Nearmint's Vintage Football Card Blog

Tom Brookshier, defensive back for the Eagles in 1953 and from 1956 to 1961, died on January 29. Brookshier had 8 interceptions in his rookie season, and a total of 20 in his career. He made the Pro Bowl in 1959 and 1960, and he was a member of the Eagles’ 1960 championship team. The Eagles later retired his number. (The two-year gap in his career was time that he spent in the Air Force.)

After his playing career, Brookshier became a TV broadcaster. In the 1970s, he and Pat Summerall were CBS’s top broadcasting team, and they announced three Super Bowls together. This is how I remember Brookshier and Summerall, from watching lots of football on Sundays. I didn’t know that they had been players until I started collecting vintage cards.

Shown here is Brookshier’s rookie card, from the 1960 Topps set. He also appeared on a 1961 Topps card and on a 1962 Post Cereal card, though he did not play in 1962.

Jerry Shipkey, who played for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1948 to 1952 and for the Chicago Bears in 1953, died on November 28. Shipkey was an All-Pro at linebacker for his last three years with the Steelers. Before joining the Steelers, he had the distinction of playing in the Rose Bowl for both UCLA and USC.

Shipkey appeared on football cards in all five of the Bowman sets issued from 1950 to 1953. The images on his cards, however, all appear to be from the same photo session. Pictured here are his rookie card, a 1950 Bowman, and his last card, a 1953 Bowman. As you can see, Bowman used the same images on both cards, but they recolored his helmet on the 1953 card. (I don’t know why. Maybe they thought the Steelers’ helmets should look like steel.) They also apparently printed the 1953 card before Shipkey was traded to the Bears.

Jack Zilly, who played offensive end and defensive end for the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles, died on December 18. In college, Zilly played on Notre Dame’s national championship teams of 1943 and 1946. In the intervening two years, he served in World War II. Before his rookie season with the Rams, Zilly played in the 1947 College All-Star game, scoring a touchdown in the All-Stars’ win over the Chicago Bears. He played for the Rams from 1947 to 1951, finished his career with the Eagles in 1952, and went on to coach at Montana State and Notre Dame.

Zilly is pictured here on his 1951 Bowman football card. I always liked this action shot, with the grass flying up behind him and the ball entering the picture in the upper right. Zilly also appeared on a 1950 Bowman card, and his obituary in the Los Angeles Times has a nice action photo of him with the Rams.

Al Dorow, who played quarterback for the Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Titans, Buffalo Bills, and three CFL teams, died on December 7. Dorow was the New York Titans’ starting quarterback when the AFL started play in 1960. (The Titans became the Jets in 1963.) There is a detailed article about Dorow’s career on the profootballresearchers.com web site.

Pictured here is Dorow’s rookie card, a 1955 Bowman. Over his career, he appeared on five NFL and AFL cards. He also appeared on one CFL card, in 1959. I don’t have Dorow’s CFL card, but there are a lot of them on eBay.

Serafino “Foge” Fazio, a longtime college and NFL coach, died on December 2. Fazio was the head coach at Pitt from 1982 to 1985, before becoming an assistant coach in the NFL. His NFL career included defensive coaching positions with the Falcons, Jets, and Redskins, and five years as a defensive coordinator for the Vikings and Browns.

Fazio was drafted by the Boston Patriots in 1960, but he did not see playing time as a professional. He did, however, appear on a 1960 Fleer card, pictured here.

Tom Janik, who played defensive back from 1963 to 1971 for the Broncos, Bills, and Patriots, died on November 21. According to his page on pro-football-reference.com, Janik intercepted 25 passes in his career, returning 6 of them for touchdowns. He went to the Pro Bowl twice, both times with the Bills, in 1965 and 1967.

Pictured here is Janik’s rookie card, a 1964 Topps. He also appeared on a 1971 Topps card.

Eddie Bell, who played defensive back and linebacker from 1955 to 1960 for the Philadelphia Eagles, Hamilton Tiger Cats, and New York Titans, died on November 16. Bell’s obituary at philly.com provides a nice summary of his career.

Pictured here is Bell’s rookie card, a 1955 Bowman. Two things about the card are notable: first, it was unusual in the 1950’s for defensive players to appear on cards in their rookie seasons (see D is for Defensive Players), and second, 1955 Bowmans are the only vintage football cards I can think of that indicated which players were rookies.

Bell also appeared with the Eagles on 1956 and 1957 Topps cards. You can see all three of Bell’s cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.

Leon Clarke, a receiver for the Rams, Browns, and Vikings from 1956 to 1963, died on October 5th. He was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1956, his rookie season with the Rams. Clarke played college ball at USC, and he was a member of the Trojans’ 1955 Rose Bowl team. His obituary in the Los Angeles Times has a nice photo of Clarke in his college all-star uniform.

Pictured here is Clarke’s 1959 Bell Brand Rams card. He also appeared on a 1961 National City Bank Browns card.

Randy Johnson, the first quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons, died on September 16. Along with Tommy Nobis, Johnson was a first round draft choice for the Falcons in 1966. Johnson played for five years with the Falcons, then went on to play for the Giants, Hawaiians (of the World Football League), Redskins, and Packers. In his last professional game, Johnson started for the Packers and led them to a win over his first team, the Falcons.

Pictured here is Johnson’s rookie card, a 1967 Philadelphia. You can see all of his cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.

Bob Kowalkowski, who played guard for the Lions for 11 years, died on September 17. Kowalkowski joined the Lions in 1966, and he started every game for the team from 1972 to 1976. He ended his career with the Packers in 1977.

Pictured here is Kowalkowski’s rookie card, a 1974 Topps, issued in his ninth season. (Rookie card is a misnomer, and this is a good example. Many players, especially offensive linemen and defensive players, didn’t appear on cards until well into their careers.) Kowalkowski also appeared on Topps cards in 1975, 1976, and 1977.