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Archive for December, 2006
We’ve had a lot of chatter in the Comments section lately about the use of Native American imagery on uniforms and logos. So it felt like a nice coincidence the other day when my friend Rob Walker told me about a clothing brand called No Mas, which specializes in politically charged appropriations and recontextualizations of sports logos — like this T-shirt (note the tears), this patch, and these jackets (click on the thumbnails for bigger views — they’re amazing).
But No Mas’s designs go way behind Indian symbology. Check out this Baghdad Oilers tee, this Astros appropriation (there’s also a jacket; here’s the rear view), and this totally brilliant ode to Wilt (if you don’t get the joke, look here).
In some cases you have to look closely to get the point. This jacket, for example, seems pretty conventional, until you see the back. Others are simpler but just as clever, like this backed with this. Some of the messages are strictly sports-related, like these two jackets, whose rear designs speak for themselves. And then there’s my favorite of the whole lot.
It helps to know that the guy behind all this is really, really smart. His name is Chris Isenberg, and you can read Rob Walker’s excellent two-part interview with him, which touches on a lot of sports-related topics (some of them logo-related), here and here. Isenberg and one of his buddies (who simply goes by “Large”) also maintain a sports blog on the No Mas site, and it’s impressive stuff — sharp, articulate, and willing to cut against the grain. Two recent entries, for example, do a good job of arguing that this whole “Ali invented rap” thing is bullshit at best, condescending at worst.
Isenberg lives in Brooklyn, but I haven’t met him yet. I’m looking forward to rectifying that soon (we were supposed to have dinner last night, in fact, but he had to cancel at the last minute). Want to get your hands on some of his merch? Unfortunately, many of the designs I linked to earlier in this entry are no longer available, but you can get some of them here and here.
Update: If you’re interested in any of the jackets or other art pieces shown in this entry but not listed in No Mas’s online store, contant Chris Isenberg directly, here.
Contest Follow-Up: Got a note yesterday from Derek Traini, who won contest for the $200 Distant Replays gift card. Here’s what he spent it on:
I wound up using this as an opportunity to get my dad a cool Xmas gift. As long as I can remember, he’s always said Ernie Banks personified everything the game should be about, so I got a 1969 Banks jersey for him. And even though the 1919 Black Sox nearly destroyed the game, for some reason I still love those jerseys of theirs, and Eight Men Out is one of my favorite movies too, so I bit the bullet and got that one for myself. Threw in a cool Houston Colt .45s hat, too — something you’ll hardly ever see. So yeah, I went a little nuts, but it was fun.
Congrats again to Derek. I hope to have word soon on which helmet was chosen by Pete Ellingsworth, who won the Gridiron Memories helmet raffle.
Elms [Family] Tree: Last week I mentioned that reader Elena Elems had helped ring in the holidays by graciously sending a tin of stirrup-frosted cookies to Uni Watch HQ. Now her sister Vernona has contributed a pair of cat toys for Uni Watch mascots Tucker and Caitlin. “Since I live in Washington, D.C.,” she writes, “I thought I should send the kitties something political (and bi-partisan, since I don’t know if they’re Republicans or Democrats).” The result: catnip toys shaped like George Bush and Hillary Clinton, which are being licked, swatted, and generally ripped to shreds at this very moment.
A big thanks to the Elms gals, who are giving sibling rivalry a good name. If you too would like to see your cookies, cat toys, or other gifts showcased in this space, the address is 671 DeGraw St., Brooklyn, NY 11217.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Looks like the Gators may be wearing that 100th-anniversary patch in the BCS title game after all (with thanks to Josh Coney). … Our occasional discussions of pointed collars are put into new perspective by this photo of the 1903 Georgia Tech women’s hoops team (good find by Mike Raymer). … Speaking of Swoosh, Inc., you’ve probably heard that they’ve struck a big deal with Virginia Tech. What you may not have heard — and what I didn’t realized until Pat Kenny pointed it out — is that the deal was secret until the Roanoke Times filed a Freedom of Information Act request to obtain it. Details here. … Excellent interview here with Panthers equipment manager Jackie Miles. … Gee, what a surprise. … Carlos Beltran sure does love that Jesus guy. The cap is part of this auction lot (spotted by Eric Stangel). … Good shot here of Jeff O’Neill clearly wearing a necklace. The odd thing is that he doesn’t wear uni No. 18 (or play first base), so what’s with the pendant? (An assist to Dan Sherman, who also sent along links to two eBay auctions — one for what might be history’s most amusingly ugly hockey jersey, and another for a jersey with the coolest uni number ever.) … Several readers have noted that CCM has a new logo, as seen here on Alex Ovechkin’s helmet. … Kudos to the Indianapolis Police Dept., which has decided to ditch the black — or, more specifically, decided not to use black in the first place. Details here (with thanks to Blaine Williams). … Reprinted from last night’s comments: Radim Vrbata, who normally wears a visor, was wearing a full-face cage last night. … Also from last night’s comments: Nice article in today’s New York Times about NHL goalies. Note that the circa-1954 photo at the top of the article shows two different Rangers wearing the captain’s “C” — what’s that all about?
December 13th, 2006
Yesterday’s brief mention of soccer goalie Daniel Beltrame’s habit of wearing a baseball cap prompted some interesting responses. “You know this, I’m sure, but goalies wore caps regularly back in the day,” wrote Uni Watch design director Scott M.X. Turner, failing to reckon with my immense ignorance of all things soccer-related. Fortunately, he sent along a bunch of historical shots of hatted keepers to bolster his case, as seen here, here, here, here, and here. Steve Murphy did likewise — look here and here.
But the best communiqué came from longtime reader Doug Brei, who reminded me of something I should have remembered, namely that hockey goalies used to wear caps too, as you can see in these pics of Alex Connell, Norman Smith, George Hainsworth, Paddy Moran, and the Seattle Metropolitans (it’s not clear who the goalie is).
That led me to reach for my copy of Douglas Hunter’s excellent goalie-centric book, A Breed Apart (highly recommended — see link at right), which features lots of photos of hatted netminders. Check out this, this, this, this, this, and this.
What the book doesn’t explain — and what I either can’t remember or else never knew to begin with — is why hockey goalies wore caps. Anyone care to enlighten us?
Helmet Raffle Results: Thanks to everyone who entered for the chance to win a free Gridiron Memories helmet. Our randomly selected winner is Pete Ellingsworth, who should contact me pronto to claim his prize.
Humbug: I’ve decided to call off this Saturday’s Uni Watch party. The number of people who said they might possibly be able to attend if I moved the time up by a few hours, or back by a few hours, or to the next day, or to the next weekend, or to next month, or to after they got back from Japan, was far greater than the number of people who said, “Yeah, for sure, I’ll be there.” My bad for proposing a party on relatively short notice in the middle of the holiday season. I’ll try again early in the new year — maybe the day before the Super Bowl.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Thanks to the many readers who wrote in to explain that the facemask worn by two of the players in this still shot from the film Necessary Roughness is a Riddell Kra-Lite mask, formerly worn by Lomas Brown and Greg Lloyd, still worn today by Wayne Gandy and Willie Anderson. … Interesting women’s hoops jersey style being worn by Gannon University of Erie, Pennsylvania (with thanks to Yancy Yeater). … Another interesting style guide has been turned up, this time by Chuck Nolan Jr., who writes: “The National Premier Soccer League (a national amateur league roughly the equivalent to Class A baseball) has a PDF file on their website to show people the do’s and don’t about using their logo.” … Mickel Yantz, curator of the Cherokee Heritage Center in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, took special notice of the old-style nose guard that I highlighted in last week’s rundown of Leland’s auction items. “During our ‘Cherokee Athletes’ exhibit last year at the museum, we had pictures of Cherokee football teams from the Cherokee Male Seminary, which is now Northeastern State University in Tahlequah,” he writes. “The pictures showed the team with the nose guards. I was continuously being asked why the players had their jockstraps around their neck. This eventually led me to include a ‘What is it?’ label in the exhibit to explain the nose guard. … Oh, and the writing on the football is in the Cherokee language. I have been told it translates to ‘Creek Killers.’ ” … If you’re gonna set a record, you may as well wear some extra stripes while you’re doing it (additional views here, here, here, and here). … Deep in last night’s Comments section: Mark Bradley’s gloves last night didn’t have the NFL Equipment logo. … Bowling Green has opened a museum devoted to the school’s sports history — including, of course, uniforms. Details here (with thanks to Tom Konecny). … With a couple of exceptions, MLB’s new batting practice jerseys will look like this. I’d like to get worked up about how crummy they are (and the caps are even worse — wait till you see them), except, y’know, they’re just BP jerseys, so who really gives a shit?
December 12th, 2006
As you may have seen in my ESPN column last Thursday, Bengals equipment manager Rob Recker had a few things to say about the difficulties of imposing uniform and equipment guidelines on millionaire athletes (including Chad Johnson, whose orange chinstrap was benched yesterday).
Recker told me a bunch of other stuff, but I didn’t have room for it in the column. Fortunately, there’s plenty of room for it right here, so here’s a bit more of what he had to say:
I’ve seen guys come in here with black chinstraps, and I just say, “Hey, they’re illegal.” It’s like the socks that are too low, it’s like the pants that are too high. Every week, during pregame, you see a bunch of guys with their socks pulled down, on purpose, just to draw attention. It’s all about drawing attention. And they are told to pull their socks up, tuck their shirts in, and do all those things they’re supposed to do so they don’t get fined.[…]
Everyone wants to be different. We used to have white shoes, but when Marvin [Lewis] came in, he said we’re switching to black shoes. Fine, no problem. Now I’ve got all these guys who want white shoes, or white and orange. It’s the same thing with the visors — everyone wants the dark-tinted visors, because it’s all about the look, and then on Friday I’m taking six or eight of ‘em off and replacing ‘em with the clear ones, because that’s what’s legal on the field. […]
I think the uniform [police] are pretty cool, and for the most part the NFL is cool. They’re not looking to be, y’know, assholes — they just want to keep the uniform code pretty consistent so it doesn’t get out of control.
Poor Recker. As if to prove his point, T.J. Houshmanzedah wore white cleats yesterday, instead of Cincy’s usual black. If you want to see what being an NFL equipment manager was like before the era of the modern showboating athlete, look here.
Lump of Coal: In case you missed it on Friday, I’m thinking of having a Uni Watch party here in Brooklyn this Saturday afternoon (figure around 3pm, give or take), but I realize people have shopping and other holiday-related obligations to deal with, so I’m trying to gauge how many people are interested. I received only a few positive responses to this idea when I first mentioned it last Friday, so I’ll just scrap the whole thing if I don’t get better feedback today and tomorrow. If you want in, please send a note to uniparty at earthlink dot net.
Helmet Giveaway Reminder: Tonight at 9pm is the deadline for entering for a chance to win a free non-autographed college helmet from our friends at Gridiron Memories. If you haven’t already done so, just send an e-mail to helmetraffle at earthlink dot net. One entry per person, but everyone who’s ordered Uni Watch temporary tattoos will automatically have their names put into the hat a second time. (To get in on this, PayPal $1 apiece for the first five tats, 50 cents apiece after that, with a five-tat minimum, to paul_lukas at earthlink dot net.) The winner will be announced tomorrow.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Check out these Girl Scout uniforms (featured last week in this eBay auction). … Stadium naming rights have reached a new level of absurdity. … Jason Halpin recently attended a Devils game and snapped this shot of backup goalie Scott Clemmensen wearing a cap with the wrong NHL logo. … Several NFL players are on notice for having worn unauthorized gloves (with thanks to Cork Gaines). … Want to create you own Bengals helmet? Turns out there’s actually a decal kit for that (great find by Dan Smith). … Soccer query from Dennis Abrams: “I was very surprised to see this when I was watching highlights. When Adelaide’s starting keeper was red-carded, the backup came in with a baseball-style cap on. I don’t know what kind of logo was on the front. Apparently he has done this before, but for all I know, he could do this every game. I’d like to know if this is common practice in soccer or if this is the Daniel Beltrame’s trademark.” … In light of Wisconsin’s aggressive pursuit of high schools appropriating the university’s “motion W” logo, this PDF file of logo-use guidelines is particularly interesting (with thanks to UW grad Brian Temke). … Florida’s football jerseys have looked like this this season, but they’ll drop the 100th-anniversary patch and go with this for the BCS title game. … Buried in last Friday’s Comments section: the coolest pole vaulting socks ever. … Found this cool jacket at a thrift store. Probably would’ve bought it anyway, what with the excellent breast pocket patch and all, but what sealed the deal was this great interior lining. … “I was just watching the movie Necessary Roughness,” writes Ethan Oster, “and I noticed that almost all the players for the Armadillos wear a facemask I’ve never seen before.” He’s referring to the mask being worn by two of the three players in this shot. Looks kinda like a Dungard 205, but with a bigger cage. Anyone know more about this design? … That’s quite an outfit being worn by the Canadian speed skaters (an uncharacteristically non-Asian contribution from Jeremy Brahm). … Radically divergent approaches to NFL hosiery on display here. … Speaking of which, was Cedric Griffin taking cues from Jane Fonda yesterday? … More hosiery follies: What the hell’s going on here? … Remember our discussion a while back of the Philly tag? Double-barrel example of it here. … Warrick Dunn usually gets attention for his necklace, but he also appears to have major belt-flappage issues. … Mike Nolan and Jack Del Rio both wore their suits again. … R.W. McQuarters is still wearing that SpongeBob Band-Aid (as previously seen here). … Michael Rich notes that Georgia Tech’s home nameplate typography is very different from what they wear on the road. “Sorry I couldn’t find a better example of the home jersey, but the difference is much more pronounced than the photo might suggest,” he writes. “Notice that on the road, the nameplate is so large it actually crosses into the blue trim, whereas there is clearly white between the name and the blue trim of the home jersey. I’ve seen this in multiple games, so it wasn’t just a one-game uni snafu or anything like that.” … That was one weird-ass loincloth that Rachid Drilzane was wearing on Saturday night. … I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: White boxing gloves are lame-o. … Kassim Ouma’s green gloves and green trunks, however, looked great. … Reprinted from last night’s Comments section: Jose Mesa, who matches his glove’s color to his team’s color (as seen here, here, here, here, here, and here), has just signed with the Tigers. Get ready for that orange glove when Detroit goes on the road. … I was looking again at that Chad Johnson photo from yesterday and noticed that two of the sideline guys are wearing “9″ anklebands. Anyone know what that’s about?
December 11th, 2006
(AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)
Texas A&M’s Acie Law IV holds his arms up after their loss to UCLA in the John R. Wooden Classic on Saturday.
December 10th, 2006
(Photo by MANAN VATSYANA/AFP/Getty Images)
Uni-related cultural differences were on display earlier today at the 15th Asian Games at Khalifa Stadium in Doha. Note the nail polish, too. (And yes, there’s also some pretty clear camel-toe action, but let’s skip all those obvious jokes, shall we?)
December 9th, 2006
The latest sports memorabilia auction at Leland’s is currently underway. I don’t bid on any of this stuff — too rich for my blood — but it sure is fun to look at. Among the uni-related highlights:
• Dig all the amazing old uni details in this vintage sweater ad (full auction listing here).
• Gotta love these old AFL officials’ gear (auction page). Better yet, check out this amazing ref’s jacket from Super Bowl II (auction page)!
• Every now and then you’ll see an old photo of a helmetless strap-on faceguard. Here’s your chance to own the actual item (auction page).
• I’ve run photos of this before, but this old Rheingold ad, showing Casey Stengel sporting a stirrup design that the Mets never actually wore, is always worth another look (auction page).
• Check out the fabulous sock striping on this Japanese figurine (auction page).
• You’ve seen Jackie Robinson wearing lots of different uniforms — but probably not this one (auction page).
• On Monday I ran some pics from the Dodgers’ 1956 goodwill tour of Japan. Here’s an artifact from that trip: a Dodgers kimono (auction page).
• Always fun to see one of those satin jerseys, originally thought to be more visible during night games (auction page).
• In retrospect, this was one of the best MLB designs ever (auction page).
• Some amazing old hockey sweaters on display here (auction page).
• U. of Chicago isn’t known as a jock school. But they sure had some snazzy uniforms back in the day (auction page).
• I’m tempted to bid on this just for the stripes on the collar, cuffs, and hemline (auction page).
• Granted, it’s just a painting, so the artist may have taken some aesthetic license, but this boxer appears to have been wearing Chicago Bears socks (auction page).
• This here makes me proud to be a Brooklynite — especially that blue stripe, which really ties everything together (auction page).
• Here’s something you don’t often see: a jersey from an NHL old-timer’s game (auction page).
• Check out the pointed collar on this Swedish hockey jersey (auction page).
• Best pitcher ever? Maybe. Best stirrups stylist ever? Definitely (auction page).
• Dig the bizarre square configuration of old Shibe Park (auction page).
• Great college football stripe-o-rama shot here (auction page).
• Speaking of stripes, check out the cardigans being worn by Ike and Tricky Dick (auction page)!
• And finally, someone please forward this photo to all our friends in Eugene and Beaverton (auction page).
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Quiz Winner: Yesterday afternoon I put 14 slips of paper into my Green Bay Packers helmet, mixed them up a bit, and then pulled one of them out.
Which one? This one.
Big congrats to our lucky winner, who should contact me as soon as possible to claim his $200 Distant Replays gift card.
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Cookie Monster: Everyone could learn a thing or two from longtime reader Elena Elms, who exhibited her creativity and generosity in equal measure this week by sending a tin of homemade stirrup-frosted cookies to Uni Watch HQ (here’s another view), and enclosed this totally cool card to boot.
Those who wish to follow Elena’s fine example are encouraged to send holiday cheer (and/or cat toys for official Uni Watch mascots Tucker and Caitlin) to 671 DeGraw St., Brooklyn, NY 11217. Uni Watch is a proud particpant in Santa’s Naughty/Nice Affiliate Program™, so you’ll get credit with the big fella for any goodwill you spread in this direction.
Holiday Gathering: Speaking of holiday tidings, I’m thinking of convening a Uni Watch party next Saturday, December 16th, probably around 4pm. It would be here in Brooklyn, although I’m not yet certain of the venue (if anyone in NYC just happens to have a big, comfortable space that isn’t doing anything on the next-to-last Saturday before Christmas, let me know). I realize some people will be busy with shopping and other holday-related plans, so I’m trying to get a sense of how many folks would be interested in such a gathering. If you think you’d be able to attend, please send a note to uniparty at earthlink dot net (please note that this is not the usual Uni Watch address). Thanks.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Interesting uni-related offer being touted on the Maple Leafs web site (good catch by Jeff Barak). … The mismatched-undersleeve thing has now gotten so common that two Nebraska players were doing it last Saturday and nobody even bothered to mentioned it except Brian Hansen. … Yet another heretofore unseen Cooperalls photo (unseen by me, at least) here (with thanks to Matty L.). … Best comment yet on the NFL officials’ black slacks, from Mike Bare: “Being from New Jersey, I noticed that these refs look an awful lot like that guy I saw at a pizza parlor the other day. As soon as he walked in, he cut to the front of the line and got a free pizza and a thick envelope (which I obviously assumed was his garlic bread). Lots of people knew him by name, but those who didn’t never made any protest, which seemed odd… Seriously, I swear they look like they’re wearing mafia track suits. With those ridiculous getups, it wouldn’t shock me to learn that they were hitting up Bill Cowher or Romeo Crennel for protection money before the game.” … Todd Davis points to this photo Big Klu and asks, “Do you think it was within the rules to have sleeves that short on a team with sleeve uni numbers? It almost looks like he should have his number tattooed on his bicep or something. It also struck me that all of the other players are wearing undershirts, so I wonder if Klu kept that look in the cold weather.”
December 8th, 2006
New ESPN column today — here’s the link.
Meanwhile: Tired of looking at the scoreboard? Think Oregon’s football uniforms are too sedate? Easily and happily distracted by shiny objects? Have I got the uniform concept for you.
An Australian research team has come up with a prototype design for electroluminescent basketball uniforms, which display statistical information (points scored, fouls committed) and tactical info (which team is winning, when the shot clock has almost run out) right on the jersey. As this article explains:
The simple, coloured display panels are attached to each vest and connected to a small computer, about the size of an iPod, strapped to each player’s body. These computers communicate wirelessly with a central control system, installed at the side of the court, which keeps track of all relevant statistics as the game goes on.
Crazy? Maybe, but that’s probably what someone once said about the idea of a coach talking to a quarterback via a radio-equipped helmet. Unsightly? Sure, but no more so than, say, the Vikings’ or Capitals’ unis.
The big question about this innovation, of course, is how long it’ll take for electroluminescent advertisements to start showing up on the jerseys. This seems like a gimme, especially for the players who are sitting on the bench. With this and other fears in mind, reader Jason Borneman has forwarded two modest policy proposals to Uni Watch HQ: “1) Can we get a restraining order against Nike to never ever get hold of this technology? The damage that could be done is unimaginable. 2) Is this reason enough to justify bombing Australia? Pros: Eliminate this dangerous technology. Cons: No more wallabies.”
Quiz Update: Shortly after I posted the quiz results yesterday, several readers took issue with some of the answers, and a few other discrepancies bubbled up as the day went along. Here are the questions — or, rather, the answers — at issue:
• Question No. 4: I said that Steve Wallace and Mark Kelso were the only NFL players to have worn the ProCap helmet attachment. But it turns out that this article lists Don Beebe as a ProCap user. I’d never heard this before (Wallace and Kelso are cited as the only ProCappers in this Helmet Hut article), and I couldn’t find any photographic confirmation of it. But whether or not it’s accurate, I wouldn’t want to penalize anyone who came up with that article and used as the basis for answering the question.
• Question No. 6: It was my belief that the 1983 Cowboys had been the last NFL team whose captains wore “C” designations. But apparently I was off by more than a decade, as seen in these pics of the 1994 Patriots.
• Question No. 9: I have written many times about Elmer Layden being responsible for NFL’s rule requiring high socks. But he also mandated the use of helmets.
• Question No. 16: I had asked if 1940s NFL head linesmen had worn orange and white stripes and umpires had worn red and white, when this blog entry said it was the other way around. This made it seem like a trick question, when in fact the point of the question was simply whether the officials had worn color-coded stripes — I wasn’t trying to play “Gotcha!” regarding which official wore which color. But I see that it could have seemed that way.
Since the newly acceptable answers for these four questions could have resulted in a four-point swing in someone’s score, I went back and re-scored all the entries that had been within four points of the top ten finalists. That resulted in three people’s scores being elevated up to or above 21 points, which was the threshold for being in the top ten. Those three readers are Eric Sing, Mark Mayall, and Matthew Peters.
Instead of bumping any of the previously announced finalists, I’ve decided to add these three additional names into the hat, so we now have 14 finalists, including the wild card berth. I’ll draw the winner later today and announce his name tomorrow.
If you think your score was at least 21, and you’re not among the names cited yesterday or today, please get in touch as soon as possible.
Helmet Giveaway: In case you missed it yesterday, you can enter for a chance to win a free non-autographed college helmet from our friends at Gridiron Memories simply by sending an e-mail to helmetraffle at earthlink dot net (please note that this is not the usual Uni Watch address). One entry per person, but everyone who’s ordered Uni Watch temporary tattoos will automatically have their names put into the hat a second time. (To get in on this, PayPal $1 apiece for the first five tats, 50 cents apiece after that, with a five-tat minimum, to paul_lukas at earthlink dot net.) The winner will be announced next Tuesday.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Yesterday’s discussion of flocked batting helmets inspired Todd Davis to do a bit of photo research. He turned up this shot of a flocked Maury Wills in the minor leagues, but his best finds were non-flocked, like an old Baseball Resigster cover, a classic SI cover, and the stunning revelation that Rod Carew wouldn’t have been allowed to play for the Bulls. … The Mets traded for Ambiorix Burgos yesterday (which should result in some very entertaining mispronunciations from a certain mush-mouthed talk radio host). As you may recall, Burgos is the player who caused a minor stir back on Memorial Day by wearing his American flag cap patch upside-down and in the wrong spot. … Interesting point made by Randy Rollyson, who writes: “Looking back, I see that very few MLB teams used red as their primary cap color before 1950, when the Phillies introduced the precursor to their current uniform. They wore that cap for 20 years. You might find an occasional red cap for a team, or the use of red in the bill color, but nothing that lasted. The Reds didn’t stick with an all-red cap until 1967. The Cardinals didn’t introduce a red cap that lasted until 1965. The Senators wore a red cap from ‘68-’71. Why? Was red dye more expensive? Did it tend to bleed more than other colors? Was there a health concern with having red dye that close to your head?” My initial thought was that it might be an anti-Commie thing, but even that seems unlikely, since Russia was actually our ally in WWII. Anyone..? … Thanks to USA Today’s Mike Bambach, who recently conducted this Q&A with me.
December 7th, 2006
Two weeks ago, while writing about the amazing Vintage Card Traders site, I mentioned the old flocked helmets that the Pirates used to wear. That prompted a note from reader Josh Curran, who pointed me toward this photo of a flocked Reds helmet — the first one I’ve ever seen. In fact, the only other photos of flocked helmets that I have handy are these shots of Mickey Mantle and Manny Sanguillen (also note Duke Sims’s brimless catching helmet), although I know there were other fuzzy-helmeted players out there. This would be a good research project, so if anyone knows of other players who wore the flocked domes (preferably not from the Pirates), let me know.
That Reds photo, incidentally, comes from Dave Grob’s page on the Crosley Field site, both of which are friggin’ gold mines. Grob, a serious collector of game-used unis, has loads of great photos. Among the many highlights:
• Here’s one of Ted Kluszewski’s jerseys, with the sleeves tailored extra-extra short (not just torn off, as is often mistakenly reported).
• The Reds briefly experimented with putting player names below the uni number, instead of above. Here’s another shot.
• Lots of good sleeve patches on display here, including the WWII-era star-spangled shield and “Health” emblems, the National League’s 75th-anniversary patch (note the slight differences between that version and this one), and the baseball centennial patch.
• Lots of cool personalized tagging too, as seen here, here, and here.
• Most people don’t realize that the Giants’ colors were once red and blue.
• Check out this nifto uni-numbered jacket sleeve.
• Thing of beauty, no?
There’s more on Grob’s page — see for yourself. And the rest of the Crosley Field site has even more, including the evolution of Mr. Redlegs (1956, 1957, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1967), tons of old stadium photos (look here, here, here, and here), and this totally boss usher’s cap (dig the caned brow panel!), among other treats. Well worth exploring.
Quiz Results: I’ve put the results of the Distant Replays gift card raffle into a separate blog entry, which you can find by scrolling down to the post below this one.
But wait, before you do that…: We’ve got another giveaway. The good folks at Helmet Hut are donating a free helmet from their Gridiron Memories online store. The lucky winner will be able to choose from any non-autographed college helmet on the site. They have killer stuff, as you can see from the models shown here, here, and here (the full inventory is here), and I can personally vouch for the incredibly authentic workmanship on these reproductions, right down to the stitching patterns on the fabric used in the interior web suspensions.
No time-consuming quiz this time, either. Just send an e-mail to helmetraffle at earthlink dot net (please note that this is not the usual Uni Watch address) and that’s it, you’re entered. I’ll choose the winner at random from all the entries received by next Monday at 9pm eastern time. I probably won’t even open these e-mails, so don’t bother writing anything clever — just think of it as putting your name in a hat. There’s no downside to entering, so everyone should do it.
Only one entry per person, but I’m going to stack the deck ever so slightly, like so: Everyone who’s donated to the cause by ordering Uni Watch temporary tattoos over the past couple of weeks will automatically have their names put into the hat a second time — a small gesture of thanks for supporting the site. And I’ll extend that same benefit to anyone who donates between now and next Monday. Same terms as before: $1 apiece for the first five tats, 50 cents apiece after that, with a five-tat minimum. PayPal those retirement funds to paul_lukas at earthlink dot net.
Uni Watch News Ticker: The Blues, desperate for offense, cloned Brett Hull last night. Okay, they actually just retired his number, which meant everyone had to endure that now-trite routine where all the players wore his jersey during pregame warm-ups. … Rob Bironas’s pants appear to be beltless (which is particularly odd considering the Titans have those little belt buckle sleeves). … Nice job by Bill Blewett, who writes: “Last night SDPBS had on a program about the history of South Dakota high school football, called 100 Years, 100 Yards, and I was able to snap some pics of some of the better get-ups. This one’s from 1908. I wasn’t able to catch a year on this one, but that’s some pretty nice striping. The next one is from the 1954 six-man Claremont Honkers — unfortunately, this was the best pic I could get. It really doesn’t do these vertical stripes justice. Next is some numbering I thought was cool from the 1954 Sioux Falls Washington High team. The last ones are a few basketball pics they had thrown in throughout the program — nice socks on the defender, and some cool belt and chest striping.” … Chad Klenk usually only writes in to talk about Ohio State, but today he’s got the 1984 Orange Bowl on his mind: “They recently showed the game as one of those ‘Classic Replays’ that ESPN does. They had Turner Gill and Bernie Kosar making comments throughout the game, and one of the topics they specifically talked about was that two Nebraska DBs actually switched jersey numbers before the game. They showed an old newspaper article covering the switcheroo, but I was unable to find it — although I think I found a link to where that article can be purchased for $2.95″ (and the link provides a good summary, too). … Marquette news, courtesy of Dan Kinderman, who quotes a local newspaper columnist thusly: “Coach Tom Crean has been affiliated with Nike since coming to MU in 1999. And since the Golden Eagles advanced to the Final Four in 2003, they’ve been designated as an Elite program by the shoe company, meaning they receive one of the best outfitting deals around. Their gear could have a new look next season, though, thanks in large part to former MU star and 2006 SI Sportsman of the Year Dwyane Wade. Crean has been in discussions with Converse — the company Wade has endorsed since entering the NBA in 2003, and has since been purchased by Nike — to switch over. Assuming the deal goes through, the Golden Eagles will become the lone team in college basketball to sport ‘Brand Wade’ uniforms and shoes.” … Speaking of Wade, how the hell did he end up wearing a Nike jersey on SI’s cover this week? The Adidas people can’t be happy about that. … I had some boxing on the tube as I was working on this blog entry. Wasn’t paying close attention to it, but at one point I looked up and was surprised to see that one of the fighters was wearing faux stirrup baseball socks. … Good breakdown of Cavs uni history here (with thanks to Justin Kadis). … Disturbing bit of logo creep unearthed by Jeremy Brahm: “I just saw an article apples in Japan with the Hanshin Tigers logo on them. Before the summer, the apples had tape placed on their skin, which turned the taped areas white as the apples grew.”
December 6th, 2006
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