Phyllis George, the previous Miss America who became a female sportscasting leader on CBS’s “The NFL Today” and worked as the first lady of Kentucky, has died. She was 70.
A family spokeswoman said George passed away Thursday at a Lexington, Kentucky, hospital after a long fight with a blood disorder.
Her kids, Lincoln Tyler George Brown and CNN White House correspondent Pamela Ashley Brown, released a joint statement, stating:
” For many, Mommy was known by her amazing achievements as the pioneering female commentator, 50 th Miss America and very first lady. This was all prior to we were born and never ever how we saw Mama. To us, she was the most unbelievable mother we could ever ask for, and it is all of the specifying qualities the public never ever saw, particularly against the winds of misfortune, that signify how extraordinary she is more than anything else. The appeal a lot of recognized on the outside was a mere fraction of her internal appeal, just to be surpassed by an undeviating spirit that permitted her to persevere versus all the odds.”
Miss America in 1971, George joined Brent Musburger and Irv Cross in 1975 on “The NFL Today.” Jimmy “The Greek” Snyder later was contributed to the cast.
” Phyllis George was unique.
George spent three seasons on the live pregame program, returned in 1980 and left in 1983, winning kudos for her heat of her interviews with star professional athletes. She likewise covered horse racing, hosted the entertainment show “People” and co-anchored the “CBS Early Morning News.”
George was briefly married to Hollywood producer Robert Evans in the mid-1970 s and to John Y. Brown Jr. from 1979-98 Brown owned Kentucky Fried Chicken and the NBA’s Boston Celtics and served as the guv of Kentucky.
” Phyllis was a fantastic property to Kentucky,” Brown informed the Louisville Courier-Journal. “We had a great collaboration. I believe