Legend of Jimmy the Greek, which was produced by Fritz Mitchell. Commentary was provided by, among others, Brent Musburger, Irv Cross and Phyllis George from The NFL Today, plus Anthony Snyder (Jimmy's son), as well as his brother Johnny and sister Angie. The show also acknowledges his role in the first sportscasts of poker tournaments. Although Snyder was largely unknown outside of the United States, in 1974, his name achieved international renown. After beating George Foreman to regain the world heavyweight championship, Muhammad Ali, in the midst of an interview with David Frost, looked into the camera and addressed his doubters. "All of you bow" he said. "All of my critics crawl... All of you suckers bow... If you wanna know any damn thing about boxing, don't go to no boxing experts in Las Vegas, don't go to no Jimmy the Greek. Come to Muhammad Ali." He was parodied in sketches on Saturday Night Live and Second City Television, portrayed on the respective programs by Phil Hartman and John Candy. His comments about black athletes also inspired an appearance by Hans and Franz. Snyder is also parodied in an episode of The Simpsons titled "Lisa the Greek", which was named after him. A character modeled after him named "Smooth" Jimmy Apollo (played by Phil Hartman) is featured in the episode giving dubious predictions about football games. Snyder was referenced in an episode of The Golden Girls titled "And Ma Makes Three." Rose asks Dorothy if she is really going to dump her mother in order to spend alone time with her boyfriend, Dorothy responds with "Faster than CBS dumped Jimmy the Greek." Personal life Snyder and his wife Joan lost three of their five children to cystic fibrosis. Snyder suffered from diabetes in his later years and died of a heart attack on April 21, 1996, in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the age of 77. He was buried at Union Cemetery in his native Steubenville. References External links Pace, Eric, "Jimmy (the Greek) Snyder, 76, Is Dead; a Sports Oddsmaker," The New York Times, 1996-04-22. CNN SI item on Jimmy Commercial with Jimmy the Greek for Tuffy Auto Centers Article by Jonathan Rowe in Washington Monthly, April 1988 (Article examining the validity of Jimmy Snyder's racial comments. "Jimmy the Greek got it wrong but so did his critics") 1918 births 1996 deaths American people of Greek descent American horse racing