Sandy Grossman, innovative director of televised sporting events, dead at 78
Sandy Grossman, who aspired to be a broadcaster but instead became an Emmy-winning director of N.F.L. games — most prominently those called by John Madden and Pat Summerall — died on Wednesday at his home in Boca Raton, Fla. He was 78.
Grossman, who won eight Emmys, directed broadcasts of 10 Super Bowls, 18 N.B.A. finals, 5 Stanley Cup finals and Olympic hockey.
SNIP
Grossman started working with Madden and Summerall on CBS in 1981 — a partnership that lasted 21 seasons, the last of them on Fox. The relationship was symbiotic. In the days before a game, Madden would insist that the crews watch coaches’ films of the teams, a practice that helped Grossman anticipate the types of shots that best illustrated Madden’s commentary.
"Sandy became like a defensive coordinator, the way he looked at stuff," Madden said in an interview Thursday. "If they go slot, if they bunch their receivers on one side and they break off — he had a plan for everything, and when it happens, boom, boom, boom, you’re right there. Sandy took the knowledge he got from the film and transferred it to the cameramen, who carried it over to the game."
LINK: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/04/sports/sandy-grossman-maestro-of-nfl-on-tv-dies-at-78.html?_r=0
His approach made the NFL eminently more watchable and entertaining, and helped fuel the game's popularity IMO.