Formed from the wreckage of a failed California Pro Football League, the PCPFL showcased the Los Angeles Bulldogs and the Hollywood Bears.
[1] The league became the “home” of African American football stars (including Kenny Washington, Woody Strode, and, briefly, Jackie Robinson) as the NFL had developed and enforced a color barrier in 1934 and extended until 1946.
The teams also schaduled game against the PCL Hollywood Generals and the California All-Stars (amalgamation of the Oakland Oaks and San Francisco Tigers).
The Eskimos finished last, and were known as Nevers-Imlay Giants after getting reinforcement from West Coast colleges (including Tut Imlay).
Owned by the local chapter of the American Legion, managed by Harry Myers, and coached by Gus Henderson, the fledgling Bulldogs played all the games in its inaugural season in Gilmore Stadium, playing local teams like the Salinas Packers[8] and the Hollywood Stars, but also the Philadelphia Eagles (won, 10–7), Pittsburgh Pirates (won, 21–7), Chicago Cardinals (won, 13–10), Brooklyn Dodgers (tied, 13–13), Chicago Bears (lost, 7–0), and Green Bay Packers (lost, 49–0).
[7] Not even the Miami Dolphins, who lost an exhibition game immediately prior to their "perfect" 1972 season, can make the claim.
One of the teams, the Hollywood Stars, was sold to Paul Schissler, who coached the Chicago Cardinals (1933–34) and Brooklyn Dodgers (1935–36) of the NFL.
Myers declined the invitation to join the new California and opted for a season in which the Bulldogs were an independent team (as was the case for another “survivor” of the second AFL, the Cincinnati Bengals).
Kenny Washington and Woody Strode starred for the Bears after being denied entrance into the NFL due to their race.
Kenny Washington led the Bears to a perfect season, having beaten Los Angeles three times to clinch the title.
San Diego's Steve Bagarus became a star with his versatility as his team won the league title and held its own against the March Field Flyers.
The Santa Ana Flyers were 5-0 against the league and claimed the “extended PCL championship.”[1] Growing in influence, the PCPFL underwent several changes before the 1943 season.
Controversy ensued when Los Angeles Mustangs owner Bill Freelove raided the roster of Jerry Corcoran's crosstown Bulldogs.
While the controversy was raging, Hollywood got a “leave of absence” from the league until the return of Schlisser from World War II.
Bill Freelove's Los Angeles Mustangs were refused admittance into the merged league and met the same fate as the Rangers when they tried to play as an independent team in 1945.
Kenny Washington and Paul Schlisser returned to the Bears, who ended San Diego's string of league championships.
While the Rams and the Dons were drawing crowds of 40,000 or more to their home games at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Bulldogs and the Bears (in Gilmore Stadium) were having difficulty getting 1000 paying fans to their much smaller venue.
[2] Another major change came with the rebreaking of the NFL's 12-year-old color barrier, as the Rams signed two of the PCPFL's top stars, Woody Strode and Kenny Washington (both from the Hollywood Bears), which began a slow erosion of the PCPFL's most important talent base, namely black players that the NFL had previously refused to allow into their league.
[12] The Hawaiians played all their games at home, and generally in two-game sets to minimize travel expenses for the mainland opponents.
With their own officiating crew, the Warriors had a perceived advantage as they consistently played in front of crowds of over 15,000 people.
"[15] Back Buddy Abreu was the league's leading rusher and scorer as his Hawaiian Warriors won a narrow “race” with the defending champion Bulldogs (led by quarterback Mel Reid) by beating the team from L.A. 7-6.
Sacramento and Salt Lake dropped out of the league after canceling their home-and-home series that was scheduled to finish the PCPFL season.
[2] An investigation led by league president J. Rufus Klawans revealed that members of the Hawaiian Warriors were placing bets on games in which they were participating.
Four (Abreu, Ray Scussell, Floyd “Scrap Iron” Rhea, and Jack Keenan) were permanently banned from the league; another ten team members were “suspended indefinitely.”[2][14] As the PCPFL continued unraveling, the Hollywood Bears return to the fold after a second “leave of absence.” The revitalized Bears were under the watchful eye of former Bulldogs owner Jerry Corcoran as they re-entered the league as a traveling team.