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
-
-
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…
-
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…
-
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:
-
Rough Seas for Coach Kipke (1936)
The fall of Michigan coach Harry Kipke.
-
Michigan Football’s Worst Season Ever
Michigan football's worst season? Not Rich Rod, not 2020...here's my answer: