MAMA DON'T TAKE MY KODACHROME AWAY... early toners, stars & proof-likes **part 2 **
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Updated:
7/6/2026
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PART 2 - CAMEOS, COLORFUL TONERS & SOME PROOF-LIKE BUSINESS STRIKE EARLY KENNEDY HALF DOLLARS...
GOAL OF SET
The goal of this set is to assemble a RESPECTABLE short set of early Kennedy Half Dollars that is somehow different from the average short set. I was looking for some coins that somehow stood out from the crowd. It is obvious that I especially like pretty color toned business stikes, NGC Star and NGC Star Cameo coins.
The emphasis is not necessarily on displaying the highest grade coin. Some unusual or pretty coins do not always sport the highest grades. A high numeric grade on a holder does not necessarily mean nice eye appeal. It is possible that a coin in a high grade holder might have ugly toning or little eye appeal.
I have taken the liberty of displaying the obverse of 2 separate coins from my collection for a single slot at times. I just wanted to display some interesting coins and sometimes I had more than 1 coin that would fill the bill for a certain slot. Have fun with your coins right?
THE 1964-1970 SILVER KENNEDY HALF DOLLAR
The last of the silver half dollars. After a long run, beginning with the establishment of the first American mint in Philadelphia, these are the last of the true American silver half dollars. Apart from several collector issue silver half dollars, 1964 is really the last true American silver half dollar, it being 90% silver and the following years being only 40% silver through 1970. The 1964 Kennedy is among my favorite U.S. coins.
COLOR TONED KENNEDY HALF DOLLARS
I like a beautiful color toned Kennedy Half Dollar. I especially like to find a coin with cobalt blue fading into violet. I also enjoy a coin with rich golden rim toning. Every toning enthusiast has their own preferences for color toning. The 1964 Kennedy issue seems to offer the greatest opportunity for finding a nice color toned coin. The 1965 to 1970 issues seem to be much harder to find with nice color toning somehow. My favorite coins are those awarded a Star designation by NGC, which are sometimes very elusive. I am a fan of PCGS Gold Shield holders as well.
THE RARE PL KENNEDY HALF DOLLARS
I recently became educated and intrigued by the existence of business strike half dollars with 'proof-like' surfaces. NGC awards a PL designation to a coin whose obverse and reverse exhibit these 'proof-like ' attributes. Interestingly enough, NGC will sometimes awards a 'star' to a business strike which exhibits a 'proof-like ' finish on one side only (always the obverse side from my observation). The reverse dies of these coins appear to have worn faster, there are many one sided PL coins that garnered a Star from NGC for the reflective obverse.Only a relatively small population of PL half dollars seem to exist in the years from 1964 to 1969, and in some years the PL Halfs seem to be non-existent. The year 1970 produced the greatest number of PL Halfs by far. There are more 1970-D PROOF-LIKE Half Dollars in the NGC population report than in all the previous years total combined, yet even these are highly valued and sought after by collectors. The 1970-D PL Kennedy is still a scarce coin and brings a very good premium at auction. It is believed that there must have been more than one HIGHLY polished set of dies that produced the 1970-D PL Kennedy Half Dollars. The existance of these coins is inexplicable. Refurbished dies may be the reason.
ULTRA RARE DPL KENNEDY HALF DOLLAR
Interestingly the year 1970 produced a handful of DPL ( DEEP MIRROR PROOF LIKE ) specimens, though only 12 in total, ranging in grade from MS 62DPL to MS64DPL. These handful of DPL kennedy Half Dollars are unique to the 1970-D issue. It is not known how & why they exist. They look like proof coins. The D mint mark identifies them as business strikes coming out of a Denver mint set , however. It is believed that all the KNOWN 1970-D DPL Kennedy Half Dollars came off the same outrageously polished set of dies The dies would have worn quickly however, producing a minimal number of DPL coins.
The existence of these DPL Kennedy Half Dollars are fascinating to me as a collector. It seems like NGC has overlooked the rarity and uniqueness of these few coins in existence, given the low registry scores & values given them in the NGC price guide. I think even NGC seems to be a little behind the curve regarding these rare coins, but that is understandable given their scarcity.
There seems to be more to this short set of Kennedy Half Dollars than meets the eye. I have tried to leave some commentary on some of the coins as to why they are special or different in nature from the run of the mill. The 1970- D slot is especially different.
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MAMA DON'T TAKE MY KODACHROME AWAY... early toners, stars & proof-likes **part 2 **
By Old Virginia Boy
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