The luxurious city of Beverly Hills, California is known worldwide as a playground for the rich and famous. Nestled in the heart of Los Angeles County, Beverly Hills has long attracted wealthy residents like movie stars, musicians, and business tycoons. Few people realize that in the 1950s and 60s, Beverly Hills was also a hotbed for a unique brand of baseball cards.
During America’s post-World War II economic boom, baseball card collecting became a national pastime for many American children. The mass-produced cardboard collectibles depicted favorite players from teams like the Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Yankees, and St. Louis Cardinals. In affluent Beverly Hills, parents wanted to give their children baseball cards that reflected the upscale Southern California lifestyle.
In 1952, a local entrepreneur named Max Rosenthal had an idea. He decided to produce a limited run of hand-painted baseball cards featuring players from the Los Angeles Angels, who played at Wrigley Field in nearby Los Angeles. Rather than using simple black-and-white photography like Topps and Bowman cards, Rosenthal hired local artists to paint colorful portraits of Angels stars like Bob Cerv and Jim Piersall.
The cards were an instant hit among Beverly Hills youth. Seeing the demand, Rosenthal expanded his line in 1953 to include other California teams like the San Francisco Seals and Hollywood Stars. His cards stood out for their vibrant artwork and glossy finish. Rather than mass producing runs of 10,000 cards or more, Rosenthal printed just 500 copies of each design. This scarcity added to their allure for collectors.
Word of the exclusive Beverly Hills cards spread. Soon, wealthy parents in other affluent areas like Malibu and Palm Springs also wanted to gift these one-of-a-kind collectibles to their children. To keep up with demand, Rosenthal brought on additional local artists to illustrate more players and teams. His cards soon featured stars from every major league franchise.
In addition to ballplayers, Rosenthal added cards featuring Hollywood celebrities like Mickey Rooney and Humphrey Bogart who occasionally attended Angels games. He even included fictional characters like the Great Gatsby on some designs. By 1956, Rosenthal’s baseball card business was booming. He rented a storefront on Beverly Drive to sell his cards directly to customers.
The hand-painted production process meant Rosenthal cards were significantly more expensive than mass-produced brands. A single Rosenthal card cost 25 cents, compared to a penny or two for a Topps. But for affluent collectors, the premium was worth it for these works of art. Many early Rosenthal cards remain in pristine condition today due to careful handling by their original owners.
As the 1950s drew to a close, Rosenthal’s baseball card business hit some turbulence. The advent of color photography made his hand-painted cards seem outdated. Also, the rise of new mass-produced brands like Fleer and Post threatened his market share. In 1960, Rosenthal made the difficult decision to leave the baseball card industry. He sold the remaining inventory of his cards to collectors.
While no longer in production, vintage Rosenthal cards remain highly sought after by collectors today. In the early 2000s, a near-mint condition Mickey Mantle Rosenthal card sold at auction for over $25,000. Other rare finds occasionally appear on eBay and fetch thousands. Memorabilia shops in Beverly Hills still proudly display and sell vintage Rosenthal cards to new generations of collectors.
Though short-lived, Max Rosenthal’s baseball cards left an indelible mark. They blended America’s pastime with high art to create a unique collectible that perfectly captured 1950s Beverly Hills culture. While mass-produced cards depicted ballplayers, Rosenthal cards were works of vibrant art. They showed that even in an affluent enclave, the allure of the national pastime knew no boundaries. Today, Rosenthal’s hand-painted cards remain a cherished link to a bygone era of postwar Southern California splendor.
