Supersisters was a set of 72 trading cards produced and distributed in the United States in 1979 by Supersisters, Inc. They featured famous women from politics, media and entertainment, culture, sports, and other areas of achievement. The cards were designed in response to the trading cards popular among children in the US at the time which mostly featured men.[1] The cards were created by Lois Rich of Irvington, New York, and her sister Barbara Egerman, of Ridgefield, Connecticut, a teacher, librarian, and founder of the Ohio chapter of the National Organization for Women. They conceived of the cards in 1978, after Rich’s young daughter asked her why there were no women on trading cards. Rich also discovered that students at a local elementary school could not name five famous women. Rich and Egerman received a small grant from the New York State Education Department and wrote to
nearly 500 prominent American women in various fields.[1][2][3] They purposely did not contact a number of notable women[citation needed], including Anita Bryant, Angela Davis, Phyllis Schlafly, and the cast of Charlie’s Angels. Jane Fonda, Betty Ford, Rosalynn Carter, and Ella T. Grasso were among those who did not respond or declined to participate.[4] [5] Of those who did respond, they included the first 72 in the trading card set, including Jane Pauley, Margaret Mead, and Gloria Steinem.[4][5] By 1981, they reported that they had sold 15,000 trading card sets, selling many to schools and colleges.[2] Reaction to the cards was largely positive, though some later critics called the cards “misguided” and “trivial”.[6][7] Sets of the trading cards are in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art and the University of Iowa library.[7][8]
Card number & Name
1 — Suzy Chaffee
Occupation
Olympic skier
Card Deck List Card number & Name
Occupation
1
Suzy Chaffee
Olympic skier
2
Nancy Dickerson
3
Pat Schroeder
4
Margaret Chase Smith
5
Lynn D. Salvage
banker
6
Sally J. Priesand
rabbi
7
Letty Cottin Pogrebin
8
Bella S. Abzug
9
Helen Reddy
journalist US Congresswoman US Senator
author US Congresswoman singer
Card number & Name
10
Lois Gould
11
Sonia Manzano
12
Helen Thomas
13
Virginia Hamilton
14
Carla Anderson Hills
Occupation
author actress journalist author lawyer, US cabinet level secretary
15
Mary Louise Smith
chair of Republican National Committee
16
Margaret Mead
antHropologist
17
Wendy Boglioli
Olympic swimmer
18
Julie Harris
19
Rosie Casals
actress tennis player
Card number & Name
2— Nancy Dickerson
Occupation
journalist
Card number & Name
3— Pat Schroeder
Occupation
US Congresswoman
Card number & Name
4— Margaret Chase Smith Occupation
journalist
Card number & Name
5— Lynn D. Salvage Occupation
banker
Card number & Name
7— Letty Cottin Pogrebin
Occupation
author
Card number & Name
8— Bella S. Abzug
Occupation
US congresswoman
Card number & Name
11— Sonia Manzano Occupation
actress
Card number & Name
14— Carla Anderson Hills Occupation
lawyer, US cabinet level secretary
Card number & Name
16— Margaret Mead Occupation
anthropologist
Card number & Name
21— Mary Rose Oakar
Occupation
US congresswoman
Card number & Name
20
Elly Peterson
21
Mary Rose Oakar
22
Linda Winikow
23
Lucinda Franks
24
Bonnie Tiburzi
Occupation
politician US Congresswoman New York State Senator journalist First female pilot to fly for a major U.S. airline.
25
Leonor K. Sullivan
26
Caroline Bird
27
Rosa Parks
28
Helen Stevenson Meyner
29
Doriot Anthony Dwyer
30
Lindy Cochran
US Congresswoman author civil rights pioneer US Congresswoman flautist skier
Card number & Name
Occupation
31
Maxine Kumin
poet
32
Gloria Steinem
author
33
Gladys Noon Spellman
34
Malvina Reynolds
35
Eleanor Cutri Smeal
US Congresswoman singer-songwriter National Organization for Women president
36
Ann Carr
gymnast
37
Laura Lee Ching
38
Shari Lewis
39
Barbara A. Mikulski
40
Meredith Monk
41
Barbara Gardner Proctor
surfer entertainer US Congresswoman composer and choreographer advertising
Card number & Name
22— Linda Winikow Occupation
NY state senator
Card number & Name
25— Leonor K. Sullivan
Occupation
US congresswoman
Card number & Name
27— Rosa Parks
Occupation
civil rights pioneer
Card number & Name
28— Helen Stevenson Meyner
Occupation
US congresswoman
Card number & Name
32— Gloria Steinem Occupation
author
Card number & Name
33— Gladys Noon Spellman Occupation
US congresswoman
Card number & Name
37— Laura Lee Ching
Occupation
surfer
Card number & Name
38— Lewis
Shari
Occupation
entertainer
Card number & Name
39— Barbara A. Mikulski Occupation
US congresswoman
4 M
Card number & Name
40— Meredith Monk
Occupation
composer & choreographer
Card number & Name
42— Katharine Graham Occupation
newspaper publisher
Card number & Name
43— Ruby Dee
Occupation
actor
Card number & Name
Occupation
42
Katharine Graham
newspaper publisher
43
Ruby Dee
actress
44
Marlo Thomas
actress
45
Kathrine Switzer
46
Miki Gorman
47
Barbara Ann Cochran
48
Wendy Turnbull
49
Shirley M. Hufstedler
author, runner runner Olympic skier tennis player federal judge, US cabinet level secretary
50
Kathy Johnson
51
Claudia Weill
52
Jane Pauley
gymnast film director journalist
Card number & Name
Occupation
53
Janet Guthrie
race car driver
54
Debbie Gary Callier
55
Jane Alexander
56
Jane Trahey
57
Jane Cahill Pfeiffer
58
Cindy Nelson
59
Rhonda Schwandt
gymnast
60
Jane Bryant Quinn
journalist
61
Sarah Weddington
lawyer
62
Robin Morgan
author
63
Jackie Cassello
64
Cathy Rigby Mason
pilot actress advertising television executive skier
gymnast Olympic gymnast
Card number & Name
45— Kathrine Switzer Occupation
author, runner
Card number & Name
52— Jane Pauley
Occupation
journalist
Card number & Name
53— Guthrie
Janet
Occupation
race car driver
Card number & Name
62— Robin Morgan Occupation
journalist
Card number & Name
66— Buffy SainteMarie
Occupation
singer
Card number & Name
69— Leslie Uggams Occupation
journalist
Card number & Name
71— Shirley Chisholm Occupation
US congresswoman
Card number & Name
Occupation
65
Melanie Smith
Olympic equestrian
66
Buffy Sainte-Marie
67
Natalie Dunn
68
Cathy Carr
69
Leslie Uggams
actress
70
Helen Hayes
actress
71
Shirley Chisholm
72
Ntozake Shange
singer roller skater Olympic swimmer
US Congresswoman poet
References Ferritti, Fred (9 Mar 1980). “Success was in
Levy, Alan H. (5 December 2013). The
the Cards”. New York Times. pp. WC10.
Political Life of Bella Abzug, 1976–1998:
Haitch, Richard (25 October 1981). “Fol-
Electoral Failures and the Vagaries of Iden-
low-Up on the News; ‘Supersisters’”. New
tity Politics. Lexington Books. p. 162. ISBN
York Times. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
978-0-7391-8725-8.
Irwin, Victoria (20 February 1980). “’I’ll
Dorpinghaus, Sarah (8 April 2008). “IDL
trade you a Pete Rose for your Jane Pauley’”.
staff pick: Supersisters trading cards, 1979”.
Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 1 May
Digital Research & Publishing, University of
2014.
Iowa Libraries. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
Baranski, Lynne (7 April 1980). “Hey, I’ll
Zanis, Liz (3 April 2014). “Collecting
Swap Ya a Stargell for a Steinem! A Sister
Inspiration with Supersisters”. Museum of
Team Creates Female Trading Cards That
Modern Art. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
Flip the Kids”. People. Archived from the
The entire Supersisters card set is viewable
original on 10 March 2016.
online at the University of Iowa Digital
“Feminine trading cards are big rage”. The
Libraries at http://digital.lib.uiowa.edu/cdm/
Day. Associated Press. 10 November 1980.
compoundobject/collection/founders/id/4267/
Retrieved 29 April 2014.
rec/1
External links Supersisters trading cards at Iowa Digital Library
Categories Trading cards | Feminism in the United States | Products introduced in 1979