1979 Monty Gum : Superman Trading Cards

The Monty Gum Superman trading cards were released in 1979 by Monty Fabrieken, a confectionary and printing company in Leiden, Holland. Superman: The Movie was released in the Netherlands on February 15, 1979.

The paper envelope packs contain three cards and a piece of bubble gum. A complete set is comprised of 64 cards featuring images from Superman: The Movie starring Christopher Reeve. The Monty Gum series was released in two sizes with identical images and wrapper art.

The smaller variants come in perforated three-card panels that each measure 1.875 x 2.6875 inches (48 x 68 mm). The wrappers for the smaller cards read "Made & Printed in Holland" with no additional information. The mini cards contain numbering printed inside of the Superman emblem. The image frames vary in color and the back of each card is blank. There is no copyright information or branding that identifies Monty on the cards. Various images are repeated or printed in reverse.

The larger cards are not numbered and measure approximately 2.525 x 3.15 inches (64 x 80 mm). The large wrappers contain advertisements for the Monty Superman Club in Dutch, English, German, and French. Collectors could join the Monty Superman Club and receive a "giant, magnificant [sic]" Superman poster by mailing ten empty packets plus 50p in postage.

Monty released a separate set of Superman stickers for the film. The "stickers auto-collant" series is comprised of 75 round stickers and 14 others in various sizes. The sticker packs advertise the Monty Superman Club.

Identical promotional images from the film were used in trading cards set issued by Drake's Cakes, Topps, and Weston Bakeries. Superman: The Movie was promoted in Italy by Danone and in Spain by Coca-Coca.

-

Monty previously released Comic Heroes stickers in 1977. The 100-piece collection features DC Comics characters including Superman and Supergirl.

-

During World War II, the Netherlands had become hooked on chewing gum brought over by American and Canadian troops. In 1946, Monty Fabrieken was established as a chewing gum importer in Leiden, Holland, by Huub F.J. Mentink and P.A. De Jong. The name is a tribute to Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, whom Mentink greatly admired. The company depicted the black beret worn by Montgomery on early red wrappers.

Monty began producing trading cards in 1951. The company would distribute card sets for films, musicians, sports, and television shows. In 1984, Monty was subpoenaed by Topps concerning rights to Michael Jackson photographs. A Hague court judge rejected the case. In a 2018 interview, former Monty director Cess Mentink said, "We had never heard of image rights in the Netherlands. We did everything ourselves without contracts and stuff." (auto-translated from Dutch) The company ceased production in 1999.