Photo: Ron Grabowski/Beckett Publications

Note: Actual game use.

This particular image can be found on the back of the 1994 Donruss Decade Dominators Super #2, but can be seen on many, many different cards and collectibles.

Note: This is a variation on a white field/background.

Photo: Beckett Publications

UPDATE 6.28.07 --- Mystery solved. It's a manufacturer's ID and the copyrighted year = 1991. I left my original investigation questions in place because it was a fairly daunting mystery, at least to me. <wink> See Update at the bottom of this page regarding the manufacturer.

Note: In the image by Ron Grabowski/Beckett you can't see the inscription below Frank's signature, just above the "Say No To Drugs" portion. I had a difficult time even getting it to show up in my scan. It's made of black thread and neatly blends in with the black background. In fact, I'm not clear what it says myself. This is what can be legibly deduced from the stitching:

©MIMS _ _

The two open spaces at the end represent what may, or may not be, a single character or number. No way to tell since the stitching for this portion looks incomplete, as if it were unfinished when it was pulled out from the machine.

Any solid information about the copyright line would be greatly appreciated.

Please Note: I've discounted that this is some kind of Roman Numeral for four reasons:

1) It might be read "1999S" - but only to a rank amateur. The correct way to write out '1999' in Roman Numerals would be: MCMXCIX. The way it reads now (and you'd have to totally ignore the 'S' entirely, which is pretty darn hard since it's right there) it would read: 1009S. And not '1999S', but again, you'd have to be a rank amateur to read it even that way.
2) However, even if someone were to read it as '1999S', what the heck is the "S" for? And no, it's not a '5'. The sewing machine that made the copyright symbol "©" very clear and distinct - it could've easily made a '5' if that's what it was supposed to be. Believe me, it's an 'S'.
3) How does the unknown character(s) at the end fit in - even if it were "1999S" or "1009S"?
And finally,
4) Frank only used this particular sweatband from approximately 1991-1996. Again, negating a "1999" copyright date.