Art Donovan
Encyclopedia
Arthur Donovan, Jr. is a former American football
defensive tackle, better known as Art 'How much does dat guy weigh?' Donovan, who played for three National Football League
teams, most notably the Baltimore Colts. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
in 1968.
, the world middleweight boxing champion in the 1870s.
Art attended Mount Saint Michael Academy in the Bronx. He spent four years in military service with the United States Marine Corps
during WW II
before playing college football at Boston College
. He graduated in 1950.
, who folded after his rookie season in 1950
, followed by the New York Yanks in 1951
, and their successor, the Dallas Texans
, in 1952
. After the Texans folded, Donovan joined the second Baltimore Colts
club in 1953
. He became one of the stars in an outstanding defense and was selected to five straight Pro Bowl
s for 1954
to 1958
. The Colts won back-to-back championships in 1958 and 1959
.
He was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame
in 1968
, the same year as Marion Motley
, who was also born on 5th June.
. He was noted as a jovial and humorous person during his playing career and capitalized on that with television and speaking appearances after retiring as a player. He owns and manages a country club near Baltimore. Donovan also appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman, telling humorous stories about his old playing days and about other "old school" footballers he played with and against. He related a story that he played without a helmet and in fact is shown on football cards without a helmet. Letterman wore Donovan's No. 70 Colts jersey in the infamous Super Bowl XLI
commercial with Oprah Winfrey
and Jay Leno
.
Donovan also made a guest appearance in the Nickelodeon
show The Adventures of Pete & Pete
in the episode, "Space, Geeks, and Johnny Unitas
." Art also appeared as a guest commentator at the WWF 1994 King of the Ring
.
He was co-host of the popular 1990s program Braase, Donovan, Davis and Fans on WJZ-TV
in Baltimore with Colt teammate Ordell Braase
. The trio talked more about Art Donovan's fabled stories than contemporary NFL football, but the show held high ratings in its time period.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
defensive tackle, better known as Art 'How much does dat guy weigh?' Donovan, who played for three National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
teams, most notably the Baltimore Colts. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
in 1968.
Early life
He is the son of Arthur Donovan, Sr., a famed boxing referee, and the grandson of Professor Mike DonovanProfessor Mike Donovan
Mike Donovan also known as Professor Mike Donovan and Mike O'Donovan was a middleweight boxer of the bare-knuckle era and later became one of the foremost teachers of the sport....
, the world middleweight boxing champion in the 1870s.
Art attended Mount Saint Michael Academy in the Bronx. He spent four years in military service with the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
during WW II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
before playing college football at Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
. He graduated in 1950.
Professional football career
In each of his first three seasons, Donovan played for a team which went out of business. He started out with the first Baltimore ColtsBaltimore Colts (1947-50)
The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The first team to bear the name Baltimore Colts, they were members of the All-America Football Conference from 1947–1949, and then joined the National Football League for one season before folding...
, who folded after his rookie season in 1950
1950 NFL season
The 1950 NFL season was the 31st regular season of the National Football League. The merger with the All-America Football Conference expanded the league to 13 teams. Meanwhile, television brought a new era to the game. The Los Angeles Rams became the first NFL team to have all of its games – both...
, followed by the New York Yanks in 1951
1951 NFL season
The 1951 NFL season was the 32nd regular season of the National Football League. Prior to the season, Baltimore Colts owner Abraham Watner faced financial difficulties, and thus gave his team and its player contracts back to the league for $50,000. However, many Baltimore fans started to protest...
, and their successor, the Dallas Texans
Dallas Texans (NFL)
The Dallas Texans played in the National Football League for one season, 1952, with a record of 1–11.-History:After the 1951 NFL season, the financially troubled New York Yanks franchise were put on the market. Ted Collins had founded that franchise in 1944 as the Boston Yanks, moved it to New...
, in 1952
1952 NFL season
The 1952 NFL season was the 33rd regular season of the National Football League. Prior to the season, New York Yanks owner Ted Collins sold his team back to the NFL...
. After the Texans folded, Donovan joined the second Baltimore Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
club in 1953
1953 NFL season
The 1953 NFL season was the 34th regular season of the National Football League. The names of the American and National conferences were changed to the Eastern and Western conferences....
. He became one of the stars in an outstanding defense and was selected to five straight Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
s for 1954
1954 NFL season
The 1954 NFL season was the 35th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended when the Cleveland Browns defeated the Detroit Lions in the NFL Championship Game.-Major rule changes:...
to 1958
1958 NFL season
The 1958 NFL season was the 39th regular season of the National Football League.The Baltimore Colts defeated the New York Giants, 23–17, in the first sudden-death overtime in an NFL Championship Game...
. The Colts won back-to-back championships in 1958 and 1959
1959 NFL season
The 1959 NFL season was the 40th regular season of the National Football League. Tragedy struck as NFL Commissioner Bert Bell died of a heart attack on October 11 at Philadelphia's Franklin Field while watching the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers play...
.
He was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
in 1968
1968 NFL season
The 1968 NFL season was the 49th regular season of the National Football League. As per the agreement made during the 1967 realignment, the New Orleans Saints and the New York Giants switched divisions; the Saints joined the Century Division while the Giants became part of the Capitol Division.The...
, the same year as Marion Motley
Marion Motley
Marion Motley was a professional football player, a fullback for the Cleveland Browns, and briefly for the Pittsburgh Steelers.-Early years:...
, who was also born on 5th June.
Post-playing career
He published an autobiography, Fatso, in 19871987 in literature
The year 1987 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Tom Wolfe was paid $5 million for the film rights to his novel, The Bonfire of the Vanities, the most ever earned by an author, at the time.-Fiction:...
. He was noted as a jovial and humorous person during his playing career and capitalized on that with television and speaking appearances after retiring as a player. He owns and manages a country club near Baltimore. Donovan also appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman, telling humorous stories about his old playing days and about other "old school" footballers he played with and against. He related a story that he played without a helmet and in fact is shown on football cards without a helmet. Letterman wore Donovan's No. 70 Colts jersey in the infamous Super Bowl XLI
Super Bowl XLI
Super Bowl XLI was an American football game that featured the American Football Conference champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference champion Chicago Bears to decide the National Football League champion for the 2006 season...
commercial with Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
and Jay Leno
Jay Leno
James Douglas Muir "Jay" Leno is an American stand-up comedian and television host.From 1992 to 2009, Leno was the host of NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Beginning in September 2009, Leno started a primetime talk show, titled The Jay Leno Show, which aired weeknights at 10:00 p.m. ,...
.
Donovan also made a guest appearance in the Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
show The Adventures of Pete & Pete
The Adventures of Pete & Pete
The Adventures of Pete & Pete is an American children's television series produced by Wellsville Pictures and broadcast by Nickelodeon. The show featured humorous and surreal elements in its narrative, and many recurring themes centered on two brothers both named Pete Wrigley, and their various...
in the episode, "Space, Geeks, and Johnny Unitas
Johnny Unitas
John Constantine Unitas , known as Johnny Unitas or "Johnny U", and nicknamed "The Golden Arm", was a professional American football player in the 1950s through the 1970s, spending the majority of his career with the Baltimore Colts. He was a record-setting quarterback, and the National Football...
." Art also appeared as a guest commentator at the WWF 1994 King of the Ring
King of the Ring (1994)
King of the Ring was the second annual King of the Ring professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on June 19, 1994 at the Baltimore Arena in Baltimore, Maryland. "King of the Ring" is also the name of the tournament that was the focus of...
.
He was co-host of the popular 1990s program Braase, Donovan, Davis and Fans on WJZ-TV
WJZ-TV
WJZ-TV, channel 13, is an owned and operated television station of the CBS Television Network, located in Baltimore, Maryland. WJZ-TV's studios and offices are located on Television Hill in the Woodberry section of Baltimore, adjacent to the transmission tower it shares with four other Baltimore...
in Baltimore with Colt teammate Ordell Braase
Ordell Braase
Ordell Wayne Braase is a retired American football defensive end in the National Football League. He played with the Baltimore Colts throughout his career...
. The trio talked more about Art Donovan's fabled stories than contemporary NFL football, but the show held high ratings in its time period.
External links
- Pro Football Hall of Fame: Member profile
- Oldest Living Pro Football Players List
- Quotes from "King of the Ring": IMDB
- Donavan on Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills (pre-Super Bowl XXVII): Baltimore Sun, 1993
- Gallery of Art Donovan football cards