Cope dies

Pittsburgh cries

Myron Cope hasn't been well for quite some time. Over the past few years, he has suffered repeated bouts of pneumonia. Today he died.

But for 35 of his 79 years, Cope was alive in a way that many of us could only hope to be: He was the voice of the Pittsburgh Steelers. In this town, that's like being the voice of god.

For three or so hours on no fewer than 16 occasions, he was the guy who made local football fans mute the national television broadcasters (particularly Beasley Reese), turn up the radio and Yoi! along to, more often than not, victory. He had our attention. He was incisive. And he was absolutely hilarious.

Before his broadcasting career, which included a long-lived radio talk show, Cope was a sports journalist. He parlayed his local success into a gig at Sports Illustrated. His piece on Howard Cosell was ranked among the 50 best pieces published in the then 50-year history of the magazine. He and George Plimpton are the only two writers listed as "Special Contributors" on the magazine's masthead.

Three days after Dish returned, Chiodo's tavern in Homestead closed its doors. Three months after Mr. Dish returned to Pittsburgh from Connecticut, Cope announced his retirement. Two local legends gone? What has this place become? Bland Phoenix with considerably worse weather? Back to New Haven?

Idiosyncratic Pittsburgh, it turns out, remained, and so did Dish. But a little bit more of the old place was gone and today Cope is gone for good. While he was here, though, he was Pittsburgh.

For most of his adult life, Cope was more than that, though. He was also the father of a severely autistic son named Daniel. Cope was far from alone in loving and caring for a disabled child, but thanks to the Terrible Towel (Cope's 1975 invention) he was able to do a little more than most.

In 1996, Cope gave the rights to the towel to the Allegheny Valley School in Coraopolis. The school provides care for more than 900 people with mental retardation and physical disabilities, such as Daniel. Proceeds from towel sales have helped raise almost $1.1 million for the school.

You've earned your rest, Myron Sidney Kopelman. And thanks.

Former Post-Gazette writer Chico Harlan did one hell of a job capturing the essence of Cope during the Steelers' most recent Super Bowl run. If you cared about Cope, it's worth a read on this day particularly.