PENNANT FACTORY
Homemade pennants inspired by designs of the past
The jobIt's been referred to as "the holy grail of pennants." I don't think it's the rarest; or even the most desirable pennant known to exist; but, for at least two fan bases, it's perhaps the most sought after of pennants. On April 15, 1958 two cornerstone franchises of the National League relocated to the golden west to begin play as the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants. They weren't the first two baseball teams to change cities; but, they were the first to occupy markets west of Kansas City. Through 1952, the original 16 teams of the National and American leagues had been confined to the northeastern quadrant of the country. Washington, D.C. represented the southern-most city (Senators); and St. Louis (Cardinals and Browns) was the western-most outpost. In 1955 the Philadelphia Athletics pushed that boundary a good 250 miles further west, to Kansas City. But, this relocation notwithstanding, Major League Baseball seemed content to ignore the west coast.
Elsewhere in New York, the Giants were experiencing similar issues with their aging ballpark and declining attendance. Horace Stoneham, team owner, had no plans of fighting Moses. His plan was to move his team to Minneapolis. The story goes: when O'Malley decided to move the Dodgers to Los Angeles, he contacted Stoneham and persuaded him to relocate his team to nearby San Francisco. After all, having two teams playing on the west coast helped justify the travel costs incurred by the rest of the league with every trip to California. Just as important: it ensured the Dodger-Giant rivalry would live on for decades to come. So, just like that, come 1958, the two ball clubs began play as the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. And, when the regular season opened that year, on April 15th, guess whom they each played? [Hint: I hear they made a special pennant just for the occasion!] The Giants' home opener that year was played at Seals Stadium, the team's new temporary home. More than 24,000 of their fans packed the tiny ballpark to capacity and were treated to an 8-0 win over the Dodgers. Here's a few images captured on that day: And yes, some ambitious vendor did seize the opportunity to make a special commemorative pennant celebrating this game. Why not? This game was a big deal. Fans in both cities had patiently waited for big league baseball to come to town for years. But, beyond the game itself, this pennant seemingly conveyed a sentiment that many in the west had been feeling for decades. Tired of being marginalized by those in the northeast, this pennant seemed to be announcing: "California's now in the big leagues." Suddenly, New York was no longer the center of the universe. Back to baseball. This pennant was offered in two color variations: burgundy and green. Here they are, side-by-side: I don't know who made it; but I strongly suspect it was produced by a San Francisco outfit, of which there were several still making pennants in 1958. First, note that the pennant reads: Giants vs. Dodgers, and not the reverse. The Giants were the home team; as such, their name should appear second. I believe the designer deviated from the standard here to make the pennant more appealing to Giant fans--who represented most of the 24,000 spectators in attendance that day. Second, the artwork used to depict each city doesn't say much about Los Angeles, does it? C'mon ... an oversized baseball and bat, set against a generic beach scene that could be just about anywhere? Was the Hollywood sign too difficult to draw, I'm wondering? Finally, whoever this manufacturer was, it appears they continued making San Francisco Giant pennants for a few years to come. Below, this pennant's artwork seems to resemble the same hand of the artist that depicted the above rendering of the Golden Gate Bridge (and, the lame drawing of what purports to be a Los Angeles beach): And this same artist may also have created the team's official letterhead: One has to wonder: why is this "1st. GAME" pennant so rare today? The ballpark was sold out. The home team won. It's a beautiful pennant commemorating a historic event. The rivalry is stronger than ever. Aren't these the pennants we'd expect to survive the tests of time? Sadly, no, or else I'd own three of them. And, since I can't imagine spending $500+ dollars on a pennant with the name "GIANTS" on it, I figured I would try and make it myself. The processAs with previous projects showcased here on Pennant Factory, this pennant would be screen printed--just like the original would have been. But, I soon ran into one problem. I had always exposed my screens to natural sunlight. Unfortunately, even in sunny California, the UV index in December was a minimal "2" at high noon--not enough to burn a screen. So I invested in some lighting equipment. Below you'll see my new setup as my screen was being exposed under artificial light. What you're looking at, from the bottom up, is: (1) my screen, coated in photo-sensitive emulsion; (2) my positive, made on transparent film, which determined what areas of my screen below would allow ink to pass through; (3) a sheet of glass, weighted down with 3 pound dumb bells to ensure positive contact between layers #1 and #2; and, (4) a UV light bulb, suspended 15" above my screen. After about a 12 minute exposure, I washed my screen out with a garden hose. Every portion of the emulsion-coated screen exposed to the UV light had hardened into a water-proof, impenetrable substance, thanks to my exposure. These areas did not washout. In contrast, those portions of my emulsion-coated screen that had been covered by my positive's black ink (and therefore never exposed to my UV light) remained water soluble. During the washout process, these areas dissolved away, leaving the holes in the underlying mesh open. If about 15 variables are properly controlled, after the washout is complete, you're left with a perfectly formed, highly detailed stencil ingrained within the mesh of your screen, now referred to as a stencil carrier. Trust me it's far more complicated than that. Once the stencil carrier dries, you're ready to screen print. I much preferred the burgundy felt to the pastel green, so I looked all over for the right shade. When located, the product I found had the advantage of being a blended wool felt, which absorbs ink much better than the more budget friendly 100% polyester felt typically found in fabric stores. To color my graphics in, I used water color pencils. When lightly brushed with water, the colors take on a more uniform look/distribution. The goal is to mimic the look of an airbrushed graphic design, which the original would have been colored with. |
AuthorIn 2018 I started a separate website called Pennant Fever dedicated to 20th century felt novelty manufacturers. It focuses on these companies' history, products, etc. Eventually, my interest in these businesses inspired me to start making my own pennants. THIS site you're currently viewing, Pennant Factory, is where I'll showcase some of the felt projects I've taken on. Most are reproductions of real pennants once for sale to the public. I've done my best to re-create the originals as authentically as possible based upon surviving photos, known dimensions, etc. Others are my original work, intended to look like the styles of yesteryear. Some turned out better than others. See for yourself. Enjoy! -KRB Projects:
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