|
The Steelers logo is based on the Steelmark logo
belonging to the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). Created by U.S. Steel
Corp. (now known as USX Corp.), the logo contains three hypocycloids (diamond
shapes).
In the 1950s, when helmet logos became popular,
the Steelers added players' numbers to either side of their gold helmets. Later
that decade, the numbers were removed and in 1962, Cleveland's Republic Steel
suggested to the Steelers that they use the Steelmark as a helmet logo.
When the Steelmark logo was created, U.S. Steel
attached the following meaning to it: Steel lightens your work, brightens your
leisure and widens your world. The logo was used as part of a major marketing
campaign to educate consumers about how important steel is in our daily lives.
The Steelmark logo was used in print, radio and television ads as well as on
labels for all steel products, from steel tanks to tricycles to filing cabinets.
In the 1960s, U.S. Steel turned over the
Steelmark program to the AISI, where it came to represent the steel industry as
a whole. During the 1970s, the logo's meaning was extended to include the three
materials used to produce steel: yellow for coal, orange for ore and blue for
steel scrap. In the late 1980s, when the AISI founded the Steel Recycling
Institute (SRI), the logo took on a new life reminiscent of its 1950s meaning.�
The Steelers had to petition the AISI in order to
change the word "Steel" inside the Steelmark to "Steelers" before the logo was
complete.
The Steelers are the only NFL team that sports
their logo on only one side of the helmet. At first, this was a temporary
measure because the Steelers weren't sure they would like the look of the logo
on an all-gold helmet. They wanted to test them before going all-out.
Equipment manager Jack Hart was instructed to put
the logo only on one side of the helmet - the right side. The 1962 Steelers
finished 9-5 and became the winningest team in franchise history to date. The
team finished second in the Eastern Conference and qualified for the Playoff
Bowl. They wanted to do something special for their first postseason game, so
they changed the color of their helmets from gold to black, which helped to
highlight the new logo.
Because of the interest generated by having the
logo on only one side of their helmets and because of their team's new success,
the Steelers decided to leave it that way permanently.
Today's helmet reflects the way the logo was
originally applied and it has never been changed.
|