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It's been a long time, but my recollection is that JTG mainly predicted results on the pregame show. Remember, JTG was a Vegas guy, not an Xs and Os guy. So, it may have been that he wasn't normally used during the halftime broadcast, which focused on first-half play.
gmasterb hits the nail on the head. Jimmy "the Greek" was a Vegas guy. He emphasized the odds, the betting line. Irv Cross and Dick Butkus were the football analysts.
Another thing to consider here was family issues. Three of his five children died of cystic fibrosis, according to Wikipedia. I would imagine he might have taken a leave of absence from the network to deal with this issue.
I've been watching football for what seems like forever and don't remember him doing analyst stuff. However, being as the old memory isn't as great as it used to be, I thought I was missing something.
Yes that's why I was asking why he was missing before that moment. I was thinking they wanted him gone years before that and when he made those comments they finally had a reason to can him
I remember Jimmy's high water mark was the late 70s.. there was always a little bit of controversy over Jimmy's predictions and the gambling aspect. I think CBS wanted him gone long before 1988 they just never had a good reason to get rid of him and he had a somewhat popular following. As I recall, He was on the pre game not the halftime... So he was probably in the studio at halftime but not on air.
I miss those old '70s and '80s pregame shows... short and sweet.
I remember Jimmy's high water mark was the late 70s.. there was always a little bit of controversy over Jimmy's predictions and the gambling aspect. I think CBS wanted him gone long before 1988 they just never had a good reason to get rid of him and he had a somewhat popular following. As I recall, He was on the pre game not the halftime... So he was probably in the studio at halftime but not on air.
I miss those old '70s and '80s pregame shows... short and sweet.
Yes 30 min pregame shows was all that was needed in those days
The mention of Jimmy the Greek takes me back to the first years as a child, watching the NFL pregame shows, intently, as much so as the games themselves. I know that in the late 70s, that Phyllis George would not, for a time, appear on the pregame shows at the same time as Jimmy the Greek, that's how much she despised him. I also remember when Musburger and Greek had too much to drink in an impromptu post-production meeting at a Manhattan bar prior to a football Sunday, and were actually duking it out on the floor.
Jimmy the Greek was most certainly an enigma, and while the NFL discouraged gambling (think about Karras and Hornung getting suspended) CBS had a way of using the Greek's commentary to tacitly stimulate the football bettor. There was an ESPN 30 for 30 special about him years ago that I thought was outstanding:
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