Author: The Football History Dude

This is the last of a three-part series covering the interview with Upton Bell, son of Bert Bell, the First Great Commissioner of the NFL. In this episode, we pick up right where we left off in episode 2, learning about Upton’s experiences with the Great Muhammad Ali. Then we get to hear about his Days with the Boston Patriots. After that, we learn about the crazy world of the World Football League, and then bring it home with his 40 years of broadcasting experience. Let’s just say you haven’t heard these stories about professional football from your grandad. Note…

Upton Bell Interview – Part 2 Note – This is part 2 of a 3-part series, diving into Upton’s place in Baltimore Colts history. If you did not listen to part 1, I highly suggest you listen to last week’s episode about how it was for Upton growing up with Bert Bell first. This episode we fire up the DeLorean and head back to October 11, 1959, the day Bert Bell passed away in front of his 2 teams at Franklin Field. We talked about this during the Bert Bell episode, and we left last week’s episode off with this…

Upton Bell Interview – Part 1 This episode, we fire up the DeLorean and head back to April 15, 1904, the birth date of Frances Upton.  Frances is the mother of this week’s guest, Upton Bell. You will find out in the episode how Frances Upton and the podcast are linked in the upcoming 100th season of the NFL. The story is told through the experiences of Upton Bell. Here you can find the dedicated Upton Bell page. Upton is the son of the First Great Commissioner of the NFL – Bert Bell. He joins us to share stories from his…

Matthew Algeo Interview – Part 2 This episode we fire up the DeLorean and head back to December 26, 1943, and we are at Wrigley Field to watch the 1943 NFL Championship game between the Washington Redskins and the Chicago Bears. We learned a little about this game back in the episode about Bronko Nagurski. The reason this moment is so important is that Bronko was called back to the NFL after the league was decimated from players leaving for the war. We also left off at this point in the story with our guest riding shotgun with us in…

Matthew Algeo Intervew – Part 1 This episode we fire up the DeLorean and head back to December 7, 1941, and we are in the parking lot of New York Giant’s Polo Ground. We also have a passenger riding shotgun with us. His name is Matthew Algeo. Matthew is an award-winning journalist that has reported from four continents. His stories have appeared on public radio’s All Things Considered, Marketplace, and Morning Edition. Here you can find the dedicated Matthew Algeo page. He is the author of five books, and the topic of this episode is Last Team Standing – How…

This episode we fire up the DeLorean and head back to a time when Americans were just trying to survive on the homefront while troops were fighting overseas against the Axis. Supporting the war effort can take a toll on people, including owners of NFL teams. League rosters were decimated. The Cleveland Rams folded operations. The Eagles and Steelers were close. It took a marriage between 2 inter-state rivals for a season back in 1943 to help save the NFL from going extinct. This team was unofficially called THE STEAGLES. So, strap on your seat belt, and let’s get ready…

This episode we fire up the DeLorean and head back to a time when watching the NFL on television sets would have been considered Voodoo magic. That all started to change on October 22, 1939. On this day, the Philadelphia Eagles would square off with the Brooklyn Dodgers in what may have seemed like a typical NFL game. This was not the case, though. NBC struck a deal with the NFL to broadcast the first televised NFL game on this day. So, strap on your seat belt, and let’s get ready to take this baby up to 88mph. GET YOUR…

This episode we fire up the DeLorean and head back to a time when ESPN was not a juggernaut. The network had just launched a few months prior, and the President of the newly minted network devised a brilliant plan with then-Commissioner Pete Rozelle to televise the NFL Draft. Lem Barney was given the honor of being the first ever player drafted on live television. As we know, the NFL Draft and ESPN would have a very fruitful future, but we have to go back to that first one to understand how we got to where we are today. So,…

This episode, we fire up the DeLorean and head back to 1936 to witness the first NFL draft.  Times were different for the players and owners pre-draft era.  Some say the NFL draft saved professional sports because it helped balance the leagues.  Others say the birth of the NFL draft was a major turning point in the explosion of the NFL.  The draft was the brainchild of the first great NFL Commissioner and former owner of the Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers.  You can learn more about him in the Bert Bell episode.  For now, it’s time to take you…

This episode we fire up the DeLorean and head back to learn about the life and career of Earl “Curly” Lambeau, the Father of the Green Bay Packers. He founded the team, was the first star player, and became a legendary coach that put Green Bay on the map. So strap on your seat belt, and let’s get ready to take this baby up to 88mph. Connect with the show: Visit the show notes for this episodeVisit me on the web – my about pageContact the showFollow me on TwitterSubscribe on YouTube LINKS FROM THE SHOW Pro Football Hall of…