How can a shirt show us what people did for fun back in the day?
Bowling got its start at least as far back as the Middle Ages, but the game we know today became big in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s, and Wisconsin got in on the game. Bowlers like Earlene Fuller made and wore custom-made shirts and sets that matched their team, showing fashion and cultural connections to bring them luck at the lanes.
Let's take a look
Questions to consider
Who was Earlene Fuller, and what do we know about her?
What’s special about the design of a bowling shirt? What details or design elements would you want to think about when making one?
How did Earlene celebrate cultural connections through her shirt designs?
Meet the historians
Get to know the historians. Each historian in this episode has a card with information about that historian.
There are 3 cards to read.
Taylor L. Bailey
Public Historian
I get to look at things and moments in history and teach others about them!
Kacie Lucchini Butcher
Public Historian
I find and share stories from the past that have shaped our present, and love showing people how cool history is!
Joe Kapler
Curator of Cultural History
Being a curator lets me play the role of detective every day I’m working.
Quote from a historian
“As a historian, we love it when we can look at the things from our past and understand a little bit about the person … who they were and what values they had.”
Joe Kapler
Episode credits
Producer
David Boffa
Coordinating Producer
Mia Forslund
Hosts
Taylor L. Bailey
Kacie Lucchini Butcher
Research and Writing
David Boffa
Kacie Lucchini Butcher
Mia Forslund
Director of Photography
Ryan Hendricks
Videography
Ryan Hendricks
Ian Glodich
David Boffa
Kyra Lyons
Editing
David Boffa
Ian Glodich
Captioning
Catie Pfeifer
Translation Services
Rev
Educator Support Materials
David Boffa
Mia Forslund
Kate Melberg
Web Design
Charles Barrows
Erika Kachama-Nkoy
Web Development
John Vieth
Graphic and Motion Design
Charles Barrows
Ian Glodich
Danielle Riseley
Additional Production Support
Philip Ashby
Al Barcheski
John Dachik
Angie Hause
Kurt Kaspar
Andy LaValley
Doug May
Will Salzmann
Executive Producer
Director of Education
Megan Monday
Director of Television
Jon Miskowski
Project Partners
Rebecca M. Blank Center for Campus History
University of Wisconsin–Madison Libraries
Wisconsin Historical Society
Special Thanks
Joe Kapler
Scott Roller
Bob Wright
Shauna Breneman
The Wisconsin Union and Sett Recreation at Union South
Educator advisors
Debbie Burmeister
Neenah, WI
Peoria, AZ
Erin Ermis
Neenah Joint School District
Neenah, WI
Toni Heinowski
Muskego, WI
Tanya Schmidt
Oshkosh Area School District
Barb Shaver
Kettle Moraine School District
Wales, WI
Funding provided by
Timothy William Trout Education Fund
a gift of Monroe and Sandra Trout
Eleanor and Thomas Wildrick Family
Focus Fund for Education
Friends of PBS Wisconsin