Dan Blaine
Encyclopedia
Daniel Blaine was an professional football
player for the Staten Island Stapletons
from 1915 until 1924. In 1915 he, along with three other players, formed the team to play other semi-pro
teams from New York
and New Jersey
. He suspended his football career in 1918 to serve in the United States military during World War I
. Once the war ended, Blaine took over sole ownership of the Stapletons. He stayed in the Stapleton lineup at halfback
until endeding his playing career in 1924 at age 33. After his retirement from football, Blaine focuses solely on owning and managing the team.
After a November 14, 1926 33-0 loss to the Newark Bears
, Blaine promptly hired most of the Newark players, including star rookie Doug Wycoff
, who were still owed money because the Newark owner was having financial problems. As a result, the Bears went out of business while the Stapletons benefited from Newark's folding. By 1929, the Stapletons became engulfed in a rivialry with the New York Giants
. That same year saw the team became members of the National Football League
after the New York Yankees
folded. While the Stapletons never had a winning season in the NFL, they did manage to defeat (or tie) some of the teams that are still in existence today.
Blaine went through the formality of getting NFL permission to suspend league operations for the 1934 season
. The team played one more season of semi-pro football in 1934 before quietly folding. In June 1935, Blaine's franchise was finally declared forfeit. A combination of the Great Depression
and having too small of a stadium that could have never accommodated enough fans to make the team profitable. Stapes fans couldn't afford enough tickets to make a team possible.
known as Prohibition in the United States
. Blaine owned a restaurant next to the Stapletons home field Thompson Stadium
.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player for the Staten Island Stapletons
Staten Island Stapletons
The Staten Island Stapletons also known as the Staten Island Stapes were a professional American football team founded in 1915 that played in the National Football League from 1929 to 1930. The team was based in the Stapleton section of Staten Island. Under the shortened nickname the "Stapes"...
from 1915 until 1924. In 1915 he, along with three other players, formed the team to play other semi-pro
Semi-professional
A semi-professional athlete is one who is paid to play and thus is not an amateur, but for whom sport is not a full-time occupation, generally because the level of pay is too low to make a reasonable living based solely upon that source, thus making the athlete not a full professional...
teams from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. He suspended his football career in 1918 to serve in the United States military during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Once the war ended, Blaine took over sole ownership of the Stapletons. He stayed in the Stapleton lineup at halfback
Halfback (American football)
A halfback, sometimes referred to as a tailback, is an offensive position in American football, which lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the halfback position was both an offensive and defensive...
until endeding his playing career in 1924 at age 33. After his retirement from football, Blaine focuses solely on owning and managing the team.
After a November 14, 1926 33-0 loss to the Newark Bears
Newark Bears
The Newark Bears are an American professional baseball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are a member of the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. Since the 1999 season, the Bears have played their home games at Bears &...
, Blaine promptly hired most of the Newark players, including star rookie Doug Wycoff
Doug Wycoff
Stephen Douglas Wycoff was an American football running back for the New York Giants, Staten Island Stapletons, and Boston Redskins in the National Football League, the Newark Bears in the first American Football League, and the Boston Shamrocks in the second American Football League...
, who were still owed money because the Newark owner was having financial problems. As a result, the Bears went out of business while the Stapletons benefited from Newark's folding. By 1929, the Stapletons became engulfed in a rivialry with the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. That same year saw the team became members of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
after the New York Yankees
New York Yankees (NFL)
The New York Yankees were a short-lived professional American football team from 1926 to 1928. The team was a member of the first American Football League in 1926, and later the National Football League from 1927-1928. They played their home games at Yankee Stadium...
folded. While the Stapletons never had a winning season in the NFL, they did manage to defeat (or tie) some of the teams that are still in existence today.
Blaine went through the formality of getting NFL permission to suspend league operations for the 1934 season
1934 NFL season
The 1934 NFL season was the 15th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, the Portsmouth Spartans moved to Detroit, Michigan and were renamed the Detroit Lions....
. The team played one more season of semi-pro football in 1934 before quietly folding. In June 1935, Blaine's franchise was finally declared forfeit. A combination of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and having too small of a stadium that could have never accommodated enough fans to make the team profitable. Stapes fans couldn't afford enough tickets to make a team possible.
Restaurants
He also owned several restaurants in Staten Island. However it is rumoured that these restuarnts were really speakeasies, that served alcohol during the period of United States historyHistory of the United States
The history of the United States traditionally starts with the Declaration of Independence in the year 1776, although its territory was inhabited by Native Americans since prehistoric times and then by European colonists who followed the voyages of Christopher Columbus starting in 1492. The...
known as Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
. Blaine owned a restaurant next to the Stapletons home field Thompson Stadium
Thompson Stadium (Staten Island)
Thompson Stadium was a football stadium used by the Staten Island Stapletons of the National Football League from 1924 until 1933. It was located on the site of present Berta A. Dreyfus Intermediate School 49 and the Stapleton Houses. They faced many other teams that still exist today.The stadium...
.