New Book Releases

There was little fanfare when Art "Mickey" McBride flew into Chicago in 1945 to purchase a professional football team for Cleveland. But that act set in motion a tradition that has brought the city of Cleveland together on Sunday afternoons for (most of) the sixty years to follow. Cleveland Browns History is the story of championship seasons, legendary coaches, and Hall of Fame players. Coach Paul Brown led his teams to seven league title games in their first 17 seasons. Running backs Marion Motley, Jim Brown, and Leroy Kelley each rushed over opposing defenses and
straight into Canton, Ohio, along with fellow Browns like Otto Graham, Ozzie Newsome, and Len Ford. The "Kardiac Kids" in 1980 had too many nail-biters for some fans, but won the AFC Central in typical fashion--by three points in the final game of the season. All these stories, plus those of the many unsung heroes to don the NFL's only logo-less helmet, fill the pages of this book, sure to delight any Cleveland Browns fan.

There were three professional football teams in Cincinnati before the current Bengals became a permanent fixture in the city. The Cincinnati Celts, Reds, and an earlier Bengals team (formed in 1937) all had short appearances in leagues that soon folded. It was not until 1967 that the football gods again smiled on Cincinnati. Paul Brown, who founded the Cleveland Browns in 1942, sold the Browns in 1962 and went to work organizing a Cincinnati team that played its first game in 1968. While the Bengals may not own any Super Bowl rings, they have won two AFC championship games, in 1981 and 1988, and were AFC Central Division champions five times, 1970, 1973, 1981, 1988, and 1990, as well as topping the AFC North in 2005.

Football in the Akron-Canton area can be traced back to the 1890s with Buchtel College and John W. Heisman. In the early 1900s, multiple professional teams sprouted throughout the eastern Ohio region. Major powerhouses included the Canton Bulldogs, Akron Indians, and Massillon Pros. In 1920, the Akron Pros became the first modern-day national champions of organized football. With the formation of the American Professional Football Association and the National Football League, many players and coaches with ties to the Akron-Canton region have become synonymous with football excellence. Today football in this area continues to play an integral part of life from the high school level to the college ranks to all types of professional football.

Akron-Canton Football Heritage traces the rich and storied history of football in the region as well as the contribution of local players, coaches, and teams through pictures obtained from multiple collections.

Legends of the Hall: 1950s captures a period of time when playing professional football was for tough, honest men who played solely for the love of the game. The 1950s was an era of crew cuts and nicknames like Crazylegs, Hopalong, and Night Train. The decade began with Sammy Baugh throwing his last passes and ended with the death of Bert Bell. This era also produced some of the greatest quarterbacks ever to play the game. They were known as the glamour boys of the league--Otto Graham, Bob Waterfield, Bobby Layne, Y. A. Tittle, and Bart Starr, to name a few. The incomparable, individual brilliance and unique team chemistry that marked this era have transcended this specific time and place to make Legends of the Hall: 1950s an unforgettable part of the magic and myth of professional football.