The Mouth That Roared Still Provokes a Response

Howard Cosell was my favorite curmudgeon. I did not watch “Monday Night Football” after he departed. It was never the same without him.

SUSAN LESLIE SMITH

San Marino

*

Though it is customary to speak only praise about the recently deceased, in the case of Cosell, I think an exception must be made in the spirit of “telling it like it is.”

Cosell did some admirable work, then started turning into the cartoon he played in Woody Allen’s “Bananas.” He was pompous, overbearing, vindictive. The man of “integrity” became a shill for football, boxing, battles of the network stars, ad nauseam. Cosell ushered in an ugly era in which sportswriters began to fancy themselves bigger than the events and players they were covering. His sad career illustrates the perils of celebrity journalism.

DAN O’NEILL

Los Angeles

*

The love-hate relationship between Cosell and the viewers was never better portrayed than one Monday night. The camera was on Frank Gifford, “Dandy Don” Meredith and Cosell from inside the booth.

As they were speaking, a large hand-painted sign was lowered in front of them. The camera focused on it and showed the message to several million “Monday Night Football” fans: “Will Rogers never met Howard Cosell!”

ROBERT L. WEST

Calabasas

*

“Arrogant, pompous, obnoxious, verbose, vain, distasteful, a showoff. . . . “

Who needs Howard Cosell when we have Dennis Conner?

ORV HOWLAND

Palm Desert