Earl Strom | |
|---|---|
 Earl Strom Hall of Fame photo | |
| Born | December 15, 1927 |
| Died | July 10, 1994 (aged 66) Pottstown, Pennsylvania, US |
| Spouse | Yvonne |
| Children | 5[1] |
| Basketball career | |
| Position | NBA referee (1957–1969; 1973–1990) ABA referee (1969–1972) |
| Officiating career | 1957–1990 |
| Basketball Hall of Fame | |
Earl "Yogi"[2] Strom (December 15, 1927 – July 10, 1994) was an American professional basketball referee for 29 years in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and for three years in the American Basketball Association (ABA). Strom is credited as one of the great referees in the history of the NBA[2][3] and was known for his flamboyant style and ability to control the game.[2] Nicknamed "The Pied Piper", the assertive Strom made foul calls with his whistle by using a "tweet-pause-tweet-tweet" tune and pointing at the offending player.[3] In addition to calling fouls with flair, he was known for ejecting players from games with style and he sometimes supported his rulings with physical force.[4]
Over the course of his career, he officiated 2,400 professional basketball regular season games, 295 playoff games, 7 All-Star games, and 29 NBA and ABA Finals.[2] For his extensive contributions to the game, Strom was posthumously elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995.
- ^ Strom et al., intro
- ^ a b c d "Earl "Yogi" Strom Biography". Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. 2002. Archived from the original on 2006-05-30. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
- ^ a b Richman, Michael (2007-04-16). "Hall Of Fame Hoops Ref Earl Strom Rarely Blew It". Yahoo!. Retrieved 2007-06-10.[dead link]
- ^ Thomas Jr., Robert (1994-07-12). "Earl Strom, Ex-N.B.A. Referee Known for His Flair, Dies at 66". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-09-29.