Blogs For Victory

Ed. Note: This was among the papers of George Childs Noonan, Jr. upon his death and was written by his father, George Childs Noonan, Sr., at a date uncertain. Given the sort of paper it is typed upon and the sort of print, it was probably written some time prior to 1970. It is incomplete, comprising 17 type-written pages. Whether there ever was anything else to this biographical essay is unknown.

I’ll never forget my first shot at the jackpot – it was back in 1926. Red Grange, the “Galloping Ghost” was the big attraction in professional football breaking attendance records wherever he played. Time after time, in college at the University of Illinois and later in big time pro ball, he’d take the ball on the kickoff and snake through for a touchdown. The fans loved him.

Red Grange and his team were headed for the Los Angeles Coliseum to play against a west-coast all-star team. C.C. “Cash and Carry” Pyle was Grange’s advance man, promoter and manager. It was his job as advance man to get to Los Angeles early and recruit a team to play against Red Grange’s team. At the time there was no pro team in Los Angeles, but there were enough ex-college players around who were only too anxious to play and make an extra buck.

Back in 1921-1923 I had made a meagre livlihood playing semi-pro baseball and, in season, “amateur” ice hockey for the Illinois Athletic Club. I also played football in the newly formed National Professional Football League. I played a game or two for Leo Lyon’s Jeffersons at Rochester, New York, and quarterback on the Hammond Pros out of Hammond, Indiana.

The players in the pro league in those days, generally, were by no means as big and fast as today’s pros. The game itself, however, was about the same, except that it was not nearly so much dramatized by the “long bomb” to excite spectator appeal. The pro game of the 20s though was perhaps more rough and tough than today’s game – we had no platoon system and played straight through, both defense and offense, for the full sixty minutes except for the half-time rest.

We had no face guard. No insurance. No medic in attendance on the sideline. The going rate of pay was $150 a game, though an All-American drawing card like Jim Thorpe, the big Indian, might get a little more; and I read somewhere that Red Grange the Immortal Galloping Ghost ended up with earnings in excess of $300,000 from pro ball and topped that with an additional $3,000,000 from movie contracts.

So having played pro ball in the National Professional Football League I knew a little something about the game and how to communicate with another football player; and I had a strong hunch that Red Grange would pack ’em in at the Coliseum. I set out to beat “Cash and Carry” to the punch and sign up a team to oppose his and to do it before “Cash and Carry” arrived in L.A.

At the time I was an unemployed motion picture writer and gag man. At least I tagged myself as such. I had been unemployed without any income for some time past and was completely tapped out. To go ahead with my idea to sign up every available football player on the West Coast it would be imperative that I take on a financial partner and quick – someone who would be willing to pick up my delinquent hotel bill and front for me. It would have to be some well known personality highly respected in the community and a person of unquestionable financial capability. I was living at the old Christie Hotel (now called Hollywood Inn) located on Hollywood Boulevard a few steps form Grauman’s Egyptian theater.

It struck me like a lightening bolt – Sid Grauman was my man. It would be a natural for him – he would flip for the publicity value alone. The great showman couldn’t say NO to a Sid Grauman spectactular, a half-time extravaganza. I was right. Mr. Grauman agreed to front for me – he picked up my delinquent hotel tab and paid a month in advance. I worked day and night and signed up every available ex-college star on the West Coast – they signed up on the basis of pay AFTER the game.

Somewhere along the line I got a phone call from Jack James, sports writer for the old Los Angeles Herald and Express. He asked me to come to the paper and urged me to donate part of my end of the gate for the benefit of the police and fireman’s fund – he said it would be to my advantage financially. I made a fatal mistake in not taking his advice – you’ll see what I mean.

A few days before “Cash and Carry” arrived in Los Angeles, I was having a late snack in Henry’s cafe on Hollywood Boulevard. I was sitting with Syd Chaplin, Charlie Chaplin’s brother, or should I say half-brother. In came Sid Grauman with Charlie Chaplin. When they were seated Mr. Grauman waved me to their table, “Charlie”, he beamed, “this is the young man who signed up all the star football players to play against the great Red Grange team”. Chaplin look up, “Who”, he asked, “is Red Grange?”…that did it.

Next day I had my usual meeting with Mr. Grauman at his theater. It wasn’t long in coming; “Georgie, I’m not so sure about our Red Grange promotion – you heard what Charlie said last night – he never heard of Red Grange – maybe a lot of people here on the West Coast have never heard of him – the game may lay an egg and I can’t be connected with a floperoo, y’know – I’m sorry Georgie, but I’ll have to bow out.”

“Cash and Carry” had checked into the Biltmore Hotel. I took the Sunset Boulevard bus downtown to see him. I showed him my player contracts and he made a verbal deal with me for 40% of the net receipts. Later it developed he was unable to come to terms with the Coliseum – something about local politics and he being an outsider. Without Grauman in the picture, I was helpless and was forced to turn my players over to a third party who had the political muscle to make a deal with the Coliseum.

The game was played to capacity crowd of approximately 100,000. I estimate about a $300,000 gate. My end of the take would have been a fair sized jackpot. Instead I ended up with peanuts, and on top of that I didn’t even get to see the game. Had I only paid attention to Jack James and made it somewhat of a charity affair, I am reasonably certain the Coliseum would not have been a problem.

Next Week, Part 2