Pittsburgh Steelers Fans Wave Terrible Towel
Sports Broadcaster Myron Cope Created Waving Yellow Towels in 1975
The Terrible Towel, a small bright yellow dish-towel sized piece of terry cloth with black letters, has become the driving symbol for enthusiastic Pittsburgh Steelers fans since 1975.
As noted in a New York Times article by John Branch (January 29, 2009) “For Terrible Towels, a Wonderful Legacy”, the image of Pittsburgh as the gritty steel town with its raucous fans was not a place that would choose to wave pom-poms.
Who Created the Terrible Towel
Myron Cope, a notoriously opinionated local Pittsburgh sports announcer, introduced the idea when he asked fans to bring yellow or gold towels to Three Rivers Stadium to wave in the air when the Steelers were playing in the conference championships in 1975. The idea caught on - and became an institution. Since that time there have been hundreds of thousands of Terrible Towels sold to fans, many of them commemorating Steelers conference and Super Bowl victories.
Born Myron Kopelman in Pittsburgh in 1929, Cope’s unusually nasal voice of Pittsburgh sports broadcasting could be recognized as soon as he spoke. Cope was hired by the Steelers in 1970 and remained the voice of the championship franchise until his retirement in 2005 following major health problems. Cope was inducted into both the Radio Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Who Owns the Rights to the Terrible Towel
According to Branch’s article, in 1996 Myron Cope gave the rights to the Terrible Towel to the Allegheny Valley School, an agency that provides housing and services to the severely disabled. Cope’s son, who is severely mentally retarded and autistic, has been a resident of the school since 1982 when he was a teen.
The Pittsburgh Steelers handle the sale of the Terrible Towels and send a check for tens of thousands of dollars to the Allegheny Valley School each month.
Pittsburgh Steelers Football Fans Wave Yellow Terrible Towel at Heinz Field
When the Terrible Towel was created by Cope in 1975 for the playoff games, the Pittsburgh Steelers were playing at Three Rivers Stadium. The towel survived the demolition of Three Rivers Stadium in February 2001 and still creates a frenzied spectacle at the new Heinz Field that opened in August 2001. Cope was able to see the Terrible Towel remain a part of the Pittsburgh Steelers through many playoff games, Super Bowl victories, and the transition to a new field before his death in February 2008.
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