Listphilia

We’ve had the ability to use HTML on your lists for a while now. This seemed a reasonable format since a lot of people know HTML and any WYSIWYG editor we may add should work in this mode. But, HTML isn’t very friendly. Paragraph formatting and special characters need too much attention. We fixed this by changing the rules of HTML just a little. Since we needed to filter certain tags we had already started down that road.

Listphile’s HTML rules:

Supported tags: a, br, hr, p, tt, b, i, sub, sup, pre, blockquote, q, em, strong, dfn, code, samp, kbd, var, cite, abbr, acronym, dl, dt, dd, ul, ol, li. You must use close tags. For example, HTML allows “<ul><li>one <li>two</ul>” but Listphile requires “<ul><li>one</li> <li>two</li></ul>”.

Don’t escape special characters. The correct HTML for “Jack & Jill > Hill” is “Jack & Jill > Hill”. On Listphile, just use “Jack & Jill > Hill” and Listphile will do the right thing. The &, <, and > tags are available if you need them.

Listphile will turn linefeeds into paragraph structure. You don’t need to wrap paragraphs in <p></p> tags. Just leave a blank line, by pressing return twice, to separate your paragraphs. A single linefeed (pressing return once) will be converted to a <br>. If you prefer manual control, just wrap everything in <p> tags the way you want and we won’t process your linefeeds.

There are three places you can use rich text. The list description, item comments, and any multi-line text field such as the item description. Have fun.

Listphile member luftyluft has created one of the more idiosyncratic and fun lists on Listphile: The Dude Abides. Indulge us in a romping interview with luftyluft as he elaborates his love for all things Lebowski.

What inspired you to create The Dude Abides and what the hell is this list all about?

I’ve always liked movies and stories that are quirky or a little off-key in their comedic style. I think The Big Lebowski falls in those genres and was one of those movies that I liked after watching the first time, even though I didn’t really know why. I think its one of those movies where if you’re not put out by the eccentricities you invariably end up watching again at some point just to try to get a better handle on the characters and what exactly is going on with the plot. That’s where the fans get hooked - picking up on the genius in the subtleties in the characters and their interactions. As I’ve gotten older and wiser, I’ve also tuned in to the underlying political references and social metaphors that are artfully woven in.

I’ve been meaning for some time to create my own sort of shrine to the movie. I’d love to see a Lebowski Encyclopedia or Directory so that all of the urban achievers out there will have somewhere to go whenever they feel that darkness is washing over them. Seeing as how I’m one of the laziest guys in Los Angeles County (which puts me in the running for laziest worldwide), the only way it will ever happen is with help from others. When I came across Listphile, my thinking on this whole case became much less clouded. Listphile provides a simple, easy to use platform for collaboratively collecting information. Thus, The Dude Abides was born. The initial content is a hodge podge of “Cliff Notes” style breakdowns of memorable scenes, trivia, and links to a few Lebowski sites of interest. My vision is for the list to become a comprehensive reference of all things Lebowski - movie facts, trivia, commentary, symbolic references, character analysis, etc. I’m curious to see what connections other people make between aspects of the movie and the great human comedy itself. The collaborative nature of the site should also bring together people who share a common interest in the movie.

How many times have you watched The Big Lewbowski?

I imagine I’ve watched it several times per year over the last several years. Sometimes after a long week it just seems like the appropriate thing to put on to unwind with. Probably something about the way The Dude encounters people and situations of all types and always seems to stay true to himself. I’ve also heard rumors of a party game where you partake in whatever The Dude happens to be accommodating himself with in the current scene - be it a Caucasian, an oat soda, or a J.

Can you tell us about The Big Lebowski cult following on the web
and beyond? Do people get together in person to appeciate The Dude?

There is an entire world of Lebowski out there on the web. I’ve seen sites devoted to everything from movie quotes, essays, merchandise, games, and poetry. One can become an ordained priest in “Dudeism” at www.dudeism.com. There are a number of clever movie mashups on YouTube such as The Big Lebowski - the F****** Short Version (rated R). Over the last several years groups have people have managed to come together for Lebowski Fests. I have not the pleasure of attending one yet but hope to soon. In fact, the next one is on Oct. 12-13. Apparently some of the Lebowski Fest attendees have even compiled a book and it made the LA Times Bestseller list - I’m a Lebowski, You’re a Lebowski: Life, The Big Lebowski, and What Have You. I hope that my Listphile list can both complement the book and extend the legend of The Dude.

Anne Zelenka over at GigaOM just posted an interesting rumination on a shift that she says is happening. She posits that we are undergoing a transformation from an Information Age, where knowledge workers work in more formal organizations of people (read: corporations) on proprietary projects with desktop software for money to a Connected Age where individuals or ad hoc groups of people work in bursts of discontinuous productivity on projects with open business models for attention, rather than money.

This thinking is consistent with what we’re trying to build with Listphile. Please let us know how we can do it better. And thanks to Anne for pointing out something that seems so obvious in hindsight, but is not necessarily so until someone like her has the acuity to collect her thoughts and publish them.

Listphile member traeregan recently posted a complete set of images of the fabled T206 White Border Tobacco Card Set. We couldn’t resist satisfying our curiosity for more information about this gorgeous gallery of 523 images. What follows is a brief interview with Trae.

Can you give some background about the T206 White Border Tobacco Card Set?

Please let me begin by saying I am no expert on this subject by any stretch. I am simply a T206 enthusiast who enjoys learning about all that the set has to offer. I will share what I know below, but this will only be a brief introduction. New information and discoveries are still popping up all the time!

T206 White Border Baseball Cards were produced by the American Tobacco Company over a three year period from 1909 to 1911. The T206 set is nicknamed “The Monster”, and it definitely lives up to it! Most hobbyists assume a T206 set to be “complete” at just over 520 cards. This excludes the “Big Four”, those being Wagner, Magie (Magee spelling error), Plank, and Doyle ( N.Y. Nat’l). Among these cards are 389 Major Leaguers and 134 Minor Leaguers. Taking into account the possibilities of over 520 different player poses on the fronts, and 16 different advertisement backs, there are thousands of permutations of cards to complete a “set”.

The 16 different tobacco manufacturers that advertised on the back of the cards, in alphabetical order, are: American Beauty, Broad Leaf, Carolina Brights, Cycle, Drum, El Principe De Gales, Hindu, Lenox, Old Mill, Piedmont, Polar Bear, Sovereign, Sweet Caporal, Tolstoi, Ty Cobb, and Uzit. Piedmont and Sweet Caporal are by far the most common back advertisers, with the remaining backs ranging from semi-scarce to extremely scarce.

For many collectors, vintage and otherwise, there is 1909-11 T206 White Border set, and there are all other sets. The set is one of only a handful that is recognizable to those outside the “hobby”, as it contains the most valuable of all cards: the legendary Honus Wagner, of which the finest example known last traded hands at $2.8 million. Several things draw collectors to T206. First and foremost, it can be a challenge to both the novice and the experienced collector alike. Whether collecting “fronts”, “backs”, Hall-of-Famers, team sets or otherwise, the possibilities are endless.

How did you come to be interested in the T206 set to the degree that you set up a website devoted to it, as well as this large gallery on Listphile? Do you personally own any T206 cards, or know anyone who does?

I had an interest in baseball as a kid. I played as a pitcher until I was 13. I also collected 70’s, 80’s and 90’s cards during that time. I am not really into any mainstream sports anymore. I was aware of T206 as a kid (only because of the Honus Wagner card), but couldn’t afford them. I was through my first year of college in 2001 when I decided to start collecting again. I was just looking for a hobby to keep me busy outside of school and work. I started out on eBay buying a few 50’s and 60’s cards. To broaden my knowledge I began searching for websites on the subject of vintage baseball cards. I came across a site fittingly titled “Net 54 Vintage Baseball Card Forum” where I posted a few questions about some cards I had picked up. What I didn’t know is that the cards these collectors considered vintage were much older than the ones I had. They were into what are referred to as “pre-war”, or cards issued primarily Pre-WWII. One fella sent me a scan of a T206 card he had for sale (image at bottom) and it was the first time I had ever really payed attention to them, the artwork on the T206 cards just captivated me. I bought the card from him, soon after sold all of the post-war cards I had and dove head first into the T206 set.

I have been collecting them for around 6 years at the time of this writing. I have bought and sold or traded approximately 600 cards since 2001. I currently own a few, including the first one I ever purchased, but seem to always shift my collecting focus to the point where the cards come and go quite often. It’s very easy to lose sight of your goals with the set because of it’s huge scope outlined above.

Through my ongoing efforts to organize the set online, I have met and know many T206 collectors. Although one man, Mr. Ted Zanidakis, really sticks out in my mind. He has the largest T206 collection I know of. In recent years he has been tackling a “master set” one tobacco advertiser at a time. He has already completed a couple of them, but there’s no telling how many cards he has overall. I believe he’s been collecting T206 for more than 30 years now, with some amazing hobby achievements along the way.

Can you shed some light on the printing and coloring process that makes these early baseball cards so vibrant and unique-looking?

This is one of the more mysterious topics about the set. Unfortunately, I have not formed my own theory, nor do I know enough to speak intelligently about it.

Please point us to a few of your personal favorites.

Ty Cobb (red portrait)
Wildfire Schulte (front view)
John Titus (The only guy with facial hair in the entire set!)

If you would like to learn more about the T206 set please visit Trae’s website at http://www.t206.org Trae also has a Flickr set that shows his T206 displays. This includes a 24″x36″ framed litho of Honus Wagner, and number framed and matted fronts and backs that look great when they are displayed in a matrix.