1997
Studio Portrait Collection +
Master Strokes Portrait Collection
One of the typical late Pinnacle Brands 'the-suckers-will-buy-anything' creations. There were two versions: The "Studio" version seen above and a more limited "Masterstrokes" version. I wish I had a Masterstrokes to show you but <shrug> I don't even have the one shown above.*
I'm not sure how I feel about this Frank item. It's clearly a very nice collectible, but I still have hard feelings from around this period when Pinnacle was doing everything but putting the faces of major league players on toilet seats in order to make money. And they might have done it - if the company hadn't gone bankrupt first.
For
the record: There were 500 Studio pieces like the one shown above and 100
of the Masterstrokes versions. I've only seen the Studio Collection come to
market. Having never seen a Thomas Masterstrokes Collection, I can only conclude
that the folks who have them are genuine collectors and aren't likely to sell
anytime soon.
Collector's Note: The autograph on the print isn't Frank's. It's of the
photographer: Jeff Camp. I found two websites which mistakenly
state that the players autographed these prints - they didn't.
Additional Note: Prototypes of this framed piece do exist. I've obtained
two prototype variations used by the staff at Pinnacle Brands to decide which
configuration was best. You can click
here if you want to see them. As an interesting note - the image of Frank
pictured in the prototypes were not used in the actual product.
*Update (10/10/06): Just purchased the Studio version. Still looking for the Masterstrokes example. I know they exist as I've seen a Paul Molitor version.