Welcome to our collection of quotes by Howard Cosell. We hope you enjoy pondering them and please share widely.
Wikipedia Summary for Howard Cosell
Howard William Cosell (né Cohen; March 25, 1918 – April 23, 1995) was an American sports journalist and author. Cosell became prominent and influential during his tenure with ABC Sports from 1953 until 1985.
Cosell was widely known for his blustery, confident personality. Cosell said of himself, "Arrogant, pompous, obnoxious, vain, cruel, verbose, a showoff. There's no question that I'm all of those things" when he was nicknamed Humble Howard by the Buffalo Bills. In its obituary for Cosell, The New York Times described Cosell's effect on American sports coverage:
He entered sports broadcasting in the mid-1950s, when the predominant style was unabashed adulation, [and] offered a brassy counterpoint that was first ridiculed, then copied until it became the dominant note of sports broadcasting.
His style contrasted greatly with Ray Scott, who is understated, and often used very few words. He also brought an antagonistic, almost heel-like commentary, notably giving him criticism of Terry Bradshaw by suggesting that he did not have the intelligence to win in the league.
In 1993, TV Guide named Howard Cosell The All-Time Best Sportscaster in its issue celebrating 40 years of television.
The importance that our society attaches to sport is incredible. After all, is football a game or a religion? The people of this country have allowed sports to get completely out of hand.
Arrogant, pompous, obnoxious, vain, cruel, verbose, a showoff. I have been called all of these. Of course, I am.
The ultimate victory in competition is derived from the inner satisfaction of knowing that you have done your best and that you have gotten the most out of what you had to give.
Stand for something. Don't quest for popularity at the expense of morality and ethics and honesty.
The time may have come to say goodbye to Muhammad Ali, because very honestly, I don't think he can beat George Foreman.
Unlike any other sport, the objective in boxing is chillingly simple: One man purposefully endeavors to inflict bodily harm on another man.
Then there is a still higher type of courage -- the courage to brave pain, to live with it, to never let others know of it and to still find joy in life; to wake up in the morning with an enthusiasm for the day ahead.
I was right to back Muhammad Ali, but it caused me major enmity in many areas of this nation.
