Overview

The first comprehensive biography of the preeminent voice of New York sports For close to half a century after World War II, Marty Glickman was the voice of New York sports. His distinctive style of broadcasting, on television and especially on the radio, garnered for him legions of fans who would not miss his play-by-play accounts. From the 1940s through the 1990s, he was as iconic a sports figure in town as the Yankees' Mickey Mantle, the Knicks' Walt Frazier, or the Jets' Joe Namath. His vocabulary and method of broadcasting left an indelible mark on the industry, and many of today's most famous sportscasters were Glickman disciples. To this very day, many fans who grew up listening to his coverage of Knicks basketball and Giants football games, among the myriad of events that Glickman covered, recall fondly, and can still recite, his descriptions of actions in arenas and stadiums. In Marty Glickman, Jeffrey S. Gurock showcases the life of this important contributor to American popular culture. In addition to the stories of how he became a master of American sports airwaves, Marty Glickman has also been remembered as a Jewish athlete who, a decade before he sat in front of a microphone, was cynically barred from running in a signature track event in the 1936 Olympics by anti-Semitic American Olympic officials. This lively biography details this traumatic event and explores not only how he coped for decades with that painful rejection but also examines how he dealt with other anti-Semitic and cultural obstacles that threatened to stymie his career. Glickman's story underscores the complexities that faced his generation of American Jews as these children of immigrants emerged from their ethnic cocoons and strove to succeed in America amid challenges to their professional and social advancement. Marty Glickman is a story of adversity and triumph, of sports and minority group struggles, told within the context of the prejudicial barriers that were common to thousands, if not millions, of fellow Jews of his generation as they aimed to make it in America.

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9781479820870

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Reviews

Marty Glickman was one of the greatest sportscasters of all time, a true pioneer in the industry. He was instrumental in guiding me in my career, and he was equally generous in providing advice to young sportscasters throughout the country. His is a unique life story, all captured beautifully by Jeffrey Gurock. -- Marv Albert, Basketball Hall of Fame and inductee of the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame In the years when college basketball light up Madison Square Garden, Marty Glickman was one of the brightest stars. Coach Lapchick and I knew our St. John’s games were special when we saw the great announcer perched in his broadcast booth. Jeffrey Gurock’s book brings back wonderful memories of a marvelous era in New York sports and will be enjoyed by fans young and old. -- Hall of Fame Coach Lou Carnesecca, St. John’s University Going beyond the story of an American Jewish athlete kept out of Hitler’s Olympics, this book speaks to the wider world of American sports and culture. It is the story of a kid whose dreams eventually led him all the way up to the announcer’s booth at Madison Square Garden. This is Marty Glickman’s story, but also, in Jeffrey S. Gurock’s superb work, a tale of pride and prejudice, of joy and anger—and the impact that one man has had on the world of sports announcing. His voice is still heard. -- Gerald Eskenazi, former New York Times sports reporter Gurock presents the first detailed biography of Marty Glickman, the undisputed voice of New York City sports during the second half of the 20th century. The author manages to fit an amazing amount of detail into a relatively short book, and he is particularly adept at describing the atmosphere of the New York and Jewish culture in which Glickman was raised and excelled as a multisport star in Brooklyn. He also deftly explains the lasting significance of Glickman's broadcasting career and his influence on his legions of New York listeners ... A fascinating portrait of an important voice in American sports history. * Kirkus Reviews * Glickman's story, meticulously conveyed by Gurock, will find resonance with readers far beyond New York ... Gurock offers both a fine portrait of an America roiled in contradictions over race and also a modern-day cautionary tale to those who would abide antisemitism in their midst. * Booklist * This engrossing, vibrant biography of Marty Glickman also explores the evolving identity of Jewish people in twentieth-century America. * Foreword Reviews * Marty Glickman was an extraordinary person in so many ways — both as a world-class athlete and as a broadcasting legend. But as Jeffrey Gurock reveals in this book, Glickman’s life — notably his exclusion from the 1936 Berlin Olympics — is significant also for what it teaches us about American Jews in the twentieth century. Immigration, anti-Semitism, assimilation — it’s all here, and told with a power, snap, and verve that befits its remarkable subject. -- Matthew Goodman, author of The City Game: Triumph,Scandal, and a Legendary Basketball Team Jeffrey Gurock belongs on the short list of the most accomplished and prolific historians of American Jewry. Marty Glickman is exhaustively researched and wonderfully written, and brings its subject alive. This book is warmly recommended -- and not to only sports fans. -- Stephen Whitfield, Professor Emeritus of American Studies, Brandeis University

"""Marty Glickman was one of the greatest sportscasters of all time, a true pioneer in the industry. He was instrumental in guiding me in my career, and he was equally generous in providing advice to young sportscasters throughout the country. His is a unique life story, all captured beautifully by Jeffrey Gurock."" -- Marv Albert, Basketball Hall of Fame and inductee of the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame ""In the years when college basketball light up Madison Square Garden, Marty Glickman was one of the brightest stars. Coach Lapchick and I knew our St. John’s games were special when we saw the great announcer perched in his broadcast booth. Jeffrey Gurock’s book brings back wonderful memories of a marvelous era in New York sports and will be enjoyed by fans young and old."" -- Hall of Fame Coach Lou Carnesecca, St. John’s University ""Going beyond the story of an American Jewish athlete kept out of Hitler’s Olympics, this book speaks to the wider world of American sports and culture. It is the story of a kid whose dreams eventually led him all the way up to the announcer’s booth at Madison Square Garden. This is Marty Glickman’s story, but also, in Jeffrey S. Gurock’s superb work, a tale of pride and prejudice, of joy and anger—and the impact that one man has had on the world of sports announcing. His voice is still heard."" -- Gerald Eskenazi, former New York Times sports reporter ""Gurock presents the first detailed biography of Marty Glickman, the undisputed voice of New York City sports during the second half of the 20th century. The author manages to fit an amazing amount of detail into a relatively short book, and he is particularly adept at describing the atmosphere of the New York and Jewish culture in which Glickman was raised and excelled as a multisport star in Brooklyn. He also deftly explains the lasting significance of Glickman's broadcasting career and his influence on his legions of New York listeners ... A fascinating portrait of an important voice in American sports history."" * Kirkus Reviews * ""Glickman's story, meticulously conveyed by Gurock, will find resonance with readers far beyond New York ... Gurock offers both a fine portrait of an America roiled in contradictions over race and also a modern-day cautionary tale to those who would abide antisemitism in their midst."" * Booklist * ""This engrossing, vibrant biography of Marty Glickman also explores the evolving identity of Jewish people in twentieth-century America."" * Foreword Reviews * ""Marty Glickman was an extraordinary person in so many ways — both as a world-class athlete and as a broadcasting legend. But as Jeffrey Gurock reveals in this book, Glickman’s life — notably his exclusion from the 1936 Berlin Olympics — is significant also for what it teaches us about American Jews in the twentieth century. Immigration, anti-Semitism, assimilation — it’s all here, and told with a power, snap, and verve that befits its remarkable subject."" -- Matthew Goodman, author of The City Game: Triumph,Scandal, and a Legendary Basketball Team ""Jeffrey Gurock belongs on the short list of the most accomplished and prolific historians of American Jewry. Marty Glickman is exhaustively researched and wonderfully written, and brings its subject alive. This book is warmly recommended -- and not to only sports fans."" -- Stephen Whitfield, Professor Emeritus of American Studies, Brandeis University ""Gurock’s brief biography of Glickman is out for bigger game than merely recounting the 1936 Olympics incident and Glickman’s athletic and broadcasting achievements. He also argues that Glickman was a second-generation American Jewish everyman, and his life was 'archetypal of the life story of a whole generation of Jewish children of immigrants who came of age beginning in the 1920s.'"" * Jewish Book Council * ""To this day, many fans who grew up listening to his coverage of Knicks basketball and Giants football games, among the myriad of events that Glickman covered, recall fondly, and can still recite, his descriptions of actions in arenas and stadiums. In Marty Glickman, Jeffrey S. Gurock showcases the life of this important contributor to American popular culture."" * New York Almanack * ""Gurock, a historian and professor at Yeshiva University, recently published “Marty Glickman: The Life of an American Jewish Sports Legend,” a book about the beloved sportscaster who died in 2001 at 83."" -- Jacob Gurvis * Cleveland Jewish News *"

"""Marty Glickman was an extraordinary person in so many ways -- both as a world-class athlete and as a broadcasting legend. But as Jeffrey Gurock reveals in this book, Glickman's life -- notably his exclusion from the 1936 Berlin Olympics -- is significant also for what it teaches us about American Jews in the twentieth century. Immigration, anti-Semitism, assimilation -- it's all here, and told with a power, snap, and verve that befits its remarkable subject.""--Matthew Goodman, author of The City Game: Triumph, Scandal, and a Legendary Basketball Team"

"""Marty Glickman was an extraordinary person in so many ways — both as a world-class athlete and as a broadcasting legend. But as Jeffrey Gurock reveals in this book, Glickman’s life — notably his exclusion from the 1936 Berlin Olympics — is significant also for what it teaches us about American Jews in the twentieth century. Immigration, anti-Semitism, assimilation — it’s all here, and told with a power, snap, and verve that befits its remarkable subject."" -- Matthew Goodman, author of The City Game: Triumph,Scandal, and a Legendary Basketball Team ""Marty Glickman was one of the greatest sportscasters of all time, a true pioneer in the industry. He was instrumental in guiding me in my career, and he was equally generous in providing advice to young sportscasters throughout the country. His is a unique life story, all captured beautifully by Jeffrey Gurock."" -- Marv Albert, Basketball Hall of Fame and inductee of the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame ""Jeffrey Gurock belongs on the short list of the most accomplished and prolific historians of American Jewry. Marty Glickman is exhaustively researched and wonderfully written, and brings its subject alive. This book is warmly recommended -- and not to only sports fans."" -- Stephen Whitfield, Professor Emeritus of American Studies, Brandeis University"

Marty Glickman was an extraordinary person in so many ways -- both as a world-class athlete and as a broadcasting legend. But as Jeffrey Gurock reveals in this book, Glickman's life -- notably his exclusion from the 1936 Berlin Olympics -- is significant also for what it teaches us about American Jews in the twentieth century. Immigration, anti-Semitism, assimilation -- it's all here, and told with a power, snap, and verve that befits its remarkable subject. --Matthew Goodman, author of The City Game: Triumph, Scandal, and a Legendary Basketball Team

Author Information

Jeffrey S. Gurock is the Libby M. Klaperman Professor of Jewish history at Yeshiva University. He has written or edited 25 books, including Jews in Gotham, which in 2012 was honored as Winner, Everett Family Foundation Award, Jewish Book of the Year, Jewish Book Council.

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