NFL

A Lifetime of Sports Memories: TVs Warner Wolf

Bill Thompson

TV sportscasters, just like the athletes they covered, come and go.

But a few established themselves as stars, remaining popular for years, even decades.

Meet televisions Warner Wolf. He actually started on the radio in 1961, before moving to TV in 1965 in his hometown Washington DC.

By 1976 he had moved on to New York City, were he further cemented his reputation as a sportscasting star.

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Get your copy of Warner wolf’s book

Along the way Warner Wolf popularized two catch phrases: “Gimme a break!” and “Let’s go to the videotape.”

Eventually Wolf wrote two books, each titled after one of those catchphrases. I met him in 2000 on publication of Let’s Go To The Videotape.

Be sure and stick around for his predictions, and see how many of them actually came true.

So here now, from 2000, Warner Wolf.

Warner wolf levt TV in 2016. He’s 87 now, and can be heard weekly on New York’s WOR radio.

Former NFL Team Doctor Robert Huizenga — Bruises, Concussions, and Steroids

Bill Thompson

The National Football League is no place for guys who don’t want to get hurt No NFL veteran comes away unscathed

And that means there is always plenty of work for team physicians. From 1983 to 1990, Dr. Robert Huizenga was team internist for the Los Angeles Raiders.

Huizenga saw everything from bruises and pulled muscle to dislocated fingers, concussions and compound fractures.

And a lot of steroid abuse.

A few years after leaving the Raiders, Huizenga wrote about his experience in the NFL in a book he called You’re Okay, It’s Only a Bruise. I talked with him when he was on a book tour.

So here now, from 1994, Dr. Robert Huizenga.

Today Dr. Robert Huizenga continues to be active in professional sports, and is often seen on television.

Get your copy of Robert Huizenga’s book

Why Phyllis George Decided She Would Never Say Never

Bill Thompson
Photo by John Mathew Smith

To some young women, being crowned Miss America would be the pinnacle of their life, their peak accomplishment.

To others the Miss America title is just the first of many notable accomplishments

Phyllis George won the title in 1971, representing Texas in the pageant.

Just four years later, she was hired by CBS Sports, to co-host The NFL Today.

And four years after that, she became First Lady of Kentucky when her husband John Y. Brown was elected Governor.

Get your copy of Phyllis George’s book

Later she became a successful chicken entrepreneur

And all of these things happened, she said , because her attitude never allowed her to say never period

That inspired her to call her 2002 book Never Say Never. A somewhat autobiographical book, it laid out ten things we can all do to achieve what he dream of.

So here now, from 2002, Phyllis George.

Phyllis George died in 2020 from a rare form of cancer. She was 70.

Super Bowl 21 Hero Leonard Marshall Reflects on the Giants’ Disastrous 1987 Season

Bill Thompson

This Sunday the San Francisco 49ers will meet the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 58 in Las Vegas This will be the Chiefs’ fourth Super Bowl appearance in five years. But big success one year doesn’t necessarily mean the next year will be just as great.

The New York Giants dominated the NFC in 1986, and they won Super Bowl 21 over the Denver Broncos in January 1987.

But the Giants began the 1987 season 0-5, and finished with a 6-9 record, missing the playoffs for the first time in four years.

A key player for the Giants at that time was defensive lineman Leonard Marshall. He had written a book in the offseason, called The End of the Line. I had the chance to talk with him about the book In early December just two days after the Giants lost an embarrassing game to the Washington Redskins. New York had a 16-0 lead at halftime, and lost.

but Marshall was in a surprisingly pleasant mood that day as we talked. So here now,
from 1987, Leonard Marshall.

Leonard Marshall retired at the end of the 1994 season. He’s 62 now and is involved in various business ventures.

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The Many Talents of Alex Karras: Athlete, Actor, Author

Bill Thompson

Alex karras was a star on the field for the Detroit Lions in the 1960s.

And then he tackled a new career challenge: acting. One of his most iconic roles was in 1974’s “Blazing Saddles.” He was, of course, Mongo.

And when I spoke with him about it, he almost sounded surprised at his own success as a writer.

Later Alex karras starred in the ABC sitcom “Webster,” and along the way he also joined the Monday Night Football broadcast crew. And that’s kind of where he got the idea for his 1991 novel called Tuesday Night Football.

So here now from 1991 Alex karras

Alex karras died in 2012. He was 77.

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Conrad Dobler

Bill Thompson

The NFL’s regular season begins tomorrow. By next February we’ll have another Super Bowl champion, And another year’s worth of memorable plays and thrilling endings.

But for today, let’s hit rewind and go back to an interview I did in 1988, with a 10-year NFL veteran, three-time Pro Bowl player, known for his alleged underhanded tactics on the field.

During his six years with the Cardinals, two with the Saints, and two with the Bills, his opponents often referred to Conrad Dobler as a “dirty” player.

So in 1988, when Dobler wrote his memoir, what do you think he called it? Its title is They Call Me Dirty.

So here now, from 1988, Conrad Dobler.

Conrad Dobler died last February. He was 72.

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Dick Butkus

Bill Thompson
Photo by Alan Light

The national football League is over 100 years old, and in that time, football fans have enjoyed some breathtaking games, spectacular plays, some of the most colorful athletes we’ve ever known, and more than a few moments of spectator sport agony.

In 1994, The NFL participated in publishing a huge coffee table book reflecting on the first 75 years of the league. And to write the forward to that book, they chose legendary Chicago bears, middle linebacker Dick Butkus.

Now I grew up in the Chicago area, so I knew the name Dick butkus very well — and his reputation. An opponent once said that when he was tackling you, Dick Butkus was aiming not to put you in the hospital but the cemetery.

But when I met him to talk about that book, I found him to be a very warm and personable guy with lots of fun stories.

So here now, from 1994, Dick Butkus

Dick Butkus celebrated his 79th birthday last week. He’s active in several charities through the Butkus Foundation.

Don Shula

Bill Thompson

Last week the National Football League and its fans lost a truly iconic figure, Don Shula, the all-time winningest NFL coach, died at the age of 90.

I met Don Shula in 1995, just a few months before the start of what would be his final season coaching in the NFL. He had written a book on coaching and leadership, along with Ken Blanchard, the prolific author who [s best known for his book “The One Minute Manager.”

Here now, from 1995, Don Shula and Ken Blanchard:

To this day, the 1972 Miami Dolphins team that Don Shula coached is still the only team that’s ever put together a perfect, undefeated season.

Mary Tillman

Bill Thompson

Recently the 20-year war in Afghanistan came to an end. Have his given all of us time to reflect on those two decades.

We also remember the 23 hundred or so US servicemen and women who died in Afghanistan.

One of them, in particular, drew public attention. Then-27 year-old Army Ranger, and former NFL star, Pat Tillman was killed in 2004.

But that tragedy was compounded when the Pentagon apparently attempted to cover up the circumstances of his death.

Mary Tillman on C-SPAN

It eventually was revealed that he was killed by a so-called “friendly fire.”

A few years later, Pat Tillman’s mother, Mary Tillman, wrote a book about her son and her fight with the Pentagon. And that’s when I met her.

So here now, from 2008, Mary Tillman:

Pat Tillman was posthumously awarded the Silver Star and a Purple Heart.

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Tom Landry

Bill Thompson
Photo: Jim Bowen

The NFL regular season kicks off tomorrow night, September 9th, at the Dallas Cowboys take on the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Now, for 29 Seasons, those cowboys were coached by one of the most successful coaches in NFL history: Tom Landry. He was, in fact, the first head coach of the expansion Dallas franchise, in 1960.

He racked up 20 consecutive winning seasons with the Cowboys. Under whose leadership the Cowboys won two Super Bowls, five NFC championships, and 13 divisional titles.

But a string of losing seasons in the late 1980s made of done him in. One day after the new team owner, Jerry Jones, took over, Landry was unceremoniously fired.

The following year, he wrote his autobiography. And that’s when I met him.

So here now, from 1990, Tom Landry.

Tom Landry died in 2000. He was 75.

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