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RIP Frank Gifford...

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RIP Frank Gifford... Empty RIP Frank Gifford...

Post by diehardsteersfan Sun Aug 09, 2015 8:49 pm

By The Associated Press
Sunday, Aug. 9, 2015, 3:27 p.m.
Updated 23 minutes ago
 
NEW YORK — From the football field to the broadcast booth, Frank Gifford was a star. And a winner.
An NFL championship in 1956 with the New York Giants. An Emmy award in 1976-77 as television's “outstanding sports personality.” Induction in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in '77.
Gifford, as well known for serving as a buffer for fellow announcers Don Meredith and Howard Cosell on “Monday Night Football” as for his versatility as a player, died Sunday. He was 84.
“Frank Gifford was an icon of the game, both as a Hall of Fame player for the Giants and Hall of Fame broadcaster for CBS and ABC,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said. “Frank's talent and charisma on the field and on the air were important elements in the growth and popularity of the modern NFL.”
In a statement released by NBC News, his family said Gifford died of natural causes at his Connecticut home. His wife, Kathie Lee Gifford, is a host for NBC's “Today.”
“We rejoice in the extraordinary life he was privileged to live, and we feel grateful and blessed to have been loved by such an amazing human being,” his family said in the statement.
A running back, defensive back, wide receiver and special-teams player, Gifford was the NFL's MVP in 1956. He went to the Pro Bowl at three positions and was the centerpiece of a Giants offense that went to five NFL title games.
Beginning in 1971, he worked for ABC's “Monday Night Football,” at first as a play-by-play announcer then as an analyst.
Gifford hosted “Wide World of Sports,” covered several Olympics — his call of Franz Klammer's downhill gold medal run in 1976 is considered a broadcasting masterpiece — and announced 588 consecutive NFL games for ABC, not even taking time off after the death of his mother shortly before a broadcast in 1986.
“Frank Gifford was an exceptional man who will be missed by everyone who had the joy of seeing his talent on the field, the pleasure of watching his broadcasts, or the honor of knowing him,” said Bob Iger, chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company, which owns ABC.
Gifford had his best year in 1956, rushing for 819 yards, picking up 603 yards receiving and scoring nine touchdowns in 12 games. The Giants routed the Bears, 47-7, at Yankee Stadium, where Gifford shared a locker with Mickey Mantle.
“Frank Gifford was the ultimate Giant,” co-owner John Mara said. “He was the face of our franchise for so many years.”
Born Aug. 16, 1930, in Santa Monica, Calif., Frank Newton Gifford was the son of an itinerant oil worker. Growing up in Depression-era California, Gifford estimated he moved 47 times before entering high school, occasionally sleeping in parks or the family car and eating dog food.
Gifford's 5,434 yards receiving were a Giants record for 39 years, until Amani Toomer surpassed him in 2003. His jersey No. 16, was retired by the team in 2000.
When he wasn't on the field, Gifford tried to put his movie-star good looks to use in Hollywood, appearing in about a dozen films, most notably the 1959 submarine movie “Up Periscope.”



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diehardsteersfan
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RIP Frank Gifford... Empty Re: RIP Frank Gifford...

Post by ~Sheila~ Mon Aug 10, 2015 6:43 pm

RIP Frank Gifford. 
~Sheila~
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