UD, Topps, Donruss aim for political correctness

In this election year Donruss, Topps and Upper Deck are vying for collectors’ votes in their own way. All three companies are featuring presidents — past, present and future.
Upper Deck’s “Signs of History” set gives collectors the chance to find an autograph cut signature of every U.S. President from George Washington to George W. Bush and every Commander in Chief in between.
Upper Deck has inserted varying amounts into every 2008 Baseball release as part of an exchange program. The first cards have already made their way to market inside Upper Deck’s 2008 Series 1 Baseball packs through a stealth launch. Upper Deck will insert “Signs of History” cards in varying ratios throughout upcoming releases, but one product with perhaps the highest concentration will be 2008 UD Premier Baseball, which releases March 26.
The first wave of dual and quad “Signs of History” autograph cut cards is highlighted by the first-ever “Mt. Rushmore” 1-of-1 quad autograph cut card, featuring signatures from each of the four U.S. Presidents immortalized on the South Dakota monument — George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson and Theodore Roosevelt.
Here’s the complete list of dual and quad Signs of History cards:
Lyndon Johnson/Lady Bird Johnson (1-of-1)
Roselyn Carter/Jimmy Carter (1-of-3)
George H. Bush/Ronald Reagan (1-of-3)
James Garfield/Chester A. Arthur (1-of-1)
William McKinley/Theodore Roosevelt (1-of-1)
Calvin Coolidge/Warren G. Harding (1-of-3)
Gerald Ford/Richard Nixon (1-of-3)
George Washington/Abraham Lincoln/Thomas Jefferson/Theodore Roosevelt (1-of-1)
Ronald Reagan/George H. Bush/Bill Clinton/George W. Bush (1-of-3)
Richard Nixon/Ronald Reagan/George H. Bush/George W. Bush (1-of-1)
Lyndon B. Johnson/Lady Bird Johnson/Rosalynn Carter/Jimmy Carter 1-of-1)
For more information, visit www.upperdeck.com.

The Topps Presidential Cut Signature Collection features the autographs of five candidates. These include:
Barack Obama (#’d to 15)
Hillary Clinton (#’d to 18)
John McCain (#’d to 15)
John Edwards (#’d to 15)
Fred Thompson (#’d to 15)
Topps will continue the election cut signature theme in Topps Series 2 with 55 different 1 of 1 Dual Cut Signature Cards featuring famous election match-ups. These will be the first dual cut signature book cards to ever be featured in the base Topps product.
Series two will also feature “Campaign Letter Patches.” Clinton, McCain and Obama, the three presidential hopefuls still running, are all baseball fans. Topps will match each of the three with their favorite team for the patch cards. Collectors and Cub fans can search for the C-L-I-N-T-O and N patches for Hillary, White Sox fans for the O-B-A-M-A and Diamondbacks fans for M-c-C-A-I-N. Each letter of the candidate’s last name will be available in team color/jersey-style and sequentially numbered to 50.
For more information, visit www.topps.com

Donruss Celebrity Cuts is slated for an April 23 release. “It’s the first ever deal done directly with one of the presidents, not cards that were done without their permission,” said Scott Prusha, Donruss director of marketing. “The deals include autographs and each provided materials for inclusion on memorabilia cards.” There will six cards per pack with a $150 SRP.
George H. Bush and his wife, Barbara will be included in the base set and parallels, along with 41 total autographs of each (25 gold signatures, one platinum signatures, 10 signature material cards and five signature combo cards.
For more information, visit www.donruss.com