This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed human. Liberty has never been just a word to we Americans. It has guided every one of our endeavors for the past 250 years, and now it takes form in a new way. The 2026 Semi-Quincentennial Coin and Metal Program from the United States Mint.
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and to search for the Our American Stories podcast, Go to the iHeartRadio app. or wherever you get your podcasts. Up next we bring you Jim O'Brien, a Pittsburgh native, a sports journalist, and the author of the Pittsburgh Proud series of books. Today Jim brings us a story about Steeler's legend, The Chief. the founding owner of the franchise.
Art Rooney Senior I'd like to tell you a story. about my favorite person. in all of pro sports. He's like the grandfather that I never had. My grandparents were all gone by the time I was.
A little boy.
So I guess I I needed a grandpat. And Art Rooney filled the bill. He was the nicest guy that I ever met. in the sports world. I met him when I was a teenager.
And I went out to see the Steelers practice one day. at the Fairgrounds in the South Park area of Pittsburgh. Boy, was that a dump They had horses out there during the week, and sometimes the players had to watch where they stepped on the grass. But somehow the Steelers back in the fifties managed to practice there and art really was normally on the sideline. I met him one day on the sideline and talked to him and He told me who some of his favourite Players were and some of his favorite sports writers.
And just to show you what kind of a man he was. The next day He sends me A postcard. And he apologizes for having the temerity. to tell me who his favorite sports writers were.
Now I was a freshman at the University of Pittsburgh. I was 19 years old. And Art Rooney's apologizing to me. You know, I was the sports editor of the student newspaper. And he's apologizing to me, but that's...
That's what a humble man he was. And Art Rooney is responsible for the reason that I go to so many funerals to day. He says you can't miss a funeral. of a friend or an acquaintance You gotta show up. And if you never hear another story about Art Rooney, this one should suffice.
to tell you exactly what a wonderful man he was. I uh Went to the funeral when his wife Kathleen died. I was covering the Pittsburgh Steelers at the time for the Pittsburgh Press. And she had died while we were In Seattle. And a couple days later, they had a funeral.
at what they called the Rooney Church. which was St. Peter's on the north side of Pittsburgh The reason they called it the Rooney Church was for twofold. One is mister Rooney was always seated in one of the first pews in that church on a daily basis. And secondly, no one in the community gave more money St.
Peter's than did Art Rooney.
So his wife Kathleen dies. And the funeral It was held At Devlin's funeral home, also on the north side of Pittsburgh. And just about everybody in Pittsburgh. showed up for the funeral. And just about Every Priest, when they had the mass at St.
Peter's. Just about every priest. Showed up for the funeral. George Young. a good friend of the Rooney's and at the time the general manager of the New York Giants.
said that Nobody in Pittsburgh, no Catholic, should be dying at that particular time. because there wouldn't be any priest. to offer the last rites. Uh So uh A friend of mine, Dan Lachner, Who owned a paper company in Pittsburgh and, of course, had to steal his account? He was a good Catholic and he had worked for the Steelers when he was a teenager.
at Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh. A school well known for later producing the likes of Danny Marino. Who went on to become an all-America quarterback at the University of Pittsburgh? And then an all-pro quarterback for the Miami Dolphins.
So Art Runny's at the door. greeting all of his friends and acquaintances as they come through the front door. of Devlin's funeral home. and offer their condolences for the death of Kathleen. And Art Rooney was almost dismissing most of their comments because they were usually the same.
And uh my friend Dan Lachner. Showed up. And Dan was getting in line, getting ready to talk to Mr. Rooney. when all of a sudden somebody to his left went psst.
Psst. Hey, Dan. Damn. And Dan looked over And it was a fellow named Joe McNamara. Been a classmate of his at Central Catholic.
And Dan said, what are you doing here? And he said, I'm here because My Father died. and we have him in the back room here. He said, I didn't know what to do. He said, We don't have many people left that still knew my dad.
My mom's been gone. But I thought I'd have him here for at least a day. I didn't know. That Art Rooney's wife was going to be at the same funeral home. but we're doing the best we can.
And since Dan Lachner had to wait a while before we could get to see Art Rooney. He said, come on, I'll go in the back with you to offer my condolences. And you're listening to Arthur Jim O'Brien, a sports journalist. A Pittsburgh native. and the author of Pittsburgh Proud.
a series of books about his home town, telling the stories of the legendary Art Rooney, Senior. You can't miss a funeral, he said. A friend, anyone you know or care about, you've got to show up. When we come back, more of the story of Art Rooney Sr. As told by the man he considered Art Rooney Sr.
his grandfather, the grandfather He never had. Here. on our American story. Lee Habib here, the host of Our American Stories. Every day on this show, we're bringing inspiring stories from across this great country.
Stories from our big cities and small towns. But we truly can't do this show without you. Our stories are free to listen to, but they're not free to make. If you love what you hear, go to ouramericanstories.com and click the donate button. Give a little, give a lot.
Go to ouramericanstories.com and give. Liberty has never been just a word to we Americans. It has guided every one of our endeavors for the past 250 years. And now it takes form in a new way. The 2026 Semi-Quincentennial Coin and Metal Program from the United States Mint.
It celebrates the founding ideals that have long shaped our coinage. Available one year only, this historic collection features new coin designs, limited edition releases, and reissues. Shop new official coins at usmint.gov forward slash semi-q. That's usmint.gov/slash S-E-M-I-Q. Spending time outdoors, then let's talk about skin cancer.
Non-melanoma skin cancers, or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are the most common cancers in the U.S. and can become harder to treat if left undetected. That's why sun protection and timely detection matter. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at Let's Get RealaboutskinCancer.com.
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Sign up today at plus.nfl.com/slash radio. Terms and conditions apply. And we're back with Our American Stories and Jim O'Brien's story about the Pittsburgh Steelers' founding owner, Art Rooney Sr. We'd just left off with Jim's friend Dan Lackner. at the funeral of Rooney's wife, Kathleen.
While in line to give Rooney his condolences, Dan ran into a friend and former classmate whose father was also being remembered at the funeral home. Joe McNamara. Let's pick up where we last left off.
So Higgins in the back room. with his former classmate, Joe McNamara And He walks into the room and there's a po there's a little Dais there, so to speak, a table where you could sign your name. that you had paid your respects And he signs his name, and he said there were only about three or four other. signatures on the pad. And he said, there weren't many flowers.
in that room at the funeral. Um He went back out and as he c entered the lobby of the funeral home, Art Rooney spied him, and Art Rooney walks over to him, and he didn't miss a trick. And he said to him Hey Dan, what are you doing in the back room? Kathleen's over here. And Dan Lachner said, oh, an old friend of mine from Central Catholic High School.
His father died. A guy named Joe McNamara. Same name as his son. And mister Rooney says, Well, come on, let's go back. Show me where he is and I'll pay my respects to your friend.
Um You got to remember that Art Rooney was known for going to more funerals. in Pittsburgh than anybody. He just always showed up. Said a prayer, and he had a very comforting effect on people. I remember when my brother Danny died.
I was editing a newspaper that had a circulation of about 5,000 at best. And Mr. Rooney and all the club officials from the Steelers showed up at that funeral home. to pay their respects. And everybody he touched in the room felt like a cardinal or a bishop.
had just blessed them.
So Art Rooney's in the back room with his friend Dan Latner. He signs in he tells the son that he's Sorry that his father had died and He learns that his father had lived on Dawson Street in Oakland. not far from Forbesfield or Pitt Stadium. And uh He had died at the VA Hospital in Oakland. It was very familiar.
To Art Rooney, because in addition to going to so many funerals, he also paid many visits to friends that were in. hospitals in the community.
So he's back there talking to Joe McNamara. You'd have thought he was the mayor of Pittsburgh. And uh Mr. Rooney remembered that uh His dad had been a city fireman. He always had a soft spot in his heart for them.
Yeah.
So now he goes back out in the lobby. And lo and behold, The mayor of Pittsburgh is in the doorway. And that was Pete Flaherty. Good Irishman. from the North Side, and another Northsider Tom Forster, The Allegheny County Commissioner, one of the top politicians in the city, He was in the doorway with his friend.
Pete Flaherty. And they were ready to offer their condolences to Art Rooney. said how sorry they were that Kathleen had died. And Art Rooney kind of shrugs it off and He says to me, he says, hey, listen, he said, you fellas, Don't forget to go to the back room. and pay your respects to our friend McNamara.
And Forrester shoots. a look at Flaherty to see if he knows the McNamara that Art Rooney is referring to. and he gets a blank look. And uh Forster says, I don't know any firemen. named McNamara.
And Rooney rather testedly, he was a little upset with him. Says, yes, you do. The one from Dawson Street. Art and Auckland.
So Forster and Flarity look at each other. And I Sort of gave a look like they knew what mister Rooney was talking about. And Forrester says, oh, that one. and he and Pete Flaherty go back to the other room.
So the rest of the day That weekend. Art Rooney had everyone pay their respects to our friend McNamara. and he had them signed a visitor's book. It went like that the rest of the day, and when I came back. The next day My friend Lackner was still there.
And so was McNamara. He said we decided to stay another day.
So Dan Lackner said that he went Ended a back room. to see Joe McNamara's father once again. And he said you could hardly see Joe McNamara. in the casket. He said the room was full of flowers.
It looked like Phipps Conservatory. Maybe uh And young McNamara. showed the visitor's book. To Dan Latner. And there were so many famous stealers, who had signed a book, such as Joe Green, And Mel Blunt and Terry Bradshaw, Andy Russell.
So many Hall of Famers. Get this. It was signed. By Pete Rosell. The NFL Commissioner.
and Al Davis, the owner of the Oakland Raiders. They'd been there too. Everybody who was anybody in the National Football League had signed the book. That's just showing you the way. that Art Rooney was and how respected he was in the league.
And how He got all these people. who had come to see him. and offer him their condolences. that he got them while they were there to sign the book. for his friend.
Matt Namara. And I'll tell you, you know, at the church itself, Funny things happened. Al Davis. was seated in a pew on the aisle, in front of Pete Rosell.
Now they had been at odds with each other because They were fighting about things and the Davis was threatening to take the NFL to court and so forth for differences that the that they had. But even on that day, when the priest who was officiating the Mass. Told everybody to give the sign of peace. to the person in front of them or behind him. I saw Al Davis Shake hands.
with Pete Rosell, And somehow I thought that um Art Rooney. arranged it, I guess, in his own way. But think of that. Just think of that. Art Rooney's wife has died and Art Rooney is steering everybody that comes to the funeral home.
to a man that he doesn't even know. But He's from Pittsburgh. He was a fireman. And as far as Art Rooney was concerned, He was the best of friends. It's all you need to know about Art Rooney.
And a terrific job on the production by Robbie. And a spectacular piece of storytelling by Jim O'Brien. about a legend in the sports business, an owner's owner. Literally one of the men who started the NFL, and started it from scratch, when there was nothing there, and built it up. And anyone who's known Art Rooney Or his family.
Will say one thing. He was a Catholic. He was a Catholic before he was anything. And this is what the Catholic Church aspires to be. It's what any church or synagogue or mosque aspires to be.
and that is a servant to the city. and his servant to the people around them. and there is no better story to tell about Art Rooney than that story. It shows his heart. It shows his compassion for others even at the greatest moment of his grieving.
The loss of his wife, who was everywhere with him in Pittsburgh, and always at that church, the daily mass. The story of Art Rooney, Senior A Catholic story. A story of faith and so much more here. on our American stories. Liberty has never been just a word to we Americans.
It has guided every one of our endeavors for the past 250 years. And now it takes form in a new way. The 2026 Semi-Quincentennial Coin and Metal Program from the United States Mint. It celebrates the founding ideals that have long shaped our coinage. Available one year only, this historic collection features new coin designs, limited edition releases, and reissues.
Shop new official coins at usmint.gov forward slash semi-q. That's usmint.gov/slash S-E-M-I-Q. Spending time outdoors, then let's talk about skin cancer. Non-melanoma skin cancers, or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are the most common cancers in the U.S. and can become harder to treat if left undetected.
That's why sun protection and timely detection matter. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at let's get real about skincancer.com. Upgrade to elite checking from America's Christian Credit Union and earn up to 3.5% APY. Plus everyday perks and access to your paycheck up to two days early with early pay.
Don't settle. Choose checking that rewards you and aligns with your values. Visit America's ChristianCU.com forward slash iHeart. Minimum balance of one cent required to earn advertised APY. Early pay not guaranteed.
APY equals annual percentage yield. Membership eligibility required. NCUA insured. For a limited time, get 20% off in NFL Plus Annual Plan. With NFL Plus, stream live out-of-market preseason games, live local and prime time regular season games on mobile and NFL Network, including seven exclusive live games this season.
With NFL Plus Premium, watch every touchdown every Sunday afternoon during the regular season with NFL Red Zone. Catch game replays and access NFL Pro. Limited time offer in September 21st. Sign up today at plus.nfl.com slash radio. Terms and conditions apply.
