The History of the Green Bay Packers: The Lambeau Years, Book I [Hardcover]

Larry D. Names (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Angel Pr of Wisconsin; 1st edition (March 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 093999500X
• ISBN-13: 978-0939995004
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #973,732 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Larry Names is a prolific author of both fiction and non-fiction books. He is a recognized authority on the Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, and Green Bay Packers. Names has had 36 titles published to date, 21 of them novels, and the remainder non--fiction all dealing with sports teams or sports figures.
He resides in central Wisconsin with his wife Peg on a family farm that has been in his wife's family since 1854. They have a son, Torry, and a daughter, Tegan, four cats and an escape-artist horse, Lucky Moondancer. Larry has four children from his first marriage: daughter Sigrid, son Paul, daughter Kristin, and daughter Sonje.
The author was born in Mishawaka, Indiana and has lived in nine different states during his life and went to eleven schools growing up. He is an avid researcher and traveler.
Besides being an avid history buff, he is also an informed and enthusiastic sports fan and memorabilia collector.
Names researches his novels and non-fiction extensively. As he puts it, "I can't write about a place I haven't seen or touched." He and his family have averaged two months of travel a year since he took up writing full-time in 1976. They often log more than 30,000 miles annually. The settings for his books range from Mexico to Florida to New York to Colorado to Arizona and almost every place in between.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The 'Bible' of Green Bay Packer History, October 17, 2004

By 

ericapp "ericapp" (Manitowoc, Wisconsin United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The History of the Green Bay Packers: The Lambeau Years, Book I (Hardcover)

Would you like to consider yourself a serious historian of the Green Bay Packers and the NFL? If so, then `The History of The Green Bay Packers: The Lambeau Years, Part One' by Larry D. Names is a "must read." This thorough biography of the early years of the most unique franchise in the NFL leaves no stone unturned, and dispels many of the myths and uncovers many unknown facts about the Packers during their formative years.

This book is the first in a series of four and covers the first fourteen years of Curly Lambeau's tenure with the team, from 1919 to 1932.

Many readers may be shocked and may even disbelieve some of what has been disclosed in this chronicle. For example: Contrary to what most have always believed to be fact, Curly Lambeau was not the founder of the team or even the team's first head coach. And believe it or not, the city of Green Bay and most of its citizens did not care about the Packers in the early years. The team almost died not just once but several times.

Each chapter of the book covers one season and is in chronological order. Any important off-the-field events, such as personnel changes on the executive board, are covered. Also, a brief description is provided for each game of that particular season. Historical firsts, such as the first live radio broadcast, are chronicled along the way.

Most impressive is how thorough the book is. Obviously, Names spent many hours painstakingly researching for this endeavor and it shows. Since the book was first published in 1987 (this book review was written in 2004), `The History of The Green Bay Packers' series has emerged as the authority on the subject. The series has been referenced in several other books that have followed, including David Zimmerman's `Curly Lambeau: The Man Behind The Mystique' and John Maxymuk's `Packers by the Numbers: Jersey Numbers and the Players Who Wore Them.' Also, the October 28, 2001 edition of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel published a front-page (sports section) story stating that Joe Hoeffel, and not Curly Lambeau, was the Packers' first head coach. That newspaper article stated that "of the several books written about the Packers' history, only a collection by Larry Names mentioned Hoeffel."

In closing, this is a history book. If you are not particularly interested in the history of the Green Bay Packers or the history of the NFL, then this is not a book for you. Many of the men who formed the team and many of the players that were on those teams during the early years that are chronicled in this book are men that the casual fan - or even the diehard fan for that matter - will not recognize. But if you consider yourself a true Packer historian, or if you would like to know the real story of how the Green Bay Packers came into being; then `The History of The Green Bay Packers: The Lambeau Years, Part One' is the book for you.

5.0 out of 5 stars HISTORY OF GREEN BAY PACKERS # 1, December 21, 2010

By 

Greg T. Le Duc "LEX TECH" (SANTA MONICA, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The History of the Green Bay Packers: The Lambeau Years, Book I (Hardcover)

This book is the best. I came across it in the Green Bay Public Library when I was home visiting the family. Highly recommend it.

0 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars oh dear, October 24, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The History of the Green Bay Packers: The Lambeau Years, Book I (Hardcover)

This is one of the most poorly-written books I have ever read on the Packers, the NFL, or football.