1956 Topps Football Cards
Product Details
1956 Topps Football is the company's first officially licensed NFL trading card product. This came as a result of the acquisition of their long-time competitor Bowman. This inaugural release was the start of an annual issue of Topps NFL football cards that continues today. Consisting of 120 total cards, measuring 2-5/8 by 3-5/8 inches, key rookie cards include Roosevelt Brown (#41), Lenny Moore (#60), and Rosey Grier (#101). Alex Webster (#5), Joe Schmidt (#44), Bill George (#47) and Stan Jones (#71) also have their first cards in the set. A few noteworthy Hall of Fame players are also included in the set, namely Lou Groza (#9), George Blanda (#11) and Frank Gifford (#53).
Card Design
The front of the cards resemble the 1955 Bowman football cards in several ways. A player photo is set against a solid color background designated specifically for that team. A white aura (though smaller than the one in 1955) is added around the player's image. The player's team logo is placed in an upper corner of the card, and a box at the bottom contains the player's name, team and position. Again, the color of the boxes is team-specific. A white border surrounds the card. Card backs feature an outline of a football in red that contains the card number and Topps Football around it. A red box running across the top portion of the card houses the player's name, team and position. The rest of the card is split into two sections, with a short biography on the left and a trivia-based cartoon on the right. For some players, a line of statistics for the previous year and lifetime totals runs along the bottom of the card.
In addition to the player checklist, a team photograph card was created for each team which names each player by his last name and includes an overall history of the team and all-time team statistical records on the back. Some cards were not numbered within the set but are collected by advanced hobbyists. One is a checklist card that lists all 120 cards. Five contest cards that ask fans to guess the scores of upcoming games were also distributed inside packs. Master set collectors include these six cards in set registries, bringing the total number of cards in the set to 126.
Printing and Distribution
The 1956 Topps Football card set was printed in a single series. For some reason, all the players (and team cards) from the Washington Redskins and Chicago Cardinals were short-printed. They considered scarce as they were printed in much smaller quantities than those of other cards in the set. The cards were originally distributed in one-cent packs containing a single card and five-cent packs that came with five cards. Both types of packs came with a stick of gum.
While 1956 Topps Football has been under-appreciated, there is a growing interest in assembling this first-year gridiron offering from Topps. In comparison to other sets from the 1950s, it remains relatively affordable. However, secondary market prices for high-grade singles continues to rise alongside the set's overall popularity.
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Key Cards
Key 1956 Topps Football Cards
Chicago Cardinals #22
Lenny Moore RC #60
Washington Redskins #61
Jack Carson #1
Rosey Grier #101
Frank Gifford #53
Set Checklist
1956 Topps Football Set ChecklistBase Set Checklist
Featuring 126 cards
Base Set Checklist
2 Gordon Soltau
3 Frank Varrichione
4 Eddie Bell
5 Alex Webster RC
6 Norm Van Brocklin
7 Packers Team
8 Lou Creekmur
9 Lou Groza
10 Tom Bienemann SP
11 George Blanda
12 Alan Ameche
13 Vic Janowicz SP
14 Dick Moegle
15 Fran Rogel
16 Harold Giancanelli
17 Emlen Tunnell
18 Tank Younger
19 Bill Howton
20 Jack Christiansen
21 Pete Brewster
22 Cardinals Team SP
23 Ed Brown
24 Joe Campanella
25 Leon Heath SP
26 49ers Team
27 Dick Flanagan
28 Chuck Bednarik
29 Kyle Rote
30 Les Richter
31 Howard Ferguson
32 Dorne Dibble
33 Ken Konz
34 Dave Mann SP
35 Rick Casares
36 Art Donovan
37 Chuck Drazenovich SP
38 Joe Arenas
39 Lynn Chandnois
40 Eagles Team
41 Roosevelt Brown RC
42 Tom Fears
43 Gary Knafelc
44 Joe Schmidt RC
45 Browns Team
46 Len Teeuws RC, SP
47 Bill George RC
48 Colts Team
49 Eddie LeBaron SP
50 Hugh McElhenny
51 Ted Marchibroda
52 Adrian Burk
53 Frank Gifford
54 Charles Toogood
55 Tobin Rote
56 Bill Stits
57 Don Colo
58 Ollie Matson SP
59 Harlon Hill
60 Lenny Moore RC
61 Redskins Team SP
62 Billy Wilson
63 Steelers Team
64 Bob Pellegrini
66 Will Sherman
67 Roger Zatkoff
68 Dave Middleton
69 Ray Renfro
70 Don Stonesifer SP
71 Stan Jones RC
72 Jim Mutscheller
73 Volney Peters SP
74 Leo Nomellini
75 Ray Mathews
76 Dick Bielski
77 Charley Conerly
78 Elroy Hirsch
79 Bill Forester RC
80 Jim Doran
81 Fred Morrison
82 Jack Simmons SP
83 Bill McColl
84 Bert Rechichar
85 Joe Scudero SP
86 Y.A. Tittle
87 Ernie Stautner
88 Norm Willey
89 Bob Schnelker
90 Dan Towler
91 John Martinkovic
92 Lions Team
93 George Ratterman
94 Chuck Ulrich SP
95 Bobby Watkins
96 Buddy Young
97 Billy Wells SP
98 Bob Toneff
99 Bill McPeak
100 Bobby Thomason
101 Roosevelt Grier RC
102 Ron Waller
103 Bobby Dillon
104 Leon Hart
105 Mike McCormack
106 John Olszewski SP
107 Bill Wightkin
108 George Shaw RC
109 Dale Atkeson SP
110 Joe Perry
111 Dale Dodrill
112 Tom Scott
113 Giants Team
114 Rams Team
115 Al Carmichael
116 Bobby Layne
117 Ed Modzelewski
118 Lamar McHan RC, SP
119 Bears Team
120 Billy Vessels RC
AD1 Lou Groza, Don Colo,
NNO Checklist SP
C1 Contest Card 1
C2 Contest Card 2
C3 Contest Card 3
CA Contest Card A
CB Contest Card B
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Lee
My favorite card set. Building mine now.