When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi

If you are a fan of Vince Lombardy and what he stood for and what you accomplished, you will really frnjoy this book. Great read.

Pro football's huge commercial success can be attributed in part to the life and times of Vince Lombardi, all richly detailed in David Maraniss' masterful biography of the great Green Bay Packer coach. Though a testament worthy of this American icon, the biography is also a fitting tribute to the author's artistry at the business of biographical writing; delve deep into the subject's life and times, sense him as a human being, respect the chronology of his life and its events, fill the book with anecdotes and quotes bringing a vivid recounting of his life to the pages thus justifying its length, and, thus holding the reader's attention and then write clear and creatively. Maraniss succeeds on all counts; he carefully relates Lombardi's Italian American upbringing, his Jesuit education at Fordham, his life long adherence to Catholic faith and that he lived his faith through all the days of his celebrity life to his untimely death from cancer. His times as the Packers head coach captures the essential of being the most beloved and successful coach in American professional football for a decade, or as Marie Lombardi, his wife, called "the era of the sixties was professional football's finest hour." Maraniss' writing of the 1967 Ice Bowl in which the Packers beat the Dallas Cowboys sends chills and thrills through the reader. Lombardi's hospitalization and death at Georgetown Hospital in September 1970 is so poignant; played out page after page that it might well bring tears to one's eyes. The epilogue mainly focusing on Marie Lombardi is equally touching. This is far more than a sports biography, this is a biography in the highest order.

Presents Lombardi in the flesh; sinner and saint. Explains in full his quote; "Winning isn't everything, its the only thing." Amen

I started When Pride Still Mattered with eager anticipation - as a sports fan with a deep interest in leadership, I was seeking insight into Lombardi as a person, as a leader, and as a major figure in America. What influenced his leadership philosophy? What was his life like? Did his character match the myth that surrounds him?Maraniss doesn't disappoint. When Pride Still Mattered offers interesting insight into Lombardi, revealing a man that was by most counts ordinary who became larger than life.The book is organized chronologically. It tracks Lombardi's life from his early childhood through his college years, his high school and college coaching jobs, and finally to his experience in the NFL. Through each chapter, Maraniss weaves threads that explore various dimensions of Lombardi. These include:- The nature of and inspiration for Lombardi's football genius- Lombardi's leadership style and skills- Lombardi's perspective on politics and social / cultural issues (e.g., religion, race)- The things that made Lombardi "ordinary"- Lombardi's relationships with his wife, son, and daughter- Lombardi's relationships with and influence on his playersThis combination of chronological organization and topic-specific threads makes the book easy to follow and provides a clear and interesting portrait of Vince Lombardi.Despite the book's strengths, it left me wanting to know more. In the preface, Maraniss states that "Lombardi was more complex and interesting than the myths that surround him. It is that contradiction, the ambiguity of his meaning in American culture, that drove me as I researched this biography." In my opinion, When Pride Still Mattered provides a comprehensive picture of Lombardi, but it stops short of exploring the evolution of Lombardi's place in American culture. This would have made the book even more compelling.

David Maraniss wrote a moving, heart-rending book about one of the greatest leaders of all time. Vince Lombardi was deeply admired and despised as the biggest S.O.B., many times by the same person. I was captivated by the circumstances of his life coming together at just the right time to build one of the greatest sports dynasties of all time. But so often, up to that point, he wondered when his chance would come and "why not me?" I was moved by his commitment to excellence and his concern that the abuse of freedom would one-day lead to the decay of our great country. But the part of the book that most moved me was his strained relationship with his son, Vincent. I can relate to being the son of a father who rarely showed affection as I was growing up. It's not any fault of his own, rather a cultural influence passed from generations of men before him. He did what they taught. Is it good or bad? That becomes a judgement and a trap. My dad's parenting tactics were perfectly what they were. Maraniss does and excellent job painting the picture of what it's like growing up in home where the father is dedicated to his life outside the home, but is missing in action inside the home. The pain and the sadness of being the spouse and children of a 60's era father is expertly woven into the retelling of the interaction between Vince and Vincent. Ultimately, the question is resolved by Vincent as one of forgiveness, not approval. I was moved by the tale of building the Green Bay Packers into a powerhouse. The play by play narrative is compelling and engaging without being overly dramatic or drawn out. Maraniss avoids the trap of most sports books and movies with a re-telling of the plays and championship moments while avoiding excessive detail. But my favorite part of the book was Maraniss' walk through the dying process of Vince Lombardi. I could see him lying in the hospital with uncharacteristically long hair and bushy eyebrows. I could hear his non-sensical yammering to players who were not there in the room with him. I could feel the air of desperation that accompanies a terminal diagnosis held against the will to live and "whip this thing." Maraniss walked me through the process of saying goodbye that I went through recently with my mother and one of my best friends from graduate school. I was brought back to the confusion of seeing someone you know well and love that only somewhat resembles who you knew. Sons and fathers, this is a must read about life, relationships and the perspective of growing up from each side. It's about celebrating the winners and the doers of great things. It's about life, excellence, and doing what you can, where you are with what you have. It's about doubt and perseverence. It's about resisting the unpleasantness of dying and the regret of unfinished business. Men, get this book. It's that good.

this book shows all sides of the man

Excelente biografía de Vince Lombardi. Recomendable para todos los aficionados de Green Bay y de la NFL que quieran saber más sobre uno de los mejores coach de todos los tiempos.

Vince Lombardi rules ! Well written, kept me up through a few nights, lots of background info, compliments to the author :-)

This is an exceptionally well written biography of not only (probably) the greatest (American) football coach of all time but of an interesting, multi-faceted and ultimately flawed man.Whether it be Lombardi growing up in a large New York - Italian family, his Jesuit based education, his relatively underwhelming playing career at Fordham, being passed over for jobs, his experience working with the legendary Red Blaik at Army or his famous double act with Tom Landry at the Giants, Maraniss is able to weave together a convincing picture of the influences and occurrences affecting Lombardi that, along with ferocious determination and commitment to hard work, motivational genius and capacity to learn, helped mould him into the man who was able to transform the Green Bay Packers from a moribund small town team tottering toward oblivion into the most succesful NFL team in history.Maraniss, while sympathetic to Lombardi, does not whitewash his life nor shy away from seeking sometimes uncomfortable truths both about Lombardi - his volatile temper, his tendency to take things extremely personally, his willingness to go back on his word and distance as a father and husband - and the age in which he lived and worked and which has been subject to unfortunate mythologising and gilding as commentators look back through the lens of history to a time when men were still men and "pride still mattered".

If you love the NFL you must read this book