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Al Sherman (September 7, 1897 – September 16, 1973) was a popular songwriter active during the Tin Pan Alley era in American music history. Some of his most recognizable song titles include: "You Gotta Be A Football Hero," "Now's The Time To Fall In Love" and "Lindbergh (The Eagle of the U.S.A.)." Sherman is one link in a long chain of family members who were musical. Most notably, his sons, Robert and Richard (referred to popularly as the "Sherman Brothers") were to join the ranks of America's most highly regarded songwriters. Pairing up and mentoring the Sherman Brothers team has often been referred to as Al Sherman's greatest songwriting achievement. He is not to be confused with the parodist songwriter, Allan Sherman who, coincidentally, also died in 1973.
Early life
Al Sherman was born into a Jewish musical family in Kiev, Ukraine in what was then the Russian Empire. His father, violinist Samuel Sherman, fled a Cossack pogrom in 1903. Samuel settled in Prague which was at that time part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Samuel eventually found success working as a concertmaster, first violinist and intermittent court composer in the Royal Court of Emperor Franz Josef. Within a year or so of his arrival, Samuel's family came to live with him in Prague.
Alex "Allie" Sherman (February 10, 1923 – January 3, 2015) was an American football player and coach who played six seasons in National Football League (NFL) as a quarterback, defensive back, and coach, and afterward served as head coach of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the New York Giants of the NFL. He later worked as a cable television and sports marketing executive and media personality.
Sherman was head coach of the NFL's New York Giants from 1961 to 1969. He won three division titles with the Giants from 1961 to 1963, and coached three NFL Pro Bowls. Sherman collected two NFL Coach of the Year Awards in 1961 and 1962, the first time such an honor was awarded to the same person in consecutive years. He was the first "media" NFL head coach, producing and hosting his own shows on television and radio and becoming a frequent on-air football analyst. After coaching, he had a long career at Warner Communications (today, Time-Warner), where he developed the first cable television sports networks, was a pioneer of interactive and pay-per-view television and events, oversaw and marketed the New York Cosmos soccer team, and produced for ABC and worldwide syndication Pelé's farewell game event (with Muhammad Ali and other celebrities). Later, new New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani tapped Sherman to become president of the failing Off Track Betting (OTB) Corporation, which, within two years, Sherman made profitable for the first time while revitalizing its tawdry image.