ivy has a particular favorite. 

“It is a Jackie Robinson piece, believe it or not. We had the opportunity, in 2017, to sell his game worn jersey from 1947 that he wore on Jackie Robinson Day. It came from the Jackie Robinson estate originally. It went for just over $2 million. That’s a piece that is so historically significant not only for what he did in baseball, but it is also a piece that would be at home in the Smithsonian.”     

With its location near DFW Airport, Ivey said, “This brings collectors in from around the world. This type of material will always have its place. It’s scarce and the rarity of it makes it very desirable. People view it — especially the high-end material — as an alternative asset. Where they might normally buy stocks or real estate, this is material that they can buy and hang in their home and is a great conversation starter.” As long as the investors have a cargo load full of money.