hno:
holy crap......
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iX1Oz3ISg68oFg1TfEKEAxZo-YvgD93PRN5O1
John Madden to skip this weekend's game
3 hours ago
NEW YORK (AP) — John Madden will miss calling an NFL game this weekend after working 476 in a row.
The 72-year-old Sunday Night Football analyst, who travels by bus because of a fear of flying, will take a break to spend time with his family instead of making three straight cross country trips, NBC said Monday.
Madden went from Jacksonville, Fla., to San Diego last week; he would have had to return to Florida for this Sunday's game at Tampa Bay. There's no Sunday Night Football game the following weekend, so Madden would have then headed home to the Bay Area.
NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol first approached Madden in the spring with the suggestion of skipping the trip.
Cris Collinsworth, normally a part of NBC's studio show, will fill in for Madden.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iX1Oz3ISg68oFg1TfEKEAxZo-YvgD93PRN5O1
John Madden to skip this weekend's game
3 hours ago
NEW YORK (AP) — John Madden will miss calling an NFL game this weekend after working 476 in a row.
The 72-year-old Sunday Night Football analyst, who travels by bus because of a fear of flying, will take a break to spend time with his family instead of making three straight cross country trips, NBC said Monday.
Madden went from Jacksonville, Fla., to San Diego last week; he would have had to return to Florida for this Sunday's game at Tampa Bay. There's no Sunday Night Football game the following weekend, so Madden would have then headed home to the Bay Area.
NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol first approached Madden in the spring with the suggestion of skipping the trip.
Cris Collinsworth, normally a part of NBC's studio show, will fill in for Madden.
I've heard that the reason football commentator John Madden is afraid to
fly is because he missed a flight in 1960 and that flight crashed, killing
some or all of those on board.
I've tried to confirm/deny this story using Google...... but I only found one
confirming account, and it wasn't from a news organization or some other
'reputable' source.
I did not find any denying accounts, but most instances mentioned that
Madden is afraid of flying without mentioning why. Or they said something
like "for unknown reasons". But I'd think that if such a story were true
it would be repeated.
but i found this ..."Another horrific team crash happened in 1960 at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and is one reason that NFL broadcaster John Madden refuses to fly, instead bussing himself to each week's broadcast. Madden, who played at Cal Poly in 1957 and '58 and was a graduate assistant in 1960, stayed behind to coach a junior varsity game at Allan Hancock College when the plane carrying many of his former teammates went down near Toledo, Ohio, killing 22 of the 48 passengers. Sixteen of those who died were football players. "
fly is because he missed a flight in 1960 and that flight crashed, killing
some or all of those on board.
I've tried to confirm/deny this story using Google...... but I only found one
confirming account, and it wasn't from a news organization or some other
'reputable' source.
I did not find any denying accounts, but most instances mentioned that
Madden is afraid of flying without mentioning why. Or they said something
like "for unknown reasons". But I'd think that if such a story were true
it would be repeated.
but i found this ..."Another horrific team crash happened in 1960 at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and is one reason that NFL broadcaster John Madden refuses to fly, instead bussing himself to each week's broadcast. Madden, who played at Cal Poly in 1957 and '58 and was a graduate assistant in 1960, stayed behind to coach a junior varsity game at Allan Hancock College when the plane carrying many of his former teammates went down near Toledo, Ohio, killing 22 of the 48 passengers. Sixteen of those who died were football players. "
http://www.nypost.com/seven/11102006/sports/5_questions_for_john_madden_sports_.htm
November 10, 2006 -- This week, NYP TV Sports' Andrew Marchand spoke with NBC's John Madden. Madden, 70, was inducted into the Hall of Fame this year.
Q: When you did your first game in 1979, your CBS partner was Bob Costas. How long did you think you would be in broadcasting?
A: A week. It was terrible. That first game with Costas was a practice game. I didn't know anything about broadcasting, but they had a seminar and I thought, "I'll go out there and they'll teach me how to be a broadcaster.''
I went there and all they talked about was expense reports and how to fill out an expense report. I thought, "Hell, I don't know any more about broadcasting now when I'm leaving than when I came.''
Q: So what did you do?
A: I came up with this idea - and now people do it - I want to do a practice game into a tape just to see how you do it. It was in the L.A. Coliseum, the 49ers against the Rams. We did the game into the tape. I got that tape, I watched it and it was terrible - not bad, terrible. I thought, "Shoot, this isn't for me,'' but I had a real game the next week. I learned from that tape.
Q: Your bus is legendary, but where does your fear of flying come from?
A: It is not a fear of flying. It is claustrophobia. When I coached, I flew all the time. After I got out of coaching, I developed claustrophobia. I would get in there. They would shut the door and I would feel that I have to get out. And then have a panic attack. It happened three times, and on the third time I said, "This is it. If I get down from this one, I'm going to get off and I'm never going to get on another airplane the rest of my life,'' which I didn't.
Q: You are a pitchman for a variety of products. What is the one product you said, "I can't do that. It is too out there''?
A: I have a whole bunch. I have a lot more like that than not. It looks like I do everything. I probably take one out of 20.
Q: Before this season, you signed a six-year deal with NBC. Do you think you will retire after this contract?
A: I'm a big believer that when you say that you are going to retire or you are going to quit, you have already quit or retired, so I'm never going to say that. When I got out of coaching, I just did it. I just coached and then shortly thereafter I decided I didn't want to coach anymore, so I never coached again. I think the same thing will happen in broadcasting. I'm not going to say that I'm going to do this, this many more years. Just one day, I'm going to say, "That is enough,'' and I'm not going to come back.
THE 6TH QUESTION: For more of Andrew Marchand's interview with John Madden, check out "The Best Sports Blog in Town'' at http://blogs.nypost.com/sports Madden gives his Super Bowl picks, looks back at how his video game began and reveals how close he came to returning to coaching.
November 10, 2006 -- This week, NYP TV Sports' Andrew Marchand spoke with NBC's John Madden. Madden, 70, was inducted into the Hall of Fame this year.
Q: When you did your first game in 1979, your CBS partner was Bob Costas. How long did you think you would be in broadcasting?
A: A week. It was terrible. That first game with Costas was a practice game. I didn't know anything about broadcasting, but they had a seminar and I thought, "I'll go out there and they'll teach me how to be a broadcaster.''
I went there and all they talked about was expense reports and how to fill out an expense report. I thought, "Hell, I don't know any more about broadcasting now when I'm leaving than when I came.''
Q: So what did you do?
A: I came up with this idea - and now people do it - I want to do a practice game into a tape just to see how you do it. It was in the L.A. Coliseum, the 49ers against the Rams. We did the game into the tape. I got that tape, I watched it and it was terrible - not bad, terrible. I thought, "Shoot, this isn't for me,'' but I had a real game the next week. I learned from that tape.
Q: Your bus is legendary, but where does your fear of flying come from?
A: It is not a fear of flying. It is claustrophobia. When I coached, I flew all the time. After I got out of coaching, I developed claustrophobia. I would get in there. They would shut the door and I would feel that I have to get out. And then have a panic attack. It happened three times, and on the third time I said, "This is it. If I get down from this one, I'm going to get off and I'm never going to get on another airplane the rest of my life,'' which I didn't.
Q: You are a pitchman for a variety of products. What is the one product you said, "I can't do that. It is too out there''?
A: I have a whole bunch. I have a lot more like that than not. It looks like I do everything. I probably take one out of 20.
Q: Before this season, you signed a six-year deal with NBC. Do you think you will retire after this contract?
A: I'm a big believer that when you say that you are going to retire or you are going to quit, you have already quit or retired, so I'm never going to say that. When I got out of coaching, I just did it. I just coached and then shortly thereafter I decided I didn't want to coach anymore, so I never coached again. I think the same thing will happen in broadcasting. I'm not going to say that I'm going to do this, this many more years. Just one day, I'm going to say, "That is enough,'' and I'm not going to come back.
THE 6TH QUESTION: For more of Andrew Marchand's interview with John Madden, check out "The Best Sports Blog in Town'' at http://blogs.nypost.com/sports Madden gives his Super Bowl picks, looks back at how his video game began and reveals how close he came to returning to coaching.
