Big Red: Story of the Football Cardinals

St. Charles, MO: Piraeus Publishers, 1975. Hardcover. Small 4to. Ivory paper over boards with burgundy lettering, pictorial dust jacket. xii, 243pp. Numerous illustrations. Fine/very good. Minor jacket wear only. Tight and handsome first edition of this history of the first fifteen years of this football team that moved from Chicago to St. Louis in 1960, remaining there until 1987 when they became the Arizona Cardinals. This extraordinary copy bears five fine and choice autograph additions: Tipped to the blank leaf facing the title page is a unique frontispiece -- signatures on matching heavy stock 5" X 3" cards of two of the Cardinals' head coaches, each of whom is the subject of chapters in the book. At top is DON CORYELL (1924-2010), College Football Hall of Famer who coached the Cardinals from 1973 to 1976 before moving on to the San Diego Chargers -- he signs boldly in black fineline, dating it 11 October 1979 at upper right. Below him is CHARLEY WINNER (born 1924), coach from 1966 to 1970 who coached half a dozen other teams between 1950 and 1979 -- he too signs boldly in black fineline, dating it 26 October 1978 at upper right. As if that's not enough, the front flyleaf bears three additional fine matching cards each signed by Cardinals players: At top is JIM HART (born 1944), who quarterbacked from 1966 to 1983 -- he signs large and bold in blue ballpoint, dating it 18 October 1976 at upper right. Below him is CHARLEY JOHNSON (born 1938), who quarterbacked from 1961 to 1969 plus two teams afterwards (becoming a professor of chemical engineering meanwhile on the side!) -- he signs large and bold in orange fineline, dating it 15 November 1975 at upper right. Below him is SONNY RANDLE (1936-2017), who played wide receiver from 1959 to 1966 -- he signs twice ("S. Randle / Sonny Randle") in blue fineline and dates it 18 March 1974 at upper right. Laid in are all five original transmittal envelopes. An outstanding and unique copy that would be challenging to duplicate.