On August 16, 1954, Sports Ilustrated hit the stands with its first issue. Today, over 50 years later, it is the most read sports magazine in the industry, though granted it's a rather different animal today, most notably in February when it becomes Babe Illustrated. No half-naked supermodels cavorting in Cancun in that premier issue. Just the apple pie image of Milwaukee Braves slugging third baseman Eddie Mathews sending a baseball into orbit against the backdrop of a filled County Stadium grandstand. The back cover advertises a preppy tennis player lighting up a Parliament cigarette. The times would soon be a-changin'. For the true collector, we present 13 copies of the always highly collectible maiden issue. All have been graded by GAI and presented in hard plastic protective jackets. None grade lower then 8 NM-MT of which there are nine. In addition, two grade 8.5 NM-MT+ and the topper are two graded MINT 9. Sweet!!!!