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.

Arts and Letter(head)s, Part V

Continuing our look at Packer letterhead through the years comes this exemplar from 1935.

This letter was sent from Curly Lambeau to a young player about to graduate from the University of Michigan:

Dear Ford:

     While on the Coast you told me you were undecided in regard to playing professional football.

     We plan on signing a center for the coming season and will pay you $110.00 per game if you wish to join the "Packers". Our league schedule is not drafted but we usually play fourteen games. We pay in full after each contest and all players are paid whether they play or not and, naturally, all injured players are paid immediately after the game.

     Will appreciate an early reply.

     With kindest personal regards, I am

Sincerely,

E. L. Curly Lambeau
GREEN BAY FOOTBALL CORPORATION

Not much to say in the way of æsthetics on this letterhead; it is nothing like the colorful styles we would see in the 1940s. It is simple and elegant, though, and I like the quotation marks around "Packers" (twice!).

If short on style, this letter is very revelealing in its content. $110.00 per game, whether a man plays or not, injured or not, and even months after the conclusion of a season the following year's contests were not yet set.

Unfortunately, Curly's offer wasn't quite enough to entice this young man to Green Bay. Gerald Ford decided instead to go to law school, then private practice and eventually (following a stint in the Navy during WWII) politics.

Packer Alumni Association Ring

Following on our earlier discussion of Packer award rings, Dale Christiansen sent me these pictures of a ring in his collection that I had never before seen.

This ring was issued by the Green Bay Packer Alumni Association.

The stone, although it appears black in these photos, is actually a very dark green.

This ring belonged to Robert Conrad, who was with the organization for nine years. The Packers list him as the Scouting Director from 1944-50 and Personnel Director from 1944-52.

I'd love to know what that "22" at the bottom refers to. Had Mr. Conrad been a player, I'd suspect that was a place for his jersey number.

I'd also love to know more about the background of this ring; we know when Mr. Conrad was with the team, but not when he joined the Alumni Association or when this ring was designed or issued.

The Alumni Association used to be very active in Green Bay. As early as 1951, it was helping the Packers organize a Reunion and Homecoming weekend, as seen in this letter sent to former Packer players in October of that year:

Among the Packer players who served at on the Association's Board of Directors was Packer Hall of Fame center Charley Brock.

In the mid-1950s Alumni Association hosted coaching clinics, when high school and college coaches could come and watch Bart Starr and Paul Hornung, among other Packers, run through their drills.

When Vince Lombardi was hired to coach the team in 1958, a somewhat-controversial move at the time, the Association issued a press release backing him wholeheartedly and hoping that "the Lombardi plan for resurgence will pay dividends; and that the thrill of good, sound and representative football will again be part of the everyday life of the citizens of Green Bay and Wisconsin."

Their prediction proved correct, of course, and the Packers embarked on a new golden age of football. The Alumni Association was very active in the 1960s, especially in the team's Golden Anniversary year of 1969.

To commemorate 50 years of pro football in Green Bay, the Alumni Association hosted a banquet and Homecoming weekend.

The agenda for the weekend was full, with a parade, cocktail party, brunch and ceremony on the field before the game.

I love the Willard Mullin-esque drawing of a 1940s player kicking the ball on their letterhead.

The Alumni Association had big plans for the fans in 1969 as well. They published a 72-page magazine celebrating Packer history.

Today, the Green Bay Packer Alumni Association keeps a pretty low public profile. If they were involved with the recent event honoring the 1961 team, it was strictly behind-the-scenes. Only the occassional donation to a charity auction tells us that the Alumni Association still exists, hopefully still meeting the needs of all former Packers.

Arts and Letter(head)s, Part IV

This letter was sent on April 12, 1950 by former team president Lee Johannes to staff members working on the Packers' third stock drive, then in full swing.

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 Johannes, Chairman
Packer Stock Drive

We've seen rough photocopies of this letterhead style before, but this is the first color example I've seen. I like the green and gold, with bold action graphics along the top.

It's interesting that Joannes was using this particular letterhead in 1950; the "Five Times World's Champions" script along the bottom dates it to between 1939 and 1944, the Packers' fifth and sixth titles, respectively.

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.

Arts and Letter(head)s, Part II

This 1963 Packers letterhead and envelope recently sold at Heritage Auctions.

1963 Vince Lombardi Signed Letter, Thanking Hank Gremminger for Contributions in the 1962 Championship Game. "There is no substitute for victory." Not a bad way to close this significant letter, as Vince Lombardi did in his typical confident and proud style. Sent to Hank Gremminger on January 4, 1963, there are few Lombardi letters with content that can compare to this one, and the legendary coach signed it in pristine blue ball-point. Measuring at 8.5x11", this ultra-clean piece of Green Bay Packers letterhead exhibits two horizontal mail folds and is accompanied with its original envelope, which was sent to Gremminger's home in Dallas.

It's gorgeous, with the "Holstein Heisman" logo prominently featured.

This is from relatively early in Lombardi's tenure, before the stadium was expanded to include the team's offices. The return address is 349 South Washington Street, on the other side of the Fox River.

I particularly like the telephone number: HEmlock 2-4873.

The matching envelope reflects the same bold graphics.

This letter is valuable not only for its view of the team's æsthetics, but also by demonstrating Lombardi's relationship with his players.

Dear Hank & Shirley:

Words could never express my gratitude for your accomplishments of the past season. Our victory in the Championship Game was particularly pleasing since it meant so much to me personally.

I believe you realize now that success is much more difficult to live with than failure. I don't believe anyone realizes, except ourselves, the obstacles we had to face week after week. This, of course, made our season more gratifying.

I was extremely proud of our conduct during the Championship Game. We never lost our poise under what were very trying conditions. The Giants tried to intimidate us physically, but in the final analysis we were mentally tougher than they were and that same mental toughness made them crack.

Character is the perfectly educated will and you are men of character. Our greatest glory was not in falling, but in rising when we fell.

I hope you both enjoy the TV or stereo. Best wishes to you both and a very happy New Year. Remember, "There is no substiute for victory."

Sincerely,

Vince Lombardi
Head Coach and General Manager

A "TV or stereo"? Makes a nice bonus for the victors, on top of the championship watch or ring.

The graphics are priceless, from the team logo on the top to the rendering of New City Stadium (two years before it was renamed for Curly Lambeau).

The details are also revealing: apparently, the Coach didn't believe in throwing away old letterhead. The graphics proudly claim six World Championships (all Curly Lambeau's), the most recent being 1944.

It's not surprising that the recently-won 1962 title isn't represented, but the letterhead also omits the 1961 title. From the championships listed, this letterhead was evidently ordered between the time the Packers won the 1960 Conference Championship and the end of the following season.

Maybe the old letterhead was saved for "in-house" letters like this one, or maybe they just wanted to use up all the old stock.

In any case, this letter was worth $2,987.50 to the lucky bidder, and is priceless to those of us interested in the team's history.

(photo credit: Heritage Auctions)

Arts and Letter(head)s

This letter has been making the Packer blog rounds, having recently been posted on Scribd. Far be it from me to miss the party, so let's look at a 1944 Uniform Player's Contract between the Packers and a player named E.J. McGroraty:

This is the players' copy, signed only by Lambeau. The other would have been signed by McGroraty and returned to the Packers.

The document is an interesting look at the indentured servitude NFL players of the time lived under; my brother (who asked to be described as "a crackerjack attorney") got a huge kick out of parsing the language, noting that Section 9 eliminates any leverage a player might conceivably have. The real gem from our sports æsthetics perspective, however, is the accompanying cover letter:

A gorgeous example of 1940s team letterhead. I particularly love the graphic at the top, with the small figures rushing the line. The elegant script "Packers" is notable for its strong vertical "k", the quotation marks breaking the arc of the elegant script "P", and the way the foot of the "P" forms a football shape to enclose "THE".

Shame about the photocopy - I'd love to see this in a better resolution, not to mention in color.

Along the bottom of the page, you can just make out "Five Times World Champions." Just five months later the letterhead would be out of date, as the Big Bay Blues defeated the New York Giants in the 1944 Championship Game to claim Curly Lambeau's sixth and final title.

As for Mr. McGroraty, it appears that he never made it out of Training Camp. A search of the Packers' all time roster fails to turn up anyone by that name. But for one brief Training Camp (presuming he actually returned the contract), he was a member of the greatest pro football team in the world. Signed, sealed, and delivered.

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UPDATED 1/25/2012:   We now have an example in color, re-used in 1950 by staff members engaged in the team's third stock drive:

Wisconsin Historical Society