Fred Gehrke
Encyclopedia
Fred Gehrke was a National Football League
running back
for the Cleveland-Los Angeles Rams
, San Francisco 49ers
and Chicago Cardinals. from 1940 through 1950. He is best remembered for designing the Los Angeles Rams logo in 1948, which was the first painted on the helmets of an NFL team. He would later become the General Manager
of the Denver Broncos
from 1977 through 1981.
football games. He there developed a love for the sport. He attended South High School
where he participated in swimming
, track and field
, and football. he graduated from high school in 1935 and then attended the University of Utah
, where he majored in art.
During his time at Utah, he started at running back on offense and left cornerback
on defense. He also returned punt
s and kickoff
s.
in a pre-season exhibition game. His first contract with Cleveland paid him $135.00 per game. However he did not play in many games thaty season due to Parker Hall, the NFL’s MVP in 1939, was the Rams' starting running back and his success kept Gehrke on the bench.
When the United States
entered World War II
in 1941, Gehrke reported for military service. However he was denied entry in the armed forces when military examiners noticed a operation scar across Gehrke's knee and he was immediately given 4F status
. Gehrke appealed the decision by was still denied entry in the armed forces. Fred however did contribute to war effort by landed a job with Northrop Aircraft
, which was based in California
, as a technical illustrator and began helping with the design of airplanes.
In 1942, Gehrke joined the Hollywood Bears of the Pacific Coast Professional Football League
, which at this time had a talent level considered to be on par with NFL, since many National Football League players were in the military atationed on the West Coast and others were working in war industries there. The players worked their jobs during the day and then worked out and played their games at night. Gehrke played for the Los Angeles Bulldogs
in 1943 and the Los Angeles Wildcats
in 1944.
15-14. Gehrke led the NFL that year in both average rushing yards, with 6.3 yards per rush, and an average punt return of 15.0 yards. He was then named to Pro Football Illustrated ‘s All-Pro team. In 1946 the Rams relocated to Los Angeles
. That season, Gehrke was named to Pro Football Illustrated ‘s All-NFL second team. He also repeated as the NFL's average rushing leader with 5.2 yards per carry. He also continued working at Northrup, since many players at the time took up jobs outside of football during the off-season. He would then take three months off to play professional football.
suggested that Fred paint a helmet with the ram horns on it that he could present to the team's owner Dan Reeves
. Fred painted two ram horns on an old college helmet and presented the design to Reeves, who was intrigued by the design. Reeves then contacted the NFL for a ruling on legality of having a football helmet painted. It was reported that the answer Reeves received from NFL was "You're the owner; do what you want!" Reeves then tasked Gehrke to paint 75 helmets at $1.00 per helmet. The project took Gehrke the entire summer of 1948.
The newly painted helmets debuted during a pre-season match-up between the Rams and Redskins at the Los Angeles Coliseum before a crowd of 105,000. Upon seeing the new helmets the crowd began cheering which was followed by a five minute standing ovation. To this day, Gehrke's rams horn logo is still worn by the team. By 1949, the Riddell sporting goods company
had created a plastic helmet, baking in Gehrke's design. Some observers of the 1950 NFL Championship Game said that the only way to tell the Rams and the Cleveland Browns
apart in the initial low resolution coast-to-coast telecast was the distinctive horns on the Rams' helmets. Throughout the 1950s many pro and college teams began painting logos to their helmets.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame
displays one of the original helmets, painted by Gehrke, along with the story behind it each year during Super Bowl
Week. In logo innovation also earned Fred the Pro Football Hall of Fame's first Daniel F. Reeves Pioneer Award in 1972.
While the mask did protect Fred's face, it did obscure his vision on pass plays to the sides. He could only see the ball with one eye. However on punt returns his vision was unobstructed. He returned to using the traditional helmet the next season.
and Les Horvath
for the starting job at running back. Both men were Heisman Trophy
winners. In 1950, he was traded to Chicago Cardinals. In mid-season they traded him to San Francisco '49ers. He scored his last touchdown with San Francisco. By this time Fred was tired of the constant moving and traveling that came with being an NFL player. He retired as a player at the age of 31. Upon his retirement from pro football, Gehrke returned to Northrup and moved into an administrative post as head of the department. However he was still involved in football. On weekends he would assist his former roommate Tom Harmon, who was announcing San Francisco 49er and college football games. He held the job with Harmon for the next 13 seasons.
Denver Broncos, to become a pro scout for Denver. Fred repeatedly turned down the offer. He finally accepted the position. He then rose from personnel director to general manager to vice-president of the team.
In 1981 the team was sold to Edgar Kaiser
, a Canadian
businessmen who brought in his own personnel, Gehrke and Coach Red Miller
were asked to resign. However Gehrke and Red Miller were hired by Denver Gold
of the United States Football League
. But after three years the league folded and Gehrke's life in football finally came to an end.
Fred Gehrke died at his home in Palm Springs, California on February 9, 2002.
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...
running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
for the Cleveland-Los Angeles Rams
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
, San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
and Chicago Cardinals. from 1940 through 1950. He is best remembered for designing the Los Angeles Rams logo in 1948, which was the first painted on the helmets of an NFL team. He would later become the General Manager
General Manager (American football)
In the National Football League, the general manager or GM of a team typically controls player transactions and bears the primary responsibility on behalf of the team during contract discussions with players....
of the Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
from 1977 through 1981.
Early life and college
Gehrke was born and raised in Salt Lake City. As a youth, Fred would sneak into Utah UtesUtah Utes football
The Utah Utes football program is a college football team that currently competes in the Pacific-12 Conference of the Football Bowl Subdivision of NCAA Division I and represents the University of Utah. The Utah college football program began in 1892 and has played home games at Rice–Eccles...
football games. He there developed a love for the sport. He attended South High School
South High School (Salt Lake City)
South High School was a high school in Salt Lake City, Utah, which operated from 1931 to 1988. The school was located on the southern end of Salt Lake City proper, at 1575 S. State Street...
where he participated in swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
, track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
, and football. he graduated from high school in 1935 and then attended the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
, where he majored in art.
During his time at Utah, he started at running back on offense and left cornerback
Cornerback
A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...
on defense. He also returned punt
Punt (football)
In some codes of football, a punt is a play in which a player drops the ball and kicks it before it touches the ground. A punt is in contrast to a drop kick, in which the ball touches the ground before being kicked....
s and kickoff
Kickoff (American football)
A kickoff is a method of starting a drive in American football and Canadian football. Typically, a kickoff consists of one team – the "kicking team" – kicking the ball to the opposing team – the "receiving team"...
s.
Cleveland Rams and World War II
Fred entered the NFL as an undrafted rookie. He did land a try-out with the Cleveland Rams in 1940. He was awarded a spot on team after he returned a kickoff for a touchdownTouchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
in a pre-season exhibition game. His first contract with Cleveland paid him $135.00 per game. However he did not play in many games thaty season due to Parker Hall, the NFL’s MVP in 1939, was the Rams' starting running back and his success kept Gehrke on the bench.
When the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
entered World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in 1941, Gehrke reported for military service. However he was denied entry in the armed forces when military examiners noticed a operation scar across Gehrke's knee and he was immediately given 4F status
Selective Service System
The Selective Service System is a means by which the United States government maintains information on those potentially subject to military conscription. Most male U.S. citizens and male immigrant non-citizens between the ages of 18 and 25 are required by law to have registered within 30 days of...
. Gehrke appealed the decision by was still denied entry in the armed forces. Fred however did contribute to war effort by landed a job with Northrop Aircraft
Northrop Corporation
Northrop Corporation was a leading United States aircraft manufacturer from its formation in 1939 until its merger with Grumman to form Northrop Grumman in 1994. The company is known for its development of the flying wing design, although only a few of these have entered service.-History:Jack...
, which was based in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, as a technical illustrator and began helping with the design of airplanes.
In 1942, Gehrke joined the Hollywood Bears of the Pacific Coast Professional Football League
Pacific Coast Professional Football League
The Pacific Coast Professional Football League , also known as the Pacific Coast Football League and Pacific Coast League was a professional American football league based in California, USA, and competed from 1940 through 1948 in sports...
, which at this time had a talent level considered to be on par with NFL, since many National Football League players were in the military atationed on the West Coast and others were working in war industries there. The players worked their jobs during the day and then worked out and played their games at night. Gehrke played for the Los Angeles Bulldogs
Los Angeles Bulldogs
The Los Angeles Bulldogs were a professional American football team that competed from 1936 to 1948...
in 1943 and the Los Angeles Wildcats
Los Angeles Wildcats
The Los Angeles Wildcats was a traveling team of the first American Football League that was not based in its nominal home city but in Chicago, Illinois...
in 1944.
Return to the NFL
Once the war ended in 1945, Gehrke returned to the Cleveland Rams. That season, the Rams won the 1945 NFL Championship Game by defeating the Washington RedskinsWashington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
15-14. Gehrke led the NFL that year in both average rushing yards, with 6.3 yards per rush, and an average punt return of 15.0 yards. He was then named to Pro Football Illustrated ‘s All-Pro team. In 1946 the Rams relocated to Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. That season, Gehrke was named to Pro Football Illustrated ‘s All-NFL second team. He also repeated as the NFL's average rushing leader with 5.2 yards per carry. He also continued working at Northrup, since many players at the time took up jobs outside of football during the off-season. He would then take three months off to play professional football.
First helmet logo
In the mid-1940's Gehrke toyed with notion of painting a football helmet. Rams coach, Bob SnyderBob Snyder
Bob Snyder was a football player and coach who spent more than three decades in the sport, including his most prominent position as head coach of the National Football League's Los Angeles Rams.-College career:...
suggested that Fred paint a helmet with the ram horns on it that he could present to the team's owner Dan Reeves
Dan Reeves (NFL owner)
Daniel "Dan" Reeves was the owner of the Cleveland/Los Angeles Rams from 1941 to his death in 1971.In addition to the controversial move of the Rams from Cleveland to Los Angeles, Reeves is remembered for being the first NFL owner to sign an African-American player in the post World War II era...
. Fred painted two ram horns on an old college helmet and presented the design to Reeves, who was intrigued by the design. Reeves then contacted the NFL for a ruling on legality of having a football helmet painted. It was reported that the answer Reeves received from NFL was "You're the owner; do what you want!" Reeves then tasked Gehrke to paint 75 helmets at $1.00 per helmet. The project took Gehrke the entire summer of 1948.
The newly painted helmets debuted during a pre-season match-up between the Rams and Redskins at the Los Angeles Coliseum before a crowd of 105,000. Upon seeing the new helmets the crowd began cheering which was followed by a five minute standing ovation. To this day, Gehrke's rams horn logo is still worn by the team. By 1949, the Riddell sporting goods company
Riddell
Riddell is an American company specializing in sports equipment for American football, baseball, basketball, lacrosse, soccer, softball, track and field, tennis, volleyball, National Football League, NCAA Football and wrestling. It is headquartered in Des Plaines, Illinois.The company was started...
had created a plastic helmet, baking in Gehrke's design. Some observers of the 1950 NFL Championship Game said that the only way to tell the Rams and the Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
apart in the initial low resolution coast-to-coast telecast was the distinctive horns on the Rams' helmets. Throughout the 1950s many pro and college teams began painting logos to their helmets.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
displays one of the original helmets, painted by Gehrke, along with the story behind it each year during Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
Week. In logo innovation also earned Fred the Pro Football Hall of Fame's first Daniel F. Reeves Pioneer Award in 1972.
First facemask
Gehrke is also credited with developing the first helmet with a full facemask. He developed the face mask after having his nose broken 3 times during the 1946 season. He played the entire 1947 season with the facemask, which was made by Fred applying a clay mold to his face. Once the mask dried, he had a few of the machinists who were running the power stamping machines at Northrop, cover it with a sheet of aluminum. The manufactured piece of aluminum covered the nose, forehead and rested on the cheekbones to bear the brunt of blows. Fred then took the mask to his grandfather, who covered it in leather. In order for Fred to get the helmet on, it was cut up the back and laces were weaved into it.While the mask did protect Fred's face, it did obscure his vision on pass plays to the sides. He could only see the ball with one eye. However on punt returns his vision was unobstructed. He returned to using the traditional helmet the next season.
Retirement and broadcasting
Fred spent three more seasons with Rams. From 1945-1948, Fred beat out Tom HarmonTom Harmon
Thomas Dudley Harmon was a star player in American college football, a sports broadcaster, and patriarch of a family of American actors...
and Les Horvath
Les Horvath
Leslie "Les" Horvath was the 1944 Heisman Trophy winner, who played quarterback and halfback for the Ohio State University.- Early life :He was born in South Bend, Indiana, and raised in the Cleveland, Ohio area....
for the starting job at running back. Both men were Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winners. In 1950, he was traded to Chicago Cardinals. In mid-season they traded him to San Francisco '49ers. He scored his last touchdown with San Francisco. By this time Fred was tired of the constant moving and traveling that came with being an NFL player. He retired as a player at the age of 31. Upon his retirement from pro football, Gehrke returned to Northrup and moved into an administrative post as head of the department. However he was still involved in football. On weekends he would assist his former roommate Tom Harmon, who was announcing San Francisco 49er and college football games. He held the job with Harmon for the next 13 seasons.
Denver Broncos and the USFL
In 1964, Gehrke was approached by Mac Speedie, a former Utah Utes football player who was now the coach of the American Football League'sAmerican Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
Denver Broncos, to become a pro scout for Denver. Fred repeatedly turned down the offer. He finally accepted the position. He then rose from personnel director to general manager to vice-president of the team.
In 1981 the team was sold to Edgar Kaiser
Edgar Kaiser
Edgar Fosburgh Kaiser, Jr is a Canadian financier and a former owner of the Denver Broncos American football team. He was born in Portland, Oregon on 5 July 1942 and is the grandson of shipbuilding industrialist Henry J. Kaiser. He earned a BA degree from Stanford University and an MBA degree...
, a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
businessmen who brought in his own personnel, Gehrke and Coach Red Miller
Red Miller
Robert "Red" Miller is a former professional football coach with the Denver Broncos.- Early life and career :Miller was born and raised in Macomb, Illinois and attended Macomb Public Schools and Western Illinois University, where he was later a star player and coach for the Leathernecks football...
were asked to resign. However Gehrke and Red Miller were hired by Denver Gold
Denver Gold
The Denver Gold was a franchise in the United States Football League, an attempt to establish a second major professional football league in the United States, playing a springtime season, from 1983 to 1985...
of the United States Football League
United States Football League
The United States Football League was an American football league which was in active operation from 1983 to 1987. It played a spring/summer schedule in its first three seasons and a traditional autumn/winter schedule was set to commence before league operations ceased.The USFL was conceived in...
. But after three years the league folded and Gehrke's life in football finally came to an end.
Fred Gehrke died at his home in Palm Springs, California on February 9, 2002.