- Paperback: 398 pages
- Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (July 22 2004)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0071441549
- ISBN-13: 978-0071441544
- Product Dimensions: 15.4 x 22.6 x 2.9 cm
- Shipping Weight: 544 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,143,391 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Before it merged with the NFL in 1970, the American Football League helped usher into the limelight such cultural monuments as Joe Namath, O. J. Simpson and the Super Bowl. This meandering oral history of the AFL's 10-year existence, featuring interspliced interviews with 170 players, owners, coaches, secretaries and media personalities, is as inchoately supportive as a roaring stadium. Dallas Morning News sports editor Miller (Down to the Wire) styles the saga as a grudge match between scrappy AFL upstarts and NFL bullies, but, as in many sports stories, athletic rivalries obscure the workings of monopoly capital. The league started when the NFL dragged its feet in extending franchises to wealthy men in small-market cities; and it ended when the two leagues merged to halt the inter-league bidding wars that were driving up players' salaries. This tale of competition fostered and then strangled is fleshed out in interviews that offer a close-up look at the business side, delving into the details of franchise negotiations, television contracts and the jockeying for draft picks. But this material is, of course, buried under a pile-up of football anecdotes and play-by-play reminiscences of games 40 years past (one account of a single brutal tackle is told over three pages, from seven different perspectives). Miller inserts some sketchy historical exposition, but too often he leaves the narrative thread to the interviews, where it gets fragmented between intercutting shaggy-dog stories told by half a dozen eyewitnesses. Hard-core fans with long, long memories will delight in the gridiron minutiae, but other readers may be baffled by the scrimmage. B&w photos.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Book Description
“Outlandish, informative, and above all, funny.”
—Sports Illustrated
Now in paperback, Going Long brings the incredible story of the maverick American Football League to life through the words of the players, coaches, owners, and others who lived it. This story of the AFL is filled with legendary names such as Bob Griese, Joe Namath, Lamar Hunt, Jack Kemp, Len Dawson, and more. From the contentious formation of the league, to paychecks bouncing as often as footballs, to improbable Super Bowl victories, Going Long presents the colorful and sometimes bizarre tale of eight teams and a league that refused to die.
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First Sentence
This all could have been avoided, or at least delayed. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
This all could have been avoided, or at least delayed. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Touchdown!!,
By
Ce commentaire est de: Going Long : The Wild Ten-Year Saga of the Renegade American Football League In the Words of Those Who Lived (Hardcover)
always Been a AFc Fan first&foremost&this Book talks about the Ground Breaking american Conference&the many Players&Folks that Made it&ending up merging with the NFL.as a Buffalo Bills Fan Ralph Wilson had alot to do with the Ground Breaking of the AFL as did Lamar Hunt&of Course Broadway Joe Namith&OJ Simpson amongest others. a Great Read for Football Fans.
5.0 out of 5 stars
my 2 cents for an enjoyable book,
By elton1111 (California, USA) - See all my reviews
Ce commentaire est de: Going Long : The Wild Ten-Year Saga of the Renegade American Football League In the Words of Those Who Lived (Hardcover)
Just want to echo what is said below. This is very enjoyable for those interested in the AFL. One deal with it, though, is if you are not that familiar with the AFL players, it may be a bit confusing. There is a guide for who is who, and you can often tell by what they say, whether they were a part owner of the Oilers or something.One thing that would have been nice would have been more photos, but that may be beyond the scope of the book, as it's not a picture book. But the ones they did include were nice and fairly rare. Oral histories give us a taste from those who were there, and I really understood the rise of the AFL after reading what Lamar Hunt had in mind in 1959, etc.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fond trip down Memory Lane,
By
Ce commentaire est de: Going Long : The Wild Ten-Year Saga of the Renegade American Football League In the Words of Those Who Lived (Hardcover)
I moved to San Diego the year after they won their AFL Championship and immediately followed this team and the new league. Having followed this team weekly it was interesting to see the historical perspective of this upstart league. I fondly remember collecting the football cards of Jack Kemp, Keith Lincoln, Paul Lowe and Tobin Rote. But this league is more known for it's famous characters such as wrestler Ernie Ladd, Cookie Gilchrist and Joe Namath. This book allows the players to talk of their experiences, as there are liberal quotes throughout. It tells the story of a poorly financed league that played exciting football that eventually required the conservative, more established NFL to merge. A great example of how upstart the league was is the Miami Dolphins. Ownership was given to Minnesota attorney, Joe Robbie, who struggled to make payroll and among other mismanagement stories, managed to turn the franchise into the only undefeated team ever and make his family a fortune. Overall, I strongly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys football. Players such as Joe Namath and the owners and founders in this league did more than you can imagine turning football into the enjoyable shoot-out now enjoyed by everyone.
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