Seeing Red: What the Uniforms of the 1936 Cleveland Rams Probably Looked Like (Including ‘Butt Stripes’)

The Cleveland Rams’ 1936 uniforms likely included a color scheme of red, black, gold/yellow and white. (Image courtesy of the Gridiron Uniform Database)

Drat that old black-and-white film!

An important strain of sports history is teasing out what the uniforms of proto pro football teams looked like before color film and printing captured this information for posterity. No easy task. Turns out the togs of the early pioneers were far more colorful and daring than the stereotype of the drab leather-helmet era that seems to persist.

But For the Snow and Cold, the Cleveland Rams’ 1945 Title Game Could’ve Been a Record-Breaker

Cleveland Rams bundle up under parkas and straw, otherwise used to insulate the Cleveland Stadium playing field, during the 1945 NFL title game. (Photo courtesy NFL / Pro Football Hall of Fame.)

In the days leading up to the epic Cleveland Rams-Washington Redskins 1945 NFL Championship Game, the pundits were widely agreed: Attendance would be a record-breaker, well surpassing the headcount for the league’s dozen previous playoff games. And why not. The league’s popularity was surging, servicemen were coming home, America was ready for some entertainment, and the game would be played in 80,000-seat Cleveland Stadium.

Then a funny thing happened: Cleveland weather.