Status: NBA Hall of Famer. Boston Celtics guard from 1951-1963.
Ht: 6-1 Wt: 175
DOB: July 9, 1928 In: New York City
Hobbies/Interests: “I play mediocre golf and terrible tennis.”
Nicknames:”Houdini of the Hardwoods. The Houdini name haunted me through high school and college. I’m only teasing you [smiles]. I was doing all that fancy stuff (playmaking style). And I was the only one doing it, so. Cooz.”
Hobbies/Interests: “I play mediocre golf and terrible tennis [smiles]. Reading. Our grandchildren, that I take great pride and joy in.”
Favorite Movie:”The French Connection was my biggie.”
Favorite Books:”War, Clancy, Grisham, Robert Tannebaum — former DA in New York. Books with legal backgrounds.”
Early Basketball Memory: “I’m entering into my early Alzheimer’s stage. I have poor recall [smiles].”
First Job: “Delivering fish by bike. For a little fish market in St. Albans, out on Long Island. (How old were you?) 12. I lied. In those days you needed working papers and had to be 14. So I fudged two years.”
Favorite Meal: “Given my French heritage, anything with a nice, rich sauce. I’m easy to feed, as my wife tells me. Beef stew, meatloaf, brown gravy over steak, and roast beef. I’m sauce-oriented. Anything exotic in the culinary life.”
Favorite Breakfast Cereal: “Graham bar and a banana.”
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “All of them. But I’m into health foods — yogurt, unfortunately. Cherry vanilla. Is this for a book [smiles]?”
Pre-Game Feeling: “I was into focusing. Primarily, I’m developing a pretty good hate for the opponent. I would want to cloister, be left alone, not do interviews. And think of the bad guys [smiles].”
Greatest Sports Moment: “When my father (Joseph) left the farm in France and decided to come to the good ol’ USA, where the streets are paved with gold.My father drove a taxi for 20 years in New York but it allowed me to play a child’s game and earn a pretty good living.”
Most Painful Moment: “I was very fortunate. I haven’t had any sustained painful moments. I played on an exceptional high school team. In college my first year (with Holy Cross) we won the NCAA. I captained six world championship teams. I have no regrets. And I have no negative moments. Yeah, everybody hates to lose. But I have nothing that stands out.”
Toughest Competitors Encountered: “Larry Costello, Slater Martin.”
Favorite Athletes To Watch: “Sports on TV, golf, tennis. I liked Greg Norman. I kind of related to Norman, with all his problems. He’s won big tournaments, but he has the history of never winning the biggies, and so forth. So I rooted for him. I like the Patriots, Tom Brady. But I don’t feel a kinship to the young, active athletes.”
Childhood Dream: “To survive. And I’ve done that very well.”
People Qualities Most Admired: “Honesty. Truth. Arthur Ashe exemplified what it’s about to have a responsibility and act on it. He used his celebrity in a meaningful manner. Cal Ripken. Chris Evert. Michael Jordan accepts his position as a responsibility on how he presents himself as a role model. This is becoming scarcer and scarcer. I want nothing whatsoever to do with overt demonstrations, high-fives, elbow bashers, trash talk, all that boring, goddamn stuff that some of them do out there today.”
Career Accomplishments: Six NBA Championships; Celtics all-time leader in assists; 19,960 total career points; 13-time All-Star Game participant (two-time game MVP); NBA MVP in 1957-58; Elected to Hall of Fame in 1971.
Topics: Beef Stew, Bob Cousy, Boston Celtics, Breakfast Cereal, Brown Gravy, Cherry Vanilla, City Hobbies, Early Basketball, Favorite Books, Fish Market, French Connection, French Heritage, Greatest Sports, Hobbies Interests, Little Fish, Nba Hall Of Famer, New York Books, Painful Moment, Pride And Joy, Sports Moment
Classic Biofile with Bob Cousy | 