- George Plimpton (1966)Every August for the past few years, HBO has produced a short run weekly documentary on NFL training camp called Hard Knocks. The documentary style series follows a team during their summer camp and preseason football games. It is an entertaining series, though a common criticism is that players and coaches behave differently knowing the cameras are rolling, so it might take away a bit of authenticity.
The show covers all aspects of training camp from arrival to the dreaded cut down days; injuries, contract disputes, fan interactions, rookie hazings, field drills, film review, and more. You see the raw emotion and physicality of men competing for jobs, most of it based on merit, because, let's face reality, it is difficult to cut a guaranteed multi-million dollar player because a college free agent shows flashes of talent.
The show is quite popular with the football faithful and even the casual fan as they get a rare glimpse inside the coaches' offices, the locker rooms, and the front office. During the season, nearly all of the exposure to this is funneled through press conferences where anyone who pays attention could write the question and answers before they're asked and answered.
In the 1960s however, there was no summer HBO documentary for professional football, which is one of the things that makes Paper Lion so special. This is a piece of Americana. We get a decent look, through the eyes of author George Plimpton at the Detroit Lions training camp in 1963. Mr. Plimpton, the founder (and at the time, editor) of the Paris Review, isn't much of a sports figure. Though he did write a series of books where he participated in various sports. Paper Lion was the second; his first was about his attempt to pitch to Major League all-stars.
The Lions, if you follow football, are usually not a very competitive team. But back in the early 60s, the Lions were perennial powerhouses. They went to four NFL Championship games in the 50s, winning three of them. Of course, the Green Bay Packers were the team of the decade in 60s, winning seven championships, including the first two Super Bowls.
So, for Mr. Plimpton to be able to attend training camp, play in a scrimmage, and suit up for a preseason game, was a big deal. He covers the territory just like Hard Knocks does today, though he refrains from letting most of the expletives loose when relaying the banter among the players. At times, it seemed like Mr. Plimpton's memory invoked his own voice. There were some sentences that were structured by a Harvard graduate being passed off as the utterances of some midwestern blue collar baller. It didn't ring authentic in those cases.
The game has changed a bit, especially in the rules regarding safety. Also the leap in medical technology and knowledge, nutrition, and exercise we have made since the 60s leaves you wondering how anyone survived playing in those days.
The profiles of the players are superb. Morrall and Plum, the QBs are a study in contrasts. Night Train Lane is a gifted hoot, a forerunner of Deion Sanders. Gibbons, Bingaman, Cogdill, and LeBeau, and many others are all given space. Even the missing man, Alex Karras, who was serving a one year suspension for gambling is covered in detail. My favorite player is Harley Sewell, the lineman from Texas. He just seems like a great guy. Read it...I'm not telling you why. He's just ferocious, earnest, and nice. Today a vapid analyst would say, "He's a stand-up guy. A real team player. And he has a great motor!"
The epilogue speaks volumes about the impact that the media and communications technology has had on that most special weekend in the NFL offseason: the draft. Twenty rounds. No breaks. That wouldn't make for good television.
Any NFL fan should read this book. You'll be bothered by some of the tame language and some of the less than compelling anecdotes. The book is a bit dated. But, like getting caught up in whichever team is featured on Hard Knocks, you get caught up in the Lions, even at this temporal distance.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment