Lifetime Achievement Award: Frank Gifford

He was a winner, a quick study, versatile, reliable, incredibly consistent, a foundational bedrock kind of team player —in short, a standout. This was Frank Gifford, the broadcaster; this was also Frank Gifford, the renowned pro football star. Why would he have brought anything less when, sensing the ebb of one Hall of Fame career, he moved with characteristic agility into another?

Gifford was the first NFL athlete and broadcaster to be thusly honored both on the field and in the booth, winning football’s Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award in 1995.

Gifford called 411 games on Monday Night Football, where he famously starred alongside Howard Cosell and Don Meredith in the seminal, genre-shifting telecast. B&C recognizes his giant contribution to broadcasting. His insights, wit and style influenced generations of athletes who came to the microphone in his wake.

Robert Edelstein

Rob has written for Broadcasting+Cable since 2006, starting with his work on the magazine’s award-winning 75th-anniversary issue. He was born a few blocks away from Yankee Stadium … so of course he’s published three books on NASCAR, most notably, Full Throttle: The Life and Fast Times of NASCAR Legend Curtis Turner. He’s currently the special projects editor at TV Guide Magazine. His writing has appeared in The Washington Post and his origami art has been in The Wall Street Journal. He lives with his family in New Jersey and is writing a novel about the Wild West.