Boys Will Be Boys: The Glory Days and Party Nights of the Dallas Cowboys Dynasty

Jeff Pearlman is a columnist for SI.com , a former Sports Illustrated senior writer, and the critically acclaimed author of Boys Will Be Boys , The Bad Guys Won! , and Love Me, Hate Me . --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. From Publishers Weekly In his latest effort, Pearlman ( The Bad Guys Won! ) tells the story of how the Dallas Cowboys went from being a league doormat to a Super Bowl–winning machine. It's the cast of characters that makes this story a page-turner, starting with controlling owner Jerry Jones; all-business coach Jimmy Johnson, who would cut a player without blinking; and star players Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, Emmitt Smith and Deion Sanders. Pearlman explores the many other people who bought into the philosophy that if you were going to be a Dallas Cowboy... you needed to live the life—and that meant, in the early '90s, plenty of infidelity, cocaine, nightly trips to gentleman's clubs and hangovers at practice. Pearlman interviewed nearly 150 members of the Cowboys organization for the book, but much of the terrific detail comes from such tangential folks as journalists, players' wives and staff at the local Cowboys restaurant. The anecdotes range from uplifting (the heartwarming story of quarterback Troy Aikman granting a wish to a dying boy) to raunchy (defensive end Chris Haley, while playing for the 49ers, often masturbated in the locker room). In the end, Pearlman has produced a narrative that is as entertaining as it is insightful. (Sept.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. “It’s tempting to call Boys Will Be Boys the real-life sequel to North Dallas Forty. But in fact, it’s more than that. With immaculate reporting, Jeff Pearlman has constructed a marvelous rise and fall narrative. Here’s the truth about America’s team delivered in a profane page-turner—entertaining, enlightening, and where you least expect it, inspiring. Put another way: This book rocks.” -- Mark Kriegel, New York Times bestselling author of Pistol and Namath “The Cowboys of the 1990s had everything: great players, great characters, great parties, great hair. Now, finally, they have the great writer to tell their story. Jeff Pearlman has written a rip-roaring book filled with terrific reporting and vibrant prose. To appreciate football’s modern era in all its crazy glory, you’ve got to read Boys Will Be Boys. It’s a flat-out winner.” -- Jonathan Eig, New York Times bestselling author of Opening Day and Luckiest Man “Jeff Pearlman is an insider’s insider. With vivid details that place you in the Dallas huddle – and in the team hotel rooms - Pearlman expertly peels the hedonistic layers off the unforgettable characters of the dynastic Cowboys, taking you on a raucous and reflective joyride behind the color, chaos and karma of America’s team in the ‘90s.” -- Selena Roberts, columnist, Sports Illustrated “Just when I thought I knew all the inside info from the glory days of the ‘90s, along comes Jeff Pearlman with this look back. A truly great read.” -- Randy Galloway, columnist, Fort Worth Star-Telegram “A gritty, no-holds barred portrait.” -- Barry Horn, The Dallas Morning News “Jeff Pearlman does a masterly job of exposing the ‘90s Cowboys as shameless frauds and adulterers, sex addicts, and drug fiends.” -- John Gonzalez, The Philadelphia Inquirer --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. From the Inside Flap They were called America's Team. Led by Emmitt Smith, the charismatic Deion Prime Time Sanders, Hall of Famers Troy Aikman and Michael Irvin--and lorded over by swashbuckling, power-hungry owner Jerry Jones and his two hard-living coaches, Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer--the Cowboys seemed indomitable on the football field throughout the 1990s. Off the field the 'Boys were a dysfunctional circus, fueled by ego, sex, drugs, and jaw-dropping excess. What they achieved on game day was astonishing; what they did the rest of the week was unbelievable. Boys Will Be Boys is the rollicking story of the Dallas Cowboys in their prime--a team of wild-partying, out-of-control glory-hounds that won three Super Bowls in four years and earned their rightful place in sports lore as the most beloved and despised dynasty in NFL history. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. They were America's Team—the high-priced, high-glamour, high-flying Dallas Cowboys of the 1990s, who won three Super Bowls and made as many headlines off the field as on it. Led by Emmitt Smith, the charismatic Deion "Prime Time" Sanders, and Hall of Famers Troy Aikman and Michael Irvin, the Cowboys rank among the greatest of all NFL dynasties. In similar fashion to his New York Times bestseller The Bad Guys Won! , about the 1986 New York Mets, in Boys Will Be Boys , award-winning writer Jeff Pearlman chronicles the outrageous antics and dazzling talent of a team fueled by ego, sex, drugs—and unrivaled greatness. Rising from the ashes of a 1–15 season in 1989 to capture three Super Bowl trophies in four years, the Dallas Cowboys were guided by a swashbuckling, skirt-chasing, power-hungry owner, Jerry Jones, and his two eccentric, hard-living coaches, Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer. Together the three built a juggernaut that America loved and loathed. But for a team that was so dominant on Sundays, the Cowboys were often a dysfunctional circus the rest of the week. Irvin, nicknamed "The Playmaker," battled dual addictions to drugs and women. Charles Haley, the defensive colossus, presided over the team's infamous "White House," where the parties lasted late into the night and a steady stream of long-legged groupies came and went. And then there were Smith and Sanders, whose Texas-sized egos were eclipsed only by their record-breaking on-field perfomances. With an unforgettable cast of characters and a narrative as hard-hitting and fast-paced as the team itself, Boys Will Be Boys immortalizes the most beloved—and despised—dynasty in NFL history. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. “It’s tempting to call Boys Will Be Boys the real-life sequel to North Dallas Forty. But in fact, it’s more than that. With immaculate reporting, Jeff Pearlman has constructed a marvelous rise and fall narrative. Here’s the truth about America’s team delivered in a profane page-turner—entertaining, enlightening, and where you least expect it, inspiring. Put another way: This book rocks.” -- Mark Kriegel, New York Times bestselling author of Pistol and Namath “The Cowboys of the 1990s had everything: great players, great characters, great parties, great hair. Now, finally, they have the great writer to tell their story. Jeff Pearlman has written a rip-roaring book filled with terrific reporting and vibrant prose. To appreciate football’s modern era in all its crazy glory, you’ve got to read Boys Will Be Boys. It’s a flat-out winner.” -- Jonathan Eig, New York Times bestselling author of Opening Day and Luckiest Man “Jeff Pearlman is an insider’s insider. With vivid details that place you in the Dallas huddle – and in the team hotel rooms - Pearlman expertly peels the hedonistic layers off the unforgettable characters of the dynastic Cowboys, taking you on a raucous and reflective joyride behind the color, chaos and karma of America’s team in the ‘90s.” -- Selena Roberts, columnist, Sports Illustrated “Just when I thought I knew all the inside info from the glory days of the ‘90s, along comes Jeff Pearlman with this look back. A truly great read.” -- Randy Galloway, columnist, Fort Worth Star-Telegram “A gritty, no-holds barred portrait.” -- Barry Horn, The Dallas Morning News “Jeff Pearlman does a masterly job of exposing the ‘90s Cowboys as shameless frauds and adulterers, sex addicts, and drug fiends.” -- John Gonzalez, The Philadelphia Inquirer --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. From Booklist In February 1989, Jerry Jones bought the Dallas Cowboys, immediately fired the iconic Tom Landry, and hired Jimmy Johnson from the collegiate ranks. The team would end the 1989 season with the worst record in the league. In a city that lives and breathes the Cowboys, the natives were restless. But in short order all was right in Big D as the team, led by future Hall-of-Famers Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman, and Emmitt Smith, won three Super Bowls in four years. The on-field success was paralleled by off-field excess. Drugs, strip clubs, orgies, fights, marital infidelities, and, finally, one player stabbing another in the neck with scissors. Pearlman, who seems to revel in the seamy side of sports—his The Bad Guys Won! (2004) was an account of the equally lecherous 1986 New York Mets—interviewed players, coaches, and others while also plumbing print sources. Yes, he dishes the dirt, but he also catches the team dynamic that fostered success as well as the infightingxa0that led to disaster. Informative as well as titillating. --Wes Lukowsky --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. Read more