The Life and Teams of Johnny F. Bassett: Maverick Entrepreneur of North American Sports

by Denis M. Crawford

Overview

One of the most influential sportsmen of the late 20th century, Johnny F. Bassett's marketing wizardry belied his impact on professional hockey and football. A Canadian showman with a Barnumesque flair for spectacle, Bassett challenged the orthodoxy of sports, building sporting utopias in the fatally flawed World Football League, World Hockey Association, and United States Football League. He catered to the common fan, demanded fair treatment of athletes, and forced the sporting establishment to change the way it did business, often to his own detriment.

Drawing on archival research and interviews with Bassett's contemporaries, this comprehensive biography chronicles his life in and around professional sports: his quixotic attempt to compete with the Maple Leafs; his stunning coup in signing three members of the reigning Super Bowl champions for his WFL team; his battles with the Canadian government over American football; his audacious marketing of hockey in Alabama; and his rivalry with Donald Trump for the soul of the USFL.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476684321
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	02/12/2021
Pages:	244
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.49(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Denis M. Crawford holds a PhD in American Studies from Pennsylvania State University and is Historian at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. He is the author of three books and numerous articles and a 2010 inductee to the Bucs UK Hall of Fame.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments viii

Preface 1

Introduction 3

1 Young Bassett and the Show Business of Sports 7

2 Show Business Leads to Sports Business 15

3 Battle for the Hockey Heart and Soul of Toronto 27

4 No Defense, No Discipline, No More Toronto 36

5 No, Canada: The WFL Northmen and Canadian Anti-Americanism 45

6 Bassett Becomes a Political Football 57

7 The Best of a Bad League 76

8 Too Good for the WFL, Not Enough for the NFL 89

9 Selling Hockey in Alabama 103

10 Emancipation of the Canadian Juniors 119

11 Tennis, the USFL and the Bandits 131

12 Bandit-Ball 152

13 The Model USFL Franchise 165

14 The Death of the USFL and Bassett 179

15 Conclusion 197

Chapter Notes 207

Bibliography 223

Index 231

Editorial Reviews

a very fine book”—OldSchoolShirts.com

From the Publisher