Legendary Pittsburgh Steelers radio announcing sidekick Myron Cope died today in a Pittsburgh-area nursing home at the age of 79 after a lengthy illness. If you were a Steelers fan at any time in the past 40 years, you would have instantly recognized Cope’s voice, which team president Art Rooney II described as “synonymous with Steelers football.” Cope invented the “Terrible Towel,” among other signature items, including colorful expressions to describe plays and players. His most famous coined phrase was “The Immaculate Reception,” which he christened the catch made by Franco Harris off a deflected pass by Terry Bradshaw in a playoff game with Oakland in 1972. Cope once convinced Frank Sinatra to attend a Steelers practice as a member of “Franco’s Italian Army,” the de facto Franco Harris fan club of the time. Cope retired from broadcasting in 2004 due to ill health, after having sat behind the mike doing Steelers radio broadcasts since 1970. Before that, he was a widely acclaimed freelance sports writer.

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