Tex Maule
Encyclopedia
Hamilton Prieleaux Bee Maule, commonly known as Tex Maule (May 19, 1915 in Ojus, Florida
— May 16, 1981) was the lead American football
writer for Sports Illustrated
in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.
rs Pete Rozelle
and Tex Schramm
. Later, in 1956, Maule was hired by Sports Illustrated, where he covered football for 19 years.
Maule referred to the 1958 NFL Championship Game between the Giants
and the Colts
as "the best game ever," according to writer Mark Bowden
. Bowden wrote a 50th-anniversary book about the game using Maule's description as his title.
When the upstart American Football League
(AFL) began play in 1960, Maule did not conceal his loyalty to, nor his preference for, Rozelle and the NFL. For years he ridiculed and made light of the rival AFL. For example, in a September 30, 1968 SI piece entitled The Young Generals (referenced below), supposedly about Pro Football's best young quartebacks, he praised such mediocre NFL signal-callers as Gary Cuozzo
, Randy Johnson
and Kent Nix
, and never even mentioned Daryle Lamonica
, Bob Griese
, or Joe Namath
. His contempt for the AFL was mimicked by other writers who wrote derivatory columns, spreading the impression that the AFL was inferior to the NFL.
Maule gained such notoriety for his bias that it was well known to his media contemporaries. During the broadcast of the AFL's New York Jets
' defeat of the NFL champion Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III, announcer Curt Gowdy
asked (off-air): "I wonder if that (S.O.B.) Tex Maule is watching?" The comment can be heard on existing videos of the NBC-TV network feed of the game.
Maule also was a prolific author during the late 1950s and early 1960s. One book he wrote was The Rookie (1961, David McKay Company, NY) which is about professional football.
From Sports Illustrated, Maule moved to The Dallas Morning News
for three years. From Dallas, he returned to New York to write on a freelance basis. It was there he died in 1981. He was famed for saying, "It was a wonderful demonstration of boxing skill and a barbarous display of cruelty" in regards to the treatment which Muhammed Ali gave Ernie Terrell
.
In 1972 he wrote a book, Running Scarred [Pelham Books 1972], about his experience having a heart attack and taking up running afterwards.
Ojus, Florida
Ojus is a census-designated place and formerly incorporated town in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The population was 16,642 at the 2000 census. Ojus borders Aventura to the east, I-95 to the west, North Miami Beach to the south and Broward County to the north...
— May 16, 1981) was the lead American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
writer for Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.
Career
Maule joined the NFL's Los Angeles Rams front office, where he worked with Pro Football Hall of FamePro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
rs Pete Rozelle
Pete Rozelle
Alvin Ray "Pete" Rozelle was the commissioner of the National Football League from January 1960 to November 1989, when he retired from office. Rozelle is credited with making the NFL into one of the most successful sports leagues in the world....
and Tex Schramm
Tex Schramm
Texas Earnest "Tex" Schramm, Jr. was the original president and general manager of the National Football League's Dallas Cowboys franchise. Schramm became the head of the Cowboys when the former expansion team started operations in 1960.-Early life and career:Despite his name, Schramm was not born...
. Later, in 1956, Maule was hired by Sports Illustrated, where he covered football for 19 years.
Maule referred to the 1958 NFL Championship Game between the Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
and the Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
as "the best game ever," according to writer Mark Bowden
Mark Bowden
Not to be confused with Mark Bowden, U.N. Resident & Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative for Somalia.Mark Robert Bowden is an American writer and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, he is a 1973 graduate of Loyola University Maryland...
. Bowden wrote a 50th-anniversary book about the game using Maule's description as his title.
When the upstart American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
(AFL) began play in 1960, Maule did not conceal his loyalty to, nor his preference for, Rozelle and the NFL. For years he ridiculed and made light of the rival AFL. For example, in a September 30, 1968 SI piece entitled The Young Generals (referenced below), supposedly about Pro Football's best young quartebacks, he praised such mediocre NFL signal-callers as Gary Cuozzo
Gary Cuozzo
Gary Samuel Cuozzo was a former professional American football player. An undrafted quarterback from the University of Virginia, Cuozzo played in 10 NFL seasons from 1963-1972. He began his NFL career on the Baltimore Colts as a backup to Johnny Unitas...
, Randy Johnson
Randy Johnson (American football)
Randolph Klaus "Randy" Johnson was an American football player. He was the starting quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons in their inaugural season of 1966. In 1974 he played with The Hawaiians of the World Football League.Johnson graduated from Sam Houston High School in San Antonio, Texas in 1962...
and Kent Nix
Kent Nix
Alvin Kent Nix is a former professional American football quarterback in the National Football League. Nix played football collegiately at Texas Christian University . He is the son of Emery Nix, New York Giants quarterback who played for the New York Giants in 1943 and 1946...
, and never even mentioned Daryle Lamonica
Daryle Lamonica
Daryle Pat Lamonica is a former American collegiate and professional football quarterback who played in the American Football League, and later in the NFL....
, Bob Griese
Bob Griese
Robert Allen "Bob" Griese is a former American collegiate and Professional Football quarterback who earned All-American honors with the Purdue Boilermakers before being drafted in 1967 by the American Football League's Miami Dolphins...
, or Joe Namath
Joe Namath
Joseph William "Joe" Namath , nicknamed "Broadway Joe" or "Joe Willie", is a former American football quarterback. He played college football for the University of Alabama under coach Paul "Bear" Bryant and his assistant, Howard Schnellenberger, from 1962–1964, and professional football in the...
. His contempt for the AFL was mimicked by other writers who wrote derivatory columns, spreading the impression that the AFL was inferior to the NFL.
Maule gained such notoriety for his bias that it was well known to his media contemporaries. During the broadcast of the AFL's New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
' defeat of the NFL champion Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III, announcer Curt Gowdy
Curt Gowdy
Curtis Edward "Curt" Gowdy was an American sportscaster, well known as the longtime "voice" of the Boston Red Sox and for his coverage of many nationally-televised sporting events, primarily for NBC Sports in the 1960s and 1970s.-Early years:The son of a manager for the Union Pacific railroad,...
asked (off-air): "I wonder if that (S.O.B.) Tex Maule is watching?" The comment can be heard on existing videos of the NBC-TV network feed of the game.
Maule also was a prolific author during the late 1950s and early 1960s. One book he wrote was The Rookie (1961, David McKay Company, NY) which is about professional football.
From Sports Illustrated, Maule moved to The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...
for three years. From Dallas, he returned to New York to write on a freelance basis. It was there he died in 1981. He was famed for saying, "It was a wonderful demonstration of boxing skill and a barbarous display of cruelty" in regards to the treatment which Muhammed Ali gave Ernie Terrell
Ernie Terrell
Ernie Terrell is an American singer, record producer, and former World Boxing Association heavyweight boxing champion. At , he was very tall, by the standards of the day....
.
In 1972 he wrote a book, Running Scarred [Pelham Books 1972], about his experience having a heart attack and taking up running afterwards.