Wallace108
Posts : 18260
Join date : 2011-04-03
Location : Y'Town, Ohio
 | | Subject: Steelers pay tribute to fan of 80 years Sat Sep 15, 2012 4:42 am | |
| Good story ... - Quote :
By J. Brady McCollough / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Steelers have accomplished much in their first eight decades, winning six Super Bowls and becoming an unmatched source of pride for an American city. That's the view from 10,000 feet.
But down on the ground, at the micro level, their impact can just as easily be felt through one man's long journey through adulthood.
The Steelers have accompanied Angelo Cammarata at nearly every turn, their successes and failures serving as touchstones to memories stretching from the man's graduation from high school to the births of his great-grandchildren to the death of his loving wife.
The methodical uniting of fan and franchise began in 1933 with a conversation between Mr. Cammarata and Art Rooney, the team's owner.
Mr. Rooney was 13 years Mr. Cammarata's senior. Their families were both members of St. Peter Parish on the North Side, and Mr. Cammarata was first a fan and then a water boy for Mr. Rooney's semi-pro football team, the Rooney Reds. So it was no big deal for the 18-year-old to approach Mr. Rooney at his office at the William Penn Hotel and request a ticket to the Pittsburgh Pirates football game against the New York Giants on Sept. 20.
The Pirates were joining the National Football League that season, becoming its eighth franchise. Mr. Cammarata and Mr. Rooney talked for a few minutes as Mr. Rooney pulled on a cigar. It'd be $3 for the ticket, and Mr. Cammarata was treated to a 23-2 loss to the Giants.
Still, the next week, he came back to the hotel, wanting a ticket to the game against the Chicago Cardinals, and Mr. Rooney had a suggestion.
"Why don't you buy tickets for the rest of the season?" Mr. Rooney propositioned.
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/sports/steelers/steelers-pay-tribute-to-fan-of-80-years-653369/#ixzz26WfzQhiw _________________  If you're going to be a smart ass, you'd better be smart. Otherwise, you're just an ass. | |
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