We all know that the Packers are owned by the city/shareholders. We also know that dividends are not paid to shareholders. In years where the organization shows a profit, where does that profit go? - Mark (La Crosse, WI)
Mark, the answer is: Any corporate profits are utilized to maintain and/or improve existing facilities or invested to increase the organization's cash reserves.
As President/CEO Bob Harlan points out, "We make our money on football and we spend our money on football - to make the Packers as competitive as we possibly can."
The Packers, incidentally, are not owned by the city of Green Bay. The corporation, Green Bay Packers, Inc., is owned by approximately 111,000 shareholders, representing all 50 states and a number of foreign countries.
Hi Lee, I love the 1972 Packers. The names Brockington and Lane are like magic to me. As far as Packers running back tandems go, how do John Brockington and MacArthur Lane stack up statistically compared to other Packer duos? - Dave (Iowa City, IA)
Dave, as you suggest, Brockington and Lane were a productive pair for the three years (1972-74) that they were coupled in the Packers' offensive backfield, accumulating 4,765 rushing yards between them, Brockington gaining 3,054 yards in 805 attempts (a 3.8-yard average) and Lane 1,711 yards in 484 attempts (a 3.5 average).
However, based on average-per-attempt rather than total yards as the measure - because there are differences in the number of seasons played - there have been two other tandems in Packers
history that have been more productive on that basis.
Jim Taylor, the team's all-time rushing leader, averaged 4.5 yards per attempt, gaining 8,207 yards in 1,811 carries, and running mate Paul Hornung 4.2 yards per attempt, gaining 3,711 yards in 893 carries, thus collectively amassing 11,918 yards.
Also, Gerry Ellis and Eddie Lee Ivery had slightly higher rushing averages than Taylor and Hornung but did not jointly carry the football nearly as often. Ellis rushed for 3,826 yards in 836 attempts, a 4.6 average, and Ivery for 2,909 yards in 664 attempts, a 4.4 average.
Jointly, Taylor and Hornung averaged 4.40 per attempt, Ellis-Ivery 4.49.
Are there any teams in the league (besides the Texans) that Brett Favre has not beaten? - Joe (Woodbury, MN)
Yes, Joe, there is one other than the Texans that Brett has not had the good fortune to defeat...Kansas City. At the moment, he is 0-3 against the Chiefs as a starting quarterback.
Lee, I wonder if you could answer a question I have about Vince Lombardi. In the NFL Films documentary about Lombardi (1967 I believe), there is a brief clip showing Coach Lombardi appearing on "The Vince Lombardi Show". What recollections do you have about this program such as what years was it on, any guests on the show, etc. And, do you know if there are any existing tapes of this program? Thanks much! - Marin (West Lawn, PA)
Marin, the "Vince Lombardi Show," as you may have divined, was a television show featuring Vince Lombardi throughout his tenure as head coach of the Packers (1959-67). It was produced and aired by Green Bay's WBAY-TV and hosted by the late Al Sampson, then the station's sports director. There were no guests, with the show's format largely involving a discussion, between Lombardi and Sampson, of the most recent game's highlights and their preview of the upcoming game.
There are no tapes available for purchase, according to WBAY's Dick Millhiser, who was involved in producing the show over its nine-year run.
Dear Lee, My brothers and I have been tracking the all time Packers Bears series thru the years. We have always wondered why the Bears list the series at 84 wins 77 losses and 6 ties and the Packers list the all time series at 78 wins 83 losses and 7 ties. I realize there was one playoff game in there but that still doesn't account for this discrepancy. Can you please shed some light on this? Thank you Lee! - Matt (Madison, WI)
Matt, the correct won-lost record in the Packers' storied series with the Chicago Bears-from the Packers' perspective-is 77 victories, 84 defeats and 6 ties, the most recent of the latter a 21-21 standoff played at Chicago's Wrigley Field in 1953.
In other words, there now have been 167 games in the history of the series. The immemorial rivals also have met in one playoff game-the very first divisional playoff in NFL history-in 1941.
I believe the disparity you alluded to is traceable to the fact that the Bears insist on including the playoff game in the series. Officially, it is not included in the series record. The NFL Record and Fact Book, pro football's "bible," listed the record as follows in this year's edition, published in July: "RS (regular season) Bears lead series, 83-77-6; PS (post season): Bears lead series, 1-0."
As a long time Packer fan, I remember going to games in both Green Bay and Milwaukee, without having any trouble purchasing a ticket on game day. I was wondering if you know when was the last time a fan could actually purchase a ticket on game day. - Scott (Coconut Creek, FL)
Scott, our longtime ticket director, Mark Wagner, says he would estimate that the last time anyone could walk up to the window at Lambeau Field and buy a ticket would have been "back to the late '50s or early '60s"-and, in the case of games at County Stadium in Milwaukee, "in the mid to late '80s." (The Packers ended their 62-year stay in Milwaukee following the 1994 season).
Lee, Could you please recall a few of your favorite famous public people you've met at Lambeau Field? The list has to be extremely long I would think. Thanks for doing such a great job for so long! - Scott (Chippewa Falls, WI)
Scott, the highest-ranking "public people" I have met during my 59-year association with the Packers (29 years, 3 months and 3 days at the Green Bay Press-Gazette and 30 years, 6 months and 7 days in the Packers organization to date) were Presidents Gerald R. Ford and Bill Clinton, Sen. Bill Proxmire, and Wisconsin Governors Tommy Thompson and Jim Doyle
II am not sure whether they should be included, based on what your definition of "public people" might be, but I also - as a sportswriter and columnist for the Press-Gazette - had the opportunity to interview Packers founder Curly Lambeau, Vince Lombardi, the legendary George Halas and Jim Brown, baseball greats Henry Aaron, Warren Spahn and Ernie Banks, former world heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis, and the late commissioner of the NFL, Pete Rozelle.
Referring to the 1965 Western Conference playoff with the Baltimore Colts, I noticed Don Chandler's field goal that tied the game at 10 near the end of regulation, looked wide right. Is there a way to measure the accuracy of the kick by combining the film footage with today's modern technology so that we can settle the official's questionable call once and for all? - Jeffrey (San Antonio, TX)
Jeffrey: I put your question to Bob Eckberg, the Packers' veteran video director, and here, after some deliberation, was his answer: "It probably could be done, but it would be a long and complicated process."
Lee, I read on a website that the Packers were born on September 16, 1890. That's when George Calhoun named Green Bay's football team the Packers. However I was under the impression the team was formed in 1919. If I am wrong, I'll be glad because September 16 is my birthday! - Will (Farmington, WI)
Will, the Packers were founded at meetings in the editorial room of the Green Bay Press-Gazette, presided over by then 21-year-old Curly Lambeau and P-G sports editor George Calhoun, on August 11 and 14, 1919. They played their first game one month later (September 14, 1919), a day on which they defeated the visiting Menominee, Mich., North End Athletic Club, 53-0 , recording the first of 8 shutout victories en route to a 10-1 record.
The Packers subsequently entered the National Football League in 1921.
Continuing an association with the team that is more than 55 years old, Lee Remmel was named the first official Team Historian of the Green Bay Packers in February 2004. The former *Green Bay Press-Gazette reporter and Packers public relations director, Remmel will write regular columns for Packers.com as part of his new assignment.
In addition to those articles, Remmel will answer fan questions in a monthly Q&A column. To submit a question to Remmel, click here. *
