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NFLshop gear with Brownie the elf on the Browns hat pic

February 15, 2020 12:26PM
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Brownie
Brownie the Elf is one of the official mascots of the National Football League's Cleveland Browns. Not used as often as the team's more well-known mascots, Chomps and Swagger, the mascot dates back long before the team began play.

From gpsgiftgallery.com, home of Brownie the Elf today:

The story of Brownie the Elf the logo begins long before the Cleveland Browns adopted the little creature — long before the team even existed, in fact. "Brownies" date back to folklore, where they were elf-like creatures who helped out with household chores as long as you left them little goodies to eat. (Palmer Cox was one of the first artists to illustrate Brownie on a consistent basis in his cartoons. He began drawing and using the elves in advertising work that he produced for different companies, including Kodak.

All of which brings us, finally, to the Cleveland Browns.

The association of the elf and the gridiron Browns begins in the late 1940s with Arthur McBride, who was the team's owner at the time. During a string of four incredibly successful seasons from 1946-49 (each of which resulted in an All American Football Conference championship), McBride sought to make his team more recognizable and marketable with music, parades, marching bands, and so on. He also asked for submissions for mascot logos, and after careful consideration chose Brownie as the new face of the team.

Brownie got an update around 1950 and looked the same until 1969. Alternate logos included an orange elf from 1950-69, and a halfback elf from 1960-69. After the Browns won the NFL title in 1964 (yes, it was that long ago, Cleveland fans), Brownie was often depicted with a crown signifying the team's achievement.

Even representatives from the Cleveland Browns are befuddled as to the exact origin, date, and key figures in the creation of the logo (which made its first appearance in an ad for tickets to the 1946 opening game against the Miami Seahawks). However, many of the earliest versions of the elf are credited to Dick Dugan, who became the sports cartoonist for the Cleveland Plain Dealer and often depicted Brownie in battle against the team's opponents, like the Broncos.

Cleveland fans loved the athletically inclined little creature with pointed shoes, whose image could be seen adorning various publications and advertisements (from both the team and the public), such as the 1949 Media Guide.

So, what do you do with a logo that the fans love?

Well, if you're Art Modell, you get rid of it. Apparently, Modell, who became the team's owner in 1961, was completely embarrassed by the elf and hated it so much that in the mid-1960s he began to phase it out. Yes, in addition to taking the team from Cleveland, Modell also was responsible for putting the lovable Brownie on the unemployment line.

Thankfully, when the Browns were resurrected in 1999, Brownie got a new lease on life. New owner Randy Lerner has made a big push to use the elf logo more and more for the organization. "I think it's a great anchor for our tradition and for the look and feel of the Browns," he has said. "But I also understand that there is something to freshening up the act, so I think that's a balancing act we're having right now."

The Browns have used the elf logo on the 2006 Training Camp Patch celebrating the franchise's 60th anniversary, and a throwback elf logo appears on the front of their 2006 Media Guide.

While Brownie's revival is welcome news, there's one place that the elf should never appear, on the helmet (and thankfully, Lerner agrees). Paul Brown actually proposed this idea in 1953, but dismissed the idea after seeing mock-ups created by then trainer Leo Murphy. Good thing too, because the only thing that should ever be added to the team's helmets are uniform numbers, like the ones the team wore with for a throwback game against the Bengals.

SubjectAuthorViewsPosted

  Sorta liking the XFL so far

Ramgator1137February 08, 2020 09:32AM

  Ricky Proehl

Ramgator480February 08, 2020 09:36AM

  Re: Ricky Proehl

MamaRAMa762February 08, 2020 10:04AM

  Thanks for reminding me about that..

sstrams333February 08, 2020 10:18AM

  Re: Thanks for reminding me about that..

MamaRAMa340February 08, 2020 10:27AM

  Yeah.. that was classic..

sstrams283February 08, 2020 10:34AM

  They've got the media pulling for them...

JamesJM327February 08, 2020 10:35AM

  Re: They've got the media pulling for them...

MamaRAMa528February 08, 2020 10:47AM

  Heard that very thing just now on the radio...

JamesJM291February 08, 2020 10:50AM

  Re: Heard that very thing just now on the radio...

MamaRAMa402February 08, 2020 10:54AM

  Re: The kickoffs are great

merlin339February 08, 2020 10:52AM

  Austin Prohel to the house

Speed_Kills422February 08, 2020 10:54AM

  Re: wow they are letting you hear the coach talking to the QB

Speed_Kills281February 08, 2020 11:01AM

  Spruuuuuce.....

Rampage2K-389February 08, 2020 12:24PM

  Spruce is the man...

sstrams326February 08, 2020 12:28PM

  I'd forgotten about The Messiah

RamUK314February 11, 2020 04:53AM

  Re: Sorta liking the XFL so far

WhiteHorns647February 08, 2020 01:20PM

  It's fun to see Jerry Glanville on the sidelines again

Rams Junkie336February 09, 2020 10:43AM

  Re: Sorta liking the XFL so far

ramfansince69340February 09, 2020 02:27PM

  Re: Sorta liking the XFL so far

MamaRAMa275February 09, 2020 02:51PM

  Re: Too much football....It's not a year round sport for me.

oldschoolramfan267February 10, 2020 02:30PM

  Answers to your questions

MamaRAMa344February 10, 2020 02:43PM

  Re: Answers to your questions...Thanks Mama!

oldschoolramfan261February 11, 2020 05:20AM

  St Louis Draws XFL's Best TV Rating In the Nation

MamaRAMa310February 11, 2020 05:56AM

  Heard a lot of praise on ESPN radio...

JamesJM266February 11, 2020 06:11AM

  Re: this country loves football

Speed_Kills386February 11, 2020 06:53AM

  St. Louis BattleHawks Baby!

den-the-coach258February 11, 2020 07:12AM

  The key is in the one word...

JamesJM342February 11, 2020 08:09AM

  Re: this country loves football

MamaRAMa250February 16, 2020 05:25AM

  Happy for St. Louis, QB Ta’amu looked great & love Az Hakim as WR coach

Rams Junkie370February 11, 2020 09:53AM

  I would've started the season right after the NFL draft

RantoulRam287February 11, 2020 12:32PM

  Re: I would've started the season right after the NFL draft

MamaRAMa416February 11, 2020 01:06PM

  I'm very happy for you...

JamesJM255February 11, 2020 02:57PM

  Re: I'm very happy for you...

MamaRAMa242February 11, 2020 04:11PM

  I'm going to take that as good news... (nm)

JamesJM246February 11, 2020 04:22PM

  Re: St Louis Draws XFL's Best TV Rating In the Nation

stlramz239February 15, 2020 09:36PM

  some of the unis are horrible.....Tampa Bay yikes!!!

Rampage2K-281February 11, 2020 10:35AM

  Re: some of the unis are horrible.....Tampa Bay yikes!!!

MamaRAMa309February 11, 2020 10:50AM

  Re: some of the unis are horrible.....Tampa Bay yikes!!!

Rampage2K-410February 11, 2020 11:27AM

  Houston is playing off the Oilers uni......

roman18261February 11, 2020 11:33AM

  man, Mama....I SOOOO agree...

SunTzu_vs_Camus253February 14, 2020 09:43AM

  The browns original mascot was....

roman18347February 14, 2020 10:18AM

  Re: The browns original mascot was....

3030236February 14, 2020 10:34AM

  Is it the new logo for the Browns??

SunTzu_vs_Camus240February 14, 2020 01:03PM

  Origins of the Dawg Pound

MamaRAMa273February 14, 2020 05:19PM

  that's fantastic stuff....thnx mama...

SunTzu_vs_Camus235February 15, 2020 09:16AM

  NFLshop gear with Brownie the elf on the Browns hat pic

Rams Junkie251February 15, 2020 12:26PM

  XFL could sign college freshmen or sophomores in future

Rams Junkie233February 14, 2020 09:20AM

  Cardale Jones looked good today

Rams Junkie266February 15, 2020 11:52AM

  Re: Cardale Jones looked good today

den-the-coach374February 16, 2020 04:56AM