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Vintage Space Age Playing Cards (1964)

six of diamonds playing card with GO and NO GO printed on it

jack of clubs playing card with a space monkey eating a banana on it

two of spades playing card with a red hot air balloon on it

joker playing card with a picture of Superman

queen of hearts playing card with Amelia Earhart on it

nine of diamonds playing card with a Earth/Moon diagram on it

The General Dynamics Astronautics Space Cards were printed up in 1964 to celebrate the American space program. This Flickr account has scans of every card in the deck, including both jokers. Each suit corresponds to a different aspect of the program:

These space cards tell a story โ€” the story of America’s man-in-space programs. The hearts deal with the human element, the clubs portray the sciences, the spades show products, and the diamonds depict modern aerospace management without which the other three elements could not be successful…

If you’d like your own factory-sealed deck, you can buy one on eBay for $249. (thx, mark)

Discussion  3 comments

Greg Hill

This is the kind of thing someone needs to reprint. I would love to have these, but I'd want to use them, not keep them in plastic.

Meg Hourihan

Totally, the second I saw the "Go No Go" card I would have one-clicked if I could!

Reply in this thread

Jason KottkeMOD

If you really want to know more about these cards (and what the image on each card refers to), here's a 25-minute explainer video. (via @saila)

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