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     There have been many legendary names in sports broadcast, however not many can say they've had a career as illustrious as Howard Cosell.

      Cosell was born Howard Cohen on March 25th, 1918, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Shortly after, Howard, as well as his mother and father, moved to Brooklyn, New York, where he grew up, and eventually went off to college at New York University. While at NYU, he studied law and would eventually earn a degree (this is also where he changed his last name from Cohen to Cosell, to pay tribute to his Polish roots.) 

  While studying law, Cosell also took a liking to broadcast, specifically for sports. He started as an entertainment and sports lawyer after passing the bar in 1941 but quickly took a break to fight in WW2 from 1942 to 1942, where he would be honorably discharged with the rank of major.

    Despite having this steady job, Cosell never gave up on his dream to become a sportscaster, and in 1953, he finally broke into radio.

    Howard's first radio show involved little league baseball players getting a chance to ask questions to major league players. While it was a small show, it gave Cosell the start and confidence he needed to break into the industry.

He hosted this show for 3 years (mostly without pay), then decided to take the biggest swing of his career, leaving behind his law practice and deciding that broadcast would be his full-time career. After leaving the little league show, Cosell approached ABC executives, and with the backing of a sponsor, his weekly show "Speaking of Sports," was born.

    "Speaking of Sports" was only the tip of the iceberg for Cosell, who's career would skyrocket in the 60's and 70's. Cosell was brought on to be the pre-game show host for the expansion team Mets, as well as becoming an anchor at WABC-NY.

    One of Cosell's most famous tidbits is his genuine devotion to race relations in sports, as well as his relationship with Muhammad Ali. Cosell started as just someone who covered Ali, but thanks to their chemistry, as well as Cosell's relentless support of Ali, who had been under fire for changing his birth name, as well as being stripped for refusing to fight in Vietnam

    In 1970, Cosell was hired to be the lead voice of one of the biggest breakthroughs in nationally televised sports, that being the first edition of Monday Night Football. Along with former players Don Meredith and Frank Gifford, Cosell's "tell it how it is" style really took center stage, and it led to the success of this program. 

    Cosell did Monday Night Football until 1983, where he got into controversy. Cosell had referred to Washington Redskins wide receiver Alvin Garrett as a "little monkey." Despite having called players this in the past, including white players, as well as being defended by players and colleagues (including Garrett himself), he left MNF.

    After leaving Monday Night Football, he published his novel "I Never Played the Game" in 1985, which was met with controversy due to his portrayal of certain people in the industry. After MNF, Cosell returned to radio until 1992, where after being diagnosed with lung cancer, he retired.

    Cosell passed from a cardiac embolism in 1995, but the legacy he left will live on forever. He has been inducted into many halls of fame, including but not limited to the broadcast and Jewish halls. Howard Cosell was a hard-working, funny icon, and his legacy lives on in the sports personalities today.