Howard Cosell - Yea Or Nay?

The greatest boxing announcer of all time!!! this guy could hype a fight jiuce it up like no one ever has since, yet he had integrity and called it like it was. The vocabulary the wit, no one has ever been as smart, dramatic or exciting announcing a sport. This guy is a once in a lifetime giant in the world of sports broadcasting, period. I cannot belive the drones we actually have on the air these days, they pale in comparison.

 

What is the controversy about Cosell about?

 

Agreed

 

I can overlook his arrogance, he did do a great job commentating. But, thinking about it, he did ply his trade during an exciting era. Just wondering how well he would've looked in this era.

More yea than nay I guess. But I think Merchant is the greatest, so what do I know.

 

......but tell us how you really feel?

Seriously Sal, Cossel may have been alot of those things, but imo he was also a good broadcaster.
He had a flair for the dramatic, and he may not have been the most knowleadgeable fight broadcaster, but he was far from being a disgrace either.

I could'nt imagine any other broadcaster making a finer call of the Foreman-Frazier destruction. Its the most memorable, and it just might be the finest call in boxing history.

Howard was'nt a knowleadgeable fight caller, as some have claimed in this thread????
......"Angelo, I think he's hurt Joe!"
Cossel actually noticed Frazier hurt before Angelo Dundee or any other broadcaster in that booth.......

....what followed was probably the finest and most memorable call in boxing history......"Down goes Frazia, down goes Frazia!"


Only God really knows what triggered Cossel in that Holmes-Cobb mismatch.
Just a thought, but Cossel was fond of Ali.....and with the effects that boxing had on Ali's physical and mental health, it just may have played a role in Cossel turning his back on boxing!

 

Tell me that does'nt go on with todays broadcasters, specifically Jim Lampley?
.....although I'll admit, Lampley is more knowleadgeable than Cossel about the fighters.

I agree though, there are alot more knowleadgeable fight broadcasters than Cossel, just not many as good as Cossel to add excitement to an already exciting fight!:yep

"I spit in his grave?"
Is there something you left out Sal? That deep eh?

Even if you did'nt like the guy, thats heavy stuff there.

 

AS a kid I enjoyed him ... as an adult, rewatching broadcasts of many fights, I cannot believe how bad he was ... good for possibly opening an event and setting the stage but actually terrible at calling a fight ... he liked to hear himself talk so much he missed way too much of what was going on ... simply very over rated.

 

He was definitely his own biggest fan! But he will always be on my `good` list because of his calling of Frazier vs. Foreman. the excitement and shock with which he called the knockdowns still rings in my ears after all these years. Down goes Frazier! Down goes Frazier!! Down goes Frazier!!!!

 

Jesus Sal, spit on his grave, a New York accent you despise? That doesn't sound like you. Cosell was more of an entertainer than a boxing expert. He didn't always know what he was talking about. He was an opportunist and a self-promoter, an egotist. He rode the coattail of Ali, but then again, he was the first one to give him his due respect. He could be funny at times.

 

Cosell was great because he was the spit (pun intended)-and-image and sound of the average excited fan calling a match.

The average fan is not a boxing expert, as Cosell definitely wasn't, so his numerous clueless moments and sudden exhilaration were classic in the Harry Caray vein. His bombast was dismaying, but sports is entertainment and the man knew his job well: every successful entertainer must has his own style. In this case, he managed to etch himself into eternity: "Down goes Frayzhah! Down goes Frayzhah! Down goes Frayzhah!"

 

I agree he was great at what he did.

 

I love Sal and his articulate way of putting things! :happy