GROWING MONEY DEALS CREATE MEMORABILIA MANIA.

Byline: Bob Keisser Staff Writer

The first National Sports Collectors Convention (NSCC) in 1980 was held in half of a banquet room at a hotel near LAX. There weren't many card dealers back in 1980, so basically it was a gathering of collectors selling and trading their duplicates.

When the NSCC was held in Anaheim in 1991, the hobby had become a modern-day gold rush. The Anaheim Convention Center was swamped by collectors seeking free promotional cards and giveaways from dozens of card and memorabilia companies. Lines circling the facility rivaled those at nearby Disneyland. By show's end, more than 100,000 people had attended.

The 21st annual NSCC returns to the Anaheim Convention Center this week, and it once again has morphed into something entirely different. Visitors to the show will find more diversity in collectibles, discover new ways to collect, and see prices for high-end material that rival player salaries.

For example, the Honus Wagner tobacco card once owned by Bruce McNall and Wayne Gretzky recently sold to an Orange County man for $1.1 million ($1.27 million after consignors fees). It will be on display at the show as part of a display by Newport Beach-based Pro Sports Authenticators (PSA), the largest card-grading company.

``The market keeps changing, which is part of any business,'' said Mike Berkus, this year's show director and co-promoter of the first NSCC. He's been a part of every locally based national. ``The '91 show was the first where dealers actually sold packs of cards and that was considered novel.''

The grading of cards is one of the more notable topics in the hobby, the others being the Internet, memorabilia and autographs:

--Grading: PSA is owned and operated by the same people who introduced grading to coin collecting. While it remains a controversial topic - from the credibility of those doing the grading to its impact on card values - it has been grudgingly accepted by the hobby. PSA officials expect to grade 20,000 cards this weekend.

Grading establishes a premium on cards that are in the best possible shape. This premium has always existed, but grading assigns it a number - PSA grades on a 1-to-10 basis - puts it in a plastic case and allows companies to keep track of how many high-grade cards exist.

``Grading has given the hobby a shot in the arm,'' said longtime collector/dealer Carson Ritchey, a regular dealer at a warehouse show in Walnut Wednesday evenings and Saturdays. ``But it deletes the kids who might want to collect. It's turned it into an adult game.''

--Internet: The Internet has been a boon to a majority of dealers and collectors. Many dealers now have their own Web sites to sell product, which has proven more cost-efficient than periodical or direct-mail advertising. Many wholesalers now have a place to presell new product and move extra inventory, and buyers are no longer restricted to local shows or card shops in searching for a particular card or set.

The down side of Net auctions is a realization that the Beckett price guide is inflated and the opportunity for wholesalers to flush slow-moving product, which hurts singles, pack and box sales for card-store owners.

``Since dealing on the Internet got hot, my sales of singles has dropped 65 percent, and packs by 20 percent,'' said Bryon Walters, who owns his own memorabilia shop, Squeeze Play, in Tustin.

--Autographs: A recent crackdown on forgeries, which included a claim by investigators that up to 90 percent of all autographed material is forged, seriously set this part of the hobby back.

Hobbyists say that claim was inflated. Regardless, collectors are now seeking greater authenticity of items and sending them to autograph experts for confirmation. At the same time, it has fueled an increase in sales of certified memorabilia by companies and licensees who have exclusive deals with athletes.

--Memorabilia: With the overproduction and grading of cards and concerns about autographs, more attention is being given to other unique memorabilia, like tickets from major events and game-used jerseys and bats.

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Photo: (color) 1909 HONUS WAGNER CARD