Here is a few questions of thought...

Four different gum companies joined in at the same time in 1933 with hockey cards in their gum packages, Canadian Chewing Gum (Set 50), Hamilton Chewing Gum (Set 21), O-Pee-Chee (Set 72) and World Wide Gum (72). This coincidence could lead anyone to believe that this idea was not spun off by 4 different gum company so conveniently at the same time but more than likely by a great printing salesman who brought the card idea to the gum companies.

The first O-Pee-Chee hockey card issue of 1933-34 is quite interesting in-that two series were issued and two different wrappers were also produced. With considering the length of the season to be relatively short, only 5 months and the season opening date was November 9th 1933 and the season ended April 10th 1934. Would this be enough time to market two different series, even if they released the cards on the first game to the last game?



Five months may seem like a long time to sell that many cards but realistically, the hockey cards were probably only issued for a few months. Certainly 72 card in one season is quite a large set for child to put together, maybe World Wide Gum’s set of 72 were issued over the course of two years as well as we find wrappers from this issue 20 to 1 in comparison to the OPC issues. Maybe WWG issued more cards in a pack because there is no price on the wrapper?



OPC Series-A has 48 cards and Series-B has 24 cards. Take in account the rest of the card counts in the other series. C-24, D-36, E-48, nothing comes close in numbers compared to the so-called first years 72 card two series issue.

It could be perceived that Series “A” came out in 1933-34, and series “B” came out in the following year 1934-35. If all 72 cards were issued in 1933-34 why would OPC offer a short time span of a second series to promote the hockey game which they had exclusively made for them. Not to mention that on the back of the game offers the only known promotion for purchasing an O-Pee-Chee specific album to hold all 72 cards!?

So, 1933-34 OPC had 72 cards issued in two series, a premium game was offered and an album to hold the cards but nothing was issued in 1934-35? Now that is a lot of stuff to be going on in their first year of production and only in one hockey season!? Now considering competing with 3 other sets that came out at the same time why would you issue a second series with all that was going on.

All opinions are welcome!

BobbyBHockey

Given the distinct difference in the A-B wrappers, the promotional items in the second series only (game and the 72 card album offers), O-Pee-Chee's continued numbering system with only the A-E lettering to signify the year's product change, the significant cost factors involved with new items all squeezed into an extremely short hockey season in the middle of the Great Depression would all point to separate years in manufacturing. If someone had a postally dated envelope that one of the games or albums were sent, this might clear the issue up.

Yes Tim,
If we could find a date on a mailer from the Album and or the Game, I think this would help clarify things.

There has been an envelope found for the 1937-38 issue, Dec 9th 1938...which confirms my suspicions that these cards were issued in two series over two years just in a new boarder colour. Purple the first issue and blue the second issue...but that's another post..