Frank Gifford
Encyclopedia
Francis Newton "Frank" Gifford (born August 16, 1930) is a Hall of Fame former American football
player and American
sportscaster
.
, the son of Lola Mae (née Hawkins) and Weldon Gifford, an oil driller.
After graduating from Bakersfield High School
, Gifford was unable to gain an athletic scholarship to the University of Southern California
(USC) due to his low grade point average. Undeterred, he played a season for Bakersfield Junior College
, making the Junior College All-American team while making the grades needed to enroll at USC.
At USC, Gifford was named an All-American athlete and player and graduated in the class of 1952.
career with the New York Giants
by playing both offense and defense, a rarity when platoon football became popular after World War II
. He made eight Pro Bowl
appearances and had five trips to the NFL Championship Game. Gifford's biggest season may have been 1956
, when he won the Most Valuable Player award of the NFL, and led the Giants to the NFL title over the Chicago Bears
.
He lost 18 months in the prime of his career when he was laid out by a hard tackle. During a 1960
game against the Philadelphia Eagles
, he was knocked out by Chuck Bednarik
on a passing play, suffering a severe head injury that led him to retire from football. However, Gifford returned to the Giants in 1962
, changing positions from running back
to wide receiver
(then known as flanker). Despite his long layoff and having to learn a new position, he became a star once again.
His Pro Bowl selections came at three different positions—defensive back
, running back, and wide receiver. He retired again, this time for good, in 1964
, after making the Pro Bowl
as a receiver.
During his 12 seasons with the New York Giants (136 regular season games) Frank Gifford had 3,609 rushing yards and 34 touchdowns in 840 carries, he also had 367 receptions for 5,434 yards and 43 touchdowns. Gifford completed 29 of the 63 passes he threw for 823 yards and 14 touchdowns with 6 interceptions. The 6 interceptions is tied with Walter Payton
for most interceptions thrown by a non-quarterback in NFL history, while the 14 touchdowns is also the most among any non-quarterback in NFL history
Gifford once appeared as himself as a guest star on the television series, Hazel
, in the episode, "Hazel and the Halfback", which originally aired December 26, 1963. In the story, Gifford is interested in investing in a local bowling alley.
Gifford was officially inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
on July 30, 1977.
mainly for NFL
games on CBS
. His big break came in 1971
when he replaced Keith Jackson
as play-by-play announcer on ABC
's Monday Night Football
, joining Howard Cosell
and Don Meredith
, and would continue on as a commentator until 1997
, amid controversy regarding an affair he had with airline stewardess Suzen Johnson
. In 1998
, he was given a reduced role on the pregame show. After that, Gifford left Monday Night Football.
, skiing
, and golf
, and has guest hosted Good Morning America
on occasion. He met his wife Kathie Lee while filling in as GMA host. In 1995
, he was given the Pete Rozelle Award by the Pro Football Hall of Fame for his NFL television work.
He also announced Evel Knievel
's jumps for ABC's Wide World of Sports in the 1970s, including when Knievel failed to clear 17 buses at Wembley Stadium in 1975.
, Michael LeMoyne Kennedy. Gifford has two granddaughters from his son Jeff and three grandchildren from his daughter Victoria.
Super Bowl XIX
in 1985 brought both Frank and Today Show talk show
host and singer Kathie Lee Johnson together. He called the game on ABC. They have been married since October 18, 1986 and she shares his August 16 birthday. They have two children: son Cody Newton Gifford (b. March 22, 1990) and daughter Cassidy Erin Gifford (b. August 2, 1993). They live with their family in Greenwich, Connecticut
.
The Giffords also appeared together as hosts for the 1988 Winter Olympics
in Calgary
.
, recorded Trans World Airlines
flight attendant
, Suzen Johnson
, seducing Frank Gifford in a hotel room equipped with cameras installed by the newspaper. ESPN later reported that Johnson was paid $75,000 for the story while The Atlantic put the figure at $125,000.
At the end of April and beginning of May 1997 Johnson spent a week with Gifford at the Regency Hotel in Manhattan. Unknown to Gifford the weekly tabloid, The Globe, had concealed video cameras and tape recording equipment in the room to document their affair, and published the story that May.
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...
player and American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sportscaster
Sportscaster
In sports broadcasting, a commentator gives a running commentary of a game or event in real time, usually during a live broadcast. The comments are normally a voiceover, with the sounds of the action and spectators also heard in the background. In the case of television commentary, the commentator...
.
Early life
Gifford was born in Santa Monica, CaliforniaSanta Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
, the son of Lola Mae (née Hawkins) and Weldon Gifford, an oil driller.
After graduating from Bakersfield High School
Bakersfield High School
]Bakersfield High School is a high school located in Bakersfield, California, USA.Institutional names and dates of operation:*Kern County High School 1893-1915*Kern County Union High School 1915-1945*Bakersfield High School 1945–present...
, Gifford was unable to gain an athletic scholarship to the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
(USC) due to his low grade point average. Undeterred, he played a season for Bakersfield Junior College
Bakersfield College
Bakersfield College is a public community college located in Bakersfield, California, USA. Bakersfield College has an official Twitter account at @bcrenegades and an official...
, making the Junior College All-American team while making the grades needed to enroll at USC.
At USC, Gifford was named an All-American athlete and player and graduated in the class of 1952.
NFL career
He began his NFLNational 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...
career with the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
by playing both offense and defense, a rarity when platoon football became popular after World War 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...
. He made eight 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...
appearances and had five trips to the NFL Championship Game. Gifford's biggest season may have been 1956
1956 NFL season
The 1956 NFL season was the 37th regular season of the National Football League. CBS became the first network to televise some regular season games across the nation...
, when he won the Most Valuable Player award of the NFL, and led the Giants to the NFL title over the Chicago Bears
1956 Chicago Bears season
The 1956 Chicago Bears season was their 37th regular season and 11th postseason completed in the National Football League. The club posted 9-2-1 record under first year head coach Paddy Driscoll placing them in first place of the Western Conference and in their first title game since 1946...
.
He lost 18 months in the prime of his career when he was laid out by a hard tackle. During a 1960
1960 NFL season
The 1960 NFL season was the 41st regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, Pete Rozelle was elected NFL commissioner as a compromise choice on the twenty-third ballot. Meanwhile, the league expanded to 13 teams with the addition of the Dallas Cowboys. Also, the Cardinals...
game against the Philadelphia Eagles
1960 Philadelphia Eagles season
The 1960 Philadelphia Eagles season, their 28th in the league, resulted in defeating the Green Bay Packers to win their third NFL Championship. It was their only postseason appearance in the twenty-eight seasons from 1950 to 1977.-Off Season:...
, he was knocked out by Chuck Bednarik
Chuck Bednarik
Charles Philip Bednarik is a former professional American football player, known as one of the most devastating tacklers in the history of football and the last two-way player in the National Football League...
on a passing play, suffering a severe head injury that led him to retire from football. However, Gifford returned to the Giants in 1962
1962 NFL season
The 1962 NFL season was the 43rd regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, CBS signed a contract with the league to televise all regular-season games for a $4.65 million annual fee....
, changing positions from running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
to wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
(then known as flanker). Despite his long layoff and having to learn a new position, he became a star once again.
His Pro Bowl selections came at three different positions—defensive back
Defensive back
In American football and Canadian football, defensive backs are the players on the defensive team who take positions somewhat back from the line of scrimmage; they are distinguished from the defensive line players and linebackers, who take positions directly behind or close to the line of...
, running back, and wide receiver. He retired again, this time for good, in 1964
1964 NFL season
The 1964 NFL season was the 45th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season started, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle reinstated Green Bay Packers running back Paul Hornung and Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras, who had been suspended for the 1963 season due to...
, after making the Pro Bowl
1965 Pro Bowl
The 1966 East-West Pro Bowl was played on January 22, 1966 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California in front of 60,124. The coach of the Eastern Conference, Blanton Collier of the Cleveland Browns, used the domination of the west that year as a rallying cry for the eastern...
as a receiver.
During his 12 seasons with the New York Giants (136 regular season games) Frank Gifford had 3,609 rushing yards and 34 touchdowns in 840 carries, he also had 367 receptions for 5,434 yards and 43 touchdowns. Gifford completed 29 of the 63 passes he threw for 823 yards and 14 touchdowns with 6 interceptions. The 6 interceptions is tied with Walter Payton
Walter Payton
Walter Jerry Payton was an American football running back who played for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League for thirteen seasons. Walter Payton was known around the NFL as "Sweetness". He is remembered as one of the most prolific running backs in the history of American football...
for most interceptions thrown by a non-quarterback in NFL history, while the 14 touchdowns is also the most among any non-quarterback in NFL history
Gifford once appeared as himself as a guest star on the television series, Hazel
Hazel (TV series)
Hazel is a Screen Gems television series about a fictional live-in maid named Hazel Burke and her employers, the Baxters. The five-season, 154-episode series aired in primetime from September 1961 until April 1966...
, in the episode, "Hazel and the Halfback", which originally aired December 26, 1963. In the story, Gifford is interested in investing in a local bowling alley.
Gifford was officially 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...
on July 30, 1977.
Broadcasting career
After his playing days ended, Gifford became a commentatorSports commentator
In sports broadcasting, a commentator gives a running commentary of a game or event in real time, usually during a live broadcast. The comments are normally a voiceover, with the sounds of the action and spectators also heard in the background. In the case of television commentary, the commentator...
mainly for NFL
NFL on CBS
The NFL on CBS is the brand name of the CBS television network's coverage of the National Football League's American Football Conference games, produced by CBS Sports.-Market coverage and television policies:...
games on CBS
CBS Sports
CBS Sports is a division of CBS Broadcasting which airs sporting events on the American television network. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on West 52nd Street in midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street.CBS...
. His big break came in 1971
1971 NFL season
The 1971 NFL season was the 52nd regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl VI when the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Miami Dolphins...
when he replaced Keith Jackson
Keith Jackson
Keith Jackson is an American sportscaster, known for his long career with ABC Sports , his coverage of college football , his style of folksy, down-to-earth commentary, and his distinctive voice, with its deep cadence, and operatic tone considered "like Edward R...
as play-by-play announcer on ABC
ESPN on ABC
ESPN on ABC is the brand used for sports programming on the ABC television network. Officially the broadcast network retains its own sports division; however, for all practical purposes, ABC's sports division has been merged with ESPN, a sports cable network majority-owned by ABC's parent, The...
's Monday Night Football
Monday Night Football
Monday Night Football is a live broadcast of the National Football League on ESPN. From to it aired on ABC. Monday Night Football was, along with Hallmark Hall of Fame, and the Walt Disney anthology television series, one of the longest running prime time commercial network television series...
, joining Howard Cosell
Howard Cosell
Howard William Cosell was an American sports journalist who was widely known for his blustery, cocksure personality. Cosell said of himself, "Arrogant, pompous, obnoxious, vain, cruel, verbose, a showoff. I have been called all of these...
and Don Meredith
Don Meredith
Joseph Don "Dandy Don" Meredith was an American football quarterback, sports commentator and actor. He spent all nine seasons of his professional playing career with the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League . He was named to the Pro Bowl in each of his last three years as a player...
, and would continue on as a commentator until 1997
1997 NFL season
The 1997 NFL season was the 78th regular season of the National Football League. The Oilers relocated from Houston, Texas to Nashville, Tennessee...
, amid controversy regarding an affair he had with airline stewardess Suzen Johnson
Suzen Johnson
Suzen Johnson is a former flight attendant, businesswoman, and model. Her notoriety stems from being the mistress of Frank Gifford in April and May 1997, the affair making the headlines of several tabloids that year. The two were photographed together, bringing embarrassment to Gifford and his...
. In 1998
1998 NFL season
The 1998 NFL season was the 79th regular season of the National Football League.The Tennessee Oilers moved their home games from Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis to Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville, still awaiting construction on a new stadium in Nashville.This was the first season that CBS...
, he was given a reduced role on the pregame show. After that, Gifford left Monday Night Football.
Non-football assignments
Gifford also served as a reporter and commentator on other ABC programs, such as their coverage of the Olympic GamesOlympics on ABC
The Olympics on ABC was the branding for Olympic Games coverage which aired in the United States on the broadcast network ABC. ABC first televised the Winter Olympic Games in 1964. ABC first televised the Summer Olympic Games in 1968...
, skiing
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
, and golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, and has guest hosted Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
on occasion. He met his wife Kathie Lee while filling in as GMA host. In 1995
1995 NFL season
The 1995 NFL season was the 76th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 30 teams with the addition of the Carolina Panthers and the Jacksonville Jaguars...
, he was given the Pete Rozelle Award by the Pro Football Hall of Fame for his NFL television work.
He also announced Evel Knievel
Evel Knievel
Evel Knievel , born Robert Craig Knievel, was an American daredevil and entertainer. In his career he attempted over 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps between 1965 and 1980, and in 1974, a failed jump across Snake River Canyon in the Skycycle X-2, a steam-powered rocket...
's jumps for ABC's Wide World of Sports in the 1970s, including when Knievel failed to clear 17 buses at Wembley Stadium in 1975.
Family
Gifford has a younger brother, Waine, and an older sister, Winona. Gifford has two sons (Jeff and Kyle) and a daughter (Victoria) from his first marriage with Maxine Avis Ewart. Victoria married a member of the Kennedy familyKennedy family
In the United States, the phrase Kennedy family commonly refers to the family descending from the marriage of the Irish-Americans Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. and Rose Elizabeth Fitzgerald that was prominent in American politics and government. Their political involvement has revolved around the...
, Michael LeMoyne Kennedy. Gifford has two granddaughters from his son Jeff and three grandchildren from his daughter Victoria.
Super Bowl XIX
Super Bowl XIX
Super Bowl XIX was an American football game played on January 20, 1985 at Stanford Stadium, on the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, California, to decide the National Football League champion following the 1984 regular season...
in 1985 brought both Frank and Today Show talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
host and singer Kathie Lee Johnson together. He called the game on ABC. They have been married since October 18, 1986 and she shares his August 16 birthday. They have two children: son Cody Newton Gifford (b. March 22, 1990) and daughter Cassidy Erin Gifford (b. August 2, 1993). They live with their family in Greenwich, Connecticut
Greenwich, Connecticut
Greenwich is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 61,171. It is home to many hedge funds and other financial service companies. Greenwich is the southernmost and westernmost municipality in Connecticut and is 38+ minutes ...
.
The Giffords also appeared together as hosts for the 1988 Winter Olympics
1988 Winter Olympics
The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in and around Calgary, Alberta, Canada from 13 to 28 February 1988. The host was selected in 1981 after having beat Falun, Sweden and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy...
in Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
.
Affair
In 1997 the tabloid, The GlobeThe Globe (tabloid)
Globe is a supermarket tabloid first published North America on November 10, 1954 in Montreal, Canada as Midnight by Joe Azaria and John Vader and became the chief competitor to the National Enquirer during the 1960s. In 1978 it changed its name to the Midnight Globe after its publisher, Globe...
, recorded Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines was an American airline that existed from 1925 until it was bought out by and merged with American Airlines in 2001. It was a major domestic airline in the United States and the main U.S.-based competitor of Pan American World Airways on intercontinental routes from 1946...
flight attendant
Flight attendant
Flight attendants or cabin crew are members of an aircrew employed by airlines primarily to ensure the safety and comfort of passengers aboard commercial flights, on select business jet aircraft, and on some military aircraft.-History:The role of a flight attendant derives from that of similar...
, Suzen Johnson
Suzen Johnson
Suzen Johnson is a former flight attendant, businesswoman, and model. Her notoriety stems from being the mistress of Frank Gifford in April and May 1997, the affair making the headlines of several tabloids that year. The two were photographed together, bringing embarrassment to Gifford and his...
, seducing Frank Gifford in a hotel room equipped with cameras installed by the newspaper. ESPN later reported that Johnson was paid $75,000 for the story while The Atlantic put the figure at $125,000.
At the end of April and beginning of May 1997 Johnson spent a week with Gifford at the Regency Hotel in Manhattan. Unknown to Gifford the weekly tabloid, The Globe, had concealed video cameras and tape recording equipment in the room to document their affair, and published the story that May.
Selected books
- Gifford, Frank; Richmond, Peter. (2008) The Glory Game: how the 1958 NFL championship changed football forever. New York : Harper. ISBN 9780061542558
- Gifford, Frank; Waters, Harry. (1993) The Whole Ten Yards. New York : Random House. ISBN 0679415432
- Gifford, Frank; Mangel, Charles. (1976) Gifford on courage. New York : M. Evans ; Philadelphia : distributed by Lippincott. ISBN 0871312239
External links
- Pro Football Hall of Fame: Member profile
- Profile at USC Legends
- Old football cards of Frank Gifford
- Interview with WOR Radio's Joan Hamburg