Steelers Nation is the unofficial name of the fan base of the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers, coined by NFL Films narrator John Facenda in "Blueprint for Victory," the team's 1975 highlights film. Steelers Country is often used for the Pittsburgh area where the fan base originates or for areas with a large Steelers fan base.

History[link]

Early years[link]

The Steelers have had a following in Western Pennsylvania since 1933. That year, Pennsylvania relaxed its blue laws allowing sporting events in the commonwealth on Sundays, paving the way for the Steelers and the Philadelphia Eagles to begin play for the 1933 NFL season. Previously, the state had teams in Pottsville and Frankford, but both had already folded, due to both the Great Depression and their inability to play on Sunday, when most NFL games took place.

Much like the league itself in the early years, the Steelers had to compete with baseball and college football teams in the city, making the team third in the hierarchy to the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pitt Panthers. Despite the team's early struggles, it had a small but loyal fan base in the city due to the popularity of American football at all levels, dating back to the 1800s, when Pittsburgh hosted the first wholly professional football game in 1895.

Rise of the Steelers[link]

By the 1950s, the Steelers had gained some popularity in the city and were on par with Pitt, but they were still a distant second behind the Pirates in the city.

In the early 1970s, the Steelers began to rise in popularity. 1969 saw the hiring of head coach Chuck Noll and the drafting of future Hall of Fame defensive tackle "Mean Joe" Greene. By 1972, the Steelers were a playoff contender and began a sellout streak in Three Rivers Stadium that carried over to Heinz Field and still stands to this day. The team is second to the Washington Redskins for the longest active consecutive sellout streak in league history.^[1]

The team's four Super Bowl victories in the 1970s coincided with a recession that struck the United States, and the city in particular, that would lead to the closure of several steel mills in the early 1980s. The team's success was credited with giving people in the city hope and leading to the increased fan base. Due to economic uncertainty in the area, many Steelers fans relocated to other areas but retained their identification with the Steelers as a reflection of their former hometown's steel industrial base.

During the lead up to Super Bowl XIII between the Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys, Phil Musick contrasted the Dallas and Pittsburgh fans by saying that "Dallas is superfan Whistling Ray and a hat that sprays the unsuspecting with water; Pittsburgh is a guy in a gorilla suit who'll stove five of your ribs if you laugh at him."^[2]

Player fan clubs[link]

In the 1970s many fans organized fan clubs for their favorite players. Some of these fan clubs included Franco's Italian Army,^[3] Frenchy's Foreign Legion,^[4][5] Gerela's Gorillas,^[6][7][8] Bradshaw's Brigade,^[9] Lambert's Lunatics,^[10][11][12] Dobre Shunka (Good Ham, for Jack Ham),^[13] Rocky and the Flying Squirrels,^[14] Shell's Bombers, and Russell's Raiders^[15] among others.

Today[link]

Steelers fans line the Boulevard of the Allies in downtown Pittsburgh for the Super Bowl XLIII victory parade in February 2009.

Since the 1970s, the Steelers have enjoyed a large fan base and have eclipsed the Pittsburgh Pirates as the most popular sports team in Pittsburgh. While the team's success gained it a large fan base nationally, many consider the collapse of the city's steel industry to have been a cause for the strong fan base in other cities, demonstrated when teams whose home turnout would otherwise require a local blackout on television end up selling out when hosting the Steelers. An instance of the team's large fan base was at Super Bowl XL, where an ESPN.com columnist suggested that Steelers fans outnumbered Seattle Seahawks fans more than 25 to 1.^[16]

In November 2007, a study by Turnkey Sports found that the Steelers brand was the strongest in its local market of any team in the NHL, NBA, MLB or NFL.^[17][18]

Comparison to other NFL fan bases[link]

Attempts at quantifying the loyalty of Steeler Nation relative to other NFL fan bases have shown mixed results. A 2006 study by the American City Business Journals placed the team's fans 21st out of 32 teams in the league,^[19] behind all three of its division rivals in the AFC North. The study found that although the team had been selling out games for years, some fans were not actually attending the games, and Pittsburgh's weekly turnout percentage for home games was 16th in the league.^[20] That ranking was down seven slots from the publication's survey conducted in 1997, which ranked Steelers Nation 14th out of 30 teams, partly due to fans leaving nearly 10 percent of the seats in the stadium empty.^[21]

Conversely, a 2008 study from Forbes.com ranked Steelers fans 8th overall, citing amongst other things a long season-ticket waiting list.^[22] A 2008 article for ESPN.com ranked Steelers fans as the best in the NFL, citing their "unbelievable" sellout streak of 299 consecutive games.^[23][24]

Criticism[link]

Like other large and vocal fan bases, such as the Cleveland Browns' Dawg Pound, Steeler Nation has at times been presented in an unflattering light, especially by fans of other teams. They have occasionally been described in unflattering terms by sports journalists in other cities.^[25] For example, prior to Super Bowl XLIII, the Phoenix New Times warned readers that Steelers fans were the "grubbiest, loudest, and nastiest fan base in all of sports – as well as one of the largest" and that as the only NFL fanbase in Appalachia, they were "white trash" and "hillbillies."^[26] Steelers fans have also been singled out by newspapers in rival cities for inappropriate behavior during games^[25][27][28] – a common problem in the NFL.^[29]

Anti–Steeler Nation sentiment has grown strong enough that in some cases, front offices for other teams have taken steps to keep Pittsburgh fans out of games in their cities.^[30] Instead of being permitted to buy tickets to a Chargers-Steelers game in San Diego, for instance, they were required to pay for tickets to two other games, as well.^[31] In other cases, teams refused to sell tickets to fans calling from Pittsburgh's 412 area code, and they encouraged fans who were selling their own tickets to do the same.^[30] Steelers President Art Rooney II complained to the NFL about the situation, but his grievance was not well received.^[30]

Famous fans[link]

Some notable members of Steeler Nation include actress January Jones [7], professional wrestler Kurt Angle,^[32] Saturday Night Live head writer Seth Meyers,^[33] PGA Tour golfer Jim Furyk,^[34] author John Grisham,^[35] actor Jake Gyllenhaal,^[36] NASCAR racer Jimmie Johnson,^[37] former CIA Director Michael Hayden,^[38] actor Michael Keaton,^[39] talk show host Rush Limbaugh,^[40] actor Burt Reynolds,^[41] actress Sharon Stone [8] rapper Snoop Dogg,^[42] rapper Wiz Khalifa,^[43] Bishop Thomas Tobin of the Diocese of Providence,^[44] World Series MVP pitcher Curt Schilling,^[45] Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson, actor Verne Troyer,^[46] country music legend Hank Williams, Jr.,^[47] Rock musician Bret Michaels^[48], rapper Mac Miller, singer Christina Aguilera, Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson, New Jersey Nets point guard Deron Williams and Mike & Molly star Billy Gardell.

External links[link]

• http://steelcityartist.com/portfolio/limited-edition-digital-art/sports/steelers-art/
• ESPN Article
• ESPN article on Steelers Nation out of Houston, Texas

References[link]

A nation may refer to a community of people who share a common language, culture, ethnicity, descent, or history.^[1] In this definition, a nation has no physical borders. However, it can also refer to people who share a common territory and government (for example the inhabitants of a sovereign state) irrespective of their ethnic make-up.^[2][3] In international relations, nation can refer to a country or sovereign state.^[1] The word nation can more specifically refer to people of North American Indians, such as the Cherokee Nation that prefer this term over the contested term tribe.^[1]

According to Joseph Stalin writing in 1913 in Marxism and the National Question: "a nation is not a racial or tribal, but a historically constituted community of people;" "a nation is not a casual or ephemeral conglomeration, but a stable community of people;" "a common language is one of the characteristic features of a nation;" "a nation is formed only as a result of lengthy and systematic intercourse, as a result of people living together generation after generation;" "a common territory is one of the characteristic features of a nation;" "a common economic life, economic cohesion, is one of the characteristic features of a nation;" "a common psychological make-up, which manifests itself in a common culture, is one of the characteristic features of a nation;" "A nation is a historically constituted, stable community of people, formed on the basis of a common language, territory, economic life, and psychological make-up manifested in a common culture." According to Stalin, this would exclude Jews as they have no common territory.^[4]

An alternative view, expressed by Otto Bauer, author of Social Democracy and the Nationalities Question (1907), that "A nation is an aggregate of people bound into a community of character by a common destiny." would include Jews. R. Springer, author of The National Problem (1909), also cited by Stalin in his discussion of this matter, held similar views.^[4]

Etymology[link]

The word nation came to English from the Old French word nacion, which in turn originates from the Latin word natio (nātĭō) literally meaning "that which has been born".^[5]

As an example of how the word natio was employed in classical Latin, the following quote from Cicero's Philippics Against Mark Antony in 44 BC contrasts the external, inferior nationes ("races of people") with the Roman civitas ("community"):

"Omnes nationes servitutem ferre possunt: nostra civitas non potest."
("All races are able to bear enslavement, but our community cannot.")

— Cicero, Orationes: Pro Milone, Pro Marcello, Pro Ligario, Pro rege Deiotaro, Philippicae I-XIV^[6]

An early example of the use of the word "nation" (in conjunction with language and territory) was provided in 968 by Liutprand (the bishop of Cremona) who, while confronting the Byzantine emperor, Nicephorus II, on behalf of his patron Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, declared:

"The land...which you say belongs to your empire belongs, as the nationality and language of the people proves, to the kingdom of Italy.'"

— Liutprand, Relatio de legatione Constantinopolitana ad Nicephorum Phocam ^[7]

[edit] Medieval nationes

A significant early use of the term nation, as natio, occurred at mediaeval universities^[8] to describe the colleagues in a college or students, above all at the University of Paris, who were all born within a pays, spoke the same language and expected to be ruled by their own familiar law. In 1383 and 1384, while studying theology at Paris, Jean Gerson was elected twice as a procurator for the French natio. The University of Prague adopted the division of students into nationes: from its opening in 1349 the studium generale which consisted of Bohemian, Bavarian, Saxon and Polish nations.

In a similar way, the nationes were segregated by the Knights Hospitaller of Jerusalem, who maintained at Rhodes the hostels from which they took their name "where foreigners eat and have their places of meeting, each nation apart from the others, and a Knight has charge of each one of these hostels, and provides for the necessities of the inmates according to their religion", as the Spanish traveller Pedro Tafur noted in 1436.^[9]

See also[link]

References[link]

kn

Mike Stout is an American labor supporter, social activist and rock guitar player and protest singer, who lives in Pittsburgh, United States. He is also known as the "World's Grievance Man."

Music and activism[link]

Stout was born in Kentucky, and began his musical career in New York City in 1968 playing his protest songs at Cafe Wha?, The Bitter End, and The Gaslight Cafe coffee house where Bob Dylan also played.^[1]

In 1977 Stout became a steelworker at Homestead Works, where he was elected the union's head grievance man. He used his music to rally his co-workers at union meetings, where "they fought to win more than $10 million in lost wages, severance pay, pensions, and unemployment benefits for 3,000 displaced works... with thousands of families losing unemployment benefits and facing foreclosure." Stout organized a benefit concert that drew attention from CBS, NBC, the AP, UPI and the international press to raise funds, which later lead to the formation of the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food bank.^[1]

After the mill closings, Stout started writing songs again. He has recorded nine CDs in the last ten years and performed across the United States and Europe with "the message of human solidarity and peace." A Duquesne University professor took one of his CDs to the People to People book store in Germany and his songs. People to People, impressed with his message, began stocking his CDs and sponsored his four concert tours in Germany and Poland. Stout claims to have sold "thousands of CDs" in Europe.^[1]

Influence[link]

Mike Stout describes himself as "a socially-conscious singer song-writer and community leader" who "leads crusades against local and global economic injustice, rallying people with his music, and he organizes them to take action." He tells "his stories from the heart about people who are affected by unemployment, or social injustice or war." He states his tunes and lyrics are influenced by artists like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and Neil Young, whom he calls "musical heroes".

John Hayes of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette wrote:

"In the Woody Guthrie tradition, his songs reflect contemporary issues without resorting to journalism. They're more like partisan op-ed columns that grab political opponents by the throat and don't let go." ^[2]

Organizations and causes Stout Supports[link]

Stout supports various organizations and causes including, Depleted Uranium Watch, Campaign Against Depleted Uranium, Thomas Merton Center. He is a founding board member of the Just Harvest and Steel Valley Authority organizations which "aid displaced workers and the poor."

Family[link]

Stout's brother Gary was killed on the job when he fell 25 feet to his death, at a plant called Meadville Redi-Mix. Mike Stout claimed they sent him "to clean and shovel gravel in his final hour, all alone at the top of a concrete tower. On a dangerous loft without being tied off, with no safety equipment or warning signs up." Yet the company claimed "they didn’t send him up there. They weren’t to blame." In March 2009, Stout wrote a song about the case, titled "My Brother Did Not Die in Vain."^[3]

See also[link]

• Greenwich Village#Since the 1960s

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• MySpace Page
• http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08325/929275-388.stm
• http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07354/842958-42.stm
• http://www.postgazette.com/pg/04079/287884-42.stm
• http://www.pointofpittsburgh.com/CDshop.html
• http://www.mikestoutmusic.com/reviews.html

Myron Cope (January 23, 1929 – February 27, 2008), born Myron Sidney Kopelman,^[1] was an American sports journalist, radio personality, and sportscaster who is best known for being "the voice of the Pittsburgh Steelers."^[2]

Cope was a color commentator for the Steelers' radio broadcasts for 35 years. He was known for his distinctive, nasally voice with an identifiable Pittsburgh accent, idiosyncratic speech pattern, and a level of excitement rarely exhibited in the broadcast booth. Cope's most notable catch phrase was "yoi"^[3] (pronounced /ˈjɔɪ/). Cope was the first football announcer inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame.^[4] Cope's autobiography, Double Yoi!, was published in 2002.^[5] Legislation honoring Cope is currently pending before the United States House of Representatives,^[2] having already passed in the United States Senate.^[6]

Education and early career[link]

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Jewish parents of Lithuanian ancestry, Cope graduated from Taylor Allderdice High School^[7] and the University of Pittsburgh.^[8] He was originally a journalist before becoming a broadcaster. His first job was in Erie, Pennsylvania, with the Daily Times,^[9] and by the summer of 1951, he was working for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.^[10] Cope then became a freelance journalist, most notably for Sports Illustrated,^[1] the Saturday Evening Post,^[9] and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.^[4] In 1963, Cope received the E.P. Dutton Prize for "Best Magazine Sportswriting in the Nation," for a portrayal of Cassius Clay.^[11] Cope spent the 1983 college football season as a color analyst for the Pittsburgh Panthers.^[8] In 1987, he was named by the Hearst Corporation as a noted literary achiever, along with Mark Twain, Jack London, Frederic Remington, Walter Winchell, and Sidney Sheldon.^[11] At its 50th Anniversary, Sports Illustrated selected Cope’s profile of Howard Cosell as one of the 50 best written works ever published in the magazine.^[4]

Family life[link]

Cope married Mildred Lindberg of Charleston in 1965, and the couple moved to Mt. Lebanon.^[12] In 1972, the Copes moved to nearby Upper St. Clair.^[13] Mildred died on September 20, 1994.^[10] In 1999, Cope moved back to Mt. Lebanon, to a condo in the Woodridge neighborhood.^[13] He remained there until his final days, when he entered a Mt. Lebanon nursing home,^[9] and is claimed by Mt. Lebanon as a "native."^[2]

Cope had three children, Elizabeth, Martha Ann, and Daniel.^[10] Martha Ann died shortly after her birth.^[14] His son, Daniel, was born with severe autism; he has lived most of his life at the Allegheny Valley School, an institution specializing in intellectual developmental disabilities.^[15] Cope devoted much of his time and energy to Pittsburgh causes addressing autism, and spoke candidly about his experiences as the parent of an autistic child and his efforts to better educate the public at large about autism.^[15]

Steelers broadcasting[link]

Cope waves a Terrible Towel at Heinz Field - October 31, 2005

In 1968, Cope began a talk show on what was then WTAE-AM radio in Pittsburgh.^[16] His unique nasal voice, with a distinctive Pittsburgh area accent, was noticed by the Steelers' brass, and he made his debut as a member of the Steelers' radio team in 1970.^[17]

During Cope's 35-year broadcasting career with the Steelers—the longest term with a single team in NFL history—he was accompanied by only two play-by-play announcers: the late Jack Fleming, with whom he broadcast until 1994, followed by Bill Hillgrove, who still fills this broadcast role today.^[9][14]

In keeping with his comic personality, a series of television commentaries on WTAE-TV saw Cope calling himself "Doctor Cope" and wearing a white lab coat while pretending to examine the opposing team's strengths and weaknesses. His predictor was known as the "Cope-ra-scope."^[18]

Catchphrases and Nicknames[link]

Like other sports announcers in Pittsburgh, particularly Penguins commentator Mike Lange and the late Pirates announcer Bob Prince, Cope had a repertoire of unique catchphrases employed in his broadcasts, such as "Mmm-Hah!" and "Okel Dokel" (his version of "okey dokey").^[9] Cope often used Yiddish expressions, especially "Feh!" and "Yoi!" (sometimes multiplied as "Double Yoi" or rarely "Triple Yoi").

Cope also created nicknames for many players and opposing teams. It was Cope who popularized "The Bus" as a nickname for former Steelers running back Jerome Bettis, "Jack Splat" for Jack Lambert, and he gave Kordell Stewart the nickname "Slash."^[19]

Cope also used the term "Cincinnati Bungles" to describe their division rivals, who had a string of bad seasons during the 1990s.

Terrible Towel[link]

"I said, what we need is something that everybody already has, so it doesn't cost a dime. So I says, 'We'll urge people to bring out to the game gold or black towels,' then I'll tell people if you don't have a yellow, black or gold towel, buy one. And if you don't want to buy one, dye one. We'll call this the Terrible Towel."

— Myron Cope on the invention of the Terrible Towel^[20]

Cope played a large role in the invention of the Terrible Towel.^[21] Needing a way to excite the fans during a 1975 playoff game against the Baltimore Colts, Cope urged fans to take yellow dish towels to the game and wave them throughout.^[20] Originally, Cope wanted to sell rubber Jack Lambert masks, but realizing the high costs for the masks, opted for the inexpensive option for the Terrible Towel. The Terrible Towel has gained much popularity since its invention and "is arguably the best-known fan symbol of any major pro sports team".^[21]

In 1996, Cope gave the rights to The Terrible Towel to the Allegheny Valley School in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania.^[15] The school provides care for more than 900 people^[22] with mental retardation and physical disabilities, including Cope's autistic son.^[3] Proceeds from the Terrible Towel have helped raise $3 million for the school.^[23]

Retirement and death[link]

Cope announced his retirement from broadcasting on June 20, 2005, citing health concerns.^[24] Eight days later, it was announced that Cope was the recipient of the Pete Rozelle Award for "long-time exceptional contributions to radio and television in professional football."^[25] Upon his retirement, the Steelers did not replace Cope, opting instead to downsize to a two-man broadcast team.^[14]

On October 31, 2005, Cope was honored for his lifetime accomplishments at halftime of the contest between the Steelers and the Ravens.^[26] In addition, the Steelers produced a special commemorative edition Terrible Towel with his familiar expressions printed on it. As seen on the towel, production was limited to 35,000 towels, representing 35 years of service to the Steelers. Later that season when the team advanced to Super Bowl XL, many Steeler fans wanted Cope to come out of retirement just to call "The one for the thumb." Cope declined partially for health reasons and partially to enjoy retirement.

Cope died of respiratory failure at a Mt. Lebanon nursing home on the morning of February 27, 2008.^[14][27] In the days following his death, many ceremonies were held in his honor, including the local sporting events of the Pittsburgh Panthers college basketball team.^[28] Two days after his death, hundreds of people gathered in heavy snow in front of thePittsburgh City Hall to honor Cope; included in the ceremony was one minute of silent Terrible Towel waving.^[29] His funeral, which was held on February 29, 2008, was private.^[30] Due to Cope's large impact on the Pittsburgh area, Bob Smizik, a local sportswriter wrote,

List of awards and honors[link]

Cope received many awards and honors, including:

• 1963 - E.P. Dutton Prize for "Best Magazine Sportswriting in the Nation" for his portrayal of Cassius Clay^[4]
• 1987 - Named as a noted literary achiever by Hearst Corporation^[4]
• 2004 - His profile of Howard Cosell was selected as one of 50 all-time classic articles by Sports Illustrated^[4]
• 2005 - Became the first pro football announcer elected to the Radio Hall of Fame^[4]
• 2005 - Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award for long-time exceptional contributions to pro football in television and radio^[25]
• Held the title of "special contributor" at Sports Illustrated^[4]
• Served as a board member of the Pittsburgh chapter of the Autism Society of America and the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix^[4]
• Co-founded the Myron Cope/Foge Fazio Golf Tournament for Autistic Children^[4]
• The only broadcaster appointed to the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Board of Selectors, serving for 10 years^[4]
• The asteroid 7835 Myroncope was named in his honor in 2008.^[31][32]

Bibliography[link]

• Brown, Jim; Myron Cope (1964). Off My Chest. Doubleday. pp. 230.  (Jim Brown's autobiography)
• Cope, Myron (1968). Broken Cigars. Prentice-Hall. pp. 275.  (collection of articles)
• Cope, Myron (1970). The Game that was: The Early Days of Pro Football (edition 1 ed.). World Publishing Company. pp. 294. 
• Cope, Myron (1974). The Game that was: An Illustrated Account of the Tumultuous Early Days of Pro Football (edition 2 ed.). Crowell. pp. 253. ISBN 0-690-00586-5. 
• Cope, Myron (2002). Double Yoi! (edition 1 ed.). Sports Publishing, L.L.C.. pp. 229. ISBN 1-58261-548-9. (autobiography)
• Cope, Myron (2006). Double Yoi! (edition 2 ed.). Sports Publishing, L.L.C.. pp. 229. ISBN 1-59670-069-6. (autobiography)

References[link]