Myron Cope

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Myron Cope
Born
Myron Sidney Kopelman
Sports commentary career
GenreSports

Myron Cope (January 23 1929 - February 27 2008), born Myron Sidney Kopelman,[1] was an American sports journalist, radio personality, and sports broadcaster who is best known for being the voice of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Cope was a color commentator for the Steelers' radio broadcasts for 35 years. He was known for his distinctive, nasally voice with an identifiable Pittsburgh accent, idiosyncratic speech pattern, and a level of excitement rarely exhibited in the broadcast booth. Cope's most notable catch phrase was "yoi." Cope was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2005.[1] Cope's autobiography Double Yoi! was published in 2002.

Education and early career

A Pittsburgh native, he graduated from Taylor Allderdice High School[2] and the University of Pittsburgh.[3] He was originally a journalist before becoming a broadcaster; his first job was in Erie, Pennsylvania, with the Daily Times.[4] Cope then became a freelance journalist, most notably for Sports Illustrated,[1] the Saturday Evening Post,[4] and the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.[5] In 1963, Cope received the E.P. Dutton Prize for "Best Magazine Sportswriting in the Nation", for a portrayal of Cassius Clay.[6] In 1987, Cope was named as a noted literary achiever, along with Mark Twain, Jack London, Frederick Remington, Walter Winchell and Sidney Sheldon, by the Hearst Corporation.[6] Cope's profile of Howard Cosell was selected by Sports Illustrated during its 50th Anniversary as one of the 50 best pieces ever published in the magazine.[5] Cope spent the 1983 college football season as a color analyst for the Pittsburgh Panthers.[3]

Family life

Cope's wife, Mildred, passed away on September 20 1994.[7] Cope had three children, Elizabeth, Martha Ann, and Daniel.[7] Martha Ann died shortly after her birth.[8] His son Daniel was born with severe autism and has lived almost his entire life at the Allegheny Valley School, an institution specializing in giving him the care he needs. Cope devoted much of his time and energy to Pittsburgh causes addressing autism, and spoke candidly about his experiences as the parent of an autistic child and his efforts to better educate the public at large about autism. Proceeds from the sale of Terrible Towels benefit the Allegheny Valley School; in 1996 Cope gave the school the trademark and ownership rights to the Terrible Towel.

Steelers broadcasting

In the late 1960s, Cope had a radio show on WBGG (AM),[9] in Pittsburgh. His unique nasal voice, with a distinctive Pittsburgh area accent, was noticed by the Steelers' brass, and he made his debut as a member of the Steelers' radio team in 1970.[9] Over Cope's broadcasting career with the Steelers he was only accompanied by two play-by-play announcers, Jack Fleming and Bill Hillgrove.[4] Cope's 35 years of broadcasting was the longest broadcasting term with a single team in NFL history.[8]

In keeping with his comic personality, a series of television commentaries on WTAE-TV saw Cope calling himself "Doctor Cope" and wearing a white lab coat while pretending to examine the opposing team's strengths and weaknesses through a microscope he called "the Cope-ra-scope".[citation needed]

Catchphrases and Nicknames

File:Terribletowel2.jpg
A special edition of "The Terrible Towel" was created in honor of Cope's retirement following the 2005 Steelers' season.

Like other sports announcers in Pittsburgh, particularly the late Pirates announcer Bob Prince and Penguins commentator Mike Lange,[4] Cope had a repertoire of unique catchphrases employed in his broadcasts such as "Mmm-Hah!" and "Okel Dokel" (his version of "okey dokey"). Cope often used Yiddish expressions, especially "Feh!" and "Yoi!" (sometimes multiplied as "Double Yoi" or rarely "Triple Yoi").

Cope also created nicknames for many players. It was Cope who popularized "The Bus" as a nickname for former Steelers running back Jerome Bettis (the nickname was originally given to Bettis in college), and he gave Kordell Stewart the nickname "Slash."[citation needed]

Cope used a wide range of nicknames for other teams including "Birdies" (Baltimore Ravens), "Bungles" (Cincinnati Bengals), "Cleve Sandlotters" and "Cleve Brownies" (Cleveland Browns), "Chi Bears" (Chicago Bears), "Mini Vikes" (Minnesota Vikings) and "Redfaces" (Washington Redskins).

Terrible Towel

Main article: Terrible Towel

"I said, what we need is something that everybody already has, so it doesn't cost a dime. So I says, 'We'll urge people to bring out to the game gold or black towels,' then I'll tell people if you don't have a yellow, black or gold towel, buy one. And if you don't want to buy one, dye one. We'll call this the Terrible Towel."

— Myron Cope on the invention of the Terrible Towel[10]

Cope played a large role in the invention of the "Terrible Towel." Needing a way to excite the fans during a 1975 playoff game against the Baltimore Colts, Cope urged fans to take yellow dish towels to the game and wave them throughout. The Terrible Towel has since become a symbol of the Steelers and the city of Pittsburgh.

In 1996, Cope gave the rights to The Terrible Towel to the Allegheny Valley School in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania. The school provides care for more than 900 people with mental retardation and physical disabilities, including Cope's autistic son. Proceeds from the Terrible Towel have helped raise more than $2.2 million for the school.[11]


Retirement and death

Cope announced his retirement from broadcasting on June 20 2005, citing his recent health concerns.[12] His retirement was major news in the entire Pittsburgh area. Upon his retirement the Steelers did not replace Cope, opting instead to downsize to a two-man broadcast team.[8] Cope received the Pete Rozelle Award for long time exceptional contributions to pro football in television and radio.[13]

On October 31 2005, Cope was honored for his lifetime accomplishments at halftime of the contest between the Steelers and the Ravens.[citation needed] In addition, the Steelers produced a special commemorative edition "Terrible Towel" with his familiar expressions printed on it. As seen on the towel, it was limited to 35,000, representing 35 years of service to the Steelers.

Cope died of respiratory failure, at the age of 79 at a Mt. Lebanon nursing home on the morning of February 27 2008.[8] In the days following his death many ceremonies were held in his honor, including the local sporting events of the Pittsburgh Panthers college basketball team and the Pittsburgh Penguins professional hockey team.[14] Two days after his death, hundreds of people gathered in heavy snow in front of City Hall in Pittsburgh to honor Cope; included in the ceremony was one minute of silent Terrible Towel waving.[15] His funeral, which was held on February 29 2008, was private.[16] Due to to Cope's large impact on the Pittsburgh area, Bob Smizik, a local sportswriter said, "Had the secret of the service and its site not been kept,...tens of thousands would have descended on the...funeral home... Such was the affection for Cope,...that the parkway in both directions would have been clogged. Greentree and Cochran roads, the two main arteries leading to the funeral home, would have been parking lots."[16]

Further reading

  • Cope, Myron (2002). Double Yoi!. Sports Publishing, L.L.C. ISBN 1-58261-548-9 (autobiography)
  • Cope, Myron (2006). Double Yoi!. Sports Publishing, L.L.C. ISBN 978-1596700697 (autobiography, 2nd edition)

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b c "Myron Cope". Retrieved 2008-02-27.
  2. ^ Collins, Mark (September 1996). "Everything is Cope-aesthetic". Pitt Magazine. University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2006-11-25.
  3. ^ a b "Terrible Towel Day Honors Cope". Retrieved 2008-02-29.
  4. ^ a b c d "Myron Cope, ex-Steelers announcer, dead at 79". Retrieved 2008-02-29.
  5. ^ a b Collier, Gene (2008-02-28). "Remembering Myron Cope: He spoke for Steelers Nation in a language all his own". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2008-02-29. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help) Cite error: The named reference "pgremembering" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b "Obituary: Myron Cope's career spanned newspapers, magazines, radio and TV". Retrieved 2008-02-29.
  7. ^ a b Cope, Myron (2002). Double Yoi!. Sports Publishing, L.L.C. ISBN 1582615489. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  8. ^ a b c d "Steelers' former radio announcer Myron Cope dies at 79". Retrieved 2008-02-28. Cite error: The named reference "Yahoo" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  9. ^ a b "Myron Cope". Retrieved 2008-02-28.
  10. ^ "Myron Cope Was A 'Pittsburgh Original'". CBS Broadcasting. 2008-02-27. Retrieved 2008-02-29. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ "Allegheny Valley School Mourns the Loss of Myron Cope". Allegheny Valley School. 2008-02-27. Retrieved 2008-02-29. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ "Myron Cope Retires". Retrieved 2008-02-27.
  13. ^ "Steelers' Cope named 2005 Rozelle Award winner". Retrieved 2008-02-29.
  14. ^ "Pitt plans Cope tribute". Retrieved 2008-02-29.
  15. ^ "Hundreds join Terrible Towel wave in memory of Cope". Retrieved 2008-02-29.
  16. ^ a b Smizik, Bob (2008-03-02). "Cope was beloved, and he loved right back ... a commentary". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2008-03-02.

External links

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