New Gridiron Series Commemorates Great Moments
July 12, 2007 | General News
The 2007 Camp Randall Gridiron Series of vintage UW football program cover artwork will be available for shipping August 10. The four-poster series features covers from the 1920s through the 1940s including the historic Oct. 6, 1928, Notre Dame loss at Wisconsin.
Here is the newspaper summary of the game. 'In the featured game of the day, the Wisconsin 11 opened the season by cruising past a strong Notre Dame team by a score of 22-6. Expected to lose, the untried team held the famous Rockne offense completely in check and taking advantage of every Notre Dame mistake, scored three touch downs and a safety to give the Irish their first defeat by a Big Ten Conference team since 1921.'
Begun in 2006, the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics began the Gridiron Series, a vintage poster and note cards project, to showcase the beautiful illustrations used in past football game program covers. It was an opportunity to commemorate through collectible art the legacy of Camp Randall Stadium. In addition to the Fighting Irish game, the posters produced this year include the Iowa cover from Oct. 12, 1940, the Marquette game on Oct. 6, 1934, and the Purdue Homecoming game from Oct. 28, 1933.
The 16x20-inch posters are available as a single order for $18, or fans may buy the entire series of four for $60. The set of 12 5x7-inch note cards and envelopes sells for $15. It contains three cards each of the four poster illustrations.
The games included in the 2006 series and still available are the Pat O'Dea homecoming souvenir program from 1934; UW vs. Marquette, Oct. 2, 1937; UW vs. Michigan, Oct. 19, 1935; and UW vs. Minnesota, the 50th anniversary of that meeting, Nov. 23, 1940.
The posters have become popular, especially to a certain segment of the population. 'It seems men think the football cover illustrations are 'manly art'," according to Tam Flarup, the Director of Web Site Services who also spearheads the project. Eighty percent of the orders are from men. It seems men cannot find note cards they can identify with very easily. Everything is flowers or butterflies. These cards, which depict games from the 1920's, 30s and 40s, fit their taste."
An art director at a well-known graphics design firm in Madison ordered the four-poster series for her boyfriend. She told Flarup, 'He had blank walls in his apartment because he couldn't find art that he liked. But he liked these posters, so I had them framed for him. They are classic art that I can appreciate, too.'
Another interesting fact is many orders are being placed by Marquette graduates, particularly by lawyers for their law offices. One of the covers from 2006 is the Marquette vs. Wisconsin game on Oct. 2, 1937. Another Marquette poster will included in the 2007 series.
To order the 2006 or 2007 Gridiron Series click here . Fans may mix any four posters from the two series to as part of the $60 package.
