[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 2]
[Senate]
[Page 2141]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   HONORING THE MEMORY OF CURT GOWDY

 Mr. THOMAS. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to the 
life and memory of Curtis Edward Gowdy. Sadly, Curt passed away on 
February 20, at the age of 86.
  Curt was born on July 31, 1919, in Green River, WY. Curt's passion 
for sports began early in life. He grew up in Laramie, WY, hunting and 
fishing in some of America's most beautiful country. When Curt began 
playing basketball in high school, he became Wyoming's leading high 
school scorer, standing only 5 feet 9 inches tall. After high school 
graduation, Curt enrolled at the University of Wyoming, where he played 
as a forward on the Cowboy basketball team, earning three varsity 
letters. He also lettered three times in tennis before graduating from 
the University in 1942 with a degree in business statistics.
  With college behind him, Curt joined the Army Air Forces to serve his 
country as a fighter pilot in World War II. However, a ruptured disk 
from an earlier sports injury disqualified him from service, and he was 
medically discharged. While recuperating from a spinal operation in 
Cheyenne, a radio station asked him to announce for the eastern Wyoming 
high school football championship game in November of 1943. And so 
began the career of one of the greatest play-by-play sports announcers 
our country has ever known.
  Soon after covering the Wyoming high school football championship, 
Curt was hired by a CBS radio affiliate in Oklahoma City to call 
University of Oklahoma football games. In 1949, he joined Mel Allen to 
broadcast New York Yankee games, and 2 years later, he became the No. 1 
broadcaster for the Boston Red Sox. He remained the radio voice of the 
Red Sox for 15 years. As Dick Vitale stated, ``Gowdy had a love affair 
with the microphone and his fans had a love affair with him.'' During 
this time, Curt also began television broadcasting, covering college 
and American Football League games in addition to baseball.
  When NBC picked up the AFL games in 1966, Curt Gowdy became the 
leading personality of NBC Sports. He covered World Series, Super 
Bowls, NCAA final four championships, Olympic Games and somehow found 
time for his ``Game of the Week'' broadcast. Curt also remained the 
host and producer of ABC's ``The American Sportsman'' for nearly 20 
years.
  In later years, Curt was the host and producer of the public 
television series, ``The Way It Was,'' reminiscing of great games with 
a panel of players who had participated in them. Gowdy also provided 
historic commentary for the HBO Sports program ``Inside the NFL.'' In 
2003, Gowdy returned to Fenway Park to call a Red Sox game against the 
Yankees as part of an ESPN promotion that brought back great 
broadcasters. He also coauthored two books, ``Cowboy at the Mike'' and 
``Seasons to Remember: The Way It Was in American Sports.''
  For his outstanding work, Curt was recognized in many ways. In 1970, 
he was the first sportscaster to be awarded the Peabody Award for 
Outstanding Journalistic Achievement. He was named the National 
Sportscaster of the Year seven times, and he received several Emmy 
awards for his work in television, including a lifetime achievement 
Emmy in 1992.
  Curt was also inducted into numerous sports halls of fame. These 
include the broadcast wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame, the Sports 
Writers and Broadcasters Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Sports Hall of 
Fame, the American Sportscasters Hall of Fame, the International 
Fishing Hall of Fame, the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame, the Boston Red Sox 
Hall of Fame, the Wyoming Sports Hall of Fame, the Wyoming Outdoor Hall 
of Fame, and the University of Wyoming Athletics Hall of Fame. In 1993, 
he received the Pro Football Hall of Fame Pete Rozelle Award for 
longtime exceptional contributions to radio and television in 
professional football. In addition, the Basketball Hall of Fame media 
award was named in honor of Curt, who served as president of the 
Basketball Hall of Fame for seven consecutive 1-year terms.
  Wyoming swells with pride for our native son. Our State declared 
March 27, 1972, ``Curt Gowdy Day,'' and held a large celebration in his 
honor. During the festivities, the University of Wyoming awarded Curt 
an honorary law degree, and the State named an 11,000-acre State park 
after him. Most recently, Curt was selected as a Wyoming Citizen of the 
Century Sports Finalist.
  Mr. President, Curt made a point to get back to his home State 
regularly. He once referred to Wyoming fondly as the place ``where I 
grew up with a fly rod in one hand and, a little later, a radio mike in 
the other.'' Those of us who had the pleasure of knowing Curt remember 
him that way. He will be sorely missed.

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