Via my Google keyword spybot sentinels…from the Escanaba Daily News (naturally!), check out this piece on 92 year-old alum August Altese (inset left). Augie played on the freshman team in 1940 and suited up once more for the Victors Classic prior the Spring Game a few weeks ago. A few choice cuts from the story: On taking the field: ‘“I didn’t have my hearing aids in and they just pushed me out there,” Altese said. “I was so pleased to see that everyone was clapping. They assigned me the last five minutes and I just kind of ran this way and that. They didn’t throw anything to me, but when I was warming up they threw me three passes. I missed the first two, caught the third one and fell, and I still feel it.”’ On Billy Taylor: ‘”He was a great runner for Michigan, but he boozed it up and got into drugs after graduation,” Altese said. “Now he’s running an establishment that helps people. He’s a great guy.”’ and check this out, on Tom Harmon’s sponsored-sled(!!): ‘“As a freshman at Michigan in 1940, Altese didn’t get much playing time, and though he was on the same team as legendary Michigan quarterback Tom Harmon, he said he never met him. [Ed. The author didn’t know or point out that…
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Wire Photo Wednesday | Fritz Watches Harry Wrestle
Good Wednesday to you, friends. WPW leads off with a classic shot of the B1G football coaches meeting prior to the 1931 season (see above). This photo, from the Big Ten meetings prior to the 1931 season, is probably worth its $44 auction price. On the floor you’ve got M headman Harry Kipke with Purdue coach (and former player under Rockne) Noble Kizer demonstrating life in the trenches. Minnesota’s Fritz Crisler, who would replace Kipke later that decade, watches from the back. Amongst the men seated is Illinois legend Bob Zuppke sitting next to the one & only Amos Alonzo Stagg. Great shot. Dress code in ‘31? White shirt, tie, Brylcreem in the hair (except for Stagg). I don’t know when wire photos started to be distributed to newspapers, but this has to be a fairly early one (from 1926) featuring the great Michigan quarterback and NFL HOF’er Benny Friedman. The seller claims it is an original and wants a mere $30. If it’s truly the original it’s worth over $100 easy IMO.
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TWIMFbH: Relief from The Crash (1929)
For Saturday’s WTKA pregame show, we step back to the first game after the stock market crash of 1929. It was a biggie and yielded this iconic program cover:Despite the financial mess just days earlier, 87,000 fans packed the big to witness the heavyweight clash. While Yost had established Michigan as a national power long ago, the Wolverines had, up to this point, failed to beat or even score on Harvard in their four previous meetings dating back to the 1880s. That changed on this day in Michigan Football History 84 years ago on Saturday: Here’s the clip: [display_podcast] You can catch all of the This Week in Michigan Football History clips here….sponsored in 2013 by Ziebart of Yspilanti. And don’t forget to catch it live Saturday on the KeyBank Countdown to kick-off on WTKA 1050AM or inside the Victors Lounge.
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80 Years Today…The Real Jug Returns!
Many of you know the story—For those who don’t read on. For those who do, skip to the bottom for a little Jug update. PANIC(!) erupted in mid-September 1931. The coveted Little Brown Jug, the symbol of the Michigan-Minnesota rivalry, vanished from the U-M Administration building. A frantic search ensued sending media relations man Phil Pack (think of a vintage Bruce Madej) all over town chasing leads. Based on a tip Pack even searched a few cider mills..but those visits proved fruitless. /wink Then, on November 19, 1931, the very same week of the Minnesota game that season, a car pulled up to the Tuomy Hills gas station (now the Bearclaw Coffee at the corner of Washtenaw and Stadium) with four men wearing “dark goggles.” One of the disguised passengers rolled out a jug onto the pavement & it was scooped up by gas station attendant K.D. Smith. While initial reports were skeptical of the authenticity of the crock, which was said to have been “freshly painted”, Fielding H. Yost himself inspected it and said it was indeed the real McCoy. A local sports writer said Yost was full of it, calling it “a clever imitation.” Michigan retained the jug in 1931 but then headed back to Minneapolis in 1932. Yost went along on the trip (Harry Kipke coached the…
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Calisthenics with Coach Kipke (1933)
Thanks to Black and Blue creator Buddy Moorehouse for sending this over. There’s no audible sound but this clip is worth checking out nonetheless. It’s from 1933 featuring Coach Harry Kipke, several of the players and includes some game footage and a lot of shots of the team warming up and going through drills. Buddy found this on a recent visit to Grand Rapids to check out the Growing Up Grand exhibit at the Gerald R. Ford Museum: I love the vintage game footage of the kick-off 45 seconds in. The opponent throws up a double wedge but the Michigan men maintain their lanes and squash the return. The full clip is 9 minutes and is property of the U-M Bentley Historical Library. Also on display at the exhibit is the RIGHTEOUS pigskin from the 1934 Georgia Tech game: Buddy also passed along that in honor of Gerald Ford’s 100th birthday on July 14, 2013, every PBS affiliate in the state will be airing Black and Blue. Nice! Follow MVictors on Twitter
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Harry Kipke Tames Lions (1935)
I don’t if Harry Kipke liked to be photographed, or whether the press chased him around a lot but, brother, there are always a lot of interesting photos of the former Michigan All-American player and coach. Just right now you can find photos of Kipke in scenes that have nothing to do with football—[left to right above] on vacation with his wife in Florida chilling in a bathrobe, hanging out with golfing legend Gene Sarazen, and most frequently, Kipke on his boat sailing or hanging out with other people who love to sail. I don’t know if there are any Kipke family historians out there, but I’m guessing you can piece together Kipke’s life (certainly in the 1930s and 1940s) through solely the lens of newspaper wire photos that pop up on eBay. Here’s my favorite and this might end up in my man cave. Taken in May 1935 (notably after the horrific ‘34 season), on the left that’s Kipke’s son holding what you have to assume is a leather Michigan helmet. Kipke is kneeling in a sharp 3-piece suit with a flower tie as he tangles with two baby lions at his feet. Harry’s no fool—note the protective oven mitts. So what’s the deal with all of this? First, chalk this up to a day in the life of…
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Dirty Harry (WTKA audio)
When I hopped in the car Friday morning I was happy to hear the discussion on the WTKA 1050AM morning show focused on the 1930s and in particular, former M coach Harry Kipke. Ira took a few calls including a notable one from listener Don who broke down the whole discussion of “worst” three year stretch ever, and the fall of the Kipke era. Here’s Don’s call: [display_podcast] Well done, Don. As far as Don’s online Michigan historian, I’m pretty sure that’s me and he’s correct that you can find a lot more on that era on these pages. Regarding the worst stretch ever, I started that discussion three seasons ago when local writers started calling RichRod’s first the worst of all time. And despite what folks say (including our athletic department), by almost any measure the 3 year stretches from 1934-1936 and from 1935-1937 are worse, and Don adds some great points about our dismal performance against our rivals. It’s not so much that I care if you make a statement about the worst or best or whatever. But out of respect for those who care about the history and traditions of this university, at least mix in a “one of the” or “among the” before you drop in the word “worst” or “best”, assuming you are not willing to…
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Harry Bennett’s Castle
A quick follow-up on my post from this weekend on Harry Kipke and some of the troubles he ran into in the late 1930s. The muckety mucks on campus accused Kipke of running with some foul characters, namely Henry Ford’s henchman and enforcer, Harry Bennett. Bennett lived just down the street on Geddes and reader John F. sent me this link with several nice photos of the castle, including the bizarre tunnel that lead to the his pets lions and tigers. Enjoy, photos via retrokimmer blog:
