Tag Archives: Steve Sabol

Q/A with Rich Eisen: His on-camera emotions about Sabol; progress of NFL Network; the Real Deion

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First of two parts:

Rich Eisen tried stand up comedy in a former life. Humor is a big part of his repertoire as the signature host of NFL Network.

Viewers, though, saw another side of Eisen last Tuesday. Eisen was visibly emotional in announcing the death of NFL Network President Steve Sabol. Here’s the link.

Eisen knows how much Sabol meant to his life. Without Sabol, he said, there would be no NFL Network.

Eisen has been there from Day 1 in 2003. He brought the channel on the air, saying “Your dreams have come true.”

Nine years later, it has become a dream job for Eisen, who took a considerable risk by leaving a fairly great gig at ESPN. In addition to his hosting duties on NFL Network, he also has a popular podcast that allows him to hang with stars like Larry David, Matt Damon, Jon Hamm, among many others in Los Angeles. And he ventures even further out of football by hosting a reality show, The Great Escape, on TNT.

In my part 1 of my interview, Eisen discusses Sabol, his on-air reaction, the progress of NFL Network and working with Deion Sanders.

What was is it like going on the air to announce the news of Sabol’s death?

I’m like everyone else my age. I grew up on NFL Films. My love of the game was stoked by NFL Films. I had the fortune to actually meet the man, and call him my colleague and know how he affected my career. Without him, the NFL Network never gets on the air. It wouldn’t be an embryo without him and his dad (Ed Sabol).

So to be the person on NFL Network given the assignment to break the news, it was moving to say the least.

How did you feel about becoming so emotional?

I got a call earlier in the day that this could happen. On the drive in, I’m thinking, ‘Is this really happening? He’s larger than life.’ It just caught me.

My philosophy in broadcasting is if there’s an emotion to the story and you’re feeling it, there’s no shame in showing it. I didn’t even give it a second thought.

Were you thinking about how he impacted your life?

It wasn’t just me. I always have Twitter open. I love to see the reaction from everybody on Sundays. Sabol was trending on Twitter within 15 minutes of the announcement. There was a collective mourning, and people were tuning into our network as if they were laying a wreath on a public memorial.

When I wrote my book about joining NFL Network, I asked Steve to write the foreword. Within 90 hours, it was in my hands. And it was a take on a topic of the book that I never would have thought of.

He’s one of those types of people who are inspirational. I’m not talking about professionally. I’m talking about personally. When we first went on the air, I never met the guy. Within six weeks, there’s an envelope. And it’s a hand-written note from Steve Sabol, saying, ‘Great job.’ Wow, to think this guy would take the time to do it. It was inspirational.

You took a big step leaving ESPN in 2003.

In the grand scheme of things, you could say that. But at the time, if you were going to bet on a start up, a channel about the NFL, run by the NFL, specifically Steve Bornstein, you’d make that bet.

How far have you and NFL Network come in nine years?

I’m thrilled with the way everything has turned out. I love being at the center of the NFL. The idea of the NFL as a year-round venture has become more of a mainstream idea. At one of my last SportsCenter idea meetings in April, ’03, somebody brought up an NFL story and was laughed out of the room. Now ESPN has two live NFL studio shows. This network was created to raise all boats for the NFL.

It’s been great and getting to plant a flag on the podcast. I love the free-form format.

How important is it for the network to go from 8 to 13 Thursday night games?

We all understand it is a valuable commodity. The fact we’re entrusted with more games means a lot. Means more travel. It means a lot of work. But we all understand the value of live NFL programming.

To me, what we do on our postgame show is very special. Watching the players run off the field and come to our set. Some of them just want to hear from Deion, Marshall and Irvin. ‘Tell me how we did.’ That’s great.

We’re in a good place now with 13 games and our Sunday morning show. I’d put that show up against anybody’s. And our game coverage. We’re all very proud of it.

What is it like to work with Deion Sanders. Is he the same off camera?

He’s the same. The most successful people I’ve met are the same on and off the air. Chris Berman. That’s not an act. When I got there in ’96, I observed Berman do a SportsCenter. He only did a couple a year at that point. And the guy who walked into the room for an idea meeting was the same guy I had seen on TV for a decade.

Deion is the same thing. He’s a great broadcaster and teammate. He’s always aware of what other people want to say and how to set it up. Some of my favorite converations with him are about baseball. Listening to him about riding the bus in the minors. I just love everything about him. I’d go through the wall for him.

Tomorrow: Eisen on his podcast: interviewing Larry David; sitting across from Olivia Munn.

 

 

My lunch with Steve Sabol: In search of art museums at a Super Bowl

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Like everyone else, I was a big fan of NFL Films.

So when I was approached during Super Bowl XXXV in 2000 about having lunch with Steve Sabol, I jumped at the opportunity. I looked forward to discussing football, the upcoming game between the Giants and Baltimore in Tampa, and film making, most definitely film making, with the famed president of NFL Films.

Now my memory is a bit foggy, but I’m fairly sure we initially started by talking about art museums. Yes, art museums.

Sabol loved going to art museums in towns he visited, and he was interested in what Tampa had to offer.

I’m not from Tampa and hardly an art expert. But thanks to my parents living in Sarasota, I was able to tell him about the Ringling Art Museum. I had been there once. All I knew is that Ringling (from the circus) was a notable collector and had some famous paintings from the 15th and 16th Centuries.

“Really?” he said, scribbling the name on a piece of paper. “That sounds terrific.”

I learned quickly that Sabol was a different breed. In fact, he had no interest in sports other than football.

“I have no idea who played in the World Series,” Sabol said. “Don’t care.”

Who knows? Sabol might not have had an interest in football if not for the chance to put the game on film.

Looking back, it really wasn’t a surprise that he was in search of a art museum during a Super Bowl. He truly was an artist with his vision for NFL Films.

My favorite was a series called Lost Treasures of NFL Films. It featured vintage old footage that had never been used before.

In a 1999 story for the Chicago Tribune, I wrote:

The programs are like opening a time capsule, tracing the roots of both the NFL and NFL Films, which first started shooting games in 1962. The shows go back to a period when everything was innocent, gritty and more passionate. Everything looked more genuine.

Included are vintage shots of Bears games at Wrigley Field, botched attempts to get audio from Vince Lombardi and the incomprehensible notion of players simply handing the ball to officials after scoring a touchdown.

“You think to yourself, `Boy, how have things changed?’ ” Sabol said. “There were no earrings or headsets. The feeling you get is like sitting around with a bunch of friends, saying, `I can remember what it was like.’ “

The original plan was to have actor Richard Kiley narrate the films. Unfortunately, the actor died two weeks before production.

Fortunately, it led to Sabol filling in. From the story:

Sabol doesn’t read from a script. Instead he talks over on the film, remembering things as he sees them again.

“It’s like sitting around with a proud father who has a bunch of old movies and is dying to talk about it,” Sabol said.

Sabol, the proud father, told those stories as only he could. In the clip above, he discusses working with John Facenda.

“The first words he said for us, ‘It starts with a whistle and ends with a gun,” Sabol said in this Lost Treasure. “We knew we were on to something. He read our scripts as if he was an after-dinner speaker for the Last Supper.”

Hence, Facenda’s nickname, “The Voice of God.”

Sabol, though, was the star of this series. He showed the evolution of the league and NFL Films. It was like an artist detailing every brush stroke.

And then there were stories. It seemed like every frame of film had a tale behind it, one better than the other.

“My dad has a great expression,” Sabol said when his father and NFL Films founder Ed was inducted into the Hall of Fame. ” ‘Tell me a fact, and I’ll learn. Tell me a truth, and I’ll believe. But tell me a story, and it will live in my heart forever.'”

Thanks to his work at NFL Films, Sabol’s stories will live forever.

Thinking back at our lunch at Super Bowl XXXV, I wonder what art museum Sabol chose to visit. I’d like to think he took the hour drive down to Sarasota to see the Ringling Museum.

It would make me feel good to give something back to Sabol considering all that he gave to us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Autumn Wind: The poetry of Steve Sabol in video and words

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If there is an iconic image of NFL Films, it has to be “The Autumn Wind.” The piece was the NFL Films’ version of Sandy Koufax pitching a perfect game.

Legendary talents all delivering peak performances.

The ode to the Oakland Raiders was written by Steve Sabol, who died today. I printed the words below. Read them to feel their power in another way.

The film was narrated by John Facenda, whose great voice and delivery enhanced the drama of Sabol’s poem. Sam Spence wrote the music that made you feel that “Autumn Wind.”

Keep in mind: The original film was made in 1974. The art was beyond cutting edge back then and it stands the test of time nearly 40 years later.

The Autumn wind is a pirate

Blustering in from sea

With a rollicking song he sweeps along

Swaggering boisterously.

His face is weatherbeaten

He wears a hooded sash

With a silver hat about his head

And a bristling black mustache.

He growls as he storms the country

A villain big and bold

And the trees all shake and quiver and quake

As he robs them of their gold.

The Autumn wind is a Raider Pillaging just for fun

He’ll knock you ’round and upside down

And laugh when he’s conquered and won.