Nalley's CFL Coin: Joe Kapp

Hart High Class of 1955

Click image to enlarge | Download archival scan

It's sort of a cross between a Cracker Jack prize, Shell's Mr. President Coin Game, and encased postage: In 1963, the Canadian Football League contracted with Nalley Foods of Tacoma, Washington, USA, to insert plastic-encased coated paper "coins" (technically cards) into bags of Nalley's, Hunter's, Krun-Chee and Humpty Dumpty potato chips.

The series of 160 "coins" featured 20 players from each of eight CFL teams. Nos. 141-160 in the series were players from the BC (British Columbia) Lions of Vancouver. No. 145 was the Lions' quarterback, 1955 Hart High School graduate Joe Kapp.

The "coin" measures 1⅜ inch (3.5cm) in diameter and is encased only on the sides and back. (The paper "card" is pasted into a hard plastic cap.) The back reads:

Joe Kapp / B.C. Lions / Quarterback with "slingshot" arm. Good season and Lions could take all.

Humpty Dumpty Potato Chips

Quart-arrière avec la passe très rapide. S'il a une bonne saison, les Lions pourraient tout remporter.

They came close. Kapp led the 1963 Lions to the Grey Cup (the Canadian championship game). The Lions lost 21-10 to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of Ontario. Undeterred, Kapp led the Lions to a rematch and victory the next season with a 34-24 win over the Tiger-Cats.

Joe Kapp is the only person ever to quarterback in all three title contests — the Rose Bowl (1959), Super Bowl (1970) and Grey Cup (1963 & 1964).

LW3688: 9600 dpi jpeg from original object purchased 2020 by Leon Worden.