SportsFilter: Sports Community Weblog

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Steeler announcing great dies at 79 He was Pittsburgh's Harry Carry. You loved or hated him. Very rarely did he make sense but more times then not, you found youself turning down the TV and turning up the radio to hear Cope announce the game. He was a legend in Pittsburgh and he will not soon be forgotten. If you never heard him, you missed a great one. Pop open an Iron City at Cope's Cabana and drink to one of the greats.

Comments

If you never got to hear him announce a game, you missed a truely entertaining personality. The city of Pittsburgh lost a legend today. Rest in Peace Yoi and double Yoi

"What a debacle!" As a Steeler fan living in Browns country the radio was sometimes the only way I could "watch" a Steelers game. Myron Cope was a trip to listen to. He was part of the Steelers history, so much so that when he retired, they chose not to replace him and downsized instead.

steelergirl. we may be the only ones to comments on this one. That means we were the lucky ones.

My wife grew up in Pittsburgh and love this guy. I have to say, after hearing that voice through her ears, I grew to like him a bit myself. I'll take a guy like Cope over so many of the robots we now find in the booth. He didn't come from a cookie cutter and I think the sports announcing landscape will continue to go downhill without unique personalities and voices like Cope's. RIP, Mr. Cope.

The sad thing is I can't imagine someone with a voice like that ever getting hired in the future. We're losing all those idiosyncratic, regional sounds to the Connecticut School of Broadcasting zombies.

As a steeler fan i cant help but feel the francise will live on but it will surely lose part of its identity with his loss he truely was a great announcer and he made steeler football a trip 2 listen 2

Welcome to sportsfilter Scorpia184. We require at least the most basic of punctuation so we can easily read your comments. Thanks.

All I had ever heard of Mr. Cope's work was the occasional voice-over during an NFL Films presentation of a Steelers' game. My impression of him was that he was completely nuts, but had a gift for turning a phrase. The article explains it all; he was a sportswriter before he became a broadcaster. I wish I had had the opportunity to hear more of his work. You Steelers fans have lost a good one.

One year heading into the playoffs (against Denver) he debuted his singing career with "Deck the Broncos, They're Just Yonkos": I believe he forgot the lyrics to the second line which became "A gah gah gah gah, gah gah gah gah!" Priceless and loved by all who love the Black and Gold. "This is Myron Cope...on sports."

The sad thing is I can't imagine someone with a voice like that ever getting hired in the future. We're losing all those idiosyncratic, regional sounds to the Connecticut School of Broadcasting zombies. Truer words.... For those not so much in the know, there have been quite a few tributes uploaded to YouTube today. Click here and watch.

The Terrible Towels will be flying at half-staff.

The sad thing is I can't imagine someone with a voice like that ever getting hired in the future. We're losing all those idiosyncratic, regional sounds to the Connecticut School of Broadcasting zombies. posted by yerfatma at 2:52 PM CST on February 27 You hit the nail on the head, ma! And it isn't just voice, it is whether they are marketable, and on TV looks play a somewhat important part. It is all homogenized, bland, god forbid you should say something original pablum nowdays. I miss Howard Cosell. (I know, he was TV, not radio, but you know what I mean.)

We'll miss ya Myron. What a shame, he defined Steelers broadcasts for so long. I will never forget "this is Myron Cope on sports."

More links here.

Thanks for the links Gary. and sorry for the double post. Not sure how I missed it.

great links to his website with lots of funny sound clips

Thanks, Debo, for the link to the sound clips. I'm at work, so I could catch only a few, but it was enough to arouse the attention of the Fun Police, as I couldn't stop laughing at some of the Macaw clips. Now I am really bummed that I could not listen to him on a regular basis.

Yes, Debo, I was hoping someone could link to some sound clips. Thank you. Howard, you did miss a great announcer. I have never heard anyone call a game the way he would. And you got to hear some commercials with him in them too on the breaks. A double dose of Myron! Yoi!

I used to listen to Cope quite some time ago when my sister went to college in western Pennsylvania. We'd be driving home from visits on Sunday afternoons and would have the Steelers coming in loud and clear. The guy was a classic, and announcers like him will be missed, especiallyl with the movement to generic, plastic voices and personalities on broadcasts these days.

Comments are closed for this entry.