Tuff Stuff - Uncut Promo Sheets

Growing up collecting cards in the early 90's and in an area without a card shop, I didn't have access to the Beckett Baseball Card Monthly magazine very often. What I did have access to was Tuff Stuff. I was just thinking the other day while driving around town how much I miss that magazine. Even back then I found myself buying more than just baseball cards so I enjoyed the opportunity to read about more than just baseball cards. The multi-sport price guide was also a nice treat. However the real treat a lot of the times were the freebies that came inside the polybagged issues. Sometimes you were treated to single cards, while other times you could find uncut sheets of promo cards. Yes, those were the good ole' days.

In the mid to late 90's when the Charlotte Hornets were fun to watch on the court, I found myself interested in basketball cards. Before you had all of these premium card sets you had NBA Hoops. Starting with the 95-96 set Skybox upped their game w/ the Hoops brand. Now I realize today these cards may seem tame or even goofy, but back then I was mesmerized.

When I see that card of Larry Johnson and the large foil time clock "counting down", all I can think of is his stupid "Dallas" play where Larry would take the ball to center court and just dribble it while time ticked away. Then with just a few seconds left he would drive to the basket. I'm sure this play led to many exciting wins at the buzzer, but for some reason I don't remember the outcome being positive. Well at least it makes for a interesting card design.

Series 2 also came with a page of perforated cards and yet another Charlotte Hornet! Man I miss watching Alonzo play in the purple and teal. Some of these card designs weren't bad, but man what were the people at Skybox thinking when they came up w/ the Gold Mine subset? Those are some seriously gaudy looking cards.

Around the same time you could find those NBA Hoops promo pages inside Tuff Stuff magazines, Fleer also teased collectors with 1995 Fleer Extra football. Never cared for the base design or any of the subsets. By today's standards these are very forgettable.

Hockey cards anyone? Nah, I didn't think so!

Seriously though, if anyone wants any of these sheets of cards I still have them intact as shown and I'd be glad to trade them away for just about any single card or a few cards from my want list.

Who else misses the days of Tuff Stuff or card magazines in general that came loaded with freebies such as promo cards?