Edward S. Irish (May 6, 1905 – January 21, 1982) was an American basketball promoter and one of the key figures in popularizing professional basketball. He was the founder and president of the New York Knicks from 1946 to 1974. He was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1964. Cary Elwes portrayed him in the 2023 movie Sweetwater.
Early life and career
Irish was born in Lake George, New York. His father died when he was three years old and his mother, a nurse, moved with him to Brooklyn, where he attended Erasmus Hall High School. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1928 and began working as a sports journalist for the New York World-Telegram. To supplement his income, in 1930 he began working in public relations for the New York Giants football team. That job led him to run the National Football League's information bureau during the 1930s.
Basketball
While at the World-Telegram, Irish covered basketball games in the small 500–1,000 seat gymnasiums of the day. He often told a story of covering a game at Manhattan College where the crowd so overwhelmed the tiny gym that he had to climb in through a window, tearing the pants of the best suit he owned. Whether the story was true or not, he told it often and it became associated with his drive to expand the game of basketball to meet the appetite of fans for it.
In 1934 he left the newspaper business to promote basketball games at Madison Square Garden. As this was during the Great Depression and the venue was often going unused, Irish was able to book events without putting up his own money so long as attendance at least covered the nightly rent. His first event, NYU against Notre Dame, earned him more money than he made in six months as a sportswriter.
As the Madison Square Garden games became popular showcases and most major college teams were eager to be booked, Irish was able to insist on terms favorable to him.
Legacy
Irish was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1964.