PRINTER'S NO. 3399
No. 635 Session of 2008
INTRODUCED BY FRANKEL, GERGELY, PYLE, COSTA, ELLIS, BENNINGTON,
BEYER, BIANCUCCI, BISHOP, BRENNAN, CALTAGIRONE, CLYMER,
COHEN, CREIGHTON, DALEY, DeLUCA, DePASQUALE, DERMODY,
DiGIROLAMO, DONATUCCI, D. EVANS, J. EVANS, EVERETT, FABRIZIO,
FAIRCHILD, FLECK, GALLOWAY, GEIST, GEORGE, GIBBONS, GINGRICH,
GODSHALL, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HARKINS, HELM, HENNESSEY,
HERSHEY, JAMES, W. KELLER, KORTZ, KOTIK, LEVDANSKY, MAHONEY,
MAJOR, MANN, MANTZ, MARKOSEK, MARSHALL, McILHATTAN, MILLARD,
R. MILLER, MOYER, MURT, MUSTIO, NAILOR, PALLONE, PARKER,
PETRONE, PHILLIPS, PRESTON, RAMALEY, READSHAW, REED, ROSS,
SAINATO, SCAVELLO, SIPTROTH, M. SMITH, S. H. SMITH, SOLOBAY,
STAIRS, R. STEVENSON, VULAKOVICH, WAGNER, WALKO, WHEATLEY,
J. WHITE, WOJNAROSKI AND YOUNGBLOOD, MARCH 12, 2008
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
MARCH 12, 2008
A RESOLUTION
1 Honoring the life of Myron Cope and extending condolences to his
2 family and friends.
3 WHEREAS, Myron Cope was the legendary voice and famed radio
4 broadcaster for the Pittsburgh Steelers football team from 1970
5 to 2005; and
6 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope is best known as the creator of The
7 Terrible Towel, which has swirled at Pittsburgh Steelers games
8 as a good luck charm and sign of Pittsburgh Steelers pride since
9 1975; and
10 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope died on February 27, 2008, at the age of
11 79, after battling various health issues in recent months; and
12 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope was born in Pittsburgh on January 23, 1929,
1 and lived his entire life in Pittsburgh with the exception of a
2 few months in 1951 when he briefly moved to Erie to take his
3 first job after college; and
4 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope's professional career dates back to 1951
5 and includes such jobs as a newspaper reporter, popular magazine
6 writer for The Saturday Evening Post and Sports Illustrated,
7 author of several books, radio-and-television sports commentator
8 and Pittsburgh Steelers analyst; and
9 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope began his broadcasting career in 1968 on
10 WTAE-Radio, where he aired a daily morning sports commentary,
11 and in 1973, he expanded his duties when he agreed to take over
12 as host for a failing evening talk show on the same station; and
13 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope became the radio color analyst of the
14 Pittsburgh Steelers in 1970 and was widely known for his
15 colorful catchphrases such as "Yoi!" and "Okel dokel" and for
16 creating nicknames for many Pittsburgh Steelers players
17 including Jerome "The Bus" Bettis and Kordell "Slash" Stewart;
18 and
19 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope coined the phrase "Immaculate Reception,"
20 which became the term used to describe the game-winning play in
21 the Pittsburgh Steelers' 1972 American Football Conference
22 divisional playoff victory and is widely regarded as one of the
23 most memorable plays in National Football League history; and
24 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope was so popular that the Pittsburgh Steelers
25 did not attempt to replace him when he retired in 2005, instead
26 downsizing from a three-member broadcasting crew to a two-member
27 crew; and
28 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope was the first professional football
29 broadcaster to be elected to the National Radio Hall of Fame in
30 2005; and
20080H0635R3399 - 2 -
1 WHEREAS, In 1969 Mr. Cope contributed his ownership of The
2 Terrible Towel trademark to the Allegheny Valley School, an
3 institution for the mentally and physically disabled; and
4 WHEREAS, Mr. Cope served for many years on the board of
5 directors of the Pittsburgh Chapter of the Autism Society of
6 America and the highly successful Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix
7 Association charity auto races, which he cofounded, and he also
8 served on the Tournament Committee of the Myron Cope/Foge Fazio
9 Golf Tournament for Autistic Children; and
10 WHEREAS, The passing of Mr. Cope is a great loss to the City
11 of Pittsburgh and to the game of football; therefore be it
12 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives honor the life of
13 Myron Cope, a great citizen of Pittsburgh, the pioneering voice
14 of Pittsburgh Steelers radio and a beloved persona whose
15 generous spirit and countless contributions to the community
16 will live on in the hearts and minds of all Pittsburghers and
17 Pittsburgh Steelers fans for generations to come; and be it
18 further
19 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives extend heartfelt
20 condolences to Myron Cope's family and friends.
C11L82BIL/20080H0635R3399 - 3 -