In Honor Of Jimmy

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It was last night as I was feeling tired and ready to go to bed that I turned on the TV and saw a most interesting documentary on ESPN Classic regarding a man whom I remember well from my time in America. The man's real name being "Dimetrios Georgios Synodinos" though he was and probably is still better known as Jimmy "The Greek". In writing this however I must confess that Jimmy "The Greek" was a man who in all frankness, I at first did not like very much if at all. This due to his personality and his almost never picking the teams I wanted to win yet with time I did learn to appreciate his insight in to the sports he talked about and I can even honestly say; that him as a person as well.

Jimmy being a man who really looked deeply in to the sports he covered and gave reasons based on knowledge of the game as opposed to just saying that a team was favor to win because they were better and leaving it at that. Jimmy making it apparent that he understood sports and knew about the players who played the game and though I did not always agree with his predictions; I could see his logic which was always clear as to why he had picked one team over another. Jimmy's logic being the one I always followed along with what he had said about both teams even if at the end of it all, I sometimes though not that often; saw things differently than he did.

Of course like with any sport, one never really knows with a 100% certainty before hand whose going to win but I would say that Jimmy "The Greek" allowed me to see a lot about American football through his analyzing the games that he talked about in a way which I found not only educational but fascinating. This due to the way, he did not tend to over simplify things but could tell in a manner which was clear and to the point; what were a team's strengths and weaknesses. Thus telling what features teams had that would help them win a game while not leaving out those which perhaps could be taken advantage of by the other team and always I might add without prejudice but rather with impartiality. Jimmy of course never forgetting what strengths a weaker team had that might win the game for them. I, for my part must even say that my articles connected to football (of the kind played in South America and Europe) are very much influenced by Jimmy the Greek's style of analyzing a game, as well as both teams from all angles and picking the team he felt was more likely to win which of course like in life; is not always the way it goes. I for instance picking correctly on many of last year's world cup matches though I frankly speaking did not see Spain winning the world cup though I never ruled it out as a possibility.

Looking back on it, I can say that Jimmy "The Greek" was the one who taught me how not to be emotional when picking which team to bet on. This meaning that though my sympathies may lye with one team, I should bet on the team which was the strongest even if they were not necessarily the team I wanted to win. Of course, it was also from Jimmy "The Greek" that I learnt that no matter how favorite a team was or how much I believed or wanted them to win; it was far from being a guarantee that they would win.

As for my relationship with the variety of football I call "American football" (I being one to associate the word "football" with what I grew up in Italy), it started back in 1978 when I saw a film about the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders which I really did not pay much attention to apart from its being on TV and having something to do with the sport of football. Football being something which I absolutely knew nothing about at the time, not even the rules nor the object of the game. Of course having been born in America and lived there for sometime, I knew that it was a sport played with colorful helmets; where big guys tackled each other in order to get at a very oddly shaped ball. This pretty much being the extent of my knowledge concerning American football apart from a player whose name was O.J. Simpson; who I only knew from a drawing a school mate of mine made of him for a drawing contest we both entered. I not even being fully aware of what exactly it was that Simpson did on the football field.

It was however this "cheerleader" film which my sister was watching at the time which let me see that there was a football team in the States called the "Dallas Cowboys". It being that very year that both my sisters and my brothers-in-law got together to watch the Super Bowl between the Dallas Cowboys and the Pittsburg Steelers. This a game which the Dallas Cowboys in fact lost by 35-31 but did manage to come back after trailing 35-17 to at least make the game interesting. I even remember the enthusiasm, my Spanish brother-in-law felt as he watched the game though for my part; I did not even watch a second of the game but did listen to his occasional report on how things were going. This while I worked on a book report for school in the next room.

I, for what concerned me was 11 years old at the time and basically only enjoyed the game of European football (which for some strange reason in America was known as soccer) which I played and watched on television. European football being not only the only sport I knew anything about but played which prompted me to want to buy myself a pair of shoes for playing it. This being a coincidence that both sports apart from having the same name or at least as far I was concerned; also used the same type of footwear. This being something I found out about when I went to buy football shoes and the salesman tried to sell me a pair which he said were worn by some guy named "Roger Staubach"; whom I really had no idea who he was. It being at that moment that the salesman gave me a very strange look and said if I knew about the super bowl which I told him that the Steelers had won it by 35-31. The salesman however wanting to make a sale asked if I knew who had lost in the super bowl to which I said "Yes, the Dallas Cowboys" to which he said well "Staubach" plays for the Cowboys. Of course to me this meant absolutely nothing as I can imagine what it would have meant to him if I had told him who Kempes or Rossi was. The shoes did look and feel good and above all were not expensive which made me buy them even if they were not made to play the sort of football which I wanted them for though I could not see any difference between these and those which were. I had also learnt who Roger Staubach was which for some reason stuck in my mind.

The summer came and the summer went and I must say that the football shoes I bought turned out to be very good for the kind of football which is played in Europe. I being able to play well with them and control the ball as well as with any other and after some time I even forget that they were not made specially for the sport I was using them for. It was however as can be expected after the summer that the fall came along with Thanksgiving which we spent at my sister's house. All was as it always had been yet for some reason the television set was on a football game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Oilers. Of course if I knew very little about the Cowboys apart from their name and that they had cheerleaders; I knew even less about the Houston Oilers. Of course, I did figure out that they too were from Texas given their name but apart from that, I really knew nothing about them yet I started watching the game to at least try to figure out what the aim of the game was. This apart from not having anything else to do or watch.

As it, at first simply appeared to be a bunch of big men simply trying to jump on top of the one who was carrying this strange looking ball which I even remember having once as a small child but did not know exactly what one was supposed to do with it. It however was after a few minutes that I figured out for myself that there was point to everything they did or perhaps like Shakespeare said "a method to the madness". The aim of the game clearly being to go down the field by either passing the ball or running it and in to the other team's end zone for touchdowns which were worth six point after which an extra point made it seven. There being the possibility that if one did not get a touchdown; one could get a field goal which was worth three points.

It also did not take me long to pick up on certain expressions such as 1st and 10 or 2nd and whatever along with other details of the game yet I as a stranger to the game; also noticed other things many Americans perhaps had never really stopped to think about. The first of these being why they called it "football" in the first place. This being a sport where the kicking part of the game was clearly not as important as the part one did with one's hands; such as throwing or catching or running the ball. In fact, most of the play involving the use of the hands rather than the feet with the kicking part only comprising at most 5 % of the game in either punts, kick-offs, extra points or field goals yet the sport was called football. This like the game I grew with in Europe though it did not involve the use of the feet as much yet regardless of reason such was this sport called.

Another thing I noticed was that this was a game that to a certain extent was unfair to some of the players; who actually never got to touch the ball during the game. This being the case with those who played on defense as they almost never got to touch the ball while those on the offensive line, in fact never did touch the ball; unless they picked it up after somebody fumbled it. Of course in European football not everybody got equal time with the ball but at least every player got to touch the ball at some point during the game.

I must say that I can not claim to have particularly liked the game or disliked it but it was much more interesting than I had previously thought and a lot less boring than baseball. I also wanted to see if Staubach (a most odd name which I had never heard before or since) was as good as the man who sold me my football shoes had told me he was; not that that was even the reason I bought them. Of course, I also wanted to see the Cowboys play because I had seen a film about their cheerleaders.

Another reason for my wanting to see a game of "American football" was that I did know it to be a very popular sport or at least in America which did make me curious to see what it was all about. This so when I heard talk about the sport or references to it; I would at least understand what was being discussed. As for the game, it started with Roger Staubach throwing a long touchdown pass which put his team up by 7-0. This being a most impressive play in the way he managed to be so accurate with his pass yet I soon saw that it was the way most quarterbacks threw the ball.

It however was on the next play that something happened which I do not think I will ever forget. It was a player by the name of Earl Campbell who though not nearly as big as some of the other players on the field managed to run over 50 yards or so for a touchdown of his own. It really being amazing the way he managed to get by so many players with force yet with a will and determination to include speed as well as the ability to find open spaces between Cowboy players. All of which were also fast and trying to do what ever they could to bring him down. Staubach had been impressive but not as much as Earl Campbell, who simply seemed to be an unstoppable force of nature in one single player. Earl Campbell being very competitive on the field yet when showed on the sideline appeared to be friendly and likeable as he waved to the audience.

The game was interesting and as it continued, the same thing (or at least according to my memory) repeated itself right away. Roger Staubach threw another long distance touchdown pass and Early Campbell ran for an even longer touchdown to tie up the score at 14 a piece. I must admit that before this game, I did not have the slightest clue as to who Earl Campbell was yet it was during this particular Thanksgiving day game that he really impressed me. As for the game, the Oilers would go on to win it which is the way I hoped it would end yet apart from this; I can say this was the first football game I ever saw.

In all this I would also find out on that day that it was a tradition for the Cowboys and Lions to play on every thanksgiving day. This seeming strange to me and still is that a national Holiday which has nothing to do with football; would be reserved exclusively for two teams to play on but that is the way it was and probably still is.

The following day after truly enjoying the game though more because of Earl Campbell than anything else; I bought a copy of the New York Post to read about the game I had seen. It being written that the game had really been a match-up not so much between two teams but two players. These players being Campbell and Staubach with Campbell having come out on top. It however was after having read about the game which had been that I decided to read about upcoming games.

This being the first time, I saw what I would eventually find out was a spread sheet of which teams were the favorites and the underdogs and by how many points. I, naturally understood what a favorite as opposed to an underdog was yet I was clueless to that the number between the teams was which was marked as points and what purpose if any did it have. I however intrigued by what I saw asked my father, who actually tended to bet on football games and basketball what that number was. My father explaining to me that if a team was favorite by 7 points, then they had to win by 8 points or more for those who bet on them to win and if they won by 7, then it was as if the game had ended in a draw and if they won by 6 points or less or lost; then those who bet on that team had lost their wager.

This seeming like an amazing system indeed though it was inspired by the fact that in contrast to the football I grew up with, American football along with basketball could make one team a favorite to win by as many as 18 or more points. This naturally being impossible with European football since matches usually ended at 2-1 or 3-1 or scores of the sort; it being almost never that a team won by a difference of 4 goals or more. This making sports like football and basketball ideal for betting on since with a good point spread some might risk betting on a team which practically stood no chance of winning yet this did not matter to the person betting on them. This given how all he or she needed was for that team to lose by less points than the spread to win the bet.

My father however telling in this conversation that there was some guy who was called Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder who set such odds for gamblers to follow. My father telling me that Jimmy "The Greek" was the man who in America not only decided who was favorite but by how much yet not only in American football but in most sports played in America such as baseball, boxing, hockey, basketball and most importantly or at least as far as my father was concerned; horse racing. My father telling me that the Greek's tips had made him a lot of money with the way he was able to analyze things in dept and logic which was never based on emotion but reason. This so typical of other great Greeks who had given the world logic itself.

It was at this point that I became very much interested in not only football but Jimmy "The Greek". I even finding out that he in fact was Greek as his real name was "Dimetrios Georgios Synodinos" which was just about as Greek as one could get. Dimetrios's family coming from the Greek island of Chios in the Aegean Sea yet what interested me more was how he was able to with so much accuracy establish the guidelines on who was the favorite and by how much. This even making me curious about sports wagering which I would go on to do on American football games as often as possible. It being fun as well as at times profitable to bet on games and it did not take long for me to find a bookie whose minimum bet was only ten dollars and who only took a 50 cent commission but that is another matter.

The weekend after Thanksgiving came and I woke up extra early to watch the NFL on CBS and who should I see predicating the games but Jimmy "The Greek". The NFL today being a pre-game show full of information regarding the upcoming games of the day. This show perhaps not being so interesting with people, who seemed to lack anything regarding personality or charisma yet at least it was informative. Naturally Jimmy "the Greek" being the one who did not just limit himself to talking about what happened but analyzing why and how.

As for the other people on the show, I remember a woman by the name of Phyllis George; who was clearly an Anglo Saxon in not having any facial features to make her attractive or even interesting for that matter yet she had been Miss America. This perhaps being her only qualification to be on the show apart from representing the typical housewife, who so much wants to watch sports with her husband and children but for the most part knows nothing about what she is watching; apart from who wins or loses. Phyllis George also lacking in the personality department which would have made her at least interesting to watch even if she did very little apart from introducing the show, reading the scores and agreeing with everybody.

I also remember another stiff bore on "The NFL Today" by the name of Brent Musburger, whom I referred to as "Mouseburger" given his lack of personality or anything which even remotely resembled wit or knowledge concerning the sports he covered. "Mouseberger" seeming like somebody who had no opinion of his own and waited to hear what others were saying so he could go along with them. This perhaps being the reason he had gotten on the show apart from perhaps having that typically Anglo Saxon shyness about him which at least does not disturb. It being Mouseberger, who several years later took advantage of Jimmy "The Greek's" dismissal over so called "racist statements" to make several not only untrue but unfair comments about the man he had once worked with. There was also another man on this pre-game show whose name was Irv Cross, who seemed pleasant enough and actually knew something about the sport he covered though perhaps was on the show more for the studio not to appear racist than anything else.

Jimmy "The Greek" being the one who explained everything and seemed to know everything. The Greek being typical of the expression "I may not always be right but I am never wrong". As it was from him that I learnt how so much of what one sees on the field of play is influenced by that which one almost never sees on it but has just as much importance as what one actually does. It being this feature about him which I must admit to not liking at first but eventually getting used to and even learning to appreciate.

I also remember that particular Sunday as being the first one I spent watching football games yet was very much disappointed to find out that I would always have to watch the Jets and the Giants. This due to their being the local teams and CBS and NBC having an obligation to broadcast their games when ever they played on Sundays. As for the games, I must say that I did find them interesting and even enjoyed watching them though what I really liked most of all was getting the results of other games and even seeing the touchdowns as they came.

The game was not so bad though I would have preferred to watch other teams besides the Jets and Giants yet what I really could not stand was a certain loud mouth commentator by the name of John Madden. This a man who for some reason felt the need to make his own sound effects when ever he described plays by shouting "wham" or "pow" in a similar fashion of the Batman serial of the late sixties. John Madden, a man who apart from being loud and obnoxious had a tendency to constantly repeat "this player is thinking this or that" as if he could possibly know the thoughts of a player on the field. I also seeing that John Madden was stubborn enough to have a play repeated as many times as it took for him to make a point which he was usually wrong about anyway.

It was also on that Sunday that I saw football on NBC and actually enjoyed it more than I did on CBS. NBC commentators like Bryant Gumbel having infinitely more interesting personalities than what I called the "sticks in the mud" on CBS with Jimmy "The Greek" being the sole exception. All of which making me wish that Jimmy "The Greek" could be on NBC which would have made them the perfect station yet unfortunately that was not the case.

With time and after seeing a lot more games in the next few season's, I started liking other players such as Jim Plunket, Vince Ferragamo, Ron Jaworski, John Elway, Mark Gastineau and a few others; whose names escape me at the moment. I however despite liking some players, I must say that my favorites definitely were Joe Montana and Earl Campbell though perhaps more Campbell than Montana. Earl Campbell in a strange way reminding me of the great military leader, Hannibal. It being Campbell, who like Hannibal had enormous ability and talent yet at the end did not win the big one simply because he was on a side which given its weakness was bound to lose. It being Hannibal who at the end was defeated by Rome in the same way in which Earl Campbell never went on to play in the super bowl; much less win it.

Looking back on football, I can say it was a sport which I did not really like all that much or at least not as much the football I grew with in South America and Europe yet I did like certain individual players which made the game worth watching. It being a case that when those players retired I lost interest in the sport like I also lost interest in basketball when Bird retired or in formula one after Ayrton Senna died.

As for Jimmy "The Greek" I did continue to follow his advice when ever placing a bet on either a football game or pugilistic event and though I did not always agree with his choice of winner; I could see his reasoning as being sound. This despite my not always seeing eye to eye with the Greek on the eventual outcome. I even remember a certain Mr. Fuji saying that Jimmy "The Greek" had picked Piper to beat Hulk Hogan in a wrestling match which did seem most odd yet it shows how big his popularity.

My name is Gianni Truvianni, author of many an article to be found on the internet along with the book "New York's Opera Society". My works also include the books "What Should Not Matter", "Love Your Sister" and several others which still remain unpublished though I am presently looking to change this.