If you were to go back and check every rugby item ever to appear in the Ticker, you’d probably find that about 70% of them were contributed by reader Caleb Borchers, who regularly peppers me with rugby-related items in the faint hope that someone will, y’know, give a shit. He realizes most of the other readers here aren’t rugby fans, but he nonetheless continues to contribute material, and I salute him for his steadfast commitment. Today is his day in the sun, as he’s gone off on an impassioned rant that I’ve decided merits lead-entry status:
As a rugby fan, there are some things that I suffer through that I realize few others care about. Primary amongst them is the horror that is mismatched head gear. To explain: Many rugby players wear head gear (or a scrum cap) to protect against cauliflower ear. One such player is Nathan Sharpe, who wears blue/purple headgear that matches his club (Western Force) jersey. Looks fine. But when he gets the call up to the Australian national team, he doesn’t see the need to buy a new cap. I figure this is attributable to either (a) supreme laziness, (b) supreme cheapness, or (c) supreme superstitiousness. All of which leads to (d) supreme stupidity. I mean, really, you’re selected to represent your country at the third largest sporting event in the world (and getting paid well to do it), and you can’t take the time and spend the $100 bucks to buy a green cap?
Fortunately, not every player feels this way. For example, there’s the bright uni beacon of hope represented by the Waldrom brothers of New Zealand. They make sure the cap matches the team at all times, no excuses. It would be easy for Scott to take the yellow/black he wears in the regular season and keep it with the All Blacks, but he doesn’t — he gets a black/white cap, because the All Blacks don’t wear yellow. How hard is this? (Another grudging pat on the back goes to Matt Giteau, who also cares about color matching but ruins it with those girly ribbons on the cap.)
In other news: Rugby fans and commentators tend to be no-nonsense people. As a result, Adidas’s decision to force NZ teams to wear home and away jerseys has sort of hit the fan. The stupidest part of it all is that two of the teams have a gray away jersey. That doesn’t sound bad to outsiders, but any NZ fan immediately gets nightmare flashbacks to the All Blacks World Cup loss to France in 2007, for which Kiwis still blame two factors: the referee and the All Blacks wearing something other than all black.
And there you have it. Big thanks to Caleb for filling us in on the nuances of a sport none of us actually care about follow, and for do so in an entertaining manner to boot.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Today’s the last day to bid on my Flushing in Flushing T-shirt. ”¦ Lastings Milledge’s switch to wearing No. 85 was first reported way back in February, but it still looks really weird. ”¦ Kevin McMahon saw this crazy MLB bobblehead shirt selling for $13 and couldn’t resist. “It was too cool to pass up,” he says. “Now I need to decide if I want to keep it, or give it as a birthday gift to my baseball-loving brother. Would it be a serious or a gag gift though? Not quite sure.” Lots of additional photos here. ”¦ Here’s the 1915 Avalon (Pa.) High School baseball team. Love that placket lettering (with thanks to Jason Bernard). ”¦ Who’d be dumb enough to wear a purple Yahoo! Sports jersey? Mark! Teixeira, as it turns out. He played! stickball in Tampa! for some sort! of Yahoo! promotional thingie! ”¦ Interesting shot of JFK conducting the coin toss at the 1961 Army/Navy game. Note that the Navy captain has “Beat Army” on his shoulders (with thanks to David Ryan and CJ Fleck). ”¦ Also from CJ: Excellent pair of stirrups available here. ”¦ The Raptors apparently printed their tickets before the Thunder’s logo was finalized (with thanks to Andy Rawlings). ”¦ Phil already mentioned that the Rochester Amerks painted their ice pink, but here’s a tremendous batch of photos showing the ice-coloration process (with thanks to Greg Netherwood). ”¦ Excellent 49ers helmet cart photo here with thanks to Jamison Nash). ”¦ The second question on this Q&A page brings up a very interesting Avs-related uni question (nice find by Harvey Lee). ”¦ Umbro has release the new England home kit at the Reed Space Annex in lower Manhattan. “The pop-up shop will be up thru Wednesday and it looks great,” says Stephen Wong. “They are raffling off new limited- edition Reed Space kits every day.” ”¦ Tremendous article here on the history and origins of Barrel Man, who may date back as far as 1901! Great photos, too (big thanks to Jeff Ash). ”¦ Reprinted from the weekend comments: Dan Aykroyd did the ceremonial puck drop at Friday’s Devils/Blackhawks game, and they gave him a jersey with a misspelled NOB (screen grab courtesy of James Huening). ”¦ If you liked my subway signage style guide, you’ll probably also like the Manual On Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which is filled with pages like this. Download it here (big thanks to Paul Deaver). ”¦ No comment. ”¦ Ross French sent along pics of a Western Michigan baseball jersey that appears to have been a salesman’s sample. “It’s similar to what the 1955 club wore, but of course baseball unis can go for years without significant changes,” he writes. “If anyone has any insights, I would love to hear them.” ”¦ Interesting F1 note from Al Stone, who writes: “The cars from Brawn GP finished first and second on Sunday. Brawn GP sprang up in recent weeks to buy Honda’s old F1 program when the manufacturer stepped down. What makes this sorta uni-interesting is that Brawn has been looking for a sponsor, since Honda’s sponsors had dropped off. So the Brawn GP cars were relatively sponsor-free (just a Virgin logo and a few small Bridgestone logos that were barely visible). This team will no doubt have a different livery for the next race and the rest of the season, so this is probably the only time that this car will race looking as it did, and it won the top two spots.” ”¦ Stunning news from Brian Poulos, who writes: “MLB Tonight on the MLB Network uses a graphic during game highlights where the MLB Network logo (derived for the MLB logo) becomes animated and swings the bat. I am here to say that the MLB logo silhouette is a LEFTY BATTER.” ”¦ Paul Wiederecht found more good stuff in the Life archives: The Twins had two batboys who were actual twin brothers, and there was some sort of crazy variety show that featured lots of MLBers wearing dress shoes and Chucks. ”¦ Two interesting items in this photo, taken at the Indiana state high school basketball tournament on Saturday: The home team, Jac-Cen-Del, has an usual color combo of red and sky blue, and the other player has great socks. “Unfortunately, I think this was the only player on the Triton team to wear those socks,” says Adam Morris. ”¦ The Mets gave their new stadium a test drive yesterday, and several readers report that the replica jerseys in the gift shops all featured this patch, not the Domino’s patch. Again, these are just replicas, not authentics, and my understanding is that the team will still be wearing the other patch on the field. ”¦ John Weghorst sent along pics from his old 1982 Topps sticker book. Check them out here. ”¦ Super-cool old baseball uni available here. ”¦ And here’s something you don’t often see: vintage zebra-wear — and another! ”¦ Guess who really likes this old basketball jersey. ”¦ I’m on the road for the next coupla days, so Phil will be minding the store today and handling tomorrow’s content. See you on Wednesday.
The Avs link is to a newer column than the actual item. It should be to: link
[quote comment=”320258″]The Avs link is to a newer column than the actual item. It should be to: link
Got it. Thanks.
nothin’ wrong with a rugby piece (thanks caleb), but, mr. borchers, no linkies to the obligatory all blacks haka? ;)
As we all know by now, the 1960-61 Denver Broncos are famous for there vertically striped poo and pee colored socks. Why is it no so in this old football card?
link|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50#ht_800wt_1165
[quote comment=”320261″]As we all know by now, the 1960-61 Denver Broncos are famous for there vertically striped poo and pee colored socks. Why is it no so in this old football card?
link|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50#ht_800wt_1165[/quote]
Probably not an action shot, so less than full game uniform for a trading card photo shoot may be understandable, but, in retrospect, disappointing.
That variety show with the MLB players is really great. I didn’t see the Reds there. I wonder why?
Teddy Ballgame there, in street clothes, but Eddie Matthews in uniform.
Great find!
caleb, i’m a huge rugby fan – union and league, although probably more a league fan, to be honest. that’s a sport paul would love, what with all the horizontal stripes and v-neck patterns.
good on ya, mate.
link
At least Milledge has SOME sense. He’s back to wearing Nike Huarache 2K5 spikes.
link
[quote comment=”320260″]nothin’ wrong with a rugby piece (thanks caleb), but, mr. borchers, no linkies to the obligatory link? ;)[/quote]
I was in line for coffee at the Nyack Starbucks and the guy in front of me had an “All-Blacks” knapsack.
I mentioned to him how cool it was and asked whether he was a fan.
NO CLUE! What a downer.
[quote comment=”320266″][quote comment=”320260″]nothin’ wrong with a rugby piece (thanks caleb), but, mr. borchers, no linkies to the obligatory link? ;)[/quote]
I was in line for coffee at the Nyack Starbucks and the guy in front of me had an “All-Blacks” knapsack.
I mentioned to him how cool it was and asked whether he was a fan.
NO CLUE! What a downer.[/quote]
that is rather disappointing. i wear my All Blacks t-shirt out and get no comments on it … ever. what is cool is that my 2-year-old boy was given an All Blacks onesie by his aunt (and it will be worn by his younger brother due in May). gotta brainwash them early.
FWIW i played football in college and then switched to rugby when i was told my “career” was over thanks to injuries. i loved rugby, absolutely loved it and would give anything to still play today
[quote comment=”320262″][quote comment=”320261″]As we all know by now, the 1960-61 Denver Broncos are famous for there vertically striped poo and pee colored socks. Why is it no so in this old football card?
link|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50#ht_800wt_1165[/quote]
Probably not an action shot, so less than full game uniform for a trading card photo shoot may be understandable, but, in retrospect, disappointing.[/quote]
All the PR photos from the first couple years of the Broncos are sans high socks. Maybe they didn’t want to show ’em to the players until right before the first exhibition game. LOL
—Ricko
“and several readers report that the replica jerseys in the gift shops all featured this patch”
Look at the numbers/letters….have they always been 4 color like that? I thought that when they went to the drop shadow look they dropped the white border.
[quote comment=”320269″]”and several readers report that the replica jerseys in the gift shops all featured this patch”
Look at the numbers/letters….have they always been 4 color like that? I thought that when they went to the drop shadow look they dropped the white border.[/quote]
Replica. No white border on the authentics.
I went back to the Google/Life site this weekend and got lost in the photos from a White Sox/Red Sox game from the 50’s. (Old scoreboard replaced in 1960.)
Here’s the thing: I remember as a kid seeing the batboy for the visiting team wearing a White Sox road uni, and I thought, “Here’s a well documented game – it’s got to contain photographic proof of this road batboy thing.” So I negotiated thru the links for a few hours (did Google assign the organization of this site to the interns?) Eventually I found a group of photos that show someone in a road uni running sprints with Sox players before the game. Could this be the road teams BB, or someone filling that role? I had to find a game photo. After a few more hours (fucking interns) I strike gold: Sox manager Al Lopez arguing with the ump, while a Red Sox batter (#23) waits, and someone in a Chicago road uni appears to be the Red Sox batboy! Ha!
I was a kid in the late 60’s and at that point, the visiting BB wore the powder blue Sox road uni, which contrasted beautifully with the visiting teams grays, and looked totally awesome in the dugout when the Athletics played here.
Now folks will believe me, since no one seemed to actually go to the games back then.
I don’t know what I did wrong with the fucking links. I really wish the old comment format with the actual buttons were still here.
Here’s the main pic url:
link
[quote comment=”320270″][quote comment=”320269″]”and several readers report that the replica jerseys in the gift shops all featured this patch”
Look at the numbers/letters….have they always been 4 color like that? I thought that when they went to the drop shadow look they dropped the white border.[/quote]
Replica. No white border on the authentics.[/quote]
Is it strange to you that they would put more effort/work into the replicas?
Doesn’t matter I guess though…all of the jerseys will be using heat pressed numbers and letters next season anyway.
[quote comment=”320261″]As we all know by now, the 1960-61 Denver Broncos are famous for there vertically striped poo and pee colored socks. Why is it no so in this old football card?
link|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50#ht_800wt_1165[/quote]
It looks like he’s in dress shoes too.
[quote comment=”320267″][quote comment=”320266″][quote comment=”320260″]nothin’ wrong with a rugby piece (thanks caleb), but, mr. borchers, no linkies to the obligatory link? ;)[/quote]
I was in line for coffee at the Nyack Starbucks and the guy in front of me had an “All-Blacks” knapsack.
I mentioned to him how cool it was and asked whether he was a fan.
NO CLUE! What a downer.[/quote]
that is rather disappointing. i wear my All Blacks t-shirt out and get no comments on it … ever. what is cool is that my 2-year-old boy was given an All Blacks onesie by his aunt (and it will be worn by his younger brother due in May). gotta brainwash them early.
FWIW i played football in college and then switched to rugby when i was told my “career” was over thanks to injuries. i loved rugby, absolutely loved it and would give anything to still play today[/quote]
guy i play tennis with (in fact, playing with him tonight) is a kiwi and frequently warms up in an all blacks sweatshirt
first time he ever wore it, i was like, “dude, great shirt” to which he, nonplussed, remarked, “thanks, mate” (guess he thought i was being polite)…for the next five minutes, however, he became keenly aware of my interest in, and knowledge of, the all blacks (99% of which i owe to UW), and i even got him to talk about the haka
/see…reading UW not only satisfies your quest for obscure uni details, but you can shock and awe your non-american friends with your knowledge of their sporting teams’ trends and passions
//and speaking of the all blacks, anyone ever hear from minna h anymore?
and amidst all this talk of all things AFL, one of the most important coaches in AFL history, Lou Saban, has passed away.
Indeed. Original head coach of the Boston Patriots, which means he coached the first regular season AFL game ever. Friday night, September 9, 1960, Boston University Field. Broncos beat the Patriots, 13-10, on a 76-yard third quarter Gene Mingo punt return. Attendance: 21,597.
Ed “Butch” Songin started at QB for the Patriots.
–Ricko
My college coach, Oscar Loften, was the very first person to score a TD in the AFL, he played TE/WR for the Patriots. Not sure if the “first TD” was preseason or regular season.
Wow! Oscar Lofton? One of my favorite names from AFL Year One. Never have seen a photo of the guy, though. Been looking a long time, too. Don’t even know what number he wore. Think it might have been 86, but can’t swear to it.
Seems to me I knew that about him scoring first AFL TD, but it musta been preseason cuz he didn’t score in that Pats-Broncos AFL opener.
Here’s the game summary (btw, this is great site for those who haven’t discovered it yet)…
link…
–Ricko
[quote comment=”320265″]http://assets.espn.go.com/media/apphoto/307f283e-6014-478e-8737-21abb4528131.jpg
At least Milledge has SOME sense. He’s back to wearing Nike Huarache 2K5 spikes.
link
Speaking of Milledge, he’s wearing a double-flapped helmet, which is bizarre, considering he doesn’t switch-hit.
(You don’t need a clear view to tell. Righty helmets leave the right ear exposed, and vice versa. Milledge’s right ear is covered in the photo. There is no way his left ear is not exposed, given that Milledge is right-handed. Conclusion: double-flapped helmet.)
link
1950’s Vintage…Maybe…but I’ve got a few of those exact stirrups…and they were 99 cents as this sporting goods store…so if anybody wants them…let me know!
link
link
link
[quote comment=”320274″][quote comment=”320261″]As we all know by now, the 1960-61 Denver Broncos are famous for there vertically striped poo and pee colored socks. Why is it no so in this old football card?
link|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50#ht_800wt_1165[/quote]
It looks like he’s in dress shoes too.[/quote]
That’s why I still don’t like all-black shoes. Looks like playing in wing tips or janitor shoes. Got no style. LOL. Also why was so easy to pick out guys who spatted their shoes…or those who wore the early Riddells with the white “Snug-Fit” stirrup dealie under the arch (early ’60s)…and notice how much faster they looked cuz didn’t look “lead-footed” (talking about watching them in live in b&w or in b&w highlight films, that is).
—Ricko
ooops, bad link.
It’s
pro-football-reference.com
Careful, you can spend HOURS there. No images, but info like crazy.
I was at Citi Field yesterday for the St. John’s/Georgetown game, and in all the Mets shops around the stadium there are hundreds of jerseys in each store which have the “nicer” hat patch on the left sleeve of the replica jerseys for sale.
Even the player name/number t-shirts have the nicer hat patch screened on.
You have to look long and hard to find the Dominos Inaugural Season patch in the stadium. I did see a patch for sale behind a cashier for $18.
If they have realized the patch is crap, why sell all the replica jerseys with the better patch, and keep the players on field with the worst patch in history?
anyone else notice the unusually large memorial band on the oriole in the in the vazriety show pic?
Sorry, didn’t see the piece at the bottom of the ticker about the patch on the replicas. Anyway it felt good to vent.
[quote comment=”320283″]anyone else notice the unusually large memorial band on the oriole in the in the vazriety show pic?[/quote]
I wondered about that, too.
And, in the back row of that photo, from the Kansas City Athletics, ladeees and gentlemen…the legendary Harry “Suitcase” Simpson!
(If you seen any of the Tom Selleck “Jesse Stone” TV movies, Suitcase’s name comes up quite often. Jesse Stone has a deputy named Simpson, whom he calls “Suitcase”. In fact, there’s a scene when the deputy had been shot and was in a coma where Selleck reads Suitcase Simpson’s bio to him.)
Okay, enough arcane baseball and TV entwining for a Monday morning.
—Ricko
[quote comment=”320276″][quote comment=”320267″][quote comment=”320266″][quote comment=”320260″]nothin’ wrong with a rugby piece (thanks caleb), but, mr. borchers, no linkies to the obligatory link? ;)[/quote]
I was in line for coffee at the Nyack Starbucks and the guy in front of me had an “All-Blacks” knapsack.
I mentioned to him how cool it was and asked whether he was a fan.
NO CLUE! What a downer.[/quote]
that is rather disappointing. i wear my All Blacks t-shirt out and get no comments on it … ever. what is cool is that my 2-year-old boy was given an All Blacks onesie by his aunt (and it will be worn by his younger brother due in May). gotta brainwash them early.
FWIW i played football in college and then switched to rugby when i was told my “career” was over thanks to injuries. i loved rugby, absolutely loved it and would give anything to still play today[/quote]
guy i play tennis with (in fact, playing with him tonight) is a kiwi and frequently warms up in an all blacks sweatshirt
first time he ever wore it, i was like, “dude, great shirt” to which he, nonplussed, remarked, “thanks, mate” (guess he thought i was being polite)…for the next five minutes, however, he became keenly aware of my interest in, and knowledge of, the all blacks (99% of which i owe to UW), and i even got him to talk about the haka
/see…reading UW not only satisfies your quest for obscure uni details, but you can shock and awe your non-american friends with your knowledge of their sporting teams’ trends and passions
//and speaking of the all blacks, anyone ever hear from minna h anymore?[/quote]
two of my favorite jerseys from my collection are rugby jerseys. bristol rugby “bass ale” jerseys. i get a lot of compliments on them, more-so because they say “bass” and have the red triangle on them (which isnt a bad thing at all). they are SUPER-comfortable… made by a company called “kooga” i believe?
I know there’s been stuff reported on this previously, but this was in the Detroit Free Press yesterday link (I suppose Detroit’s interests are somewhat distracted today.)
Meanwhile, the Baltimore Sun had an interesting package yesterday on the anniversary of the Colts’ disgusting exodus. link
And I’m surprised you didn’t link to this. link
That’s all.
The F1 sponsorless car is interesting. It is not unusual in other racing series to find owners struggling to find sponsors and going with effectively blank vehicles.
Robby Gordon in NASCAR had such a problem this weekend, and went with a Chip Foose-designed arrow theme in lieu of a primary sponsor.
link
sky blue and red doesn’t seem all that unusual to me, but maybe it’s because there are two well-known schools in Texas to use that combo–
Carter in Dallas (Jessie Armstead, Michael Crabtree)
link
And Madison in Houston (Vince Young)
link
[quote comment=”320293″]sky blue and red doesn’t seem all that unusual to me, but maybe it’s because there are two well-known schools in Texas to use that combo–
Carter in Dallas (Jessie Armstead, Michael Crabtree)
link
And Madison in Houston (Vince Young)
link
Wasn’t Dallas Carter the team that Permian lost the championship to in “Friday Night Lights”?
[quote comment=”320288″]Meanwhile, the Baltimore Sun had an interesting package yesterday on the anniversary of the Colts’ disgusting exodus. link
Why bother? Shouldn’t they be celebrating the 10th anniversary of Super Bowl 35?
[quote]You have to look long and hard to find the Dominos Inaugural Season patch in the stadium. I did see a patch for sale behind a cashier for $18.[/quote]
they sell the patch for $18…seriously?
[quote comment=”320294″]
Wasn’t Dallas Carter the team that Permian lost the championship to in “Friday Night Lights”?[/quote]
yep
from wikipedia:
” * Since 1982, the UIL Class 5A football playoffs have had six rounds (though a second, parallel playoff bracket of five rounds was added in 1990, later also expanded to six rounds in 2006), so while Permian did play Dallas Carter in the fifth round, in reality it was a semi-final and not a final. In the Texas playoffs, a team from North or Western Texas always plays a team from Southern Texas in the final. So the Carter vs Permian final would not have been possible. The actual final featured Carter versus Converse Judson (who would later defeat Permian in the 1995 state championship). The Carter-Permian game was played in front of 10,000 people in a heavy downpour at The University of Texas at Austin’s Memorial Stadium, not in front of 55,000 in the Astrodome in Houston. The movie highlights a call made by a black referee of a catch where the ball skips the ground; that play did or did not happen depending on which side you supported. The incident is mentioned in the book however. While the game in the movie was a high-scoring affair (34-28), the score of the actual game was 14-9 in favor of Carter. In real life Permian held a 9-7 lead for most of the game and it was Carter who made the dramatic fourth quarter comeback to win. On the last play of the game, Winchell threw an incomplete ball tipped by Carter player and later NFL-Pro Bowler Jessie Armstead, rather than running it himself close to the goal line.
* Many people in Dallas were highly upset at how the Dallas Carter coach was portrayed as villainous. The actual coach, Freddie James, was highly respected and considered a Dallas legend. The movie version of the book depicted the Carter team as unsportsmanlike and arrogant. The game was played without incident and without any confrontation between either team.”
Big thanks to Caleb Borchers. I am an active rugby player in the US and avid follower of the game abroad. Good breakdown lack of and dedication to color cohesion and the downward spiral of the team kit.
[quote comment=”320293″]sky blue and red doesn’t seem all that unusual to me, but maybe it’s because there are two well-known schools in Texas to use that combo–
Carter in Dallas (Jessie Armstead, Michael Crabtree)
link
And Madison in Houston (Vince Young)
link
There are a few schools here in NC that do that as well. They do it because they don’t want to polarize the NC State fans from the UNC fans within their schools. (I shit you not, thats the reason for most)
[quote comment=”320296″][quote]You have to look long and hard to find the Dominos Inaugural Season patch in the stadium. I did see a patch for sale behind a cashier for $18.[/quote]
they sell the patch for $18…seriously?[/quote]
Seriously!
Shit, I bought my 2006 Stanley Cup Finals patch for $9 and I thought I was overpaying for it. $18 for a blue square and orange rectangle? LOL!
[quote comment=”320272″]I don’t know what I did wrong with the fucking links. I really wish the old comment format with the actual buttons were still here.
Here’s the main pic url:
link
michael…i fixed your links (everyone go back to post 14 to see)…
/you don’t need to put quotes around the links you’re trying to paste, otherwise your html coding was fine
[quote comment=”320295″][quote comment=”320288″]Meanwhile, the Baltimore Sun had an interesting package yesterday on the anniversary of the Colts’ disgusting exodus. link
Why bother? Shouldn’t they be celebrating the 10th anniversary of Super Bowl 35?[/quote]
Ravens, Schamavens.
I wish I’d snagged a screen shot of last night’s Flyers-Bruins game. One of the Flyers d-men (Kimmo Timmonen maybe?) had mismatched skate laces. One black and one white.
FLYERS THIRD (ORANGE) JERSEYS: INCONSISTENT NAMEPLATE FONTS
Last photo in this set. Compare RICHARDS and BRIERE nameplates.
link
Maybe Briere is different because it was sewn more recently as he returned to lineup from Injured Reserve?
Briere’s nameplate font matches that used on the road (white) jerseys.
The other thing that annoys me about them is the thinness of the white stripe on the sleeve. The orange numbers overhang onto the orange of the sleeves.
Love the rugby post today. Seems to be getting more soccer stuff here, now rugby. Tremendous.
I play for a men’s club team in New England, we have simple colors: navy, red, and white. When it comes to our kits we go with predominantly navy jerseys, white shorts and navy socks. I CRINGE when I see players going on the pitch with red socks, royal blue socks, black shorts, and so on. How hard is it to match and look like a legit team? I know we’re at the club level, but some respect for the uniform, please. That is unacceptable on a professional level. I’m sure Gilbert or whoever would be happy to comp them equipment.
No matter what sport I play I make sure my uniform matches down to a T, accessories and all. I could play on several different softball teams, but I’ll get wristbands, socks, and shorts to coordinate with all of them.
[quote comment=”320305″]FLYERS THIRD (ORANGE) JERSEYS: INCONSISTENT NAMEPLATE FONTS
Last photo in this set. Compare RICHARDS and BRIERE nameplates.
link
Maybe Briere is different because it was sewn more recently as he returned to lineup from Injured Reserve?
Briere’s nameplate font matches that used on the road (white) jerseys.[/quote]
I dunno about the nameplates, I was too distracted by how completely awesome the team looks in the retro jerseys.
So glad they’re making these the full-time jerseys once the playoffs start. Now just do away with the bib and they’re perfect
[quote comment=”320308″][quote comment=”320305″]FLYERS THIRD (ORANGE) JERSEYS: INCONSISTENT NAMEPLATE FONTS
Last photo in this set. Compare RICHARDS and BRIERE nameplates.
link
Maybe Briere is different because it was sewn more recently as he returned to lineup from Injured Reserve?
Briere’s nameplate font matches that used on the road (white) jerseys.[/quote]
I dunno about the nameplates, I was too distracted by how completely awesome the team looks in the retro jerseys.
So glad they’re making these the full-time jerseys once the playoffs start. Now just do away with the bib and they’re perfect[/quote]
Now playing, “Return of the Broad Street Bullies.”
Looks good to me.
Bring back the Hound and the Hammer.
—Ricko
[quote comment=”320278″][quote comment=”320265″]http://assets.espn.go.com/media/apphoto/307f283e-6014-478e-8737-21abb4528131.jpg
At least Milledge has SOME sense. He’s back to wearing Nike Huarache 2K5 spikes.
link
Speaking of Milledge, he’s wearing a double-flapped helmet, which is bizarre, considering he doesn’t switch-hit.
(You don’t need a clear view to tell. Righty helmets leave the right ear exposed, and vice versa. Milledge’s right ear is covered in the photo. There is no way his left ear is not exposed, given that Milledge is right-handed. Conclusion: double-flapped helmet.)[/quote]
I can add him to the All-Flap All Stars (previously known as the Mark Bellhorn Traveling Ear Flaps and Motor Kings). I’m trying to think of more MLB “regulars” that wore the flaps for an extended amount of time. From what I recall the list had…
Pendelton, Otis Nixon, Chuck Carr, Delino DeShields, Mark Bellhorn, Shin-Soo Choo, Vince Coleman, Willie McGree, Shane Victorino, Junior Felix, Willie Harris, Bronson Arroyo, Jose Vidro, Orlando Hudson.
A lot of 2B and speedy OF types. I thought Knoblauch wore one for a time in Minnesota, but I couldn’t find a picture to prove that. The Cardinals of the 80’s are well represented here. They had three Flaps players and one Flapless player (Ozzie Smith).
Speaking of flapless players, was Gaetti the Craig MacTavish or the MLB? I think he was the last flapless player in the league.
FLYERS THIRD (ORANGE) JERSEYS: INCONSISTENT NAMEPLATE FONTS
Last photo in this set. Compare RICHARDS and BRIERE nameplates.
link…
Maybe Briere is different because it was sewn more recently as he returned to lineup from Injured Reserve?
Briere’s nameplate font matches that used on the road (white) jerseys.
#45 by Shane on 03.30.09 10:50 am | Quote This Comment
The other thing that annoys me about them is the thinness of the white stripe on the sleeve. The orange numbers overhang onto the orange of the sleeves.
IF YOU BUY THE PREMIER (REPLICA) JERESEY THE WHITE STRIPE WIDENS INTO A V SHAPE. ANOTHER REASON (IN ADDITION TO THE SQUARE SHIRT TAIL HEM AND RIDICULOUS LOOKING JOCKTAG) WHY I WOULDN’T BUY A REPLICA.
[quote comment=”320311″]FLYERS THIRD (ORANGE) JERSEYS: INCONSISTENT NAMEPLATE FONTS
Last photo in this set. Compare RICHARDS and BRIERE nameplates.
link…
Maybe Briere is different because it was sewn more recently as he returned to lineup from Injured Reserve?
Briere’s nameplate font matches that used on the road (white) jerseys.
#45 by Shane on 03.30.09 10:50 am | Quote This Comment
The other thing that annoys me about them is the thinness of the white stripe on the sleeve. The orange numbers overhang onto the orange of the sleeves.
IF YOU BUY THE PREMIER (REPLICA) JERESEY THE WHITE STRIPE WIDENS INTO A V SHAPE. ANOTHER REASON (IN ADDITION TO THE SQUARE SHIRT TAIL HEM AND RIDICULOUS LOOKING JOCKTAG) WHY I WOULDN’T BUY A REPLICA.[/quote]
If the differences between the authentic and the replica is that the replica has a straight hem as opposed to the bib and there’s an easily removable tag on the replica, then you just made the best case I’ve heard to why the replicas are better…
just sayin
[quote comment=”320310″]I thought Knoblauch wore one for a time in Minnesota, but I couldn’t find a picture to prove that.[/quote]
here
don’t have time to find the actual card, but there’s a pic
Wasn’t Tim Raines the last guy to go flapless?
I’m always excited to see Formula 1, my favorite form of motorsports, represented in the ticker!
Good job Al Stone!!!
This shows…
link
…why anything but true low cuts look stupid with bloused pants and stirrups/one-color socks.
And that, sadly, is an indirect argument FOR heel-length pants.
—Ricko
[quote comment=”320313″][quote comment=”320310″]I thought Knoblauch wore one for a time in Minnesota, but I couldn’t find a picture to prove that.[/quote]
link
don’t have time to find the actual card, but there’s a pic[/quote]
Excellent! I thought I was imagining things.
[quote comment=”320300″][quote comment=”320296″][quote]You have to look long and hard to find the Dominos Inaugural Season patch in the stadium. I did see a patch for sale behind a cashier for $18.[/quote]
they sell the patch for $18…seriously?[/quote]
Seriously!
Shit, I bought my 2006 Stanley Cup Finals patch for $9 and I thought I was overpaying for it. $18 for a blue square and orange rectangle? LOL![/quote]
Saw the WBC hats at Lids for $36 each, so I suppose if a hat is $36 a patch is a heckuva deal at $18.
(eye roll)
—Ricko
I had the good fortune to see a re-run of The Running Man on TV yesterday, and noticed that all of the security guards in the movie wore double flapped baseball batting helmets!
You can see one in this clip at the 58 sec. mark right behind Richard Dawson
link
[quote comment=”320320″]I had the good fortune to see a re-run of The Running Man on TV yesterday, and noticed that all of the security guards in the movie wore double flapped baseball batting helmets!
You can see one in this clip at the 58 sec. mark right behind Richard Dawson
link
Wait, that would make Schwarzenegger “Rerun”.
[quote comment=”320314″]Wasn’t Tim Raines the last guy to go flapless?[/quote]
Totally forgot about him, outlasted Gaetti by two years and was surpisingly productive in 2001 in 51 games.
[quote comment=”320313″][quote comment=”320310″]I thought Knoblauch wore one for a time in Minnesota, but I couldn’t find a picture to prove that.[/quote]
link
don’t have time to find the actual card, but there’s a pic[/quote]
Nice find, Phil!
[quote comment=”320316″]This shows…
link
…why anything but true low cuts look stupid with bloused pants and stirrups/one-color socks.
And that, sadly, is an indirect argument FOR heel-length pants.
—Ricko[/quote]
“Damn Yankees” opened at my school, and on Thursday, I might have pics to also prove that point!
[quote comment=”320320″]I had the good fortune to see a re-run of The Running Man on TV yesterday, and noticed that all of the security guards in the movie wore double flapped baseball batting helmets!
You can see one in this clip at the 58 sec. mark right behind Richard Dawson
link
Either that or Clu Heywood sneaked onto the set.
Dallas Carter alum here. Just bought a plane ticket for the 35th reunion.
Carter now wears mostly red in football, but wore an aesthetically pleasing red jersey/sky blue pants combination in my days. Yeah, and gas was 35 cents a gallon, too.
[quote comment=”320326″]Dallas Carter alum here. Just bought a plane ticket for the 35th reunion.
Carter now wears mostly red in football, but wore an aesthetically pleasing red jersey/sky blue pants combination in my days. Yeah, and gas was 35 cents a gallon, too.[/quote]
What was that other Texas team that wore sky blue and red? Won the first two AFL titles, as I recall, with George Blanda, Billy Cannon, Charlie Hennigan and them guys. Oh, yeah, the Houston Oilers.
I suppose that’s a sore subject in some places. If it is, I apologize.
Perhaps it’s time for hockey referees to wear neck guards. AHL zebra Chris Cozzan found out the hard way this past weekend. link
Lots of talk about early AFL here last nigh, including Phil finding a photo from the first ever LA Chargers game (hosting Dallas Texans on a September Saturday night in 1960).
Thought today I’d talk about where “Chargers” came from.
Chargers were owned by Barron Hilton of Hilton Hotels. Hard to believe now, but around 1960 having a major national credit card such as (back then) Diners Club was a big, big deal and a sign of status. Not everyone had one. Not by a long shot. Hence, being able to “charge” something to your room, or “charge” your entire stay was synonymous with high-end hotel travel.
And, of course, the other team in town was the Rams, and rams will charge you, or each other. So, just as NY Titans was a wrinkle on NY Giants, Chargers was a counterpoint to Rams.
So the name worked on two levels.
Plenty of similar instances in later years in other startup leagues. One of the most obvious being the Oakland Invaders of the USFL. Cuz, ya know, that’s not similar in definition to “Raiders” and doesn’t rhyme with it or anything.
LOL
—Ricko
I have a question to run by you guys regarding the AFL throwbacks.
Usually the NFL has a strict rule that a team can have only one alternate jersey and that jersey can be worn for only two games during the regular season. Correct me if I’m wrong, but it sounds like many of the AFL teams will wear 2 different versions of their throwbacks: colors and whites. This alone breaks traditional NFL rules.
Also, will a team like the Chargers be able to wear their standard powder blue alternates this year in addition to the throwbacks? (I’m assuming no).
I’m hoping that the NFL throws the book out the window for this occaisson and allows AFL teams to be seen in both color and white throwbacks this year. The impression I get is that they will. Does Paul or anyone else have any more info on this?
[quote comment=”320313″][quote comment=”320310″]I thought Knoblauch wore one for a time in Minnesota, but I couldn’t find a picture to prove that.[/quote]
link
don’t have time to find the actual card, but there’s a pic[/quote]
link
[quote comment=”320330″]I have a question to run by you guys regarding the AFL throwbacks.
Usually the NFL has a strict rule that a team can have only one alternate jersey and that jersey can be worn for only two games during the regular season. Correct me if I’m wrong, but it sounds like many of the AFL teams will wear 2 different versions of their throwbacks: colors and whites. This alone breaks traditional NFL rules.
Also, will a team like the Chargers be able to wear their standard powder blue alternates this year in addition to the throwbacks? (I’m assuming no).
I’m hoping that the NFL throws the book out the window for this occasion and allows AFL teams to be seen in both color and white throwbacks this year. The impression I get is that they will. Does Paul or anyone else have any more info on this?[/quote]
Good question. Would be nice to know the specifics. I guess I just assumed it’s one of those “This is the rule except when we decide it isn’t a rule” things. Y’know, that for those eight teams it’s a Special Occasion Season.
Someday I’ll write a recap of how the NFL-AFL merger came to be. There’ll be lots of talk about amity this season, and some discussion of how the AFL was absorbed by the NFL, but that won’t quite accurate. It was a merger in the truest sense of the word. The NFL vastly underestimated the demand for their own product and therefore underestimated the strength of the AFL. The NFL opened merger talks not because they were winning the inter-league battle (if they were, they wouldn’t have initiated talks), but rather because they were on the verge of losing it…or at least of spending HUGE amounts of money to fend off serious competition, and defend their player contract policies.
The ABA and WHA truly were absorbed. The NFL-AFL story is quite different. The NFL negotiated because they were getting their asses kicked, and it was about to get worse. They were the ones essentially waving the white flag, not the AFL. Anyone who tells you differently is an NFL shill or wasn’t around at the time.
As I said, someday I run through the basics of the story as it unfolded, including some points that for some reason just don’t seem to get retold anymore these days.
—Ricko
Following links in the Barell-Man story lead me to this (worth looking at just for the old program covers).
link
The “Crazy Variety Show” appears to be the 15 September 1957 episode of “Toast of the Town” – according to IMDB, Ted Williams was on that epsiode which featured the 1957 Look Magazine All-American Baseball Team. Jim Bunning, Gil McDougald and Frank Malzone are also listed in this episode.
This does not appear to be available on youtube or hulu.
[quote comment=”320271″]Now folks will believe me, since no one seemed to actually link back then.[/quote]
Fun contrast between the shirt-and-tie crowd behind first base in the Al Lopez picture, and the shirtsleeves crowd out above the picnic area in left. ;-)
[quote comment=”320320″]I had the good fortune to see a re-run of The Running Man on TV yesterday[/quote]
See, I thought THIS was the joke.
Good fortune?
;-)
[quote comment=”320336″][quote comment=”320320″]I had the good fortune to see a re-run of The Running Man on TV yesterday[/quote]
See, I thought THIS was the joke.
Good fortune?
;-)[/quote]
Listen, Richard Dawson made very few feature US films, and it’s a rare opportutnity to appreciate his charisma other than on Hogan’s Heroes or Family Feud.
(spit take)
[quote comment=”320333″]Following links in the Barell-Man story lead me to this (worth looking at just for the old program covers).
link
Wait a minute, the autographs on that 1970 scorecard (page sponsored by Sears and Oscar Mayer)??
Tommy John, Ken Berry, Duane Josephson and Walter “No-Neck” Williams!
I know who was playing the Brew Crew THAT day…
(And those 1940’s era programs sponsored by Clark Gas Stations with the Barrell MAN are ultra-cool IMHO. Love the individualized artwork of that era.)
[quote comment=”320337″]Listen, Richard Dawson made very few feature US films, and it’s a rare opportutnity to appreciate his charisma other than on Hogan’s Heroes or Family Feud.
(spit take)[/quote]
If you’re lucky you can find the Dick Van Dyke show where he played “Randy the Dandy” or something like that: I think he tried to put the moves on MTM.
I think the almost renamed the Emmy awards after that…
Anybody mention the pens ditching the blue alternates for the rest of the season? They were scheduled to wear them yesterday against the rangers. Their record when wearing them was 3-5-2.
link
[quote comment=”320334″]The “Crazy Variety Show” appears to be the 15 September 1957 episode of “Toast of the Town” – according to IMDB, Ted Williams was on that epsiode which featured the 1957 Look Magazine All-American Baseball Team. Jim Bunning, Gil McDougald and Frank Malzone are also listed in this episode.
This does not appear to be available on youtube or hulu.[/quote]
How many of these guys can we identify…?
link
I’ll give it a shot.
Back, l to r, Ernie Banks, unknown Dodger, Don Newcombe, Eddie Mathews, Harry “Suitcase” Simpson, Robin Roberts.
Front, Harvey Kuehn, Davey Williams?, stumped on the Oriole, Ted Williams, Herb Score.
—Ricko
referencing the other photo, unknown Dodger is Pee Wee Reese.
[quote comment=”320332″]or at least of spending HUGE amounts of money to fend off serious competition, and defend their player contract policies.[/quote]
JMHO, but this comes directly from the fact that a lot of the NFL people were like Halas or Art Rooney (or even the Green Bay community): their full-time job, 365 days a year was their football team. Meanwhile, Lamar Hunt and a few others didn’t really care what sort of money it took to sign great players; they could lose an almost unlimited amount of money on their team(s). The wealthy owners were definitely skewed to the AFL side.
Didn’t some of the owners in the AFL essentially “collude” to get Namath not only drafted by the Jets but also signed?
[quote comment=”320343″][quote comment=”320332″]or at least of spending HUGE amounts of money to fend off serious competition, and defend their player contract policies.[/quote]
JMHO, but this comes directly from the fact that a lot of the NFL people were like Halas or Art Rooney (or even the Green Bay community): their full-time job, 365 days a year was their football team. Meanwhile, Lamar Hunt and a few others didn’t really care what sort of money it took to sign great players; they could lose an almost unlimited amount of money on their team(s). The wealthy owners were definitely skewed to the AFL side.
Didn’t some of the owners in the AFL essentially “collude” to get Namath not only drafted by the Jets but also signed?[/quote]
Big issue was AFL taking advantage of NBC backing up the money truck to their offices. Informed his network had lost its bid to take the NFL from CBS, NBC president supposedly immediately said, “Get me Joe Foss (AFL Commissioner),” and that’s what changed pro football history. I remember reading at the time that there was so much money in the new TV deal that every AFL team would be profitable even if they never sold a single ticket to any of their games.
Led by Al Davis, they not long after adopted a strategy of signing big-name NFL players (esp. QBs) to deals for after their current contracts expired. NFL already was watching the price of draftees go through the roof in bidding wars, and now was looking at spending a fortune to re-sign players AND paying hefty legal fees to defend their reserve clause contracts in court, a fight they knew they could well lose.
There were plenty of big signings. The two I remember most were Rams’ Roman Gabriel with the Raiders and 49ers’ John Brodie with the Oilers.
No doubt the AFL was attempting to force a merger. And it worked, because that’s when the NFL said, “Enough, we’re gonna kill each other financially”, resulting in that famous secret first meeting by the statue of the Texas Ranger in the Dallas airport between Lamar Hunt and either Tex Schramm or Clint Murchison of the Cowboys (can’t remember which for sure).
It was all about money, not personal fortunes but the money generated by the incredible burgeoning TV audience for professional football. An audience that, had the NFL foreseen it, would have been smarter to expand NHL-style (just add a whole division all at once). Would have been much, much cheaper for them AND they’d have collected expansion fees, too.
Another reason GGEP was so significant. Watching that game was when Lamar Hunt realized this incredible product was available only in 11 cities (Cards still in Chicago) and saw an opportunity. In other words, he had more vision and foresight than the NFL did.
And, eventually, the size of the NFL almost doubled because he was right.
—Ricko
I just got the new NHL Shop catalog in the mail today and found something interesting.
I would scan the page and attatch it here, but I don’t have a scanner. So if somebody else has a scanner and gets the NHL Shop catalog in the mail, could you attatch the page in question.
Anyways, on page 10 (or the “Premier Player Jersey” page if the NHL sends out more than one version of the catalog), there are 3 jerseys that stick out to me. The three are Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, Jonathan Toews and the Blackhawks, and Sidney “Second Coming of Christ” Crosby of the Penguins. Those stick out to me because all 3 of those players are captains of their repected teams, yet when you look in the catalog, Sidney Crosby’s jersey is the only one to actually feature the captain’s “C” on the front.
Here’s the pictures from shop.nhl.com, which confirm the same thing as the catalog…
Lidstrom – link
Toews – link
Crosby – link
No question there who the NHL and Reebok’s golden boy is…
[quote comment=”320329″]Lots of talk about early AFL here last nigh, including Phil finding a photo from the first ever LA Chargers game (hosting Dallas Texans on a September Saturday night in 1960).
Thought today I’d talk about where “Chargers” came from.
Chargers were owned by Barron Hilton of Hilton Hotels. Hard to believe now, but around 1960 having a major national credit card such as (back then) Diners Club was a big, big deal and a sign of status. Not everyone had one. Not by a long shot. Hence, being able to “charge” something to your room, or “charge” your entire stay was synonymous with high-end hotel travel.
And, of course, the other team in town was the Rams, and rams will charge you, or each other. So, just as NY Titans was a wrinkle on NY Giants, Chargers was a counterpoint to Rams.
So the name worked on two levels…
—Ricko[/quote]
More than two levels, I think, Ricko. Level #1: “Charger” in the sense of of a Diners Club swell who charges his meal. Never officially explicit (to my knowledge), but widely understood. Level #2: “Charger” as a steed that is mounted by a knight and charges at the enemy. A stylized horse’s head appears frequently in early franchise decorations. Level #3: “Charger” as someone or something with an electrical charge. Hence the lightning bolts, which had first appeared as a helmet motif a few years earlier on the (then new) USAF Academy teams coached by Ben Martin. I think.
But according to Chargers.com, the team was named in a contest by a fan named Gerald Courtney?
link
[quote comment=”320329″]Lots of talk about early AFL here last nigh, including Phil finding a photo from the first ever LA Chargers game (hosting Dallas Texans on a September Saturday night in 1960).
Thought today I’d talk about where “Chargers” came from.
Chargers were owned by Barron Hilton of Hilton Hotels. Hard to believe now, but around 1960 having a major national credit card such as (back then) Diners Club was a big, big deal and a sign of status. Not everyone had one. Not by a long shot. Hence, being able to “charge” something to your room, or “charge” your entire stay was synonymous with high-end hotel travel.
And, of course, the other team in town was the Rams, and rams will charge you, or each other. So, just as NY Titans was a wrinkle on NY Giants, Chargers was a counterpoint to Rams.
So the name worked on two levels.
Plenty of similar instances in later years in other startup leagues. One of the most obvious being the Oakland Invaders of the USFL. Cuz, ya know, that’s not similar in definition to “Raiders” and doesn’t rhyme with it or anything.
LOL
—Ricko[/quote]
yes, $18-at least the cashier told me that when I asked the price out of morbid interest.
I don’t even think that was the worst deal in the shop. I actually went in to purchase an official Citi Field game ball, it was $30!!! I gently placed it back on the shelf.
[quote comment=”320346″]I just got the new NHL Shop catalog in the mail today and found something interesting.
I would scan the page and attatch it here, but I don’t have a scanner. So if somebody else has a scanner and gets the NHL Shop catalog in the mail, could you attatch the page in question.
Anyways, on page 10 (or the “Premier Player Jersey” page if the NHL sends out more than one version of the catalog), there are 3 jerseys that stick out to me. The three are Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, Jonathan Toews and the Blackhawks, and Sidney “Second Coming of Christ” Crosby of the Penguins. Those stick out to me because all 3 of those players are captains of their repected teams, yet when you look in the catalog, Sidney Crosby’s jersey is the only one to actually feature the captain’s “C” on the front.
Here’s the pictures from shop.nhl.com, which confirm the same thing as the catalog…
Lidstrom – link
Toews – link
Crosby – link
No question there who the NHL and Reebok’s golden boy is…[/quote]
Considering just how boring of a person he is, you’d think the NHL would try to hype someone else who might actually bring some exposure to the league…
But that would assume Bettman knew what the hell he was doing… bad assumption
[quote comment=”320347″][quote comment=”320329″]Lots of talk about early AFL here last nigh, including Phil finding a photo from the first ever LA Chargers game (hosting Dallas Texans on a September Saturday night in 1960).
Thought today I’d talk about where “Chargers” came from.
Chargers were owned by Barron Hilton of Hilton Hotels. Hard to believe now, but around 1960 having a major national credit card such as (back then) Diners Club was a big, big deal and a sign of status. Not everyone had one. Not by a long shot. Hence, being able to “charge” something to your room, or “charge” your entire stay was synonymous with high-end hotel travel.
And, of course, the other team in town was the Rams, and rams will charge you, or each other. So, just as NY Titans was a wrinkle on NY Giants, Chargers was a counterpoint to Rams.
So the name worked on two levels…
—Ricko[/quote]
More than two levels, I think, Ricko. Level #1: “Charger” in the sense of of a Diners Club swell who charges his meal. Never officially explicit (to my knowledge), but widely understood. Level #2: “Charger” as a steed that is mounted by a knight and charges at the enemy. A stylized horse’s head appears frequently in early franchise decorations. Level #3: “Charger” as someone or something with an electrical charge. Hence the lightning bolts, which had first appeared as a helmet motif a few years earlier on the (then new) USAF Academy teams coached by Ben Martin. I think.[/quote]
You’re right, of course. I probably should have said “at least” two levels. I mentioned two that were uniquely relevant to the situation: Hilton’s hotel empire and the “bounce” off the same-market Rams. Charger as horse and rider, and electric, lighting-bolt image could apply to any team named Chargers, owned by anyone, anywhere.
Point is, I think we agree. A darn good nickname because of all the layers to it.
—Ricko
[quote comment=”320346″]I just got the new NHL Shop catalog in the mail today and found something interesting.
I would scan the page and attatch it here, but I don’t have a scanner. So if somebody else has a scanner and gets the NHL Shop catalog in the mail, could you attatch the page in question.
Anyways, on page 10 (or the “Premier Player Jersey” page if the NHL sends out more than one version of the catalog), there are 3 jerseys that stick out to me. The three are Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, Jonathan Toews and the Blackhawks, and Sidney “Second Coming of Christ” Crosby of the Penguins. Those stick out to me because all 3 of those players are captains of their repected teams, yet when you look in the catalog, Sidney Crosby’s jersey is the only one to actually feature the captain’s “C” on the front.
Here’s the pictures from shop.nhl.com, which confirm the same thing as the catalog…
Lidstrom – link
Toews – link
Crosby – link
No question there who the NHL and Reebok’s golden boy is…[/quote]
That’s a stretch…you don’t just think that was an error made by someone that was putting the catalog together?
[quote comment=”320351″][quote comment=”320347″][quote comment=”320329″]Lots of talk about early AFL here last nigh, including Phil finding a photo from the first ever LA Chargers game (hosting Dallas Texans on a September Saturday night in 1960).
Thought today I’d talk about where “Chargers” came from.
Chargers were owned by Barron Hilton of Hilton Hotels. Hard to believe now, but around 1960 having a major national credit card such as (back then) Diners Club was a big, big deal and a sign of status. Not everyone had one. Not by a long shot. Hence, being able to “charge” something to your room, or “charge” your entire stay was synonymous with high-end hotel travel.
And, of course, the other team in town was the Rams, and rams will charge you, or each other. So, just as NY Titans was a wrinkle on NY Giants, Chargers was a counterpoint to Rams.
So the name worked on two levels…
—Ricko[/quote]
More than two levels, I think, Ricko. Level #1: “Charger” in the sense of of a Diners Club swell who charges his meal. Never officially explicit (to my knowledge), but widely understood. Level #2: “Charger” as a steed that is mounted by a knight and charges at the enemy. A stylized horse’s head appears frequently in early franchise decorations. Level #3: “Charger” as someone or something with an electrical charge. Hence the lightning bolts, which had first appeared as a helmet motif a few years earlier on the (then new) USAF Academy teams coached by Ben Martin. I think.[/quote]
You’re right, of course. I probably should have said “at least” two levels. I mentioned two that were uniquely relevant to the situation: Hilton’s hotel empire and the “bounce” off the same-market Rams. Charger as horse and rider, and electric, lighting-bolt image could apply to any team named Chargers, owned by anyone, anywhere.
Point is, I think we agree. A darn good nickname because of all the layers to it.
—Ricko[/quote]
Yessir.
[quote comment=\”320332\”]
Someday I’ll write a recap of how the NFL-AFL merger came to be. There’ll be lots of talk about amity this season, and some discussion of how the AFL was absorbed by the NFL, but that won’t quite accurate. It was a merger in the truest sense of the word. The NFL vastly underestimated the demand for their own product and therefore underestimated the strength of the AFL. The NFL opened merger talks not because they were winning the inter-league battle (if they were, they wouldn’t have initiated talks), but rather because they were on the verge of losing it…or at least of spending HUGE amounts of money to fend off serious competition, and defend their player contract policies.
The ABA and WHA truly were absorbed. The NFL-AFL story is quite different. The NFL negotiated because they were getting their asses kicked, and it was about to get worse. They were the ones essentially waving the white flag, not the AFL. Anyone who tells you differently is an NFL shill or wasn’t around at the time.
As I said, someday I run through the basics of the story as it unfolded, including some points that for some reason just don’t seem to get retold anymore these days.
—Ricko[/quote]
Well hell, I’m only 26, and that’s the way I’ve always heard it, that it was in fact a true merger. Perhaps I was just lucky enough to read the correct books growing up.
Hey guys- I have a merchandising question for you. I was reading a forum devoted to my beloved WVU Mountaineers, and one poster pointed out that the offical WVU online store is selling 08-09 football jerseys for about 50% off:
link
Selling the #5 (Pat White) at half price makes sense, because he’s graduating. But posters on the WVU board are speculating about whether or not a jersey design change might be imminent, since they’re also selling #7s and #47s at half off, even though those players are returning next season. My question is this: is it simply a case of inventory reduction, or do you think it might be an indicator that a new design is on the way? I realize it might just be wishful thinking… I’ve been suffering with that numeral font for too many seasons already.
[quote comment=”320354″][quote comment=\”320332\”]
Someday I’ll write a recap of how the NFL-AFL merger came to be. There’ll be lots of talk about amity this season, and some discussion of how the AFL was absorbed by the NFL, but that won’t quite accurate. It was a merger in the truest sense of the word. The NFL vastly underestimated the demand for their own product and therefore underestimated the strength of the AFL. The NFL opened merger talks not because they were winning the inter-league battle (if they were, they wouldn’t have initiated talks), but rather because they were on the verge of losing it…or at least of spending HUGE amounts of money to fend off serious competition, and defend their player contract policies.
The ABA and WHA truly were absorbed. The NFL-AFL story is quite different. The NFL negotiated because they were getting their asses kicked, and it was about to get worse. They were the ones essentially waving the white flag, not the AFL. Anyone who tells you differently is an NFL shill or wasn’t around at the time.
As I said, someday I run through the basics of the story as it unfolded, including some points that for some reason just don’t seem to get retold anymore these days.
—Ricko[/quote]
Well hell, I’m only 26, and that’s the way I’ve always heard it, that it was in fact a true merger. Perhaps I was just lucky enough to read the correct books growing up.[/quote]
Always good to get the best sources. There’s a lot of “NFL cocky” still around, largely from uninformed fans, and we’ll probably hear a lot of it this fall. Glad to hear not everyone’s buying it.
[quote comment=”320352″][quote comment=”320346″]I just got the new NHL Shop catalog in the mail today and found something interesting.
I would scan the page and attatch it here, but I don’t have a scanner. So if somebody else has a scanner and gets the NHL Shop catalog in the mail, could you attatch the page in question.
Anyways, on page 10 (or the “Premier Player Jersey” page if the NHL sends out more than one version of the catalog), there are 3 jerseys that stick out to me. The three are Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, Jonathan Toews and the Blackhawks, and Sidney “Second Coming of Christ” Crosby of the Penguins. Those stick out to me because all 3 of those players are captains of their repected teams, yet when you look in the catalog, Sidney Crosby’s jersey is the only one to actually feature the captain’s “C” on the front.
Here’s the pictures from shop.nhl.com, which confirm the same thing as the catalog…
Lidstrom – link
Toews – link
Crosby – link
No question there who the NHL and Reebok’s golden boy is…[/quote]
That’s a stretch…you don’t just think that was an error made by someone that was putting the catalog together?[/quote]
Just catalog, maybe, but catalog AND website? Too much of a coincidence for me. There has to be more to that than just pure laziness.
[quote comment=”320352″][quote comment=”320346″]I just got the new NHL Shop catalog in the mail today and found something interesting.
I would scan the page and attatch it here, but I don’t have a scanner. So if somebody else has a scanner and gets the NHL Shop catalog in the mail, could you attatch the page in question.
Anyways, on page 10 (or the “Premier Player Jersey” page if the NHL sends out more than one version of the catalog), there are 3 jerseys that stick out to me. The three are Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, Jonathan Toews and the Blackhawks, and Sidney “Second Coming of Christ” Crosby of the Penguins. Those stick out to me because all 3 of those players are captains of their repected teams, yet when you look in the catalog, Sidney Crosby’s jersey is the only one to actually feature the captain’s “C” on the front.
Here’s the pictures from shop.nhl.com, which confirm the same thing as the catalog…
Lidstrom – link
Toews – link
Crosby – link
No question there who the NHL and Reebok’s golden boy is…[/quote]
That’s a stretch…you don’t just think that was an error made by someone that was putting the catalog together?[/quote]
no, crosby is actually captain of the league… just an F.Y.I., no biggie.
[quote comment=”320358″][quote comment=”320352″][quote comment=”320346″]I just got the new NHL Shop catalog in the mail today and found something interesting.
I would scan the page and attatch it here, but I don’t have a scanner. So if somebody else has a scanner and gets the NHL Shop catalog in the mail, could you attatch the page in question.
Anyways, on page 10 (or the “Premier Player Jersey” page if the NHL sends out more than one version of the catalog), there are 3 jerseys that stick out to me. The three are Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, Jonathan Toews and the Blackhawks, and Sidney “Second Coming of Christ” Crosby of the Penguins. Those stick out to me because all 3 of those players are captains of their repected teams, yet when you look in the catalog, Sidney Crosby’s jersey is the only one to actually feature the captain’s “C” on the front.
Here’s the pictures from shop.nhl.com, which confirm the same thing as the catalog…
Lidstrom – link
Toews – link
Crosby – link
No question there who the NHL and Reebok’s golden boy is…[/quote]
That’s a stretch…you don’t just think that was an error made by someone that was putting the catalog together?[/quote]
Just catalog, maybe, but catalog AND website? Too much of a coincidence for me. There has to be more to that than just pure laziness.[/quote]
I think you’re thinking way too much into it. I’m sure you wouldn’t say a word if Crosby’s jersey was without a “C” and one or both of the others did.
[quote comment=”320359″][quote comment=”320352″][quote comment=”320346″]I just got the new NHL Shop catalog in the mail today and found something interesting.
I would scan the page and attatch it here, but I don’t have a scanner. So if somebody else has a scanner and gets the NHL Shop catalog in the mail, could you attatch the page in question.
Anyways, on page 10 (or the “Premier Player Jersey” page if the NHL sends out more than one version of the catalog), there are 3 jerseys that stick out to me. The three are Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, Jonathan Toews and the Blackhawks, and Sidney “Second Coming of Christ” Crosby of the Penguins. Those stick out to me because all 3 of those players are captains of their repected teams, yet when you look in the catalog, Sidney Crosby’s jersey is the only one to actually feature the captain’s “C” on the front.
Here’s the pictures from shop.nhl.com, which confirm the same thing as the catalog…
Lidstrom – link
Toews – link
Crosby – link
No question there who the NHL and Reebok’s golden boy is…[/quote]
That’s a stretch…you don’t just think that was an error made by someone that was putting the catalog together?[/quote]
no, crosby is actually captain of the league… just an F.Y.I., no biggie.[/quote]
LOL… that’s good stuff, Ry!
[quote comment=”320359″]
no, crosby is actually captain of the league… just an F.Y.I., no biggie.[/quote]
Actually, it’s an issue of the web designer. They design photos for both the website and the catalogue. As you can see on the Lidstrom jersey, the font is totally wrong for his name. Toews is getting closer, but the captain’s “C” on Crosby is an italicized “C” of that crap font.
When I worked at Rip-Off City Sports, the web guys took photos of the actual jerseys so that there wasn’t any messing with fonts. When going for accuracy, the real thing is far better than some mocked up version.
Hey teebz et al:
Any idea why UNB had its sponsons on their jerseys taped over in yesterdays CIS hockey finals? Some players had the sponsor over the left shoulder taped over, some the right side sponsor.
Not surprisingly, Canadian University Hockey pics are hard to come by.
That “crazy variety show” is a puzzler. The “Toast of the Town” of 9/23/51 (aka “The Ed Sullivan Show”) is the likeliest match: link, given Tony Bennett and Robert Merrill, but it can’t be that, given the presence of Robert Straus and Paul Winchell, and the Braves player in the background is clearly wearing a Milwaukee cap.
[quote comment=”320363″]Hey teebz et al:
Any idea why UNB had its sponsons on their jerseys taped over in yesterdays CIS hockey finals? Some players had the sponsor over the left shoulder taped over, some the right side sponsor.
Not surprisingly, Canadian University Hockey pics are hard to come by.[/quote]
I believe that the sponsors who pay for the advertising rights of the Championship Final get priority. Since the local sponsors of UNB didn’t pay for advertising rights, I assume that the organizers had UNB cover them up.
You can see the tape on the goalie’s left shoulder in link.
[quote comment=”320345″]
It was all about money, not personal fortunes but the money generated by the incredible burgeoning TV audience for professional football. An audience that, had the NFL foreseen it, would have been smarter to expand NHL-style (just add a whole division all at once). Would have been much, much cheaper for them AND they’d have collected expansion fees, too.
Another reason GGEP was so significant. Watching that game was when Lamar Hunt realized this incredible product was available only in 11 cities (Cards still in Chicago) and saw an opportunity. In other words, he had more vision and foresight than the NFL did. [/quote]
I’ll have to go back and re-read. I remember the idea that Lamar Hunt and a few others had tried to get into the NFL one way or another for a while and then finally just said “screw it, new league”. But the other point that was made was the TV markets. We didn’t have quite the centralization that we have today, but the NFL had Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit all to themselves while the AFL was in KC and Denver and Houston. Sooner or later something had to give with that.
I know George Halas had a LOT to do with the idea that Minnesota started out getting an AFL franchise but eventually got into the NFL instead (and IIRC, that franchise became the Raiders, correct?)
[quote comment=”320300″][quote comment=”320296″][quote]You have to look long and hard to find the Dominos Inaugural Season patch in the stadium. I did see a patch for sale behind a cashier for $18.[/quote]
they sell the patch for $18…seriously?[/quote]
Seriously!
Shit, I bought my 2006 Stanley Cup Finals patch for $9 and I thought I was overpaying for it. $18 for a blue square and orange rectangle? LOL![/quote]
Well, I asked about the Hurricanes 10th anniversary patch last year, the thing was $15. I didn’t get it.
It seems to be about the going rate.
[quote comment=”320367″][quote comment=”320300″][quote comment=”320296″][quote]You have to look long and hard to find the Dominos Inaugural Season patch in the stadium. I did see a patch for sale behind a cashier for $18.[/quote]
they sell the patch for $18…seriously?[/quote]
Seriously!
Shit, I bought my 2006 Stanley Cup Finals patch for $9 and I thought I was overpaying for it. $18 for a blue square and orange rectangle? LOL![/quote]
Well, I asked about the Hurricanes 10th anniversary patch last year, the thing was $15. I didn’t get it.
It seems to be about the going rate.[/quote]
The “going rate” is based upon thread counts – specifically, the amount of colour and the amount thread used. Generally, officially licensed patches will range from about $10 (one-color) to up to $60 USD (multi-colour, large patch).
[quote comment=”320360″][quote comment=”320358″][quote comment=”320352″][quote comment=”320346″]I just got the new NHL Shop catalog in the mail today and found something interesting.
I would scan the page and attatch it here, but I don’t have a scanner. So if somebody else has a scanner and gets the NHL Shop catalog in the mail, could you attatch the page in question.
Anyways, on page 10 (or the “Premier Player Jersey” page if the NHL sends out more than one version of the catalog), there are 3 jerseys that stick out to me. The three are Nicklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings, Jonathan Toews and the Blackhawks, and Sidney “Second Coming of Christ” Crosby of the Penguins. Those stick out to me because all 3 of those players are captains of their repected teams, yet when you look in the catalog, Sidney Crosby’s jersey is the only one to actually feature the captain’s “C” on the front.
Here’s the pictures from shop.nhl.com, which confirm the same thing as the catalog…
Lidstrom – link
Toews – link
Crosby – link
No question there who the NHL and Reebok’s golden boy is…[/quote]
That’s a stretch…you don’t just think that was an error made by someone that was putting the catalog together?[/quote]
Just catalog, maybe, but catalog AND website? Too much of a coincidence for me. There has to be more to that than just pure laziness.[/quote]
I think you’re thinking way too much into it. I’m sure you wouldn’t say a word if Crosby’s jersey was without a “C” and one or both of the others did.[/quote]
I wouldn’t have cared as much, but I still would’ve said the same thing. When it comes to jerseys, I’m all about details. For every single replica I own, this is missing something somewhere (e.g. MLB replicas without sleeve patches), I buy what is needed and have it put on so that it looks more authentic. On that page of the catalog, Ryan Getzlaf, Simon Gagne, Evgeni Malkin, Joe Thornton, and Alexander Ovechkin are all missing alternate captain “A”s. I overlooked Vincent Lecavalier on that page as well, who like Toews and Lidstrom, is missing a captain “C” as well.
Why is it that Crosby is the only guy on the page that has a captains letter when there are all kinds of guys (8 to be exact) on the same page that wear one (either a C or A)?
Caleb,
Thanks for all the rugby updates you send in, and nice job on today’s entry.
I totally agree with you about how dumb it is to have a scrumcap that doesn’t match. If I can pay a little extra to make sure mine matches for a New York State D3 club team, I’m sure it shouldn’t be too hard for a Wallaby to do it as well.
i wan’t incredulous about the price of the patch
just that there might be anyone who would want the patch
Anent rugby: while it’s not [yet] as popular as basketball, soccer, and baseball, it is a virtually worldwide sport (in both its Union and League versions). In the USA it is played in a goodly number of venues, especially in the major cities.
(Keep in mind that had there never been rugby, there never would have been “American” football, collegiate or professional. Ruggers don’t have to be 300-pound+ monsters or steroid-laced jerks to do well in the sport; all they need is a desire to play well and accept punishment. What more can one ask?)
[quote comment=”320369″]
Why is it that Crosby is the only guy on the page that has a captains letter when there are all kinds of guys (8 to be exact) on the same page that wear one (either a C or A)?[/quote]
Guaranteed that his jerseys sell the most. Therefore, he gets the customization.
[quote comment=”320368″][quote comment=”320367″][quote comment=”320300″][quote comment=”320296″][quote]You have to look long and hard to find the Dominos Inaugural Season patch in the stadium. I did see a patch for sale behind a cashier for $18.[/quote]
they sell the patch for $18…seriously?[/quote]
Seriously!
Shit, I bought my 2006 Stanley Cup Finals patch for $9 and I thought I was overpaying for it. $18 for a blue square and orange rectangle? LOL![/quote]
Well, I asked about the Hurricanes 10th anniversary patch last year, the thing was $15. I didn’t get it.
It seems to be about the going rate.[/quote]
The “going rate” is based upon thread counts – specifically, the amount of colour and the amount thread used. Generally, officially licensed patches will range from about $10 (one-color) to up to $60 USD (multi-colour, large patch).[/quote]
Still nowhere near cost. I’ve helped look into having patches made for boy scouts in the past, and they’re based on size and count. Threads all cost the same (except for special ones like metallics, which the Canes did use), and the machines used are setup for multiple needles and such. It’s not like screenprinting where you have to make a new screen for every color.
link has a patch like the Mets, full embroidery, no special threads, about 6 inches, at 1.98 cents a patch with more then 2000 pieces.
Hurricanes patch qualifies as a 7.5 inch patch (, and has metallic thread. Not fully embroidered, white backing. For 2000 pieces and up, $3.57 a patch, with the metallic comes out to 4.27 a patch.
They really have a lot of stones to sell those things for that much.
[quote comment=”320374″]
They really have a lot of stones to sell those things for that much.[/quote]
Perhaps you missed the part about being “officially licensed”. MLB takes a major cut from every patch sold. That place you linked to would be put in the grave if they started advertising that they made MLB patches without MLB’s authorization.
Anytime anything is officially licensed by one of the big four, someone is making a killing. And it’s never the buyer.
[quote comment=”320375″][quote comment=”320374″]
They really have a lot of stones to sell those things for that much.[/quote]
Perhaps you missed the part about being “officially licensed”. MLB takes a major cut from every patch sold. That place you linked to would be put in the grave if they started advertising that they made MLB patches without MLB’s authorization.
Anytime anything is officially licensed by one of the big four, someone is making a killing. And it’s never the buyer.[/quote]
Yeah, licensing fees, I’m familiar with them. They’re the reason why a near pro spec RBK Edge jersey costs 30 bucks without the logo and they cost $200 plus with it.
What I’m saying is that it takes balls to put a $10 licensing fee on a $2 patch. Those fees are really what pisses me off most about pro sports these days.
It doesn’t have to be that way though. A 5950 costs you $35. We had somebody learn from a minor league equipment manager last year that they cost the teams $17 for players, and they get them at cost. So they’re basically charging the same fee for an on field, authentic hat, and a $2 patch. Even for the corporate world of sports, that’s wrong.
Hair today..gone tomorrow?
link
Don’t expect the Brawn GP cars to have a new livery (always thought that was a damn cool term) for the next race seeing as the next race is this weekend and it is in Malaysia. There is a certain approval process for liveries and it is doubtful they’ll have time to apply it to the cars for this weekend. Plus the team just laid off more than a third of their employees.
[quote comment=”320366″][quote comment=”320345″]
It was all about money, not personal fortunes but the money generated by the incredible burgeoning TV audience for professional football. An audience that, had the NFL foreseen it, would have been smarter to expand NHL-style (just add a whole division all at once). Would have been much, much cheaper for them AND they’d have collected expansion fees, too.
Another reason GGEP was so significant. Watching that game was when Lamar Hunt realized this incredible product was available only in 11 cities (Cards still in Chicago) and saw an opportunity. In other words, he had more vision and foresight than the NFL did. [/quote]
I’ll have to go back and re-read. I remember the idea that Lamar Hunt and a few others had tried to get into the NFL one way or another for a while and then finally just said “screw it, new league”. But the other point that was made was the TV markets. We didn’t have quite the centralization that we have today, but the NFL had Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit all to themselves while the AFL was in KC and Denver and Houston. Sooner or later something had to give with that.
I know George Halas had a LOT to do with the idea that Minnesota started out getting an AFL franchise but eventually got into the NFL instead (and IIRC, that franchise became the Raiders, correct?)[/quote]
Yup, the Raiders. In fact, the group that ended up owning the Vikings went through the first AFL draft. Then the NFL, spurred by Halas, approached the same group offering an NFL franchise. That group basically said, “See yeah” and bolted for the NFL, leaving the AFL in a heartbeat. The AFL scrambled to find a location, settling on an Oakland team that didn’t actually play a regular season game IN Oakland until its third year.
An interesting bit of trivia, I suppose. That group went through two collegiate drafts before they ever played a game. Their AFL draft for the ’60 season saw them take Wisconsin QB Dale Hackbart #1. In their NFL draft for ’61, they took Tulane RB Tommy Mason with the first choice. Strangely enough, Hackbart ended up with the Vikings as a headhunting safety.
Yes, Hunt and them DID try to get into the NFL after the GGEP, but the NFL resisted, meaning they brought the whole thing on themselves by being too exclusive and too cocky.
But the eventual merger wasn’t about anyone wanting more TV markets, or anything so scientific. It was about the AFL having more TV money than the NFL ever imagined they would…and that’s what precipitated the merger. Not market analysis nor anything like it. It was simply going to cost both leagues a fortune to contining battling the way they were. So, being businessmen, they looked at each other and said, This is stupid, let’s figure out something. And that’s the truth of it.
—Ricko
[quote comment=”320376″]
It doesn’t have to be that way though.[/quote]
That’s capitalism. If you’re the only one that can offer it, you can sell it for whatever you like.
As wrong as it is, that’s how profit margins are made. Until someone from baseball’s executive front office says “whoa”, this whole thing is merely academic.
Shorpy has a link. they are wearing striped headbands!
[quote comment=”320380″]
But the eventual merger wasn’t about anyone wanting more TV markets, or anything so scientific. It was about the AFL having more TV money than the NFL ever imagined they would…and that’s what precipitated the merger. Not market analysis nor anything like it. It was simply going to cost both leagues a fortune to contining battling the way they were. So, being businessmen, they looked at each other and said, This is stupid, let’s figure out something. And that’s the truth of it.[/quote]
Do you think that sooner or later CBS would have ponied up some extra $$ given the TV markets? I think someone said that the NBC contract wasn’t economically feasible long term and sooner or later, the NFL would have figured out how to leverage the sets in the NE that they controlled.
[quote comment=”320330″]I have a question to run by you guys regarding the AFL throwbacks.
Usually the NFL has a strict rule that a team can have only one alternate jersey and that jersey can be worn for only two games during the regular season. Correct me if I’m wrong, but it sounds like many of the AFL teams will wear 2 different versions of their throwbacks: colors and whites. This alone breaks traditional NFL rules.
Also, will a team like the Chargers be able to wear their standard powder blue alternates this year in addition to the throwbacks? (I’m assuming no).
I’m hoping that the NFL throws the book out the window for this occaisson and allows AFL teams to be seen in both color and white throwbacks this year. The impression I get is that they will. Does Paul or anyone else have any more info on this?[/quote]
A couple of years ago the Saints wore their regular Black and White jerseys, and then wore their one-and-done Vegas (Weak Cat Piss) Gold Alternates, and later still the same season wore their 1967-1968 Throwback unis. That’s four jerseys in one season, and if I’m not mistaken at least three, if not all four jerseys were worn at home.
That breaks the rule, unless it’s a newer rule.
[quote comment=”320341″][quote comment=”320334″]The “Crazy Variety Show” appears to be the 15 September 1957 episode of “Toast of the Town” – according to IMDB, Ted Williams was on that epsiode which featured the 1957 Look Magazine All-American Baseball Team. Jim Bunning, Gil McDougald and Frank Malzone are also listed in this episode.
This does not appear to be available on youtube or hulu.[/quote]
How many of these guys can we identify…?
link
I’ll give it a shot.
Back, l to r, Ernie Banks, unknown Dodger, Don Newcombe, Eddie Mathews, Harry “Suitcase” Simpson, Robin Roberts.
Front, Harvey Kuehn, Davey Williams?, stumped on the Oriole, Ted Williams, Herb Score.
—Ricko[/quote]
I’m 99% sure the Orioles is Billy Loes.
[quote comment=”320353″][quote comment=”320351″][quote comment=”320347″][quote comment=”320329″]Lots of talk about early AFL here last nigh, including Phil finding a photo from the first ever LA Chargers game (hosting Dallas Texans on a September Saturday night in 1960).
Thought today I’d talk about where “Chargers” came from.
Chargers were owned by Barron Hilton of Hilton Hotels. Hard to believe now, but around 1960 having a major national credit card such as (back then) Diners Club was a big, big deal and a sign of status. Not everyone had one. Not by a long shot. Hence, being able to “charge” something to your room, or “charge” your entire stay was synonymous with high-end hotel travel.
And, of course, the other team in town was the Rams, and rams will charge you, or each other. So, just as NY Titans was a wrinkle on NY Giants, Chargers was a counterpoint to Rams.
So the name worked on two levels…
—Ricko[/quote]
More than two levels, I think, Ricko. Level #1: “Charger” in the sense of of a Diners Club swell who charges his meal. Never officially explicit (to my knowledge), but widely understood. Level #2: “Charger” as a steed that is mounted by a knight and charges at the enemy. A stylized horse’s head appears frequently in early franchise decorations. Level #3: “Charger” as someone or something with an electrical charge. Hence the lightning bolts, which had first appeared as a helmet motif a few years earlier on the (then new) USAF Academy teams coached by Ben Martin. I think.[/quote]
You’re right, of course. I probably should have said “at least” two levels. I mentioned two that were uniquely relevant to the situation: Hilton’s hotel empire and the “bounce” off the same-market Rams. Charger as horse and rider, and electric, lighting-bolt image could apply to any team named Chargers, owned by anyone, anywhere.
Point is, I think we agree. A darn good nickname because of all the layers to it.
—Ricko[/quote]
Yessir.[/quote]
Well,that shoots the story I had rattling around in my head (thinking I read it somewhere) that the league forced that nickname on the Los Angeles franchise because of the battle cry, duh-duh-dat-dat-dat-duh-h-h-h CHARGE!
[quote comment=”320383″][quote comment=”320380″]
But the eventual merger wasn’t about anyone wanting more TV markets, or anything so scientific. It was about the AFL having more TV money than the NFL ever imagined they would…and that’s what precipitated the merger. Not market analysis nor anything like it. It was simply going to cost both leagues a fortune to contining battling the way they were. So, being businessmen, they looked at each other and said, This is stupid, let’s figure out something. And that’s the truth of it.[/quote]
Do you think that sooner or later CBS would have ponied up some extra $$ given the TV markets? I think someone said that the NBC contract wasn’t economically feasible long term and sooner or later, the NFL would have figured out how to leverage the sets in the NE that they controlled.[/quote]
I doubt that even the most far-sighted person in 1961 foretold the bazillion-dollar TV contract the NFL now controls. Surely not my broker. Back then, millions of dollars made people’s heads spin. Who’d have thought about a billion, let alone $20 billion?
[quote]Until someone from baseball’s executive front office says “whoa”[/quote]
whoa
During the SPEEDtv coverage of the F1 Australian Grand Prix weekend, Steve Matchett spoke of a conversation he had during the winter with Red Bull Racing team manager Jonathan Wheatley. Wheatley said that they were so concerned with weight distribution in the car that they redesigned the drivers’ suits to reduce the weight by 30 GRAMS.
Unbelievable that they think they can tell the difference that 30g makes in a 600kg car.
[quote comment=”320389″]they redesigned the drivers’ suits to reduce the weight by 30 GRAMS.
Unbelievable that they think they can tell the difference that 30g makes in a 600kg car.[/quote]
Unbelievable that they think they can tell the difference that 30g makes in a 600kg car.[/quote]
The reason they went to such length\’s is the introduction of the KERS system adds 80kg of weight to the car while producing 80 additional hp. Basically that means running KERS is a push. There is a huge demand to find ways to save any weight possible in order to make KERS more feesable for teams. The 30g taken off the suit was one of many areas I\’m sure were trimmed. Plus when running KERS it limits how they can run the ballast in the car.
Another thing to consider is that small changes can have a monumental change in the attitude of the car. In NASCAR they alter tire pressures by tenths of a pound now a days and it can dramatically change the handling of the car. Formula 1 machines are tuned very very specifically and every small advantage is exploited. One only has to look at all the appendages run the last few years, which are banned this year, to understand the measures teams would go to gain just a little bit more of an advantage.
$49… not too shabby.
link
[quote comment=”320383″][quote comment=”320380″]
But the eventual merger wasn’t about anyone wanting more TV markets, or anything so scientific. It was about the AFL having more TV money than the NFL ever imagined they would…and that’s what precipitated the merger. Not market analysis nor anything like it. It was simply going to cost both leagues a fortune to contining battling the way they were. So, being businessmen, they looked at each other and said, This is stupid, let’s figure out something. And that’s the truth of it.[/quote]
Do you think that sooner or later CBS would have ponied up some extra $$ given the TV markets? I think someone said that the NBC contract wasn’t economically feasible long term and sooner or later, the NFL would have figured out how to leverage the sets in the NE that they controlled.[/quote]
I certainly don’t think the AFL was going to get LESS money in its next contract. Their numbers were up, ABC was longing to get pro football back onto its schedule after losing it and was ready to bid against NBC. I don’t think NBC was ready to give it up and, well…they didn’t. How serious was ABC? Within two years of the merger Roone Arledge was floating the idea of Monday Night Football past Pete Rozelle, so it’s obvious that every network wanted a slice of that pro football viewing pie.
And to whom would CBS have paid that money? CBS would have bid on BOTH leagues? How would that have worked? And just how exactly would the NFL have “leveraged” the NE markets if the Jets, Bills and Patriots were in the other league?
Remember, it was the NFL that initiated the merger talks. Would they have done that if they thought the AFL was about to nosedive? Schramm or Murchison contacted a Texas sportwriter (SI’s Tex Maule, maybe?, Blackie Sherrod, maybe?; I don’t remember right now), who in turn contacted Lamar Hunt…and that was the origin of the meeting at the Ranger statue.
For those of us who were around and following the merger as it developed, it’s sometimes hard to listen to theories apparently based on the belief that the NFL wss somehow invincible and could have taken out the AFL anytime it wanted. Cuz that just wasn’t the case. Not after that NBC deal, anyway.
The NFL was arrogant. Period. The just didn’t think any “start-up” league could compete with them. And they were SO wrong. I don’t mean on the field. I mean on TV. The AFL put on just as good a show (sometimes better if 10-7 games weren’t your cup of tea) and every team in the league survived to become part of the “big time.” Nobody folded, and all the players records and stats count as NFL stats.
It is just wrong to think the NFL was negoitating from a position of prounounced superiority in the deal. The end results clearly show they weren’t.
—Ricko
[quote comment=”320391″]$49… not too shabby.
link
And people think we are in a recession…pfft.
[quote comment=”320385″][quote comment=”320341″][quote comment=”320334″]The “Crazy Variety Show” appears to be the 15 September 1957 episode of “Toast of the Town” – according to IMDB, Ted Williams was on that epsiode which featured the 1957 Look Magazine All-American Baseball Team. Jim Bunning, Gil McDougald and Frank Malzone are also listed in this episode.
This does not appear to be available on youtube or hulu.[/quote]
How many of these guys can we identify…?
link
I’ll give it a shot.
Back, l to r, Ernie Banks, unknown Dodger, Don Newcombe, Eddie Mathews, Harry “Suitcase” Simpson, Robin Roberts.
Front, Harvey Kuehn, Davey Williams?, stumped on the Oriole, Ted Williams, Herb Score.
—Ricko[/quote]
I’m 99% sure the Orioles is Billy Loes.[/quote]
He’s one of the guys I thought of. Thought maybe Billy O’Dell, too, but he was lefthanded and that Oriole has his watch on his left wrist. Also looks a lot like Billy Gardner.
Paul Winchell and Jerry Mahoney in the front row, too. Darn, I always liked Kucklehead Smiff better.
—Ricko
Make that “Knucklehead”
Uni note from the funderful world of Fake Fighting:
Since the WWE circus was in Dallas tonight, Dvia Kelly Kelly wore a Dirk “The Diggiler” Novinski green Mavericks alternate jersey.
[quote comment=”320395″]Make that “Knucklehead”[/quote]
He drove a motorcycle, didn’t he?
[quote comment=”320392″]
And to whom would CBS have paid that money? CBS would have bid on BOTH leagues? How would that have worked? And just how exactly would the NFL have “leveraged” the NE markets if the Jets, Bills and Patriots were in the other league?[/quote]
Sorry, posting fast this afternoon and used a lot of imprecise terms.
I figured that if NBC was paying X and getting markets like Denver, KC, etc that sooner or later the NFL would have told CBS “looks like the market for pro football has moved; and we control Philly, Baltimore, Washington, Cleveland, Pittsburgh etc. Don’t we get more because of the greater number of viewers served by our teams?”
Sorry to our Buffalo friends, I’m sure your city has grown since the 1960’s. But back then Philly probably had it beat. Baltimore too.
[quote comment=”320398″]
Sorry to our Buffalo friends, I’m sure your city has grown since the 1960’s. But back then Philly probably had it beat. Baltimore too.[/quote]
No worries- Buffalo’s population actually peaked in the 1950s and the city itself has lost half of its population since.
The opening of the St Lawrence Seaway started the decline.
[quote comment=”320394″][quote comment=”320385″][quote comment=”320341″][quote comment=”320334″]The “Crazy Variety Show” appears to be the 15 September 1957 episode of “Toast of the Town” – according to IMDB, Ted Williams was on that epsiode which featured the 1957 Look Magazine All-American Baseball Team. Jim Bunning, Gil McDougald and Frank Malzone are also listed in this episode.
This does not appear to be available on youtube or hulu.[/quote]
How many of these guys can we identify…?
link
I’ll give it a shot.
Back, l to r, Ernie Banks, unknown Dodger, Don Newcombe, Eddie Mathews, Harry “Suitcase” Simpson, Robin Roberts.
Front, Harvey Kuehn, Davey Williams?, stumped on the Oriole, Ted Williams, Herb Score.
—Ricko[/quote]
I’m 99% sure the Orioles is Billy Loes.[/quote]
He’s one of the guys I thought of. Thought maybe Billy O’Dell, too, but he was lefthanded and that Oriole has his watch on his left wrist. Also looks a lot like Billy Gardner.
Paul Winchell and Jerry Mahoney in the front row, too. Darn, I always liked Kucklehead Smiff better.
—Ricko[/quote]
He looked like Loes to me, never thought of Gardner but thats a possibility,too. Loes had a decent year, made the All Star team I think, so that would make sense. I just noticed that he has a wide black arm band on his uni sleeve.
The Miami Heat retired Alonzo’s #33 tonight. He definitely deserves it for his years with the Heat.
[quote comment=”320356″]There’s a lot of “NFL cocky” still around[/quote]
But enough about link…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hey, check out link awesome link from today’s Cubs-Royals game.
Los Tigres!
link
[quote comment=”320402″]Hey, check out link awesome link from today’s Cubs-Royals game.[/quote]
Possibly the most brilliantly dorky thing I’ve ever seen at a ballgame.
I didn’t see this posted yet, sorry if it has been. According to the weekly inbox on cubs.com, the Cubs are no longer using the Air-Flow helmets because they kept breaking. It also says they are no longer wearing red bills on their caps.
[quote comment=”320396″]Uni note from the funderful world of Fake Fighting:
Since the WWE circus was in Dallas tonight, Dvia Kelly Kelly wore a Dirk “The Diggiler” Novinski green Mavericks alternate jersey.[/quote]
wow, I don’t know where to begin…The Diggiler??? Novinski??
Saw this in a Modells in Yonkers, NY yesterday.
link
[quote comment=”320341″][quote comment=”320334″]The “Crazy Variety Show” appears to be the 15 September 1957 episode of “Toast of the Town” – according to IMDB, Ted Williams was on that epsiode which featured the 1957 Look Magazine All-American Baseball Team. Jim Bunning, Gil McDougald and Frank Malzone are also listed in this episode.
This does not appear to be available on youtube or hulu.[/quote]
How many of these guys can we identify…?
link
I’ll give it a shot.
Back, l to r, Ernie Banks, unknown Dodger, Don Newcombe, Eddie Mathews, Harry “Suitcase” Simpson, Robin Roberts.
Front, Harvey Kuehn, Davey Williams?, stumped on the Oriole, Ted Williams, Herb Score.
—Ricko[/quote]The Giant is Johhny Antonelli.