MishM*A*S*H 25: Donruss Bubble Gum/Trading Cards

In 1982, the year in which M*A*S*H began its final season, the trading card company Donruss released a series of M*A*S*H trading cards. These cards were packaged with gum, and you could try to collect all 66 of the cards. On the front the card was a cast member photo, cast photo, or a screenshot from an episode. The back of the cards contained part of a larger poster sized image of the M*A*S*H cast that you could create when you collected all of the cards. These cards were produced at the height of the series’ popularity and would have been a great way for kids and adults to collect their favorite M*A*S*H characters and moments from the show. Let’s take a look at the cards, the poster they (allegedly) create, and open a 40+ year old pack of bubble gum cards!

The Cards

By the early 1980s, Donruss was largely known for its sports cards, but it had released card sets for other television series such as The Addams Family and The Monkees. In 1982, they released a series of cards for M*A*S*H. Each wax package contained six, full color collector cards and a piece of bubble gum. The pack featured the M*A*S*H logo along with a helicopter. In all, there were 66 cards that made up a full set. From what I can tell, there was no checklist card that told you how many cards were in the set. The packaging also doesn’t tell you that there are 66 cards to collect, but it’s possible that the display box for the card packs did. Typically these sets include a checklist so you can track which cards you have and which you still need to collect.

The front of each of the 66 cards had pictures of the cast and screenshots from the show. The majority of the cards appear to be press photos or press stills, but there are a few scenes from the show represented. However, since this set was released in 1982, the scenes and characters are from later seasons. There are no cards featuring any of the cast members who had left the series by that point including Col. Blake, Trapper, Maj. Burns, and Radar. There also aren’t any cards representing any of the recurring guest characters such as Col. Flagg or Major Sydney Freedman. That is a little disappointing since the show was nearing the end of its eleven year run. Each card is numbered 1 – 66, and the set boasted a bonus feature. When you collected all of the cards, you could flip them over and assemble a full cast photo. But could you really?

The poster that the 66 cards creates is a photo of the final cast. The poster should be easy to assemble, but I have never had any luck. It appears, and based on the limited information I could find, that there were two different sets of the cards with different backs. So most people ended up with a mix of card backs which make it nearly impossible to assemble the full poster. I attempted to create the poster with the cards I have in my collection, but I was left with several gaps. I had several duplicate card backs despite the card fronts being unique. And I found that several of the cards did not line up in neat rows but were off-set instead. I began putting together the poster by assembling the faces since they were easily identifiable, and I quickly discovered that there were going to be gaps. By the end, I had cards overlapping and a few extra cards off the side which left several gaps throughout the image. I was even missing part of the M*A*S*H logo! This led me to wonder what it would be like to collect the cards in the 1980s.

Opening a 41 Year Old Pack

In order to get the full experience of these trading cards, I bought several unopened card packs to add to my collection. These packs were still sealed, so they contained the six cards and, worryingly, a piece of 40+ year old bubble gum. The wax packaging felt okay, but I could tell by the musty smell that the gum was going to be a problem. I slowly opened the pack and photographed the process. Since the gum was under the cards, the top card looked fine. But as I got into the pack, I could the staining on the packaging from either the dyes in the gum or perhaps mold. Removing the six cards revealed a very dry and chalky piece of gum…and damaged cards. The two cards right up against the gum absorbed all of the moisture leaving them stained and unsalvageable. That left me with four undamaged cards. And the gum, well, it didn’t smell or feel great. I suddenly regretted not wearing gloves! Overall, it was a very interesting experience opening a pack of 40+ year old cards and gum, but it isn’t one I would recommend.

Donruss still sells baseball cards today; however, it isn’t the same company since it has changed hands several times since the mid-1990s. Today, sets of these M*A*S*H cards are pretty widely available on sites such as eBay. I’ve had this set of cards in my collection for well over ten years, and while they don’t directly contribute to the production history of the show, they do illustrate just how wide the appeal of the series had gotten by the early 1980s. There were so many licensed products that Fox had full licensed product kits available for retailers. I can image fans of the show buying, collecting, and trading these cards with their family and friends. While I don’t recommend buying sealed packs with the hopes of building a full collection since the gum has likely damaged several of the cards, the 66 cards are a great collectable for M*A*S*H fans. Just don’t expect the set of cards you buy or collect to build a complete cast poster!