The Acme of Mistakes

This really shouldn't bother me as much as it does. But I can't help it.

This is the new "Acme Packers" logo for 2014. You may infer that it's an old logo from 1921; they're certainly trying to imply it. But it's all balderdash. This logo was created sometime over the past year, possibly by NFL Properties or a private design firm. I guess the previous design didn't sell.

It's better-designed than last year's version. The layout is good, not overly-detailed. But the "AP" monogram doesn't make much sense. Worse yet, it compounds the "1921" problem with the flatly-inaccurate "FOUNDED 1921" slogan. No, they weren't, no matter how much the NFL wants to pretend that they were.

Of course, they're ready to slap this mess across any manner of merchandise:

If you really like the logo, you can buy a massive 3 foot by 3 foot version to slap across your wall.

And heck, they'll even through in last year's inaccurate fauxback logo as part of the package.

A clear case of subtraction by addition. Not even a bonus "Holstein Heisman" logo can redeem it.

"Fans Show True Colors"

Paul Lukas has a new article on ESPN.com about fans getting team logo tattoos.

It includes this delightful tat on the shoulder of Packer fan Thomas Laning:

Courtesy Thomas Laning

Team-logo tats are not in and of themselves terribly interesting, but the addition of a cheesehead elevates this into something clever.

"G" Now Stands for "Great-Big"

The Lambeau Field South End Zone expansion project is going full-speed, and the Packers have added their logo to the back of what will become the scoreboard.

That could well be the largest version of Dad Braisher's classic "G" logo ever. Have to compare it to the 50-yard line paint job.

A New Take on an Old Classic

New York-based designer Matt McInerney is currently publishing his concept to re-design logos for all 32 NFL teams.

Here's his take on our favorite club:

Green Bay Packers

A little explanation:
This interlocking G & B, set in chamfered type, is a nod to one of the early Green Bay Packers logos.

He is of course referring to this logo, the beautiful interlocking "GB" worn on caps from Vince Lombardi through the 1970s.

I rather like it. I can't see the Packers ever ditching Dad Braisher's "G" helmet logo, but but as a "what if?" exercise I like McInerney's design a lot more than I do some of the others which have been proposed.

Arts and Letter(head)s, Part VI

Previously, I featured this correspondence on team letterhead from former team president Lee Joannes to staff members working on the Packers' third stock drive:

Wisconsin Historical Society

DEAR FELLOW WORKER:

     As you know I am layed up and haven't been able to get around as much as I would like to follow through on the Packer Drive, following the kick-off of our group at the Beaumont Hotel.

     You have undoubtedly seen the score board that we have on the Court House lawn, and, of course, we want to keep old No. 14 moving up. In order to do that it is necessary that you complete your pledges and turn them into the Packer Ticket Office.

     I sincerely hope that the "Special Commitee" will be able to complete its calls this week and have them all turned in so that when the general committee has their report meeting next Monday night we will be able to report that the Special Committee has completed their work. I would greatly appreciate hearing from you. If you have any problems you would like to discuss with me call my home De Pere 554.

Very truly yours,

Lee Joannes, Chairman
Packer Stock Drive

LJ:M.C.

At the time, I found it interesting that Joannes was using old stationary (as indicated by the "Five Times World's Champions" banner, placing this post-1939 and pre-1944). Recently, I've come across two more letters Joannes wrote during this period, and the story they tell together is an interesting one.

The first of the new letters is dated nearly one month earlier, a boilerplate invitation to a meeting about that same stock drive, then in its planning stages:

Wisconsin Historical Society

March 15, 1950

     I would appreciate very much if you would attend a little get-together dinner meeting of the businessmen of this community at 6:00 P. M., Wednesday, March 22nd, at the Beaumont Hotel.

     The purpose of this get-together is to explain to you fully the aims and purposes of the stock drive of the Packers. ALSO, to get some help and advice from you as to the most expedient way of handling the sale of Packer stock. The purpose of the meeting is not to sell Packer stock, but to get the feelings of the leaders of our community on this matter.

Sincerely yours,

Lee Johannes, Chairman
Packer Stock Drive

LJ:M.C.

P.S.:

Because the Packer organization is trying to cut corners in all ways in their "economy program" this will be a Dutch treat affair ------- okay?

This letterhead style was used by the team in the period immediately after the departure of founder/head coach Curly Lambeau. It's the same style from the last several years of his tenure, with a solid line obscuring the space where Lambeau's name used to appear.

The next letter, also boilerplate, is written on a new style of letterhead. It was written after that March 22nd get-together, and Joannes comes armed with a plan:

Wisconsin Historical Society

March 30, 1950

     I would appreciate very much if you would consent to assist me in making the solicitation next week of the larger companies in Green Bay. We have set this group up as a special department of the drive and we hope that it will be possible to complete this drive prior to the start of the general canvas. I am calling a meeting to be held at the Beaumont Hotel, Monday, April 3rd, at 6:00 P. M..

     I know you fully realize the importance of our getting together to work out these plans and I sincerely hope you will make every effort to be with me.

Sincerely yours,

Lee Johannes, Chairman
Packer Stock Drive

LJ:M.C.

That April 3rd meeting must also have been productive, because nine days after that Joannes wrote our original letter to his "fellow workers" on the drive, with public sales in full swing.

So there you have it. Three letters, written by the same man in the span of about a month, all about the same project but all on different letterhead.

The first letter is on altered Lambeau-era (but Lambeau-less) letterhead. Curly's colors, with big bold graphics across the top and at the bottom.

I've never seen the second one before. It could be an example of the new style for 1950. That would fit; not only is the single-color ink appropriate for a suddenly-thrify franchise, it reflects the team color change made by new head coach Gene Ronzani. Out with the old blue and gold, in with the green. Lots and lots of green. Although the ticket office—319 E. Walnut—is for the first time listed on the letterhead, the head coach is not, indicating that the Packers might not have expected Ronzani to have the extensive tenure of his predecessor.

The final letter is clearly old stock. The first two were external correspondence, hat-in-hand outreach to Green Bay's business community, and represented the best face the Packers could put forward. Internal communications don't have the same needs, and so Joannes could be excused for re-using old letterhead he might have had lying around. The Packers were, as he said, in an "economy program".

Sixty-two years later, the letters tell us a story. Even if it's not quite the one Mr. Joannes intended when he wrote them.

We've Got a Logo For That

Uni Watch ran this item today:

The Packers' travel gear included a new logo just for the coaches’ equipment. Never seen that one before.

I haven't seen it either, but it sure is a beauty.

The logo is obviously based upon the bronze statue of Vince Lombardi, sculpted by Julie Rotblatt Amrany and Omri Amrany, that stands outside the entrance to Lambeau Field's atrium.

While I hadn't seen that specific logo before, I was aware that the Packers recently introduced a whole series of roundel logos for various departments within the organization.

You can see the Equipment Department logo in that photo above, with the "Holstein Heisman" logo proudly displayed in the center.

Our blogging colleague Mr. Lambeau, of the must-read Packerville, U.S.A., has graciously agreed to share with me some outstanding photos he took of the sideline at Lambeau Field this past season. There we can see some of the other departmental logos in use.

From the pre-season game against Cleveland, we have this shot of equipment personnel getting the gear ready. There's the "Equipment Dept." logo again:

Packerville, U.S.A.

Also check out the black case on the right; that's the same logo found on all radio-equipped helmets since 2008.

The Equipment Department puts its logo on all its travel cases.

Packerville, U.S.A.

Equipment bags feature the team's classic Lombardi-era logo with the team's name circling it.

Packerville, U.S.A.

The Video Department's roundel (black case, bottom left) features the same basic layout, but in the center has an old-style movie camera emblazoned with Dad Braisher's "G" logo.

Packerville, U.S.A.

I also love the "Packers Field Video" decals on the folding chairs, incorporating the team's classic stencil wordmark and what looks like the NFL's standard new font.

I can't read the department name on the blue case in the photo below, but the roundel indicates that it belongs to the audio or communications department, with a coach's headset and mic:

Packerville, U.S.A.

That makes four roundel logos of which I'm aware:

There are undoubtedly others we haven't yet seen. I'll see what I can find.

The Gloves are Off

Nike's first NFL product has been unveiled; "Vapor Jet" gloves. When a player crosses his hands just so, the pattern combines to form his team's logo. Very popular among players who like to mug for the cameras.

This concept isn't exactly new; Nike has produced these for their college programs for the last few years:

Today Nike posted photos to its Facebook page with a Packers version and one for each of the League's 32 teams under the heading "Pro Bowl 2012".

The meaningless Pro Bowl is one thing, but I don't think we should expect to see these in an actual game; they seem tailor-made for a 15-yard Unsportsmanlike Conduct flag. The NFL isn't too keen on the use of props in celebrations.

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UPDATED 1/30/2012:   Greg Jennings wore these gloves in the Pro Bowl, and made the first hand-shout in NFL game history, albeit the exhibition game.

Taking Stock, Part II (UPDATED)

At 8 o'clock this morning, Central Standard Time, shares in the Packers went on sale.

In a press conference this morning, Mark Murphy, the Packers' president and chief executive officer, posed with copies of the four previous certificates.

Packers.com

Vice president of finance Paul Baniel then gave us our first look at the new stock certificates:

File/Press-Gazette

Packers.com

Overall, a fantastic design.

I particularly love the sublimated picture of Lambeau Field in the background. This is a great choice. Lambeau Field is inseparable from the team, a symbol of its connection to the fanbase. I loved that the Packers included a rendering on the Super Bowl XLV ring, itself a callback to the 1965 World Championship rings.

In my review of previous stock certificates, I wondered if the Packers were going to replace the photo-negative logo with Dad Braisher's classic (if subsequently tweaked) logo. I'm pleased to see that they have.

I also like the collection of old Packers logos along the bottom, but they jump right from 1921 to 1950, ignoring some blue-and-gold beauties from the 1940s. With all respect to Mr. Murphy, it's hardly "every one of the logos that the Packers have utilized over (their) history." I understand that this late-1940s wordmark might not have made the cut:

Certainly this mid-1940s beauty, used during the Packers' sixth World Championship, would have merited inclusion.

Shame that Curly Lambeau's æsthetic contributions are largely absent from this little gallery of Packers history. Other than that omission, it's a sharp design.

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UPDATE 12/7/2011: There's a small-but-crucial detail that I didn't notice until now. Check out the lower-left corner:

Yep. There it is:

Est. 1919

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay! Obviously I'm not the only one who cares about this.

Nice to see that the Packers themselves remember, even if the League sometimes forgets.

Taking Stock (UPDATED)

The new stock sale is official, and the Packers have announced the first details. Beginning on December 6, the team will be offering 250,000 shares at $250 apiece.

If you weren't able to take advantage of the 1997 offering, this is your chance to put one of these beauties on the wall:

The upcoming issuance is the fifth stock sale in Packer history. In addition to the 1997 offering, stock was sold in 1923, 1935 and 1950.

The Packers first hit on the idea of selling stock as a means of rescuing the team from very precarious financial straits. Head coach and co-founder Curly Lambeau joined with Dr. W. Webber Kelly, grocery man Lee Joannes, attorney Gerald Clifford and A.B. Turnbull, publisher of the Green Bay Press-Gazette in dedicating themselves to raising money for the club, spending so much time with their hands out that they became known collectively as "The Hungry Five". Not just content with seeking donatations, they hit upon the idea of converting the team into a publicly-held, non-profit corporation. 1,000 shares were sold at $5 apiece in conjunction with at least six season tickets.

That first stock certificate was a fairly generic corporate design.

Saved in the short-term, the Packers managed to stave off disaster for a decade before financial problems caught up with them and forced a second sale. In 1935 another sale was held, and $110,000 was raised to help the club. That stock certificate also employed a standard template .

Collection of Don Sipes

As part of the sale the team re-organized with a new corporate name, reflected on the certificate.

This second sale was enough to keep the Packers afloat, but the NFL's smallest market would again be plagued by financial troubles in the late 1940s, and after a series of fundraising drives the Packers still found themselves in need of the cash infusion only a stock sale had brought them. This third sale, in 1950, also helped give the Packers a new start. Curly Lambeau had been forced out, giving the franchise a new head coach for the first time in its history. The team also had a new colorful graphic design, and for the first time the Packers' stock certificates were customized to match:


These certificates featured the team's brand-new wordmark, the team's name superimposed on a football and flanked by goalposts. The Packers raised $118,000 at $25 per share, money the team would need during the lean years ahead.

It was nearly a half-century before the Packers would authorize another stock offering.

This fourth stock sale couldn't have more different circumstances than the previous three. Instead of coming from hunger, the Packers were flush at the very top of the NFL. Instead of needing funds to keep the doors open, the Packers were instead raising money to fund a massive renovation and expansion of Lambeau Field.

Coming on the heels of a Super Bowl win (and immediately before a second consecutive Super Bowl appearance), the Packers raised more than $24 million towards the 2003 renovation. Although 105,989 new shareholders joined the ranks of NFL owners, 279,090 shares remained unsold, and those unsold shares form the basis of the current offering.

I wonder if the new certificates will have the same design as the previous version, or if they'll take the opportunity to tweak it. I've never liked the photo-negative green-on-white Packers logo, not even when they put it on the side of Lambeau Field in the 1990s:

Aside from being less visually pleasing, there's just no reason to have the inverted coloring. Braisher's classic logo, white "G" in green oval surrounded by gold, works as well on a white certificate as it does the team's gold helmets. Maybe the 2011 certificates can fix this æsthetic wrong.

Although those five men could not have known it at the time, the creative solution they devised not only saved the Packers in 1923 but also laid the foundations for a prosperous and successful future, ensuring that the Packers would remain in the NFL, and in Green Bay, long after every other small-town team had either folded or moved to a larger market.

The legacy of the Hungry Five lives on, every glorious autumnal Sunday in old Green Bay. If you haven't joined that legacy yet, your chance begins on December 6th.

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UPDATE 12/6/2011: Here is is, and she's a beauty:

A great design. They have indeed replaced the photo-negative logo, and I'm partial to the sublimated photo of Lambeau Field in the background.

Here's the full series, from 1923 through today:



(h/t: Mark Schneider of GLORY DAYS Sports Pub in LaCrosse, WI)

Arts and Letter(head)s, Part III

This sterling example of late-1940 Packers letterhead. It was sent on June 1, 1947 to returning players — this particular copy went to defensive tackle Ed Neal — along with the team's playbook.

In the purple ink of a hand-cranked mimeograph machine, head coach Curly Lambeau gives a quick overview of the playbook and invokes secrecy:

BY ALL MEANS DO NOT BE CARELESS IN HANDLING PLAYS. THEY ARE FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. TREAT ALL ADVANCE INFORMATION WITH CONFIDENCE.

The sheet's graphics are bold and clear, six decades later. The top of the letterhead features an unusual wordmark in the team's proud gold and blue.

Along the bottom, partially obscured by Curly's mimeographed signature, flags representing the team's six titles.

The Packers continued to use this style of letterhead even after Lambeau was forced out, as seen on this October 1950 letter from new coach Gene Ronzani to West Coast scout Clark Shaughnessy:

It also appears that the ever-thrifty Packers re-used the old Lambeau letterhead, either before the Ronzani version was delivered or simply to use up old stock. This letter was sent by chairman Lee Joannes on March 5, 1950, almost exactly one month after Ronzani took the reins, as part of a planning session for the team's upcoming stock sale:

Curly's name has been blocked out by a solid blue line:

An ignominious end to Lambeau's thirty years in charge, to be sure, but at least his successors were frugal.