Comparing TV Booths- Who’s better All time and Now?

CouchCoach said:

Yep but they were just rumors and there were quite a few of them with the testosterone driven ESPN. And just what constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace is left open to interpretation.

I've mentioned this but they were a client of mine as well as FOX Sports and I had a couple of good friends that developed out of that and the stories were beyond interesting.

Two of my favs are about Irvin and Collinsworth. Irvin had this habit at ESPN of putting his hand on the arm of the guy next to him to shut him up so he could interrupt and run his mouth. It got so bad that one night Young told him to take his hand off his arm and the next week he had transferred to being out in the field at the venue for the game. It was hilarious and the next guy had to sit next to Irvin.

Howie Long detested Collinsworth so much that he threatened to kick his butt on camera when he was on the panel at FOX and he decided to move on and off the panel. I don't dislike Collinsworth but he can get that "I'm smarter than you" look on his face when making a point and I think he did it once too often with Long.

Someone needs to write the definitive book on ESPN, from the creation through all of the turbulence they've had with management, employees and personalities. Add to that what they've had to do to defend themselves under attack from every direction and what they will have to do moving forward. To me, it is the most interesting business in the US.

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Plankton said:

Best booth of all time? Had to be the MNF booth with Frank Gifford, Joe Namath and O.J. Simpson......

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mrmojo said:

Don Criqui and Lyndsey Nelson back on the day had unique voices, I always enjoyed listening to them do a game.

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Aviano90 said:

I liked Don and Bob Trumpy. Also used to enjoy Dick Enberg.

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NorthoftheRedRiver said:

My dad's favorite was always Pat Summerall. They were buddies at Arkansas back in '49--a fact that he mentioned to me every time Summerall came on the TV.

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CouchCoach said:

My Dad did the same thing except it was "you know he played at Arkansas, don't you"? I was raised there so I one that "Arkansas thang". If Hitler had been from there, they'd have been "he's not so bad".

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bandfan said:

Ray Scott. End of argument...

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Bobhaze said:

First of all, Im so anxious to hear some NFL football, I would settle for hearing almost anyone in the broadcast booth. Assuming we have a season starting in September, I thought it would be fun to handicap the best/worst broadcast teams.

Opinion Alert: This is all subjective, so don’t get your Cowboys boxers out of whack over broadcasters.

First of all, I’m going to throw down what I think are the BEST Of the Old NFL football booth teams:

1. Pat Summerall and John Madden- Summerall was the best at just presenting what happened without fluff or grandiosity. With the voice of God. Madden was the fun former coach with sound effects and fat guy jokes. These two together made any game interesting. THE BEST IMO.
2. Frank Gifford, Dandy Don Meredith and Howard Cosell- the Monday night broadcast booth from the early 70s was gold. Gifford was a boring play by play guy, but Dandy and Howard more than made up for it. Danny Don was the “OG” creative color analysts- funny and accurate. Cosell was the jerk everyone loved to hate. The back and forth between Howard and Dandy was greatness. This was when MNF was the best!
3. Jack Buck and Hank Stram- Joe Buck’s dad was one of the best at both baseball and football. He had that great gravelly voice that sounded like a general. Hank Stram was similar to John Madden- funny, unpredictable and a little crazy. Stram was calling plays out way before Tony Romo- (“Something left Jack”) Good chemistry between them.

The Current Best Booth Teams IMO:

1. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman- I know a lot of people hate Joe B but I’m not one of them. He’s funny, interesting, and all the haters wear “fan glasses”- meaning they don’t like him saying the opponents QB has had a good game against us...when they did. Aikman is the current best color analyst. Smart, insightful, and underrated in the funny department.
   
2. Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth- Michaels is one of the smoothest and best prepared broadcasters. Collinsworth is annoying half the time, but he can occasionally be ok. Michaels is the talent here.
3. Jim Nance and Tony Romo- Nance is super smooth and great at transitions. Romo...I hate to say it- he wears me out with the constant over the top “Jim it looks like a deep out here against this soft zone” before each play. It was kind of novel at first, but now it’s a beating.

THE ALL TIME BEST COWBOYS RADIO BROADCASTERS:

1. Frank Gleiber- THE BEST- Gleiber did play by play from the late 60s to Early 70s. He was one of the all time great Cowboys announcers. Smooth, fun and always prepared. Died of cancer too young at 51 in 1985.
2. Verne Lunquist- before he gained national fame as a college football broadcaster, Verne did play by play for the Cowboys in the mid 70s hey days. His color analysis was provided by Brad Sham. They made a really good team.
3. Dale Hansen- He was the funny “color guy” -never play by play- but in the 90s, his honest and funny analysis made those 90s broadcasts so much fun. It’s never been the same without him.
4. Brad Sham- believe it or not, can’t stand this guy. Try tuning into a game midway through the second qtr and see how long it takes before he gives a score. On top of that, off the air, he’s a notorious jerk. Arrogant with fans while acting like the players are all his best friends. Saw him in person at a remote broadcast with KRLD back in the 80s. A complete jerk off the air. Not a Sham fan.

So who are your favorite broadcast teams....and least favorites? And why.

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EGTuna said:

Summerall and Madden before Madden became a self-parody are the best ever.

Buck and Aikman are generically entertaining but nothing special.

Nantz and Romo are ok, but to me, Nantz is as blnd as it gets. if Romo was paired with Gus Johnson, now we’re talking.

and let’s not forget the great Keith Jackson who also did NFL.

So did the great Rick Doc Emerick of NBC Sports for hockey (the best in any sport right now imo).

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PJTHEDOORS said:

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ClappingCarrot said:

I'm fortunate that I'm just old enough to remember the Madden broadcasts. What a gift to the game he is and was.

Aikman is my favorite broadcaster currently and I think he's the better play by play guy. I also love how objective he is, even though he probably calls between 7-8 Dallas games a year. Another name to watch over the next few years is Charles Davis. I like his style too. He calls a lot of Panthers games here locally.

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