At this past week's 52 Plus Joker/Chicago Playing Card Collectors joint convention in Erlanger, USPC sources confirmed Walgreens made "a marketing decision" and ordered the new Play Right cards in blue only for standard faces, and red only for the jumbo faces.
Yes, astute sales executives pointed out the blue/red contrasting color preference for poker players, etc., but that didn't faze Walgreens. Perhaps sales figures might convince the chain otherwise in a few months.
The cards are slowly replacing traditional Studs across the country.
Studs are going away because the filigree design, style and brand name are old-fashioned. It's time for a new look (and perhaps some better sales) to the Walgreens, lower-priced playing cards line.
The move retires a brand and designs that go back into the late 1950s. USPC, Hoyle and Arrco all made Studs in various forms for Walgreens. The Stud horse now has gone the way of Po-do (also spelled Peau-deux in French) -- the 1930s-1960s bridge card line named for the dog of the Walgreens founder.
Card watchers may mourn the loss of Studs. However, take some comfort that Walgreens continued to ask USPC to make its decks in the U.S. and with consistent good quality. Other retailers already had eliminated or turned their house-brand card business away from USPC and the U.S., in favor of other companies making cheaper-quality cards in China and elsewhere. Rite-Aid comes to mind.
(Stock up now if you think they may be worth holding for several years... though this last run of darker blues and reds is likely not as popular as the previous incarnation of brighter blue and red backs hoarded in 2007!)
Prices ranged from $1.99 to $2.49 at various stores in metro Louisville, northern Kentucky and the Cincinnati/Dayton/Springfield area this past weekend. Walgreens does put its cards on sale several times a year. Watch the weekly ads.
The joker has been in use at USPC for at least ten years. You saw it in the short-lived (and yes, made in China) Club Casino decks by Hoyle. It appears in several custom decks, too.
52 Plus Joker and Chicago Playing Card Collectors always welcome new members and questions. Google each organization for the web pages.
Andrew Daugherty
