Joe Namath
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Object Details
- Artist
- Ben Ross, 1916 - 2004
- Sitter
- Joe Namath, born 31 May 1943
- Exhibition Label
- Born Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania
- "Win or lose," declared Time in 1972, "Namath generates more high-voltage excitement than any other player in the game." Former Alabama star quarterback Joe Namath launched his professional football career in 1965 by sparking a bidding war between teams in the upstart American Football League (AFL) and the dominant National Football League (NFL). When the AFL's struggling New York Jets won Namath's services with a three-year contract for an unprecedented $427,000, many questioned whether any player was worth such a sum. By mid-season, however, the brash young man with the "bazooka arm" and the lightning-quick release was the Jets' starting quarterback, and the doubters fell silent. His greatest success came in 1969 when, after declaring he could "guarantee" victory, Namath led the underdog Jets to a stunning Super Bowl upset of the NFL's Baltimore Colts. By combining gridiron dazzle with plenty of off-the-field flash, "Broadway Joe" became pro football's first mega-celebrity quarterback.
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
- 1965
- Object number
- NPG.93.343
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Copyright
- © Ben Ross
- Type
- Photograph
- Medium
- Gelatin silver print
- Dimensions
- Image: 34.2 x 26.8 cm (13 7/16 x 10 9/16")
- Sheet: 35.3 x 27.9 cm (13 7/8 x 11")
- Mat: 71.1 x 55.9 cm (28 x 22")
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Exterior
- Equipment\Sports Equipment\Football
- Joe Namath: Male
- Joe Namath: Sports and Recreation\Athlete\Football
- Joe Namath: Communications\Broadcast Journalist\Sportscaster
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.93.343
- Usage of Metadata (Object Detail Text)
- Usage conditions apply
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4f603cb68-4758-452e-8586-bd1e4f245660
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