Fun While It Lasted
August 10, 2011 2:50 PM Subscribe
Fun While It Lasted is a blog that details the histories of long-dead sports franchises, including the Hawaii Leis/Sea-Port Cascades/Seattle Cascades, the Portland Lumberjax, the Columbus Minks, the Denver Comets, and the Phoenix Fire -- a professional soccer team that never actually played a game.
Incidentally, and somewhat ironically, blog author Andy Crossley is currently the GM of the Women's Professional Soccer team the Boston Breakers. A majority interest in the Breakers recently went up for sale.
Incidentally, and somewhat ironically, blog author Andy Crossley is currently the GM of the Women's Professional Soccer team the Boston Breakers. A majority interest in the Breakers recently went up for sale.
No Frankfurt Galaxy yet. I await the international American football entries.
posted by GuyZero at 3:23 PM on August 10, 2011
posted by GuyZero at 3:23 PM on August 10, 2011
The Toronto Phantoms? Good Lord, I was living here at the time and I don't even remember T.O. having an AFL team.
posted by The Card Cheat at 3:32 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by The Card Cheat at 3:32 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
Yer not alone in that. Several years later I was living in Ottawa, where the Ottawa Rapidz also entirely evaded my notice.
I am surprised by the lack of mention of the famous/infamous Spirits of St. Louis, surely the most profitable defunct franchise ever. Or are they too well-known?
posted by ricochet biscuit at 3:41 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
I am surprised by the lack of mention of the famous/infamous Spirits of St. Louis, surely the most profitable defunct franchise ever. Or are they too well-known?
posted by ricochet biscuit at 3:41 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
Portland Buckaroos, I think had the best logo possible: A cowboy wearing ice-skates riding a horse with ice-skates lassoing himself.
posted by wcfields at 3:46 PM on August 10, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by wcfields at 3:46 PM on August 10, 2011 [2 favorites]
What would the world of sport be like today if the Colorado Caribou had taken off? Would cowboy tassles be all the rage?
posted by Winnemac at 3:54 PM on August 10, 2011
posted by Winnemac at 3:54 PM on August 10, 2011
The Lumberjax made their home at the Rose Garden arena, a venue which had seen more than its fair share of quixotic sports concepts come and go since opening in 1995. Arena Football’s Portland Forest Dragons, indoor soccer’s Portland Pythons and the WNBA Portland Fire
Heh, I attended games of every single one of those teams. Also games of the defunct Portland Power (played next door to the Rose Garden at Memorial Coliseum, folded when the ABL, the WNBA's short-lived competitor, failed), the erstwhile Portland Rockies (Single A baseball, played across town at Civic Stadium 'til 2000 or so) and the Portland Beavers (AAA baseball, also played at Civic Stadium, sold and moved last year).
Blazers and Timbers, I'm gunning for you next!
posted by dersins at 4:01 PM on August 10, 2011
Heh, I attended games of every single one of those teams. Also games of the defunct Portland Power (played next door to the Rose Garden at Memorial Coliseum, folded when the ABL, the WNBA's short-lived competitor, failed), the erstwhile Portland Rockies (Single A baseball, played across town at Civic Stadium 'til 2000 or so) and the Portland Beavers (AAA baseball, also played at Civic Stadium, sold and moved last year).
Blazers and Timbers, I'm gunning for you next!
posted by dersins at 4:01 PM on August 10, 2011
dersins, you're like the Ted McGinley of Seattle sports franchises.
Thanks for this site -- again proving what I think the Internet is mostly for (giving me detailed information about things I didn't even know I cared about)
posted by MCMikeNamara at 4:05 PM on August 10, 2011
Thanks for this site -- again proving what I think the Internet is mostly for (giving me detailed information about things I didn't even know I cared about)
posted by MCMikeNamara at 4:05 PM on August 10, 2011
Would love to see the Baltimore Claws in there...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore_Claws
posted by AJaffe at 4:41 PM on August 10, 2011
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore_Claws
posted by AJaffe at 4:41 PM on August 10, 2011
This thread seems as good a place as any to confess to having been an LA Xtreme season ticket holder. In my defense, a couple friends and I were just planning on attending their inaugural game, only to discover it wasn't all that much more expensive to buy a full season's worth of tickets (this was over 10 years ago now, so I don't remember the exact amount, but I could swear it was less than $100 for the whole season).
The first game was very well attended, with much media fanfare, but attendance plummeted quickly, with each subsequent game more sparsely attended than the last. One game in particular, in the middle of a huge Southern California rainstorm, I would guess had less than 500 people in total attendance, meaning each fan had roughly 200 seats to himself at the nearly 100K capacity LA Coliseum.
The XFL may have only lasted one season, but its legacy lasted much longer since they obviously sold their season ticket holders list to the Arena Football league. For years afterward I received persistent telemarketing calls from the Los Angeles Avengers pushing season ticket plans, I guessing having pegged me as a fan of really low-rent football (ironically, in doing a search for the Avengers for the purposes of this comment, it appears they too now belong on this list).
posted by The Gooch at 4:43 PM on August 10, 2011 [2 favorites]
The first game was very well attended, with much media fanfare, but attendance plummeted quickly, with each subsequent game more sparsely attended than the last. One game in particular, in the middle of a huge Southern California rainstorm, I would guess had less than 500 people in total attendance, meaning each fan had roughly 200 seats to himself at the nearly 100K capacity LA Coliseum.
The XFL may have only lasted one season, but its legacy lasted much longer since they obviously sold their season ticket holders list to the Arena Football league. For years afterward I received persistent telemarketing calls from the Los Angeles Avengers pushing season ticket plans, I guessing having pegged me as a fan of really low-rent football (ironically, in doing a search for the Avengers for the purposes of this comment, it appears they too now belong on this list).
posted by The Gooch at 4:43 PM on August 10, 2011 [2 favorites]
AJaffe, clicking on that Claws link led me to this unused logo for The Baltimore Hustlers, which would make for an awesome retro jersey or t-shirt.
posted by The Card Cheat at 4:56 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by The Card Cheat at 4:56 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
Speaking of logos that would look great on a t-shirt, stuff doesn't get much more '70s than this.
posted by The Card Cheat at 5:01 PM on August 10, 2011
posted by The Card Cheat at 5:01 PM on August 10, 2011
I seem to recall the Baltimore Hustlers were originally called the Baltimore Hookers. I'm too afraid to google that one. (I would purchase a retro jersey with that on it.)
posted by Mcable at 5:03 PM on August 10, 2011
posted by Mcable at 5:03 PM on August 10, 2011
Most of the NBL! Look at the size of that list, willya.
Not sure if the Nanooks have folded or not, but I gotta drop this here. It's just too funny not to share. The comments are hilarious, too.
In honor of the opening of the NHL season, witness the best intro video to a hockey game that's ever been produced; a video so full of win that it could have only come from the Alaska Nanooks. Wait, the Who?
posted by uncanny hengeman at 5:34 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
Not sure if the Nanooks have folded or not, but I gotta drop this here. It's just too funny not to share. The comments are hilarious, too.
In honor of the opening of the NHL season, witness the best intro video to a hockey game that's ever been produced; a video so full of win that it could have only come from the Alaska Nanooks. Wait, the Who?
posted by uncanny hengeman at 5:34 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
No mention of the entire XFL on that blog? Come on, the XFL was fun. Well, it was hilarious, at least. I mean, the football wasn't great, but all of the jokes at the expense of the XFL made for an amusing few months.
posted by asnider at 5:36 PM on August 10, 2011
posted by asnider at 5:36 PM on August 10, 2011
That's not the best hockey intro video ever produced. Hell, it's not even the best Alaska Nanooks intro video ever produced. In this one, he doesn't just blow up the moon, HE BLOWS UP THE WORLD.
posted by dersins at 6:23 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by dersins at 6:23 PM on August 10, 2011 [1 favorite]
I can't decide what I think about this. I'd like it better if he'd limit himself to one team per defunct league, otherwise the pickings are just too easy. (Never mind the endless defunct minor league baseball franchises.) It'd be better if he were picking teams that are important for one reason or another. I mean, the Chicago Whales gave us Wrigley Field. Or teams that died while the league survived. (I swear Chicago had a WNBA team that failed. Called something that started with C... Comets? Crows? But I can't find any evidence of this. There are a couple of failed WNBA franchises.)
Though, holy crap, we had a cricket team! In a league!
Wiki has a category of defunct sports teams, with a subcategory of defunct national sports teams. Most of them are from countries that no longer exist, but there's the also the Saarland football team, the Bohemia ice hockey team and a Catalan rugby union team.
posted by hoyland at 7:25 PM on August 10, 2011
Though, holy crap, we had a cricket team! In a league!
Wiki has a category of defunct sports teams, with a subcategory of defunct national sports teams. Most of them are from countries that no longer exist, but there's the also the Saarland football team, the Bohemia ice hockey team and a Catalan rugby union team.
posted by hoyland at 7:25 PM on August 10, 2011
I swear Chicago had a WNBA team that failed. Called something that started with C... Comets? Crows? But I can't find any evidence of this. There are a couple of failed WNBA franchises.)
The Chicago Sky obviously need better PR people. Or maybe you're thinking of the Chicago Condors, an ABL team that folded when the league folded-- only a dozen games into the Condors' first season.
posted by dersins at 7:55 PM on August 10, 2011
The Chicago Sky obviously need better PR people. Or maybe you're thinking of the Chicago Condors, an ABL team that folded when the league folded-- only a dozen games into the Condors' first season.
posted by dersins at 7:55 PM on August 10, 2011
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Seriously, though, this looks super-cool and I look forward to working my way through it.
posted by The Card Cheat at 3:00 PM on August 10, 2011