A lot of people try to equate football to war, but those people have never been to war. Jack Obernesser has, and compared to the four-and-a-half years he served in the navy in World War II, lining up on the gridiron after that must have seemed like a piece of cake.
"There were close calls every day," said Obernesser, a chief gunner who was stationed in the Mediterranean and North Atlantic. "I went at (age) 18, and I was one of the first 28 out of the navy."
While some of his comrades perished overseas, fortunately for Obernesser, he was able to return to Canada and pursue the athletic career that he was building before he left. An Ontario hurdles champion as well as a star football and basketball player at Toronto's Runnymede Collegiate, Obernesser joined the Argos for the first of their three straight Grey Cup titles after the war.
"Most of the guys were good all-around athletes," said Obernesser, who played end on both sides of the ball. "Everybody played both ways in those days."
Obernesser's athleticism shouldn't have come as a surprise, since e came from a very athletically-inclined family. His father Walter was the lightweight world champion sculler in rowing, while his brother Walter Jr. was a champion boxer as well as a former CFL player. But the Obernessers played football during a more simple era, when the pay was small and the records a little inaccurate, since most of them went up in flames in a fire at the King Edward Hotel.
"For playing, you got a case a beer, a leather jacket with your name on it, and they gave us a dinner at City Hall," said Obernesser.
After his football career ended, Obernesser went back to school at the University of Toronto, where he earned a business degree. He subsequently used it to launch a 33-year sales and supervisory career with Schenley Distilleries, who were to become synonymous with the CFL's most outstanding player awards in later years.
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