Howard Cosell facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Howard Cosell
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Cosell in 1975
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| Born |
Howard William Cohen
March 25, 1918 |
| Died | April 23, 1995 (aged 77) New York City, U.S.
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| Alma mater | New York University |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1953–1993 |
| Spouse(s) |
Mary Edith Abrams "Emmy" Cosell
(m. 1944; died 1990) |
| Children | 2 |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service/ |
 United States Army |
| Years of service | 1941–1945 |
| Rank | Major |
| Unit | United States Army Transportation Corps |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Howard William Cosell (born Cohen; March 25, 1918 – April 23, 1995) was a famous American sports journalist, broadcaster, and author. He became very well-known and important while working for ABC Sports from 1953 to 1985.
Cosell was famous for his strong, confident personality. He once said about himself, "I've been called arrogant, pompous, obnoxious, vain, cruel, verbose, a showoff. And, of course, I am." Fans and critics sometimes jokingly called him "Humble Howard." He also had a challenging style of commentary. For example, he once criticized football player Terry Bradshaw, suggesting he wasn't smart enough to win.
In 1993, TV Guide magazine named Howard Cosell the best sportscaster of all time. This was in a special issue celebrating 40 years of television.
Contents
Early Life and Family
Howard Cosell was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. His parents were Isidore and Nellie Cohen, and they were Jewish. He had an older brother named Hilton. Howard grew up in Brooklyn, New York City.
Cosell's grandfather's name was changed when he came to the United States. Howard Cosell later changed his own name from "Cohen" to "Cosell" while he was studying law. He said he did this to honor his father and grandfather. He wanted to use a version of his family's original Polish name.
Career in Broadcasting
Starting in Radio
In the early 1950s, Howard Cosell had a sports radio show. He would record it very early in the morning. In 1953, a manager at ABC Radio named Hal Neal asked Cosell to host a show. This show was on WABC in New York and featured young players from Little League. This show was the start of his long career with WABC and ABC Radio.
Cosell hosted the Little League show for three years without getting paid. After that, he decided to leave his law career and become a full-time broadcaster. He asked Robert Pauley, the President of ABC Radio, for a weekly show. Pauley said the network couldn't afford new talent unless Cosell found a sponsor. To Pauley's surprise, Cosell found a shirt company owned by a relative to sponsor his show. That's how his show, Speaking of Sports, began.
Cosell was known for his "tell it like it is" style. He used this approach when he worked with former baseball pitcher Ralph Branca. They did pre- and post-game radio shows for the New York Mets starting in 1962. Cosell was very direct in his comments about the team.
He continued his radio show, Speaking of Sports, and also gave sports reports across the country. Even when he became famous on television, he kept his radio duties. Cosell then became a sports anchor at WABC-TV in New York, working there from 1961 to 1974. He also expanded his commentary beyond sports with a radio show called Speaking of Everything.
Becoming Famous and Supporting Athletes
Cosell became very well-known in the early 1960s. He covered the boxer Muhammad Ali, even when Ali was still known by his birth name, Cassius Clay. Cosell and Ali seemed to get along well, even though they had different personalities. Cosell was one of the first sportscasters to call the boxer Muhammad Ali after he changed his name. He also supported Ali when he refused to join the military.
Cosell also strongly supported Olympic sprinters John Carlos and Tommie Smith. They raised their fists in a "black power" salute during their medal ceremony at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. At a time when many sports broadcasters avoided talking about social or racial issues, Cosell did not. He became famous for his saying, "I'm just telling it like it is."
Cosell's way of reporting changed sports broadcasting in the United States. Before him, sportscasters mostly described the game. Cosell brought a more thoughtful approach, using analysis and background information. His unique voice and way of speaking also made his commentary special.
Cosell gained a lot of public attention when he supported Ali. This happened after Ali's boxing title was taken away because he refused military service during the Vietnam War. Years later, Cosell was proud to tell Ali that the Supreme Court of the United States had ruled in Ali's favor.
Cosell called most of Ali's fights after the boxer returned to the sport in 1970. These fights were usually shown a week later on TV. However, Cosell did not call two of Ali's biggest fights: the Rumble in the Jungle in 1974 and the first Ali–Joe Frazier bout in 1971.
One of his most famous calls happened during the fight between Joe Frazier and George Foreman in 1973. This was for the World Heavyweight Championship in Jamaica. His call of Frazier falling to the mat became one of the most famous phrases in sports broadcasting. Foreman won the fight.
Cosell also provided commentary for many other big boxing matches in the 1970s and early 1980s. This included Ken Norton's win over Ali in 1973 and Ali's win over Leon Spinks in 1978. During one broadcast, his hairpiece accidentally fell off during a scuffle, but he quickly put it back on. Muhammad Ali often joked about Cosell's hairpiece during interviews.
Cosell suddenly stopped broadcasting boxing after a heavyweight championship fight on November 26, 1982. This was between Larry Holmes and Randall "Tex" Cobb. Cobb was taking a lot of punches. Cosell became disgusted during the fight and said he would never broadcast professional boxing again.
Cosell was also a commentator for the famous 1973 "Battles of the Sexes" tennis match. This match was between Bobby Riggs and Billie Jean King.
Monday Night Football
In 1970, ABC hired Cosell to be a commentator for Monday Night Football (MNF). This was the first time American football was shown weekly in prime time in 15 years. Cosell usually worked with former football players Frank Gifford and Don Meredith.
Cosell often disagreed on air with Meredith, who had a more relaxed style. Cosell's style was more critical. The way Cosell, Meredith, and Gifford worked together made Monday Night Football a huge success. It was often the most-watched show on TV. Their unique style, especially Cosell's, made Monday Night Football a special event. It also led to more colorful broadcasters and 24/7 TV sports coverage.
During his time on MNF, Cosell created a famous phrase. When a player returned a kickoff, Cosell would suddenly say, in his unique voice, "He could ... go all ... the way!" This phrase became very popular.
Cosell is also given credit for helping to popularize the word "nachos" while he was in the MNF booth.
Leaving Monday Night Football
During a Monday Night Football game on September 5, 1983, Cosell made a comment about wide receiver Alvin Garrett. He said, "That little monkey gets loose doesn't he?" This comment caused a controversy about race. It was part of the reason Cosell left MNF at the end of the 1983 season.
Some people, like Rev. Joseph Lowery, said Cosell's comment was racist and demanded an apology. However, Jesse Jackson, Muhammad Ali, and Alvin Garrett himself supported Cosell. Garrett said, "I liked Howard Cosell. I didn't feel that it was a demeaning statement." Cosell explained that he was talking about Garrett's small size, not his race. He said he had used the term to describe his own grandchildren. There is also video from 1972 where Cosell called a white athlete, Mike Adamle, a "little monkey" because of his size.
Olympic Coverage
Besides Monday Night Football, Cosell also worked for ABC during the Olympics. He played a very important role in ABC's coverage of the terrorist attack on Israeli athletes at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. He reported directly from the Olympic Village. You can see and hear him in Steven Spielberg's film about the attack, Munich.
At the 1976 Summer Games in Montreal and the 1984 games in Los Angeles, Cosell was the main voice for boxing. Sugar Ray Leonard won a gold medal in Montreal. Cosell became close to Leonard during this time and announced many of his professional fights.
"The Bronx is Burning"
Howard Cosell is often thought to have said the famous phrase "the Bronx is burning." People believe he said this during Game 2 of the 1977 World Series. This game was played at Yankee Stadium on October 12, 1977. At that time, many fires were happening in the South Bronx. These fires were often started by property owners for insurance money. During the game, an ABC camera showed a building on fire a few blocks from the stadium. This image became a symbol of New York City in the 1970s.
In 2005, author Jonathan Mahler wrote a book called Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning. He said Cosell made the quote during the aerial coverage of the fire. ESPN even made a mini-series based on the book called The Bronx Is Burning. Cosell's supposed comment seemed to show how many people felt New York City was struggling.
However, the truth was found when Major League Baseball released a DVD set of all the 1977 World Series games. The coverage of the fire began with Keith Jackson's comments. Cosell added that President Jimmy Carter had visited that area just days before. Later, Cosell commented that the New York City Fire Department had a hard job in the Bronx because of all the fires. He also told the audience it was an abandoned building and no lives were in danger. Cosell never actually said "The Bronx is Burning" on camera during that game.
It's likely that the author Mahler confused the event with a 1974 documentary titled The Bronx Is Burning.
Announcing John Lennon's Death
On the night of December 8, 1980, during a Monday Night Football game, Cosell shared shocking news. He interrupted his commentary to announce the murder of John Lennon. This happened during a live broadcast of a game between the Miami Dolphins and the New England Patriots. Roone Arledge, who was president of ABC's news and sports divisions, told Cosell and Frank Gifford the news near the end of the game.
Cosell was unsure about announcing Lennon's death on air. He asked Gifford and others if it was appropriate during a game. Gifford said it was, calling it a "tragic moment" that would "shake up the whole world."
On air, Gifford said, "And I don't care what's on the line, Howard, you have got to say what we know in the booth." Cosell then delivered the news.
ABC got this news quickly because an ABC employee, Alan Weiss, was at the same emergency room where Lennon was taken. Lennon's wife, Yoko Ono, had asked the hospital to delay reporting his death so she could tell their son, Sean, herself. Sean, who was 5, was not watching TV, so Ono was able to tell him.
Sports Journalism and ABC SportsBeat
In 1981, Cosell started a serious investigative show called ABC SportsBeat. It was a 30-minute show on ABC's weekend schedule. He covered important topics that were not usually part of sports news. For example, he looked into how NFL owners got tax breaks for new stadiums. He also worked with Arthur Ashe to investigate apartheid and sports.
Even though not many people watched the show, Cosell and his team won three Emmy Awards for their excellent reporting. ABC SportsBeat was the first and only regular network show focused only on sports journalism.
To create this new show, Cosell hired people who were not usually involved in broadcasting games. He wanted people who would look at the hard facts. He brought in writers from The Washington Post and The New York Times. He also hired a young researcher named Alexis Denny. She had been a student in a class Cosell taught at Yale. She became an associate producer and created many segments. In 1983, she produced a special report about the 1984 Summer Olympics. This report looked at questions about the games, like traffic, pollution, and terrorism.
In his 1985 autobiography, Cosell said that the SportsBeat series was his favorite work.
Other TV and Film Appearances
Cosell's unique personality and voice were used in several episodes of the ABC TV series The Odd Couple. He also appeared in Woody Allen films like Bananas and Broadway Danny Rose. He was so famous that his name was often used as a general answer on the game show Match Game.
In 1975, ABC aired Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell. This was an hour-long variety show hosted by Cosell. It helped make comedians like Billy Crystal and Bill Murray famous. However, Cosell's show was canceled after three months. The NBC show, which also started in 1975, then officially became Saturday Night Live. Cosell later hosted the season finale of Saturday Night Live in 1984-1985.
Cosell also hosted a series of specials called Battle of the Network Stars starting in 1976. These shows had celebrities from different TV networks compete in sports. Cosell would interview the participants and clearly enjoyed himself. Actor LeVar Burton said that having Cosell insult him was like a "Holy Grail." Cosell hosted almost all of these specials until 1988.
In 1977, he received the Golden Plate Award from the American Academy of Achievement.
Criticism of Boxing
Howard Cosell strongly criticized professional boxing during a broadcast on November 26, 1982. This was during a WBC heavyweight championship fight between Larry Holmes and Randall "Tex" Cobb. Cobb was clearly being beaten. Cosell famously asked, "I wonder if that referee [Steve Crosson] understands that he is constructing an advertisement for the abolition of the very sport that he's a part of?" Cosell was horrified by the brutal fight. He said that if the referee did not stop the fight, he would never broadcast a professional fight again.
Later, major changes were made in boxing. One important change allows referees to stop fights early if one fighter is clearly being hurt. This helps protect the fighters' health. Another change was reducing championship bouts from fifteen rounds to twelve rounds. Cosell did not stop working with amateur boxing. His broadcasts of the 1984 Olympic Trials and the 1984 Summer Olympics boxing tournament were his last professional calls of the sport.
Later Life and Legacy
After Cosell's memoir I Never Played the Game was published in 1985, he was taken off the announcing team for the 1985 World Series. He was soon dismissed by ABC television. Many people saw his book as very critical of his colleagues.
In his book, Cosell popularized the word "jockocracy". This term describes how athletes were given announcing jobs just because they were famous players, not because they were good at broadcasting.
In his later years, Cosell briefly hosted his own TV talk show, Speaking of Everything. He also wrote his last book, What's Wrong With Sports. He continued to appear on radio and television, becoming even more open about his criticisms of sports.
In 1993, Cosell was inducted into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. In 1994, he was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame. He also received the Arthur Ashe Courage Award in 1995. After his wife of 46 years, Mary Edith Abrams Cosell (known as "Emmy"), died in 1990, Cosell mostly stayed out of the public eye. His health also began to get worse. He was a longtime smoker and was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1991. He also had several small strokes and other health problems.
Death
Howard Cosell died in Manhattan on April 23, 1995, at the age of 77. He is buried in Westhampton Cemetery, Westhampton, New York.
Legacy
Howard Cosell was ranked number one on David J. Halberstam's list of "Top 50 All Time Network Television Sports Announcers" in 2009. The sports complex at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem is named after Cosell. In 2010, Cosell was honored by being inducted into the Observer's Category in the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
In the 2001 film Ali, Cosell is played by Jon Voight, who was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance. In the 2002 TV film Monday Night Mayhem, Cosell was played by John Turturro.
Cosell's daughter, Hilary Cosell, was a producer for NBC SportsWorld. She was one of the first women sports producers. She also worked on her father's show, Speaking of Everything with Howard Cosell, and was an assistant producer for ABC News 20/20. She received four Emmy Award nominations.
Cosell's nephew Greg Cosell is a senior producer at NFL Films. His grandson Colin Cosell became a public address announcer for the New York Mets in 2018. Colin Cosell wanted to honor his grandfather by saying the Mets' third baseman Todd Frazier's name in the same way Cosell said Joe Frazier's name in his famous "Down Goes Frazier!" call.
Images for kids
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Cosell in 1975
See also
In Spanish: Howard Cosell para niños
