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Rosey Grier

 
Artist: Roosevelt Grier
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Walter Johnson, The Gentlemen Four, Porgy & The Monarchs, Junior Lewis, Little Charles & the Sidewinders, Tangeers, Sammy O. Ambrose, Billy Byers, Chuck Jackson
  • Born: July 14, 1932, Cuthbert, GA
  • Genres: Gospel
  • Instrument: Vocals, Performer, Main Performer Representative Album: "Committed"

Biography

Born in Cuthbert, GA, July 14, 1932, big Roosevelt Grier, aka Rosey, has enjoyed a multifaceted career that includes playing high school and college football (Penn State University), pro ball with the New York Giants and with the Los Angeles Rams as one of their historic Fearsome Foursome linemen, recording artist and songwriter, actor -- big and little screen -- politics, and now a minister.

After a stellar career at Penn State, Grier played right tackle for the New York Giants from 1955-1962; the Giants traded him to the Los Angeles Rams in 1963 where he completed the lineup known in football circles as the Fearsome Foursome: Grier, Deacon Jones, Merlin Olson, and Lamar Lundy. He weighed at least 300 pounds, probably more (the Giants' scale only went to 300) and could make tackles from sideline to sideline. A gentle giant, one of Grier's hobbies was needlepoint, the big guy preferred to tackle in a way as to not hurt his opponent. Problems with his weight and a pleasant disposition are the reasons Grier is not in the NFL Hall of Fame.

He started recording while with the Giants in 1959, cutting two singles on A Records: "Sincerely" and "Moonlight in Vermont" in 1960. Cranking out records on a yearly basis, nothing charted, and football remained his bread and butter. 45s on Spindle, Battle, Ric, Youngstown, and two on Liberty Records preceded his most sought-after single, a local/regional hit-and-miss entitled "Pizza Pie Man," an appropriate song for Rosey; it came out on Detroit's D-Town Records in 1966. An album he cut for Ric Records, Soul City, includes his two Ric singles: "Fool, Fool, Fool" and "In My Tenement" and fetches at least 85 dollars (in excellent condition) for oldie record sellers.

Snagging a deal with MGM Records, Grier cut two singles in 1967, the self-written "Slow Drag" and a remake of Ben E. King's "Spanish Harlem." He retired from football the same year. Concentrating on recording and acting in earnest, he signed with Amy Records for a trio of singles from 1967-1968: the football related "Who's Got the Ball (Y'all)," another Grier composition "High Society Woman," and "Hard to Forget."

One-offs on AGP ("Bad News"), ABC ("Rat Race"), and United Artists Records ("Bring Back the Time") preceded a two-record deal on A&M Records, spawning two more non starters: "Beautiful People" (1973) and "If You Hit on a Good Lick, Lay on It" (1974). Two more bust outs on Bell and 20th Century Records ended a 25-record career on 14 labels with only minor successes. During the span Grier wrote more than 20 songs, many of which he recorded, on some he collaborated with Clyde Otis, a prolific writer with more than 800 titles registered with B.M.I.

His acting career started while he played with the Rams; he played Gabe Cooper on the Daniel Boone TV Series from 1964-1970. His silver screen credits include Skyjacked, Evil in the Deep, Black Brigade, The Glove: Lethal Terminator, Magnum Force, Oh God, The Longest Day, Mr. Kingstreet's War, Black Shampoo, Roots, The Three Mousekateers, The Son of Monte Cristo, Two-Laned Blacktop, Assault on Princent 13, Double Nickles, and The Executioner.

A minister now, Grier's most crowning achievement and what he's most known for is when he wrestled Sirhan Sirhan to the ground after the assassin fatally wounded Robert Kennedy, June 5, 1968. ~ Andrew Hamilton, All Music Guide
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Actor: Roosevelt Grier
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Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Actors
  • Born: Jul 14, 1932 in Cuthbert, Georgia
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '70s-'90s
  • Major Genres: Drama, Action
  • Career Highlights: The Sophisticated Gents, The Thing with Two Heads, The Glove
  • First Major Screen Credit: The Thing with Two Heads (1972)

Biography

A singer, one of the NFL's greatest football stars, a heroic body guard, an actor, social activist, and a minister of God, Roosevelt "Rosey" Grier has successfully worn many hats in his life. Born on a Georgia peanut farm, one of 13 children, Grier was 22 when he and his family migrated north to New Jersey. A track scholarship allowed Grier entrance into Penn State University. From there, he was recruited into the NFL where he was first a linebacker for the New York Giants and then a tackle for the Los Angeles Rams, where he became part of the legendary "Fearsome Foursome" that included Lamar Lundy, Merlin Olsen, and Deacon Jones. Retiring from football in 1968, Grier became a bodyguard for Senator Robert F. Kennedy during the 1968 presidential election. It was Grier who wrestled alleged assassin Sirhan Sirhan to the ground after the younger Kennedy was shot. Following the end of his football career, Grier turned to the entertainment industry. It was not his first foray into performing as he had signed a contract with a booking agency in 1959 and briefly toured the nightclub circuit as the "300-pound Perry Como." The 6'6" Grier was a popular guest on talk shows and loved talking about one of his favorite hobbies, needlework. In 1969, he made his first stab at an acting career in the failed television pilot Battle Brigade/Carter's Army. He then became a regular on Daniel Boone for its last season. Grier made his feature-film debut in Lee Frost's memorable low-budget exploitation film The Thing With Two Heads (1972), in which Grier's head was grafted alongside the head of racist scientist Ray Milland. It was a decidedly inauspicious beginning for a film career as a supporting actor that, while never prolific, became even more sporadic after 1980. Grier has done his most notable work in television in such miniseries as Roots: The Next Generation (1978) and telemovies as The Sophisticated Gents (1981). A devout Christian since the late '60s, Grier is also a minister who actively preaches all over the world. Between 1994 and 1995, Grier generated controversy when he became the spiritual counselor of accused murderer and former football star O.J. Simpson. Grier claims that during their many sessions together, Simpson never incriminated himself. Grier's philanthropic work includes a place on the board of directors for the Special Olympics, a position he has held since 1968, and a position as an activist director for the Milken Family Foundation, a large philanthropic organization that funds worthy social causes. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Wikipedia: Rosey Grier
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Rosey Grier
Rosey Grier.jpg
Grier at the 2008 Movieguide Faith and Value Awards Gala.
Position(s)
Defensive tackle		 Jersey #(s)
76
Born July 14, 1932 (1932-07-14) (age 77)
Cuthbert, Georgia
Career information
Year(s) 1955–1966
NFL Draft 1955 / Round: 3 / Pick: 31
College Penn State
Professional teams
Career stats
Sacks 44.5
Games 141
Safeties 2
Stats at NFL.com
Career highlights and awards

Roosevelt "Rosey" Grier (born July 14, 1932 in Cuthbert, Georgia) is an American actor, singer, Christian minister, and former professional American football player. He was a notable college football player for Pennsylvania State University who earned a retrospective place in the National Collegiate Athletic Association 100th anniversary list of 100 most influential student athletes. As a professional player, Grier was a member of the original Fearsome Foursome of the Los Angeles Rams and played in the Pro Bowl twice.

After Grier's professional sports career he worked as a bodyguard for Robert Kennedy during the 1968 presidential campaign and was guarding the senator's wife, Ethel Kennedy, during the Robert F. Kennedy assassination. Although unable to prevent that killing, Grier took control of the gun and subdued the shooter, Sirhan Sirhan.

Grier's other activities have been colorful and varied. He hosted his own Los Angeles television show and made approximately 70 guest appearances on various shows during the 1960s and 1970s.

As a singer, Grier first released singles on the A label in 1960, and over the following twenty-five years he continued to record on various labels including Liberty, Ric, MGM and A&M.[1]

Grier is known for his serious pursuit of hobbies not traditionally associated with men such as macrame and needlepoint. He has authored several books, including Rosey Grier's Needlepoint for Men in 1973. Grier became an ordained Christian minister in 1983 and travels as an inspirational speaker. He founded American Neighborhood Enterprises, a nonprofit organization that serves inner city youth.

Contents

Early life

One of twelve children, Grier was named after Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was governor of New York at the time and was elected president later that year.[2] He is also a cousin of actress Pam Grier and uncle of National Hockey League player Mike Grier.

He played high school football at Abraham Clark High School in Roselle, New Jersey.[3]

Professional career

After playing on the defensive line on the Penn State University football team, Grier was drafted as the 31st overall pick in the third round of the 1955 NFL Draft by the New York Giants. He played with the Giants from 1955 to 1962, during which he led the team to a NFL Championship in 1956 and the Eastern Conference Championship in 1958, 1959, 1961 and 1962. Grier was selected for the Pro Bowl in 1956 and 1960, and was named All-Pro at the defensive tackle position in 1956 and 1958–1962.[4]

Grier was then traded in July 1963 to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for defensive tackle John LoVetere and a high future draft pick.[5] He was part of the "Fearsome Foursome", along with Deacon Jones, Merlin Olsen, and Lamar Lundy,[6] often considered one of the best defensive lines in football history, along with the Purple People Eaters of the Minnesota Vikings and the Steel Curtain of the Pittsburgh Steelers. His career ended in 1967 due to a torn achilles tendon.

Post-football career

After his retirement, Grier hosted the Rosey Grier Show on KABC-TV, a weekly half-hour television show discussing community affairs in Los Angeles.[7] Grier served as a bodyguard for his friend, United States senator and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy. He was guarding Ethel Kennedy, the Senator's wife, who was then expecting a child, the night that Kennedy was assassinated in Los Angeles in 1968. Grier and Olympic gold medalist Rafer Johnson heard shots fired ahead of them. Grier grabbed the gun of the assassin, Sirhan Sirhan, and jammed his finger behind the trigger, breaking Sirhan Sirhan's arm. Grier later said, "I grabbed the man's legs and dragged him onto a table. There was a guy angrily twisting the killer's legs and other angry faces coming towards him, as though they were going to tear him to pieces. I fought them off. I would not allow more violence."[8]

Grier was well known in the 1970s for his hobbies of needlepoint and macrame, practices not normally associated with "macho" sports figures. Grier has a daughter from a previous relationship named Sherryl Brown-Tubbs. He later married Bernice Lewis, who had one child, Denise, whom he adopted before getting divorced. He then married Marge Grier whom he divorced in 1978 and remarried in 1980. He had one son, Roosevelt, from that marriage. Roosevelt Junior, also nicknamed "Big Daddy" Grier, eventually enrolled as a student at Boston University, where he played ice hockey.[9]

Movies and television

Grier has appeared in a number of films and television shows. One of the first football stars to successfully transition to acting, he made about 70 television guest appearances, including a role as one of the security contingent in The Brain Killer Affair episode of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964) as well as a cameo playing an athletic trainer in an episode of I Dream of Jeannie. He became a regular cast member on the series Daniel Boone, Make Room for Granddaddy, and The White Shadow.[10] Grier also sang the song "It's All Right to Cry" for the children's album and TV program Free to Be… You and Me. Grier appeared on the television game show Match Game 74 as a panelist. Grier starred in a handful of low-budget features, including The Thing with Two Heads (1972) and "The Glove" (1978). Grier also guest voiced in a 1999 episode of The Simpsons entitled Sunday, Cruddy Sunday. He appeared in a third season episode of Quincy, M.E. called Crib Job, in which he played himself as the director of a group called Giant Step, and 2 episodes in the third season of Kojak (1976) as a bounty hunter called Salathiel Harms.

Rosey also appeared in a TV Series with Claude Akins, filmed in his home state of Georgia, titled MOVIN' ON. The Series ran on NBC TV during the years 1974-75, and the episode 'General Delivery' is available on YouTube.

Community service

Grier has also written a number of books, and now travels the United States as an inspirational speaker, and is cofounder of American Neighborhood Enterprises, an organization that works to help disadvantaged city dwellers buy homes and receive vocational training. Grier was ordained a Christian minister in 1983, and the next year he founded his nonprofit resource center for inner-city teens, developing spiritual and educational programs for disadvantaged youths.

Grier is a prominent member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African Americans. He is also on the Milken Family Foundation board of trustees and serves as its program administrator of community affairs.

He has been honored by Penn State as recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award in 1974, and the Alumni Fellow Award in 1991. He was named to the NCAA's "List of the 100 Most Influential Student-Athletes” published to commemorate the NCAA's 100th anniversary. In 1997, he was inducted into the New Jersey Sports Hall of Fame.

Bibliography

  • Rosey Grier's Needlepoint for Men (1973)
  • Rosey, an Autobiography: The Gentle Giant (1986)
  • Winning (1990)
  • Shooting Star: Sometimes You Find What You Didn't Even Know You Were Looking For... : A Novel (1993)

References

  1. ^ Roosevelt Grier biography at All Music Guide
  2. ^ McClellan, April D. (1994-01-02). "Tackling trouble in the inner city Former NFL lineman Rosey Grier shifts his social work to Kansas City". The Kansas City Star: p. I1. 
  3. ^ Hughes, Will. Rosey never forgot his roots, often returning to his home town to run track with a local track hero named Bruce "Red Beard". "Gentle Giant", New Jersey Monthly, December 19, 2007. Accessed July 31, 2008.
  4. ^ "Rosey Grier Statistics". Sports Reference, Inc.. http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/G/GrieRo00.htm. Retrieved 2008-03-17. 
  5. ^ Wallace, William (1963-07-09). "Giants Trade Grier for Ram Tackle and High Draft Choice". The New York Times: p. 35. 
  6. ^ Ayto, John; Ian Crofton (2006). Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase & Fable (2nd edition ed.). New York: Sterling Publishing. p. 260. ISBN 0-304-36809-1. 
  7. ^ Current Biography Yearbook: 1975. New York: H. W. Wilson Company. 1975. p. 178. 
  8. ^ Ed Pilkington, The night Bobby died, Guardian (UK), January 13 2007, Accessed January 7, 2007
  9. ^ Porter, David L. (1987). Biographical Dictionary of American Sports. Westport: Greenwood Press. p. 225. ISBN 031325771X. 
  10. ^ Rosey Grier, IMDB

External links

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New York Giants 1956 NFL Champions

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