The Capital City has recently lost a pair of teammates from over six decades ago. They both had colorful nicknames, they both made the 1942 All-State football squad, and they both will be remembered as good and decent men.

Bob "Knobby" Hilger died first, in January, at the age of 82. And then Duane "Moose" Lindstrom, 83, passed away earlier this week.

As juniors at Helena High together in 1941-42, Lindstrom and Hilger were part of a basketball game involving two historic coaches. The 45-36 Bengal win over Livingston featured a matchup between coaches Max Worthington of HHS, and the Rangers' J.A. "Cat" Thompson. The two had been teammates on the 1929 Montana State College national hoops champion "Golden Bobcats."

Hilger had a breakout effort in the win, scoring seven points.

"It was Bud Maras, Bill DeWolf and Bob Hilger who kept Helena in the ballgame all the route," reported the Helena Daily Independent. "Hilger showed signs of developing into a fair country guard and was credited with three field goals simply by putting forth the effort to sink them."

It was as a junior cager that Lindstrom earned his nickname.

"Sports writer Doc Bowler gave me that nickname," Lindstrom once told this reporter. "He wrote that I drove to the basket like an enraged bull moose."

The monicker stuck, and for the rest of his life, most of his friends referred to the brawny 6-foot-2, 215-pounder simply as "Moose."

Hilger's nickname was a little less flattering, originating due to the appearance of his bony knees.

"Anyone who went to high school with dad always called him Knobby, especially Moose and Bill DeWolf," related Bob's daughter, Linda Ryan. "And yes, he definitely did have knobby knees."

On the gridiron as seniors, Lindstrom and Hilger helped the Bengals to a 4-5 record. Helena beat Anaconda in the season opener, 6-0 at Vigilante Stadium. Their winning touchdown came on a 5-yard pass from Ed "Hogan" Krisman to Jed Steffensen.

"Captain Duane Lindstrom (left tackle) and Bob Hilger (right end) played good games for Helena defensively," according to the Independent.

After a 20-0 win over Bozeman, HHS fell to powerful Butte High, 25-0. The loss to the Bulldogs may have been even worse, if not for Lindstrom's fourth-down sack of the opposing quarterback on a goal-line stand.

Coach Sam Kain's charges dropped a 29-0 loss to Missoula County, before bouncing back with a 33-6 victory over Anaconda Central. The following weekend, they again bested the Saints, 32-12, and then closed out the season with a hard-fought 20-13 loss to Billings. In the third period versus the Broncs, Hilger intercepted a pass at Billings' 27-yard line, setting up a Bengal touchdown strike from Krisman to George DeWolf.

Krisman, who led the "Big Five" in scoring with 11 touchdowns and five extra point conversions, was named first team all-state fullback. Lindstrom was chosen for the second team, while Hilger, freshman "Joltin'" Joe Brennan (guard), George Langdorf (center) and Bob Hawkins (halfback) all made honorable mention.

On the hardcourt their senior years, Hilger scored the winning basket in a pressure-packed 33-32 triumph over Great Falls High. Leading the Bengal offense against the Bison were 6-foot-2 freshman Dick Carstensen, with nine points, followed by Hilger and Curt Brown, with seven counters apiece.

"Bob Hilger, Curt Brown and tall Dick Carstensen (each) turned in a smart defensive game," the paper reported. In a 32-26 win over Park County, Hilger was the second-leading scorer, with eight points.

As an adult, Hilger was an avid outdoorsman. He enjoyed hunting, fishing and the shooting sports. He was also a lifelong local sports fan, attending countless Helena High football and basketball games, mostly with his good friend George Harper.

"Knobby" took up golf later on, buying his first set of left-handed clubs from neighbor Bob Sturdevant.

"One time at Bill Roberts, before we went out in a foursome, Bob gave me an old throw-away club, and came up with an idea to trick the other guys. So I deliberately hit a bad shot on the lake hole, and then made a big production of throwing that club in the water," Sturdevant said.

"Dad wasn't that great of a golfer n sometimes he'd swing at a ball and miss," laughed his daughter. "But he was a great husband, father and grandfather."

Lindstrom went on to become a longtime bowler and golfer. He bowled in the city leagues for over four decades and was a member of the Green Meadow Country Club for 29 years.

Ed Mills, who was Lindstrom's golfing partner at GMCC since the 1970s, shared some of his favorite stories.

"Moose was good at every sport he did," Mills said. "He wasn't an excellent golfer, but he could play. Once when Ernie Jacques was with us, Moose was having trouble getting the ball over the lake at No. 8. He kept hitting into the water, and finally Ernie pulled out a dozen balls and dropped them near Moose's feet and said, 'I don't have time for this, I'll meet you later in the clubhouse.'

"Another time with Bill Stinchfield and Jim Morgan on No. 11, just as Moose was at the top of his backswing, Jim rolled a green ball towards Moose's. It bumped the white ball out of the way just as Moose drove the green one about 150 yards. He couldn't believe it when he looked down and saw that white ball still there."

But perhaps the funniest story was when Moose was looking for his ball in the rough on No. 13, and a pheasant attacked him, thinking he was trying to steal its egg.

"Moose was just an awful good friend and a wonderful person," Mills said.

Curt Synness: 449-2150 or email curt52s@bresnan.net