CONDITION:
Brand new, publisher overstock. May have light shelf wear and/or a remainder mark. If you need more than 1 copy please let me know as I often have extras on hand that are not included in the "available quantity for sale".
BOOK DETAILS:
- ISBN-13: 9780316421102
- ISBN-10: 0316421103
- Publisher: Little Brown and Company
- Publish Date: May 2019
- Page Count: 240
- Dimensions: 9.3 x 5.9 x 1.2 inches
- Format: Hardcover/Hardback
BOOK OVERVIEW:
Timed for the 50th anniversary of his legendary Super Bowl "Guarantee,"
the NFL icon who first brought show business to sports is finally ready
to tell the story of his spectacular rise and reign as "Broadway Joe,"
to his struggles with alcoholism, to the redemption he found in god
later in life.
"I guarantee it." Three days before the now-legendary 1969 Super
Bowl III, quarterback Joe Namath promised the nation that he could lead
the New York Jets to a clear underdog victory against the seemingly
invincible Baltimore Colts. In what has been remembered as perhaps the
biggest upset in football history, that game catapulted the young
superstar to not only football immortality but also into a stratosphere
of celebrity the likes of which only a few athletes have ever achieved.
But before all that, 'Broadway Joe' was just Joe, the small-town kid
from Beaver Falls, PA with an arm so impressive that it caught the
attention of University of Alabama's Bear Bryant. Following a knockout
four-year run at Alabama, Namath was ceremoniously courted by every
professional football team. Yet it was the New York Jets who offered a
then-unheard-of figure, $427,000, to bring football's Golden Boy to the
upstart AFL. In an era of raucous rebellion, shifting social norms, and
political upheaval, Namath's roughish charm quickly became symbolic of
the commercialization of pro sports, while his progressive views on race
further pioneered integration on the gridiron. By 26, with a Super Bowl
title under his belt, Namath was quite simply the most famous athlete
alive.
Although his legacy has been cemented in the history books,
underneath the eccentric yet charismatic personality was a player
plagued by injury and addiction, both sex and substance. Doctors treated
him with a stiff cocktail of painkillers, some strong enough to
literally knock out a horse, and Namath matched these prescriptions with
his own medication, Johnnie Walker, which fueled countless nights that
began alongside the likes of Sinatra and Mantle, and ended in bed with
the moment's most fashionable model or actress.
When his injuries permanently derailed his career, he turned to
Hollywood and endorsements, not to mention a tumultuous marriage with
Deborah Mays and fleeting bouts of sobriety. Now 74 years old and dry,
Namath is finally ready to pull back the curtain on a life that might
have seemed charmed, but in reality was anything but. Rich with personal
history, private insights, and deep reflection, Namath is prepared to
reveal the man behind the icon in this memoir that is as much about
football and fame as it is about addiction, fatherhood, and coming to
terms with one's own mortality.