Donruss Baseball Cards SURPRISING History
When brothers Don and Russ Weiner formed the bubble gum company Donruss in 1954, They COUDLN’T have known it would go on to become a major sports memorabilia brand?
BUT combining their first names to make DonRuss isn’t the most surprising part of their history…
Just like the History of Topps Baseball Cards It seems to all start with bubble gum. In 1946 Super Bubble was first introduced as a brand of bubble gum by the Thomas Wiener Company led by Douglas Thomas and Donald Wiener in Memphis, Tennessee. And it is still a popular gum today!
SO Super Bubble was originally sold for five cents, but in the face of increased competition from Dubble Bubble and Bazooka, the company brought out a one-cent version in 1948. The candy is individually wrapped and typically sold in bags or plastic tubs.
In 1954 Doctor Russ Wiener left dentistry to join his brother Don at the Company by buying out Douglas Thomas from the Thomas Wiener company. Combining their first names, Don and Russ, they named their company Donruss.
They manufactured hard candy, and Super Bubble gum and went on to produce several entertainment-themed trading cards, from television shows like The Addams Family, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Monkees and The Flying Nun from 1961 until 1969 Later that year, Donruss was purchased by General Mills.
BUT Donruss continued making entertainment-themed cards throughout the 1970s, adding sets like The Dukes of Hazzard, Elvis Presley, Kiss and Saturday Night Fever to its product lines. Producing these cards was profitable, however, they desired to enter the baseball card market.
Unfortunately, Topps had exclusive rights and Donruss would have to wait until Fleer's lawsuit against Topps. In 1975, Fleer sued Topps over its exclusive baseball rights. After five years a federal judge ruled that Topps illegally obtained Major League Baseball Players Association rights.
Donruss and Fleer negotiated deals with Major League Baseball and by late 1980 Donruss had acquired the rights to produce baseball cards. Its first baseball card set was produced and ready in time for the 1981 season.
In 1981, Donruss entered the baseball card market along with Fleer, marking the first time since 1956 that Topps faced legitimate competition in the licensed baseball card space. The inaugural Donruss set consisted of 605 cards, featuring players from all Major League Baseball teams. While the set was groundbreaking, it was also plagued by issues such as printing errors, poor card stock with thin paper, and lackluster photography. Nevertheless, Donruss established itself as a serious player in the industry.
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