Had no idea he was sick. It's funny, he was an all-time great player and yet to people my age he was probably almost more recognizable as an announced and flower pitchman.
will always remember the story about the only time he ever lost his temper - Conrad Dobler was holding him on every play and when Olson finally had enough it walked into the Cardinal backfield and told Dobler to cut it out. He did.
Reminds me of an interview I heard years ago with Paul Maguire about how he and some teammates would paint their stadium during the off season because they needed to make extra money.
...hope he didn't suffer too much or too long. I kind of lump him in with Don Meredith and Alex karras in terms of good NFL players who were decent announcers and then just seemed to fall off the face of the earth. I think I read that Meredith is pretty much a recluse now.
My friends and I used to laugh about how Dick Enberg would look very intently into Merlin's eyes whenever Merlin spoke as if Dick had man-love for him.
As kid I would look at the Rams DL and look at the Giants DL and wonder how both teams could compete, I was excited when Bob Lurtsema received a few probowl votes...an aging Katcavage, Silas, R. Anderson, Lurtsema, B. Anderson, didn't inspire fear...but after being destroyed by the Rams in prior years there was a glorious Sunday in 68 where Tarkenton rallied the Giants to a tie with the formidble Rams in LA with a minute left, then reality intruded and Gabriel drove the Rams for a winning FG, ending the Giants playoff hopes....
RIP Merlin, my make believe backyard Giants football teams could never find a way to acquire a force like you.
he seemed like a nice guy and played like a beast but always cleanly. Dobler was one of the dirtiest and Dierdorf, who played with him, will occasionally still refer to Dobler. I recall the incident with Olsen and Dobler. Dobler was really dirty, I am talking making The Hotel look ethical so it doesn't surprise me that he could even piss Olsen off. Olsen had a great career in everything he did and I am sad he died the way he did. RIP to a great player and person.
I will never forget watching the late Sunday games on NBC while growing up with Olsen and Enberg. More often than not I was watching while trying to get my homework done!! Amazing career. All Pro DT. Analyst. Actor. You will be missed.
I have a memory of on a NFL film piece on QB's, or maybe it was just on Tarkenton. Anyway, as the voiceover said stuff about Fran, they showed clips of him scrambling all over the place against several different teams. He was like a little roach back there.
They then cut to Olsen sitting in a morris chair and the first thing out of his mouth was "I just hated playing against him." He said it in a charming, friendly way,and continued by saying something like Our tongues were hanging out in the fourth quarter just trying to chase him down. None of us ever had to run as much as against that guy. We just hated him.
I can imagine what it must have been like for big guys to chase Fran around.
Anyway, it was a sweetly human and real moment from Olsen.
Watching some highlight films today, for such a gifted athlete, Olsen had an amazing motor, there's a play against the Giants were he gets by the blocker, nearly is pinned to the ground by another blocker, and still drives forward to sack Tarkenton...
Wow. I didn't even know he was sick. Unfortunately, I never saw him play. I only saw clips and he looked awesome. I really remember him for his work on Little House on the Prairie, where he seemed like a gentle giant, and on NBC calling games with Enberg. He was a good announcer. I remember he also got his own show, Father Murphy, after Little House, which I never watched.
But, as a kid I saw the Fearsome Foursome on the Ed Sullivan Show as a singing group. If memory serves, it was Olsen, Lundy, Grier, and Jones. They all had on suits and ties and sang a fast dance song (original + possibly football related). They used dance steps (mainly shuffling their feet and choppy hand gestures). Man, i'd love to see a clip of that today.
r.i.p.
RIP big man.
A little different than for today's players.
Link - ( New Window )
RIP
RIP Merlin, my make believe backyard Giants football teams could never find a way to acquire a force like you.
RIP
I have a memory of on a NFL film piece on QB's, or maybe it was just on Tarkenton. Anyway, as the voiceover said stuff about Fran, they showed clips of him scrambling all over the place against several different teams. He was like a little roach back there.
They then cut to Olsen sitting in a morris chair and the first thing out of his mouth was "I just hated playing against him." He said it in a charming, friendly way,and continued by saying something like Our tongues were hanging out in the fourth quarter just trying to chase him down. None of us ever had to run as much as against that guy. We just hated him.
I can imagine what it must have been like for big guys to chase Fran around.
Anyway, it was a sweetly human and real moment from Olsen.
R.I.P
Shame to see him go. RIP.