The concept of the new card originated on July 14, 1994, several weeks after the Ghost Players, a team of semi-pro ballplayers from Dyersville, Iowa, who were used as extras in the movie Field of Dreams, had played an exhibition ball game in Chisholm. On that day, Kalibabky received a letter from Jerry Sonosky, a former Chisholmite, co-creator of the Graham Scholarship Fund, and retired corporate attorney living in the state of Virginia. "Jerry had read about the Ghost Players game in the Chisholm Free Press, and dropped me a line concerning the game, the Field of Dreams film, and "Shoeless" Joe," said Kalibabky. "Jerry and I have written back and forth many times over the years, but this letter was an absolute jaw-dropper. After reading it, I darned near fell out of my chair." What the letter revealed was that according to Sonosky's uncle Jake Goldenberg, a former president of the old Mesabi Baseball League, "Shoeless" Joe had played on the Mesabi Iron Range after he had been banned for life from major league baseball on August 3, 1921.
In the letter Sonosky wrote: "Once while we watched a ball game in the new Chisholm ball park with my dad, Henry, and, Harry, my sister Tess's husband, Uncle Jake told me, 'Shoeless Joe Jackson used to play up here. Those were the good old days.' I've never forgotten those words spoken to me sixty or so years ago as long as I've lived, and never will." "Ironically," said Kalibabky, "the young Doc Graham was very active as a ballplayer in Chisholm during the 1920's, so the possibility of 'Shoeless' Joe and 'Moonlight' Graham on the field of play does firmly exist. However, and unfortunately, after he was banned from baseball, Jackson played under assumed names and newspaper box scores of Mesabi League and Chisholm city games from the 1920's are sketchy or non-existent. I do have a copy of a photo of Graham and his Chisholm Moose baseball teammates who captured the 1920 Twilight League championship." On the back of the new Doc Graham card, a possible meeting of the two ballplayers is described in a short tale by Sonosky. "Jerry really wrote a fine little piece," said Kalibabky. "In just a few short paragraphs he combined some baseball folklore with a little Chisholm history and mixed in a little Field of Dreams-style fantasy. And Jerry's folksy, down-home style of writing is wonderful." The story's text is printed on top of a 1927 photograph of the old Chisholm baseball park. "Thanks to the unrelenting efforts of a couple of local researchers, I was able to find the photo we needed," Kalibabky said.
Two Iron Range artists were enlisted to produce the four-color illustration for the card front, which is an attempt to simulate the look of the old baseball tobacco cards from the early 1900's. Thomas R. Anderson of Virginia, a noted wildlife artist, created the pen-and-ink artwork which was then colored by graphics designer Lynn O'Hara of Chisholm. "I had worked with Tom before on a couple of projects and his drawing style was again perfect for what I needed," said Kalibabky. "Then Lynn, who is an artist and graphic designer by trade, colored Tom's illustration using colored pencils. We then printed the cards on a textured stock to simulate the feel of the old tobacco cards. I hope we've succeeded."
Support for the Graham Scholarship Fund and the Graham cards over the years has been incredible, according to Kalibabky. "The cards have taken on a life of their own due to tremendous word of mouth publicity, gracious assistance from the media, and our website which was created and is maintained free of charge by Alan Cohen, a sports card dealer in California. I get year-round card orders from people all across the country, and quite often they send along their comments concerning Doc Graham or their love for the movie Field of Dreams. Recently, Kenneth Brown, a seventh-grader from Pattengill Middle School in Lansing, Michigan, wrote: 'I will always remember Moonlight Graham because instead of batting [during his only appearance in a major league game in 1905], he saved lives [after becoming a medical doctor].'"
The money raised from sales of the new Doc Graham card, as well as from the five other cards in the on-going series, benefits the Doc Graham Memorial Scholarship Fund, which has awarded thirteen $500.00 scholarships to deserving graduates of Chisholm High School since its creation in 1993. The new Doc Graham card is available by mail from Mike Kalibabky, 5325 McNiven Road, Chisholm, MN 55719. The cost of the card is $3.00 (postage is INCLUDED).
For more information, please contact Mike Kalibabky, 5325 McNiven Road, Chisholm, MN 55719 * Phone: (218) 254-2174.