A Grand Card Comes to Town

I was able to score the vintage lot in the recent Grand Cards trade away. The entire lot was better than advertised, but what drew me in was this card:

I've seen this card of Squirrel Sievers on the 'bay but could never quite pull the trigger. Scoring it in a trade was awesome. I'm a big fan of the Squirrel and this card has an almost comic-book-hero feel to that you normally associate with Babe Ruth. You've got the slugger following through on a mighty swing perfectly framed by the borders of the design. Behind him lurking in the shadowy dugout his teammates spit sunflower seeds and look on. The fans above them lean in as if to see where the ball he hit is going, presumably far out to right.

And yet the composition is a little too perfect. The picture of Sievers has a painted look to it that contrasts sharply with the rest of the card. And the fans, why are they so much more excited than the players in the dugout? They almost seem to be watching different games. And then there's the looming office building just above the grandstand and the sunlight that seems to be pouring in from that direction without illuminating anything. 

I'm guessing (maybe incorrectly) that this is an early attempt to compose a single card out of various elements, to create drama that otherwise isn't/wasn't there. And I'll admit, the effect is startling for a card from that era. It shows that this sort of thing can go way beyond, say, photoshopping GWB into the stands or Mantle into the dugout. 

Thanks again for the trade GC!

Have a good one everybody and have a goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!