New Jersey Senate passes Steve Sabol Day resolution

The New Jersey Senate approved today a resolution honoring Steve Sabol, sponsored by Senators Diane Allen and Dawn Marie Addiego, both R-Burlington.

“Steve Sabol is one of New Jersey’s most innovative entrepreneurs and his creativity has revolutionized both sports and documentary cinematography around the world,” Allen said. “He has made Mount Laurel the home of America’s favorite sport, having created a model business employing hundreds of people and boasting the world’s largest sports film library. He showed us the passion of the game — and made it our passion, too.”

“With ingenuity and grace, Steve Sabol has humanized America’s favorite sport bringing people inside the hearts and minds of their football heroes,” added Addiego. “Continuing Steve Sabol’s passion, NFL Films will continue to make Burlington County proud, as it chronicles the season of Super Bowl XLVIII.”

On Feb. 7, Senators Allen and Addiego introduced their resolution to make October 2 Steve Sabol Day in New Jersey.

NFL Network & NFL Films Combine for Six Sports Emmy Awards

NFL Films Wins Five Emmy Awards – Tied for Most in a Single Year

NFL Network Wins in Outstanding Short Feature & Sports Promotional Announcement – Episodic Categories

NFL Media – comprised of NFL Network, NFL Films, NFL RedZone, NFL.com and NFL Mobile – won six Sports Emmy Awards, it was announced last night in New York City.

NFL Network won in the Outstanding Short Feature category for NFL GameDay Morning: Immaculate Remembrance, as well as in the Outstanding Sports Promotional Announcement – Episodic category for A Football Life: Life Story, which it shared with NFL Films. With the two Emmy Awards, NFL Network increased its total to 12 in its nine-year history.

To view the Emmy Award-winning NFL GameDay Morning: Immaculate Remembrance, visit:

http://on.nfl.com/142lGw3

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NFL Media Scores A Record 24 Sports Emmy Award Nominations

Record Number of Nominations for NFL Network & NFL.com

Critically Acclaimed ‘A Football Life’ Series Receives Nominations for Second Consecutive Year

NFL Network Personalities Rich Eisen, Kurt Warner & Mike Mayock Secure Nominations 

NFL Films-Produced ‘Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Miami Dolphins’ Receives Four Nominations 

NFL Media – comprised of NFL Network, NFL Films, NFL RedZone, NFL.com and NFL Mobile – received 24 Sports Emmy Award nominations, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences announced today. This total surpasses the 18 nominations NFL Media received in 2010, setting a new record.

This year, NFL Network earned a record 16 Sports Emmy Award nominations. Also setting a record with its 16 nominations, NFL Films is the only company with nominated programs produced for four TV networks (HBO, NBC Sports Network, NFL Network and Showtime).

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New Jersey Senators to introduce resolution honoring NFL Films pioneer Steve Sabol

Senators Diane Allen & Dawn Marie Addiego to Present on Monday

To memorialize one of New Jersey’s most innovative entrepreneurs, Senators Diane Allen and Dawn Marie Addiego (both R-Burlington) announced that they are introducing on Monday a resolution honoring NFL Films pioneer Steve Sabol.

“Steve Sabol inspired the finest cinematic reflection of any sport and left nothing on the field,” Allen said. “His innovative filmmaking documented the intellect, emotion and humanity in America’s most aggressive and popular sport.”

“Steve Sabol’s ingenuity, artistic brilliance and endless commitment to creating history are celebrated across the country and around the world,” Addiego added. “He is a pride of Burlington County whose legacy will surely be continued by NFL Films, with their coverage of this Sunday’s Super Bowl XLVII and beyond.”

NFL Films is located in Mount Laurel and has grown over the decades to employ some 250 people and boast the world’s largest sports film library.

“Steve Sabol was a creative genius who changed the way we look at football and sports,” said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. “This is a great honor that I know Steve would proudly share with all of his colleagues at NFL Films headquarters in Mount Laurel.”

Draft text of this Resolution is as follows:

A Joint Resolution designating October 2 of each year as “Steve Sabol Day”
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NFL Films’ “Road to the Super Bowl” debuts on CBS at 11:00 AM ET on Super Bowl Sunday

43^rd Year of TV’s Longest-Running, Most-Honored Annual Sports Special 

One-Hour Special Culled From 1.7 Million Feet of Game Film & 400 Hours of Game Audio from 100 Coaches & Players

How did the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers advance to Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans?  Re-live the journey as only NFL Films can present it on “Road to the Super Bowl” on Super Bowl Sunday, February 3 at 11:00 AM ET on CBS.

“Road to the Super Bowl” begins with Kickoff Weekend and chronicles the 2012 NFL season utilizing NFL Films’ signature captivating video and sound from on the field and in the locker room from exclusive player and coach wirings.

“Road to the Super Bowl” is the longest-running (43 years) and most honored (28 Sports Emmys) annual sports special. “Road to the Super Bowl,” which debuted following the 1969 season, was culled by NFL Films producers from more than 1.7 million feet of game footage to 980 feet for the one-hour special.  In addition, more than 400 hours of audio were captured from 100 exclusive coach and player on-field wirings.  Original orchestral music was used in producing the show.

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NFL Films’ “They Call It Pro Football” selected for Library of Congress’ National Film Registry

1967 PRODUCTION CALLED “CITIZEN KANE OF SPORTS MOVIES”

FINAL FIVE MINUTES AVAILABLE ON NFL FILMS BLOG

The Librarian of Congress James H. Billington today selected NFL Films’ 1967 production “They Call It Pro Football” for inclusion in the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress.

“Established by Congress in 1989, the National Film Registry spotlights the importance of preserving America’s unparalleled film heritage,” said Billington. “These films are not selected as the ‘best’ American films of all time, but rather as works of enduring importance to American culture. They reflect who we are as a people and as a nation.”

The Library of Congress recognized the film as follows in its press release today:

Before “They Call It Pro Football” premiered, football films were little more than highlight reels set to the oom-pah of a marching band. In 1964, National Football League commissioner Pete Rozelle agreed to the formation of NFL Films. With a background in public relations, he recognized that the success of the league depended on its image on television, which required creating a mystique. “They Call It Pro Football,” the first feature of NFL Films, looked at the game “in dramaturgical terms,” capturing the struggle, not merely the outcome, of games played on the field. Written and produced by Steve Sabol, directed by John Hentz and featuring the commanding cadence of narrator John Facenda and the music of Sam Spence, the film presented football on an epic scale and in a way rarely seen by the spectator. Telephoto lenses brought close-ups of players’ faces into viewers’ living rooms. Slow motion revealed surprising intricacy and grace. Sweeping ground-to-sky shots imparted a “heroic angle.” Coaches and players wearing microphones let the audience in on strategy and emotion. “They Call It Pro Football” established a mold for subsequent productions by NFL Films and has well earned its characterization as the “Citizen Kane” of sports movies.

NFL Films president Steve Sabol long ago made “They Call It Pro Football” mandatory viewing for all NFL Films staffers. NFL Films named its NFL.com blog after the movie and has posted the final five minutes of the movie for viewing here (http://nflfilms.nfl.com/fact-figures/).

“They Call It Pro Football” joins the ranks of classics on the list including Casablanca, Gone with the Wind, The Graduate, Knute Rockne All American, Lawrence of Arabia, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and The Wizard of Oz.

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Hall of Fame Running Back Barry Sanders Featured on NFL Network’s ‘A Football Life’ Wed., Dec. 5 at 8:00 PM ET

Emmy-Nominated Series Continues Wednesday, December 5 at 8:00 PM ET

“I just felt like I had run out of steam. I just felt like it was my time.” – Barry Sanders

For 10 seasons, Detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders electrified the NFL with unbelievable runs while putting up prolific rushing numbers. Yet just before the start of the 1999 NFL season, as one of the league’s biggest stars, he quietly walked away from the game.

NFL Network’s Emmy-nominated series A Football Life continues Wednesday, December 5 at 8:00 PM ET with a profile of one of the NFL’s greatest players who retired during the prime of his career. Barry Sanders: A Football Life examines Sanders’ incredible Hall of Fame career, his unexpected retirement and the reaction it garnered throughout both the NFL and the city of Detroit, and his relationship with his late father, William.

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NFL Network’s ‘A Football Life’ Examines Hall of Fame Running Back John Riggins Wed., Nov. 21 at 8:00 PM ET

Emmy-Nominated Series Continues Wednesday, November 21 at 8:00 PM ET with Profile of ‘The Diesel’

“Football was never my life. The guys [and] the relationships were my life.” – John Riggins

NFL Network’s Emmy-nominated series A Football Life continues this week with a profile of the Hall of Fame running back John Riggins. Premiering Wednesday, November 21 at 8:00 PM ET, John Riggins: A Football Life explores the life of the running back known as ‘the Diesel,’ from his upbringing in Centralia, Kansas, to his NFL career with the Washington Redskins and New York Jets, and the colorful personality he was known and loved for.

The one-hour documentary features sit-down interviews with Riggins, his brothers Frank and Bill Riggins, former teammates Joe Theismann and Joe Namath, and former Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs, among others. John Riggins: A Football Life also includes footage from the infamous Salute to Congress Dinner Riggins attended in 1985, and his Hometown Hall of Fame plaque ceremony at Centralia High School from October, 2012.

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Travel Channel partners with NFL Films and RIVR Media on original series, “NFL Road Tested: The Cleveland Browns,” premiering Tuesday, Dec. 4

Series to Provide Unprecedented Behind-the-Scenes Look into an NFL Team During the 2012 Season

CHEVY CHASE, MD (November 5, 2012) – Travel Channel has partnered with NFL Films and RIVR Media on a new series that pulls back the curtain on the current 2012 season of the Cleveland Browns in “NFL Road Tested: The Cleveland Browns,” premiering on Tuesday, December 4 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

NFL Films will provide unprecedented access to Travel Channel to unveil never-before-seen footage of what it takes to travel an entire professional football team from city to city, game to game, during the regular season.  Every road trip requires a massive amount of coordination to haul the 150-person squad 20,000 miles a season.  From feeding an entire team, to clothing and housing them, to how a stadium prepares and deals with more than 70,000 rabid fans, Travel Channel’s cameras are there to capture this massive undertaking.

In addition, viewers will see how the Cleveland Browns prepare each week through the eyes of the players and team management, including new owner Jimmy Haslam.  They can expect to learn more about the history behind deeply-rooted team rivalries and other notable insights not typically covered in game-coverage news.  Episodes will focus around the weeks leading up to games played against the New York Giants, Baltimore Ravens, Dallas Cowboys, Oakland Raiders, Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers.  The announcement was jointly made today by Andy Singer, General Manager, Travel Channel, and Howard Katz, Chief Operating Officer, NFL Films.

“This series is a first-of-its-kind program providing an exclusive pass to NFL fans during the season.  This is an emotionally-charged world.  Now, viewers will get a never-before-seen opportunity to see what it’s like for players to live on the road, often away from their families.  We’ll hear from the players themselves, coaches and scores of support staff in multiple cities,” said Singer.  “Working with the Emmy award-winning storytellers from NFL Films, ‘NFL Road Tested: The Cleveland Browns’ will take viewers beyond the gridiron and inside the action that happens between games as the storied franchise attempts to return to football greatness.”

“We look forward to working with Travel Channel to bring fans a behind-the-scenes look at the logistical preparations leading into each week’s game,” said Katz.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to participate in such an exciting and unique endeavor,” said Browns owner Jimmy Haslam.  “This show will offer viewers a great perspective of the inner-workings of an NFL team and what it takes to support a team.  With Travel Channel working alongside NFL Films and RIVR Media, we expect that this will be first-class production.  We are excited about what this will mean to Northeast Ohio, the Browns and our fans.”

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Super Bowl & National Championship-Winning Head Coach Jimmy Johnson Profiled on NFL Network’s ‘A Football Life’ Wed., Nov. 7 at 8:00 PM ET

Emmy-Nominated Series Continues Wednesday, November 7 at 8:00 PM ET

“When it comes to moving men, there is no one better than Coach Johnson.” – Michael Irvin

As a two-time Super Bowl and a national championship-winning head coach, Jimmy Johnson was able to get the best out of his players with a relentless pursuit for perfection and a drive to win at all costs.

On Wednesday, November 7 at 8:00 PM ET, the latest installment of the Emmy-nominated NFL Network series A Football Life examines the coach who drove his teams to achieve immense success on the field, and the man who now spends his time with family, fishing in the Florida Keys and on television as a football analyst.

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