Pigskin Champions | |
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Directed by | Charles G. Clarke |
Produced by | Pete Smith |
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Country | United States |
Language | English |
Pigskin Champions is a 1937 sports short subject documentary directed by Charles G. Clarke and Produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It featured the then-World Champion Green Bay Packers in an exhibition of football skills. It premiered in Green Bay, Wisconsin on August 13, 1937. [1] The film featured prominent players from the team, such as Curly Lambeau, Arnie Herber, Don Hutson, and Clarke Hinkle, performing difficult passes and kicks, as well as various workouts and drills. [2]
Elroy Leon "Crazylegs" Hirsch was an American professional football player, sport executive and actor. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1974. He was also named to the all-time All-Pro team selected in 1968 and to the National Football League (NFL) 1950s All-Decade Team.
Ernest Alonzo Nevers, sometimes known by the nickname "Big Dog", was an American football and baseball player and football coach. Widely regarded as one of the best football players in the first half of the 20th century, he played as a fullback and was a triple-threat man known for his talents in running, passing, and kicking. He was inducted with the inaugural classes of inductees into both the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963. He was also named in 1969 to the NFL 1920s All-Decade Team.
William Clarke Hinkle was an American professional football player for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played on offense as a fullback, defense as a linebacker, and special teams as a kicker and punter. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of its second class of inductees in 1964.
William Wallace Wade was an American football player and coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the University of Alabama from 1923 to 1930 and at Duke University from 1931 to 1941 and again from 1946 to 1950, compiling a career college football record of 171–49–10. His tenure at Duke was interrupted by military service during World War II. Wade's Alabama Crimson Tide football teams of 1925, 1926, and 1930 have been recognized as national champions, while his 1938 Duke team had an unscored upon regular season, giving up its only points in the final minute of the 1939 Rose Bowl. Wade won a total of ten Southern Conference football titles, four with Alabama and six with the Duke Blue Devils. He coached in five Rose Bowls including the 1942 game, which was relocated from Pasadena, California to Durham, North Carolina after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Walter Andrew Kiesling was an American football guard and tackle who spent 36 years as a player, coach, and aide with National Football League (NFL) teams. He was posthumously inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1966 and was named to the NFL 1920s All-Decade Team in 1969.
August Michael Michalske, sometimes known as "Iron Mike", was an American football player and coach. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of its second induction class in 1964. He was also named in 1969 to the NFL 1920s All-Decade Team.
George Edward Trafton was an American professional football player and coach, boxer, boxing manager, and gymnasium proprietor. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1964 and was also selected in 1969 as the center on the NFL 1920s All-Decade Team.
Robert Ernest "Bob" Harlan was an American football executive who served as the president of the Green Bay Packers for 19 years. Harlan also held the titles of Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer for the Packers. He is a graduate of Marquette University, where he later served as the Sports Information Director for many years. After his tenure at Marquette, Harlan worked for the St. Louis Cardinals for five years in community and public relations. In 1971, he was hired by the Packers as assistant general manager and for the next 18 years was promoted to executive vice president. In 1989, after the retirement of Robert J. Parins, Harlan was elected as the Packers' ninth president, a position he held until 2008. Harlan became the first team president whose background was solely football; all previous presidents of the Packers were local civic leaders or businessmen in the Green Bay, Wisconsin-area.
Rockwood Lodge was the training facility of the Green Bay Packers from 1946 to 1950. Originally built in 1937 as a retreat for a local Norbertine Order, the Lodge was purchased by Packers coach and general manager Curly Lambeau in 1946 and then heavily renovated, making it the first self-contained training facility in professional football history. Although the facility was state-of-the-art at the time, many members of the Packers franchise and local fans complained of its high cost, distance from Green Bay, Wisconsin, and its poor practice field. The Lodge burned down in 1950, with the likely cause being faulty electrical wiring or lightning. The Packers received $75,000 in insurance from the fire, which would be used to help reestablish the Packers' long-term financial security. Lambeau resigned from the Packers just a week after the fire, citing a lack of unity in the team's direction between him and the Packers' board of directors. The Rockwood Lodge site would lay vacant for a number of years before being purchased by Brown County, Wisconsin, and developed into a public park.
Robert Mann was an American professional football player in the National Football League (NFL). A native of New Bern, North Carolina, Mann played college football at Hampton Institute in 1942 and 1943 and at the University of Michigan in 1944, 1946 and 1947. Playing the end position, he broke the Big Ten Conference record for receiving yards in 1946 and 1947. After not being selected in the 1948 NFL Draft, Mann signed his first professional football contract with the Detroit Lions, where he stayed for two seasons. He later played for the Green Bay Packers for parts of five seasons until 1954. Mann broke the color barrier for both teams.
Howard Pierce "Cub" Buck was an American football player and coach. He played as a tackle at the University of Wisconsin, captaining the team and earning consensus All-American honors in 1915. Buck then played professionally for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Canton Bulldogs (1916–1920) and Green Bay Packers (1921–1925). He served as the head football coach at Carleton College from 1917 to 1919, at Lawrence College in 1923, and as the first head coach at the University of Miami from 1926 to 1928. Buck was inducted into the Wisconsin State Athletic Hall of Fame in 1956, the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1977, and the University of Wisconsin Athletic Department Hall of Fame in 1991.
The 1936 Green Bay Packers season was the franchise 's 18th season overall, 16th season in the National Football League, and the 18th under head coach Curly Lambeau. The team improved on their 8–4 record from 1935 and finished with a 10–1–1 record, first in the NFL's Western Division.
Clarence John "Pike" Kenney was an American college football player and coach. He played college football at Marquette University before transferring as a medical student to the Saint Louis University. Kenney was an outstanding halfback and captain of the 1906 Saint Louis Blue and White football team when his teammate, Bradbury Robinson, completed the first legal forward pass to Jack Schneider in the history of American football on September 5 against Carroll in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Kenney served as head football coach at Creighton University in 1908, where his team went 3–3–2. He returned to Marquette in 1910 as an assistant coach and served as the head football coach there for one season in 1912, compiling a record of 3–4.
The 1937 Michigan State Spartans football team represented Michigan State College as an independent during the 1937 college football season. In their fifth season under head coach Charlie Bachman, the Spartans compiled an 8–2 record and won their annual rivalry game with Michigan by a 19 to 14 score. In inter-sectional play, the team defeated Kansas (16–0), Temple (13–6), Carnegie Tech (13–6), and San Francisco (14–0), but lost to Manhattan (3–0) and Auburn.
Eleanor Coleman was an American swimmer.
Emil Richard Fischer was a businessman and an American football executive for the Green Bay Packers. Fischer was well known in the Green Bay cheese industry, a nationally recognized businessman, and a local civic leader. From 1948 to 1952, he served as the fifth president of Green Bay Packers, Inc., the non-profit organization that owns the Green Bay Packers. He is credited with leading the Packers through one of the most difficult periods in the team's history. During his tenure, the team's co-founder and longtime coach Curly Lambeau resigned, the Packers issued their third stock sale, and the National Football League (NFL) merged with the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). He also sat on the organization's board of directors and executive committee from 1935 to 1958. After his presidency ended, he served as chairman of the board until his death in 1958. In recognition of his contributions to the team, Fischer was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 2013.
Russell W. Bogda was an American automotive executive and president of the Green Bay Packers. From 1953 to 1957, he served as the sixth president of Green Bay Packers, Inc., the non-profit organization that owns the Packers. During his presidency, the Packers secured funding and built New City Stadium, which would be renamed in 1965 to Lambeau Field. Although the Packers during Bogda's tenure saw little on-field success, he helped the organization stay financially successful and the construction of a new stadium during his tenure kept the Packers in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Bogda died at the age of 46 on February 22, 1958, of lung cancer.
The 1954 Florida A&M Rattlers football team was an American football team that represented Florida A&M University as a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) during the 1954 college football season. In their 10th season under head coach Jake Gaither, the Rattlers compiled an 8–1 record, including a victory over Maryland State in the Orange Blossom Classic. The team played its home games at Bragg Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida.
The 1954 Tennessee A&I Tigers football team represented Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State College as a member of the Midwest Athletic Association (MAA) during the 1954 college football season. In their fourth and final season under head coach Henry Kean, the Tigers compiled a 10–1 record, won the MAA championship, lost to North Carolina Central in the National Classic, and outscored all opponents by a total of 330 to 70.
The 1951 Morris Brown Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented Morris Brown College in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) during the 1951 college football season. In their second season under head coach Edward Clemons, the team compiled a 10–1 record, defeated Alcorn A&M in the Tropical Bowl, and outscored all opponents by a total of 449 to 56.