Art Donovan
Art Donovan was born in New York City, New York, United States on June 5th, 1924 and is the Football Player. At the age of 89, Art Donovan biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 89 years old, Art Donovan has this physical status:
Arthur James Donovan Jr. (June 5, 1924 – August 4, 2013), nicknamed the Bulldog, was an American football defensive tackle who competed for three National Football League (NFL) clubs, most notably the Baltimore Colts.
In 1968, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Early life
Art Donovan, born June 5, 1924, was the son of Arthur Donovan, Sr., a boxing referee, and Professor Mike Donovan, the world middleweight boxing champion in the 1870s.
Art in the Bronx attended Mount Saint Michael Academy. In 1942, he was awarded a scholarship to the University of Notre Dame, but he was forced to join the United States Marine Corps after one semester, enlisting in April 1943. He served four years as a cadet, as well as WWII in the Pacific Theater. He was involved in some of the war's most fiercest conflicts, including the Battle of Luzon and the Battle of Iwo Jima. He also served as an ammo-loader on the aircraft carrier USS San Jacinto and as a member of the 3rd Marine Division. His citations, which included the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal and the Philippine Liberation Medal, would later earn him a spot in the United States Marine Corps Sports Hall of Fame, becoming the first pro football player to be honoured. He completed his college years at Boston College after the war ended.
Professional football career
Donovan spent three seasons with a club that went out of business. He started with the first Baltimore Colts, which folded after his rookie season in 1950, and the New York Yanks in 1951, and the Dallas Texans in 1952. Donovan played with the Texans franchise after the Texans franchise folded in 1953 and became the second Baltimore Colts franchise. He played for many years in an outstanding defense and was named to five straight Pro Bowls from 1953 to 1957. In 1958 and 1959, the Colts claimed back-to-back championships. In 1968, he was admitted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Donovan played in what many believe to be one of football's most important games, the 1958 NFL Championship Game between the Colts and the New York Giants, among other things. On December 28, 1958, the two teams met in a 17-17 draw. Since it was the championship game, it went into overtime, the first NFL game to do so. The game, which was seen by 40 million viewers on national television, has been dubbed the "greatest game ever played." During overtime, Donovan made a crucial tackle by stopping the Giants and allowing Johnny Unitas to lead the Colts on an 80-yard scoring drive to win the game. Donovan was one of 12 Hall of Fame players to participate, six of whom were Colts.
Post-playing career
In 1987, Fatso, his autobiography, appeared. He was praised as a jovial and amusing character throughout his playing career, and after retiring as a player, he capitalized on his popularity with television and speaking appearances. He owned and operated a country club near Baltimore. Donovan also appeared on Late Night with David Letterman, sharing a variety of his playing days and interviews with other footballers with whom he competed with and against in his time. He related a tale that he played without a helmet, but no one on football cards is shown without a helmet. Donovan's No. 1 was worn by a letterman. In the well-known Super Bowl XLI commercial starring Oprah Winfrey and Jay Leno, 70 Colts jerseys were worn in the iconic Super Bowl XLI commercial. Donovan has appeared on numerous television shows on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
In the episode "Space, Geeks, and Johnny Unitas," Donovan guest-starred on Nickelodeon's The Adventures of Pete and Pete. In 1994, he appeared as a guest commentator at the WWF King of the Ring tournament. Donovan's appearance at the competition would be noted among wrestling fans for being notably uninformed about the product as well as general confusion, such as repeatedly asking how much money certain wrestlers weighed. He was joined by Gorilla Monsoon on play-by-play, who inadvertently referred to Donovan as "Art O'Donnell" and Randy Savage.
On WJ-TV in Baltimore, he co-anchored Braase, Donovan, Davis, and Fans, as well as Colt teammate Ordell Braase. The trio explored Art Donovan's fabled stories more than modern NFL football, but the program received high marks in its time slot. He was also a pitchman for the Maryland State Lottery and ESPN.