Nineteen busts on loan from the Pro Football Hall of Fame form a circle around owner Art Rooney at the Heinz History Center, Nov. 8, 2007. The museum is featuring an exhibit dedicated to the Pittsburgh Steelers 75 years of existence.
Philip G. Pavely/TRIBUNE-REVIEW
By John Grupp
PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, November 9, 2007
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is a lot closer than Canton, Ohio, these days.
At least the part most Pittsburghers care about.
From Terry Bradshaw's bronze bust to Mike Webster's beaten and scarred shoulder pads, some of the most compelling Steelers' memorabilia in existence can be found on the Strip District.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame loaned jerseys, helmets, a Purple Heart and even an elevator panel from Three Rivers Stadium to the "Pittsburgh Steelers 75th season celebration: Treasures from the Pro Football Hall of Fame" at the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum at Heinz History Center.
The turf from Three Rivers Stadium where Franco Harris caught the "Immaculate Reception" is on display at the Heinz History Center, Nov. 8, 2007. for an exhibit dedicated to the Pittsburgh Steelers 75 years of existence. In the 1970's when the grounds crew was replacing the turf, Harris stopped by and asked for the spot where the play happened. Crews cut him the 15-foot square piece that remained under his bed for many years.
Philip G. Pavely/TRIBUNE-REVIEW
The 5,000-square-foot exhibit will be on display on the first floor Saturday through Feb. 10.
"This is the biggest and best thing ever done on the Pittsburgh Steelers," Heinz History Center president and CEO Andy Masich said.
The highlight of the exhibit is a weeklong appearance of the 19 Steelers bronze busts, the first time they have been permitted to be on display outside the Hall of Fame. The display features 18 glass-enclosed Hall of Fame busts encircling Art Rooney's bust in the form of a huddle of bronzed Steelers legends. They will be in town Saturday to Nov. 18.
Rocky Bleier's Purple Heart, awarded during the Vietnam War, is on display at the Heinz History Center, Nov. 8, 2007 for an exhibit dedicated to the Pittsburgh Steelers 75 years of existence.
Philip G. Pavely/TRIBUNE-REVIEW
The Steelers' five Super Bowl trophies will be part of the display during Thanksgiving weekend, Nov. 23-25.
The exhibit takes Steelers fans through seven decades, from Hall of Famer Johnny "Blood" McNally's 1930s-era pants to the hand-written NFL draft-day card used in the 2004 first-round selection of Ben Roethlisberger.
Some of the displays are so significant, they can leave one shaken with nostalgia.
On a lonely wall, Rocky Bleier's Purple Heart from Vietnam is displayed in a glass case along with a Silver Helmet Award for rehabilitation.
Across the room in another display, the late Webster's shoulder pads are perched on a stand. They are smallish, dirty and scarred. A white plastic shell surrounds inadequate red padding. The leather straps are torn.
Mike Webster's shoulder pads at the Heinz History Center, Nov. 8, 2007, for an exhibit dedicated to the Pittsburgh Steelers 75 years of existence.
Philip G. Pavely/TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Other items are one-of-a-kind oddities, such as a section of Three Rivers Stadium turf from Franco Harris' Immaculate Reception, and the panel from the elevator Art Rooney was in when Harris made the improbable catch.
Then there's Mean Joe Greene's neck collar, Lynn Swann's jersey, Bullet Bill Dudley's 1946 NFL MVP trophy and a University of Louisville playbook from Mt. Washington native and ill-advised Steelers cut victim Johnny Unitas.
Also part of the exhibit is a mini-NFL combine, which allows visits to test their vertical leap and take a version of the Wonderlic Test.
Art Rooney's cigar box and humidor are featured at the Heinz History Center, Nov. 8, 2007. The museum is recognizing the Pittsburgh Steelers 75 years of existence.
Philip G. Pavely/TRIBUNE-REVIEW
With all these artifacts in town, Steelers fans shouldn't plan any trips to Canton in the next few months, which Pro Football Hall of Fame collections curator Jason Aikens said is a low visitation period.
Hall of Fame visitors in the next 10 days will see an empty pedestal where their favorite Steelers bronze bust should be.
"They said they are going to forward all complaints from the Steelers Nation people who make a pilgrimage to Canton and can't find the busts," said Anne Madarasz, director of the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum.
John Grupp can be reached at jgrupp@tribweb.com or 412-320-7930.
No comments:
Post a Comment