By F. Dale Lolley, Staff writer

dlolley@observer-reporter.com

Longtime Pittsburgh Steelers color analyst Myron Cope died Wednesday morning at a nursing home in Mt. Lebanon after a lengthy battle with respiratory problems and heart failure. He was 79.

Born Myron Sydney Kopelman, Jan. 23, 1929, in Pittsburgh, Cope would go on to achieve acclaim as the "voice" of the Steelers on the team's broadcasts for 35 years before his retirement prior to the 2005 season.

His tenure, which began in 1970, coincided with the team's rise from an NFL bottom feeder to powerhouse and earned him many honors, including being the only football broadcaster to gain induction into the National Radio Hall of Fame.

"His memorable voice and unique broadcasting style became synonymous with Steelers football," Steelers President Art Rooney II said Wednesday. "They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery, and no Pittsburgh broadcaster was impersonated more than Myron."

A graduate of Taylor Allderdice High School and the University of Pittsburgh, Cope's first job upon graduation was as a sports writer for the Erie Daily Times. He would later leave the Daily Times to become a freelance writer for Sports Illustrated and the Saturday Evening Post, among others.

His profiles of Howard Cosell, Muhammad Ali and Roberto Clemente for Sports Illustrated are still considered some of the best pieces to appear in that magazine. Cope also penned six books.

"I made it as a writer," Cope said at his retirement in 2005. "People think I went into broadcasting for the money. It wasn't so. I am a writer. That's what I was trained to be and what I wanted to be most and what I have a gift for. I would like to be remembered as a pretty decent writer."

But the diminutive writer - Cope stood just 5-foot-4 - would gain even greater acclaim for his voice.

In 1970, the Steelers were preparing for their move from Forbes Field to their new home at Three Rivers Stadium and were looking to leave KDKA - where they took a back seat to the Pittsburgh Pirates - for a new broadcasting partner.

At the time, Cope was doing sports commentaries for WTAE-TV, and Steelers publicity director Joe Gordon suggested that Cope be used as a color analyst with play-by-play man Jack Fleming.

The pairing not only worked, it lasted for more than two decades before Fleming's retirement in 1993. Cope finished off the final years of his service with the team alongside current play-by-play man Bill Hillgrove.

Cope's bombastic style and flamboyance became a hit not only among Steelers fans, but also among the players.

"The first time I got a good deal of playing time came in a game against Houston," said John Banaszak, a defensive lineman with the Steelers from 1975 through 1981. "It was around the time of the anniversary of the Marines. I went out and had a good game and was given a game ball. Myron went on TV the next night and in his commentary, he said the Marines had landed, me being a former Marine. I remember thinking that I had made it because Myron had talked about me. And that's the way it was. ... When he talked about you on his commentary, you had to have done something special."

Cope, who did his popular sports talk show on radio for 23 years, is perhaps best known around the country as the inventor of the Terrible Towel.

"Whether it was his work as a broadcaster or his creation of the Terrible Towel, Myron played an important part in the Steelers game-day experience," said Art Rooney II.

Asked by executives at WTAE radio to come up with a gimmick to help get fans excited about a playoff game in 1976, Cope came up with the idea of having fans wave yellow towels. The idea stuck, and Cope's Terrible Towels have been waved at every Steelers game since.

In 1996, Cope turned over the profits from the sales of the towels, handing the trademark to Allegheny Valley School, a facility for the mentally challenged in Coraopolis where his son, Daniel, who has autism, has been a resident for the last two decades.

Asked how he would like to be remembered at his retirement in 2005, Cope deadpanned, "Well, I'll tell you, I've often thought, when I kick the bucket, the story will say, 'Creator of Towel, dead.'"

He also was known for his catch phrases, exclamations and nicknames.

Cope helped coin the term "Immaculate Reception" for Franco Harris' last-second touchdown off a deflected pass in a 1972 playoff game against Oakland at the suggestion of a caller to his postgame radio show.

And his nickname for longtime coach Chuck Noll, "The Emperor Chaz," is the only such name that ever stuck with the Hall of Fame coach.

Big plays during a game merited a "Yoi," from Cope, while very big plays would get a "Double Yoi."

Cope also had nicknames for opposing teams, such as the Cleve Brownies, Cinci Bungles, Baltimore Birdies or Washington Redfaces.

Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder once stormed into the broadcast booth during a preseason game demanding Cope call his team its proper name, a request Cope denied.

Cope's struggles with his health began not long before his retirement and continued throughout it. He was in and out of the hospital with pneumonia and bronchitis - not helped by his lifelong love of smoking - and also had a cancerous growth removed from his throat in 2005 that robbed his trademark voice of its usual strength.

But he remained interested in the Steelers throughout.

"His contributions and dedication to Steelers football were incredible," said team Chairman Dan Rooney. "His creation of the Terrible Towel has developed into a worldwide symbol that is synonymous with Steelers football. He also helped immortalize the most famous play in NFL history when he popularized the term 'Immaculate Reception.'

"Myron was a very passionate person who truly cared about others and dedicated much of his personal time to help numerous charities. Our prayers and deepest sympathies go out to the entire Cope family. Myron will remain in our thoughts and will forever be a member of the Steelers family."

Cope's wife, Mildred, died in 1994. In addition to his son, he is survived by a daughter, Elizabeth. Another daughter, Martha Ann, died shortly after birth.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

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