Documentary

Bronx native Marty Glickman may have been best known as a broadcaster, but the docu notes that earlier in his life, he excelled at every sport he tried, with the “Flatbush Flash’s” running speed winning him a place on the 1936 U.S. Olympic track team. At the Berlin event, it was humiliating enough for Hitler to see his “Master Race” athletes defeated by African-Americans. When the 400-yard relay was held, Glickman and fellow Jewish team member Sam Stoller were replaced at the last minute by Jesse Owens (who protested on their behalf) and Ralph Metcalfe in what seemed a blatant move to placate the anti-Semitic hosts. Glickman returned home to a stellar college football career, briefly playing in the pros, then after wartime military service commenced a long career in sports broadcasting that would witness (and often shape) that field’s many changes over the decades. His exceptionally vivid, clear play-by-play descriptions (for which he coined numerous phrases that entered into the vernacular) were a natural for radio when that was still the next best thing to a stadium seat. He also provided the commentary for Paramount’s newsreel sports coverage.