Frank Gifford Biography (1930-)

Full name, Francis Newton Gifford; born August 16, 1930, in Santa Monica, CA;son of Weldon (an oil driller) and Lola Mae (Hawkins) Gifford; married Maxine Avis Ewart (divorced); married Astrid Lindley (divorced); Kathie Lee Johnson, October 18, 1986; children: (first marriage) Jeffrey, Kyle, Victoria; (third marriage) Cody Newton, Cassidy Erin. Career: Sports announcer and actor. New York Giants, 1952-64, professional football player; KERO-TV, Bakersfield, CA, sportscaster, 1957; WCBS-TV, New York City, sports reporter, 1961-65; CBS, sportscaster, 1965-71; ABC, sportscaster, 1971-. Also appeared in commercials and worked in the oil fields. Member: Society of Multiple Sclerosis (member of the board), Special Olympics (chair of the sportscasting committee, 1974-, and member of the board of directors, 1983-). Awards, Honors: National Football League most valuable player and the Sporting News National Football League player of the year, both 1956; most valuableplayer, National Football League's Pro Bowl, 1959; National Football League comeback player of the year, UPI, 1962; sportsman of the year, Catholic YouthOrganization, 1964; Emmy Award nomination, outstanding sports programming, 1974, for N.F.L. Monday Night Football; inductee, National Football Foundation Hall of Fame, 1975; Emmy Award nomination, outstanding sports broadcaster, 1975, for N.F.L. Monday Night Football; Emmy Award nomination, outstanding sports personality, 1976, for N.F.L. Monday Night Football and XII Winter Olympics; inductee, Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1977; Emmy Award nominations, outstanding sports personality, 1979 and 1980; Emmy Award nomination, outstanding sports personality, 1980; Christopher Award, 1984,for Special Olympics coverage on ABC's Wide World of Sports; Career Achievement Award, National Football League Alumni, 1985; Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award, Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1995; Emmy Award, lifetime achievement-sports, 1997.

Nationality: American
Gender: Male
Occupation: Television sportscaster, actor
Birth Details: August 16, 1930; Santa Monica, California, United States

Famous Works

CREDITS
Television Appearances
Series
Host, Sunday Sports Spectacular, CBS, 1965-71
Sports announcer and commentator, N.F.L. Monday Night Football (also known as Monday Night Football), ABC, 1971-98
Specials
The Special Olympics Opening Ceremonies, ABC, 1987
Host, Coca-Cola Presents the U.S. Olympic Trials: Heart and Seoul,ABC, 1988
Commentator, Calgary '88: The Olympic Adventure Begins, ABC, 1988
Host (with others), 1988 Winter Olympic Games, ABC, 1988
Host, ABC's N.F.L. Monday Night Football: 20th Anniversary Special, ABC, 1989
The Television Academy Hall of Fame (also known as The 6th Annual Television Academy Hall of Fame), Fox, 1990
Victory and Valor: A Special Olympics All-Star Celebration (also known as The International Special Olympics All-Star Gala), ABC, 1991
Host, ABC's Wide World of Sports 30th Anniversary Special, ABC, 1991
Commentator, Super Bowl XXV, ABC, 1991
The Barbara Walters Special, ABC, 1992
Presenter, Jim Thorpe Pro Sports Awards, 1992
Presenter, Jim Thorpe Pro Sports Awards Presented by Footlocker, 1993
Kathie Lee.Looking for Christmas, CBS, 1994
Presenter, Jim Thorpe Pro Sports Awards, 1994
Billy Ray Cyrus: A Year on the Road (also known as A Year in the Life of the Billy Ray), ABC, 1994
The N.F.L. at 75: An All-Star Celebration, ABC, 1995
Kathie Lee: Home for Christmas, CBS, 1995
Host, Variety Children's Charity Telethon (also known as 10th Annual Variety Children's Charity Telethon), 1995
Commentator, Super Bowl XXIX, ABC, 1995
Commentator, AFC-NFC Pro Bowl, ABC, 1995

Kathie Lee: Just in Time for Christmas, CBS, 1996
ABC's Wide World of Sports 35th Anniversary Special, ABC, 1996
Interviewee, Spotlight with Phyllis George, TNN, 1996
Host, ABC's N.F.L. Monday Night Football Mania!, ABC, 1996
Plugged In: A Parents' Guide to TV, The Family Channel, 1997
Television Work
Specials
Executive producer, Kathie Lee: Just in Time for Christmas, CBS, 1996
Television Appearances
Episodic
Himself, Coach, ABC, 1994
Himself, Coach, ABC, 1995
Himself, Spin City (also known as Spin), ABC, 1996
Himself, Coach, ABC, 1996
Interviewee, "Art Buchwald: The Wit of Washington," Biography, Arts and Entertainment, 1998
Also appeared as himself, "Rangeboy," The Adventures of Pete and Pete, Nickelodeon.
Pilots
Appeared in Public Enemy and Turnpike.
Film Appearances
Athletic double for Jerry Lewis, That's My Boy, Paramount, 1951
Stanley Pomeroy, The All American (also known as The Winning Way), Universal, 1953
Darby's Rangers, Warner Bros., 1958
Mount, Up Periscope, Warner Bros., 1959
Himself, Paper Lion, United Artists, 1968
Announcer, The World's Greatest Athlete, Buena Vista, 1973
Himself, Two Minute Warning, Universal, 1976
Himself, Viva Knieval! (also known as Seconds to Live), Warner Bros., 1977
Himself, Jerry Maguire, Columbia/TriStar, 1996
Film Work
Technical consultant, The All American (also known as The Winning Way), Universal, 1953
Stuntperson, Sign of the Pagan, Universal, 1954
WRITINGS
Nonfiction
Frank Gifford's Football Guide Book: Basic Plays and Playing Techniques for Boys, McGraw-Hill (New York City), 1964
Frank Gifford's N.F.L.-A.F.L. Football Guide, New American Library(New York City), 1968
Pro Football Guide for 1970, New American Library, 1970
(With Charles Mangel) Gifford on Courage, M. Evans (New York City), and Lippincott (Philadelphia, PA), both 1976
(With Harry Waters) The Whole Ten Yards, Random House (New York City), 1993

Further Reference

OTHER SOURCES

Books:

Contemporary Authors, Volume 109, Gale (Detroit, MI), 1983.

Periodicals:

Cosmopolitan, November 1997, pp. 268-270.
Esquire, January 1995, pp. 30-32; August, 1997, p. 21.
Good Housekeeping, August 1997, pp. 86-89.
Ladies Home Journal, February 1996, pp. 100-101.
New Republic, June 9, 1997, pp. 11-12.
People Weekly, June 2, 1997, pp. 106-112; June 9, 1997, pp. 84-89.
Sporting News, September 5, 1994, pp. S34-S35.
Time, May 26, 1997, p. 123; June 2, 1997, pp. 87-88; January 26, 1998, p. 25.
TV Guide, November 29, 1997, pp. 73-74; February 7, 1998, p. 42.*

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