1950s Clear Shell Packer Helmet, Cont'd.

Reader Jeff Fedenko chimes in to help solve our clear-shell helmet mystery.

Jeff writes:

The early Riddell plastic was called 'Tenite' which not only yellowed with time as you stated but it was also quite flexible and in fact Riddell sold a "shoe tree-like" object to help them keep their shape when not in use. Riddell soon switched to a stronger/firmer plastic called Kralite but it was no longer a clear shell instead it was an impregnated (colored) plastic.

Marietta and MacGregor did not use tenite plastic. Mac used a plastic called Merlon for their 100MH model clear shell and I believe Marietta used a plastic called Lexan for their clear shell. Your are also correct in that Bill Kelley and his partners bought out rights to the MacGregor helmets but it was around 1974/5 and relauched in about 1975/76. BTW, part of the reason Mac sold out to Kelley was because they had a terrible time filling the orders and maintaining the warranties on their 100MH model as it often cracked. Bill Kelley strengthened the edges of the shell on the 100MH and had less cracking problems but did not eliminate them completely.

Marietta, which as you said was a much thicker shell and didn't have the same fragility to them as the Mac/Kelley but they were extremely heavy (especially compared to canvas suspension helmets).

Finally, in regards to Riddell's purchase of MaxPro I believe that the Riddell XL shell used for their (now outdated) VSR 4 helmets, which is still worn most famously by Tom Brady, is in fact a MaxPro/Kelley shell.

BTW, in response to your initial question about the Packers helmet I would agree that the time line is accurate (Riddell introduced the Kralite plastic in 1954 and stopped making the Tenite in 1953) so it is definitely possible but I have no hard evidence. Although that evidence should be relatively easy to find as the clear shells appear to have what I call an 'effervescence' to them, (especially compared to impregnated or painted helmets) in the photos for both B&W and color.

Hope that helps.

Boy, does it ever. Thanks, Jeff!

I know less about this period than most in the Packers' history, so help is especially welcome with this one.

I'll see what photographic evidence I can find from the period, 'effervescent' or otherwise. And if there's anyone else here who can help, you know what to do.

1950s Clear Shell Packer Helmet?

Reader "sl" sends in this query:

Just curious if you have ever seen a "clear shell" Riddell Packer helmet from the 50's era uniforms in person? I ran across a clear shell with the interior painted gold with a blue stripe (blue paint is in the mold). Just wondering if it could potentially be a Packer helmet.

A little background: When Riddell developed the first plastic-shell helmets in the late 1930s, the controversial new product was constructed out of clear plastic. Team-color paint was then applied from the inside, sometimes covered by a layer of gray primer. Later, as team logos became more common, they would also be applied to the shell from the inside before painting, preventing those team markings from being scratched off during game action.

One significant drawback, at least where the Riddell helmets were concerned, was that the plastic had the tendency to yellow over time, a discoloration which confounds researchers of the sport.

Other manufacturers soon followed, including Marietta and MacGregor. Marietta was known for its much thicker shell, less prone to yellowing. MacGregor was purchased and relaunched as Kelley in 1977, and Marietta was purchased by MaxPro in 1978. Those two companies, Kelley and MaxPro, were the two most notable manufacturers of clear-shell helmets in the 1970s and early 1980s. MaxPro eventually bought out Kelly in the early 1980s, consolidating the clear-shell market under one manufacturer. In 1991 MaxPro was sold to Riddell, bringing the story full-circle.

I do know that at least some Packers used Riddell helmets during this period. Given the blue color-impregnated stripe, it would resemble the coloring seen on quarterback Tobin Rote's 1954 Bowman card (right). The tendency of Riddell helmets to yellow means we can't be completely sure about the original color, but plausible options include white, silver, and gold. So again, it could well be.

I'd love to know if there's anybody out there who can answer sl's question. If you can provide any information, or need more from sl, send me an email or post a comment. And thanks—I always like a good mystery.

Mystery - 1921 Game Photo?

This astounding 1921 photo was sold at auction by Mears two months ago.

This is the catalog description:

1921 Curly Lambeau Green Bay Packers 14"x19" Rookie Action Mounted Original Studio Photo - First Glimpse at the Birth of a Franchise (Buff Wagner Estate) MEARS LOA

Simply put, the most historic Green Bay Packer image ever offered.

Buff Wagner stood 5'9" tall and weighed 165 pounds and hailed from Marinette, Wi. He also had the distinction of playing for the 1920 & 1921 Green Bay Packers. A young football player from Green Bay named Curly Lambeau joined the team in 1921, Wagner’s final season in the NFL.

In a freak-like premonition, a local photographer named F. Thomas captured a Sunday’s game of early NFL football. Similar to the feat Charles Conlon accomplished twelve years prior when he captured the image of Cobb with spikes flying high, lens man F. Thomas immortalized early Green Bay Packers history and the rise of Curly Lambeau with this early pigskin image.

The image itself is masterful, with 11 Packers facing an unidentified opponent in an attempt at a goal line score. The Green Bay Packers are seen moving left to right, wearing simple canvas pants, long sleeved solid colored jerseys with simple shoulder pads with light colored uniform numbers on reverse. Floppy eared leather football helmets barely protect the heads of the combatants. Wooden cleats can be seen fighting with turf in an attempt to maintain a hard fought position. The Packers offensive surge seems to be working, as the defenders, wearing dark, long sleeved jerseys with stripes appear to be on their heels. Both teams wear striped socks. A light dusting of freshly fallen snow covers the frozen tundra of a battlefield of unknown future epic proportions.

A local business, the "Allouez Water and Beverage" company painted advertising sign is prominently displayed just a few feet behind the end zone. Keeping with the simplicity of the times, the goal post is constructed with (3) pieces of 2x4's, just big enough to serve its purpose. By my count, 35+ spectators neatly dressed with long coats and derby hats are there to support the newly born team, a far cry from the 72,900+ found at today’s Packers game. The detail is simp(ly) amazing.

Whether by pure luck or a desire to chronicle his football career, Buff Wagner commissioned this image from the photographer, and it remained in the possession of his family until about the year 2000. The photo is dated by the intersection of Buff Wagner & Curly Lambeau's career, 1921.

About the image itself, it is from the Packers second professional season, and Curly Lambeau's first. Fittingly, Curly Lambeau is running the ball, making it the earliest action image of Lambeau known. This is also the earliest known action photo of the Green Bay Packers franchise. A first generation (Type 1) studio photo, this image boasts phenomenal content, clarity, and contrast. The image (10"x16") itself is near mint, with only a small ¾" diameter spot on the border of the left edge. The photographer mounted the image on a 13.5" x 19" basic cardboard mount, which has some wear. A 2" tear is found on the upper border of the mount, and a small piece is missing on the bottom left corner. A final small piece of the mount is peeled back from the bottom right border. None of the mount conditions affect the actual image. In oxidized period fountain pen, "F. Thomas, Green Bay, Wis." is neatly penned in the bottom right corner.

LOA Troy R. Kinunen / MEARS

It's truly spectacular.

If this is truly from 1921, then the setting would likely be Hagemeister Park.

But wait - is that really the Packers? I'm not convinced. Let's take a look.

That could be Curly Lambeau, but I can't be entirely sure.

The uniforms are the much bigger problem for me. 1921 was, of course, the first season that the Packers were sponsored by the Acme Packing Company, and the players wore "ACME PACKERS" on their jerseys.

I don't see any evidence of that in the auction photo. I also don't recognize those socks. They don't look like anything I've seen the Packers wear in the few photos we have of that time.

Compare these two uniforms:

I've never seen those distinctive striped socks. All the early Packer photos I've seen have solid navy socks, light at the bottom:

The light color is usually presumed to be white sanitary socks, although at least one source has suggested that they may have been gold. Either way, no stripes.

Also calling the authenticity into question are the numbers on the "Packers" backs.

The earliest I can confirm the Packers were wearing numbers is 1925, from the Packers themselves. Of course, the team hasn't always been the best steward of its own history, but this would be a big deal if we could confirm jersey numbers as early as 1921.

Finally, the description of Hagemeister Park as having goal posts "constructed with (3) pieces of 2x4's, just big enough to serve its purpose" seems wrong to me. So far as I know, it had iron posts (and in fact, the Packers Hall of Fame has been selling mounted slices of those posts for the past several years). That would make this a road game, possibly?

The auction description itself is odd - "A young football player from Green Bay named Curly Lambeau joined the team in 1921"? Come on, that's Packers 101. They seem to have authenticated this photo entirely on the years Buff Wagner played for the Packers, but then they make an amateur goof on the team's founder. Plus, what's to say that even if this is a photo of Wagner that didn't play semi-pro ball at any time?

Problem after problem. Nothing adds up here. 

I'm extremely reluctant to find fault with a MEARS authentication, but this sure doesn't look like the Packers to me, 1921 or otherwise.

From the Mailbag: 1958 Topps Photo Mystery?

Reader Tom Vivian sends in this mystery:

Tonight on Topps Archives auctions, the attached picture was posted, it is a picture of long-time Packers receiver Billy Howton, it is listed as being from 1958, but it could be from 1956 or 1957 as well.

I was curious about the stadium structure behind it, which appears to be an all-rock structure with concrete steps for seats.

There is a high school stadium similar to this one in Monterey CA (near where I live), and I have not seen too many others like it.

This one is somewhat different though than the one in Monterey, because this one appears to be built from the ground up where as the one in Monterey is cut in to the side of a hill.

I am wondering if you know where this site is or was.

What I do know is that the Green Bay Packers training camp has been at St.Norbert's College since 1958.

There are a lot of other Packers photos that I believe were probably taken at St.Norbert's and there is no structure like this pictured anywhere.

However, from 1954 thru 57, the Packers trained at UW-Stevens Point, so I am wondering if this is possibly an old stadium from there.

I recognize the gorgeous 1950s uniform Howton's wearing, of course, but am at a loss about the surroundings.

These pictures were often taken at Training Camp, so Wisconsin State University-Stevens Point, as it was known at the time, might be a possibility, but I've never been.

What do you say? Does anybody recognize the structure?

Pro Bowl Uniform Number Mystery

Rick Pearson, a friend from the Uni Watch blog, sent me this photo of Paul Hornung wearing #35 in the Pro Bowl.

Here's one I simply can't explain. Might need help from other UWers. Paul Hornung wearing #35 in the Pro Bowl.

Can't even think of another player in the league at the time who wore #5 (y'know, someone who would have had seniority in the game). Weren't more than a handful of single digit guys at most.

Unless he was an injury-replacement for someone who wore #35. Rick Casares of the Bears, maybe? But I can't figure Hornung as late replacement. And even if he were, you'd think they'd have known who the kicker was gonna be. From the content of the cutline he wasn't there just as a kicker.

Wow. You've got me.

I have to admit that the Pro Bowl isn't my area of expertise. Although it must be fun for the players (at least the "spend a week in Hawaii" part), it isn't much fun for me to watch.

I do know that Hornung only played in two Pro Bowls, 1960 and 1961. Based on the caption, this photo was taken during the 1961 game. The Western Conference wore the same uniforms in both; blue helmets, white pants and jerseys with Northwestern sleeve stripes. Here's what the games looked like in color:

Looking at photos of the game, it appears that it was not uncommon for players to wear different numbers in the Pro Bowl. Here's Y.A. Tittle in the 1960 game:

Tittle was #14 for the Niners that season, and I'm not aware of him ever wearing #8.

So what do you guys know about this? When did it become standard practice for players to keep their numbers in the Pro Bowl?

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UPDATE 3/31: Reader Jeff Fedenko provides us the answer.

From an interview with Todd Hewitt, former equipment manager for the Los Angeles Rams, who worked the Pro Bowl games at the Los Angeles Coliseum:

After the (Pro Bowl) ended I set up a table just outside the locker room. Glen Davis, the former great running back from Army, would sit there with me and distribute game paychecks to each player but only after they had handed over their game issued jersey, pants and sock to me. Unlike today where the Pro Bowl players get to keep everything, we reused those uniforms year after year. In those days the jerseys did not have the player names on them so they were easy to reuse the following year.

Thanks, Jeff! Mystery solved.

1962 World Championship Ring? (or 1961?) (UPDATED)

Continuing our quest to catalog all of the championship jewelry won by the Green Bay Packers, we have another ring issued to scout Lew Anderson and sold at auction by Sotheby's in New York.

The face has the same basic elements as the 1965 World Championship ring, except oval in shape. Same green stone, uses a football shape, topped with a diamond, and a similar inscription around the perimeter. Extra points for the informal "CHAMPS".

Sotheby's

The first shank features a classic Packers logo, with an unidentified player superimposed over the state of Wisconsin with the Packers' two homes—Green Bay and Milwaukee—marked by stars. Variations on this image pre-date Lombardi, going back at least as far as the 1950s, and serve as the forerunner of the iconic logo he would eventually adopt.

Sotheby's

The other shank offers up a simple "NFL" block letter design over another football. The empty scroll is interesting - the 1965 championship, Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II rings all put the scoreline above the NFL logo. Wonder why it was omitted from Anderson's ring?

Sotheby's

From the auction catalogue:

LOT 61

LEW ANDERSON' 1962 GREEN BAY PACKERS NFL 14K GOLD AND DIAMOND CHAMPIONSHIP RING

20,000—25,000 USD
Lot Sold. Hammer Price with Buyer's Premium: 13,750 USD

DESCRIPTION

Anderson's ring is embossed "Green Bay Packers World Champions 1962" around a Packer green football shaped synthetic stone, with one diamond, set in a white metal bezel, approximate total .21 carats, embossed on one side reads "Lew Anderson" and "NFL'" stamped "Josten 14K" inside. In 1962, the defending champion Packers and Giants played a rematch in the NFL Championship Game. The title game, played on December 30, 1962 at Yankee Stadium, featured two of the NFL's powerhouses, boasting seventeen future Hall of Famers. However, 40 mph winds and 13 degree temps kept the high flying offenses on the ground. In the third quarter, the Giants cut the Packer lead to 10-7 on a blocked end-zone punt. But the Packers prevailed on the surprising foot of Jerry Kramer and the determined running of Jim Taylor, defeating the Giants, 16-7. "That was the hardest football game I ever played in," is how Packers' Hall of Fame halfback Paul Hornung described the win. The victory marked the Packers' second straight league title, Lombardi's dynasty in the making. The ring shows minor wear. Size 12.

That's four of Lombardi's five championship rings, leaving only the 1961 yet to cover.

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UPDATED 04/03/11:     Speaking of the 1961 ring, this appears to be it.

Bart Starr never received a ring in 1962, only a watch. Perhaps only players and staff who didn't get a ring in 1961 were given one in 1962.

This Josten's ad from a 1967 program, featuring the 1961, 1965 and 1966 championship rings, indicates that players' numbers were enscribed on the football below the State of Wisconsin logo.

Look at the image on the left:

Same as this 1962 ring. Strange.

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UPDATED 06/14/11:     Mark Schneider of GLORY DAYS Sports Pub in LaCrosse, WI, offers some insight:

Chance- none of the players I know ever got 1962 rings and none of the Packers media or photos ever show a 1962 ring. I think Lew Anderson's ring was special order and probably not by the team.

A Little Mystery (UPDATED)

One of the best things about running this blog is the response I get from Packer fans far and wide. It's an amazing community, and I'm honored by those who read and follow this blog.

I was recently contacted by St. Vincent de Paul in Green Bay, looking for a little help in solving a mystery. Somebody donated an old Packers helmet (as you might expect, they get their share of old Packers treasure), and they were looking to learn a little bit about it before putting it on eBay.

Helmets are not my strength, but I'm not averse to a little research, and I love a good mystery. Maybe you can help me learn a little more about it.

The helmet is in rough shape, but it's still a beauty.

This is what they had to say about it:

From what we can tell the helmet is a 60's style helmet but no one wore the number 54 in the 60's. In 1970 Walker had it and 1971 Winther had it. I guess our main question is if the Packers used these helmets into the mid 70's. In 1973 Larry McCarren wore the number and he is a local hero being a sportscaster and all. When did the packers use decals for the numbers on the back of the helmet?

Also the decals on the helmet are different. The one on the left side is 1 piece and the one on the right side has a G decal ontop of a white oval decal.

You can see here how the two-layer decal is revealed. The white "G" has been scraped away, revealing the green field below. Compared this to the even scrapes in the top photo. The single-layer decals appear to have been introduced around 1970 (we do know that the double-layer were still in use as of the 1968 Pro Bowl).

The shell itself is comprised of several pieces of Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene, joined with tight seams. Riddell bought its ABS from the Marbon Corporation, under the trade name "Kra-Lite".



The construction appears to match, so far as we can tell from these types of photographs, the helmet worn by Forrest Gregg in the 1968 Pro Bowl:

We'll definitely need to get a closer look at the stickers inside, which often contain date of manufacture and other information. On the back, we have large black number decals.


There's the Kra-Lite mark, although we can't tell if there are any numbers after the trade name, which might help us date it.

The number decals appear to date from the early 1970s, when they replaced the Lombardi-era stenciled numbers. This game photo from 1973 shows similar decals:

So we have number decals from the early 1970s, logo decals spanning two different years. I suspect this helmet was originally used in the late 1960s and recycled into the 1970s. The two different helmet logos might tend to support this, as the team might have replaced decals only when they showed enough wear to need it. It's certainly possible that Larry McCarren might have worn it in 1973.


UPDATE: The responses have been great so far. I received this email from an anonymous collector:

Just thought I could help you out in identifying the Packers helmet. I am a collector of vintage football helmets and I have some info you may find valuable.

First of all the the helmet is the Riddell, "TK2" (Tru Kurv) model, which would have had either a 12 point, canvas suspension interior like this Packer helmet:

or a six point canvas suspension like this Browns helmet:

It dates from the early to mid 60's as is evident from the six air holes in the top of the helmet. The font of the Riddell stamping on the back of the helmet is from the late 60's to early 70's so it may have been reconditioned (the sticker in the interior looks like a reconditioning certification sticker) and therefore may have an additional stamping underneath the current paint. They wore this style helmet throughout the entire 70's at which time Riddell stopped making the suspension model and went to strictly foam and air padding.

As far as the decals go, you can tell the two piece decal has slightly squatter, more pointed ends or football shaped. It is the older 50's and 60's style. The other one piece decal is more oval shaped and is the style from the 70's.

Excellent stuff. Thanks!

I also received additional photographs from St. Vincent de Paul in response to my query, highlighting the back and interior markings. Click for larger:

Uncropped back pic

Inside sticker #1

Inside Sticker #2

Only stamp inside of helmet very back and bottom where the green and white stripes fold over

Left newer logo

Right older logo

Love the differences between the two logos. You can really see the difference between the thinner outline of the older football-shaped logo and the thicker outline of the modern ellipse.

Once again, much more to come....