1947. It was the year of flying saucers, breaking the sound barrier and the first televised state-of-the-union speech.
And it was the last year the Cardinals won a championship game.
As Cardinals fever blows out thermometers this week, news outlets are dredging up the octogenarians who made the team famous in the old days.
Back then, of course, the team was based in St. Louis; it moved to Arizona in 1987. But in a well-reported instance of deja vu, the opponent is the same: the Philadephia Eagles.
The New York Times ran with a story yesterday that includes the neat photograph above. Locally, KTAR news (620 a.m.), aired a phoned-in conversation with former player Vince Bonanis. Here's a sample:
The St. Petersburg Times in Florida has a piece on former halfback Charley Trippi, and Tennessee's Oak Ridger looked around the neighborhood and dusted off former Cardinals starter Buster Ramsey for an interview.
The only thing needed to complete this trip down memory lane is to repeat the 1947 victory against the Dirty Birds.
