William "Lefty" Sophy Joseph
WILLIAM "LEFTY" SOPHY JOSEPH
September 22, 1914 - November 26, 1982
Wheeling, WV - Detroit, MI
JANE THERESA MICHALSKI JOSEPH
April 19, 1918 - March 26, 2012
Detroit, MI - Detroit, MI
William Sophy Joseph was never known by that name. He was always called "Lefty" because, as some claim, he was left-handed. Although, there remain stories that contradict that. No one ever called him William or Bill or any derivation of his birth name. As a matter of fact, records exist of a 1920 census in Wheeling, West Virginia where his birth name is recorded as "Walter." Of all the Joseph Brothers, Lefty kept West Virginia in his personality, including his speech. Rife with a southern drawl and Copenhagen chewing tobacco, Lefty accented speech pattern distinguished him from the others. "Hi ya' Maw" was his standard greeting for his mother. And the finger-popping version of "Hup-Dee-Doo and a Hup-Dee-Day" was his trademark acquired in his childhood. Uncle Lefty married Jane Michalski, the daughter of Polish immigrants in 1941. Aunt Jane's parents lived with them as was their custom. Uncle Lefty was the first of the Joseph Brothers to pass away in November of 1982. The following poem I wrote about an event that took place in 1957, the last time my beloved Detroit Lions won an NFL Championship. I envisioned the party at my childhood home that included all the brothers gathering for the game. MY LIONS FROM WHEELING is my homage to the seven brothers and one sister and a nod to Uncle Lefty who never really left the hills of Wheeling, West Virginia.
MY LIONS FROM WHEELING
1957…Sunday… the 29th day of December.
I was 6.
It was loud.
A parade of uncles queued in my boyhood Detroit home.
Dressed in widow’s black, their mother greeted each of 7 sons with booses and blessings and pleas to quench their readied appetites.
Honors paid, the pre-game cigar smoke inundated the room.
Tom stood tallest, brazened by his pioneer and eldest status. His arms were all that were short on him…His pockets were too deep…or so the tightfisted stories go.
The black and white Philco TV, properly warmed, was beaming a snowy picture thanks to the new 20 foot antenna strapped to the chimney. “Eddie”-rigged at its finest.
As Lefty lumbered in, you were sure he’d never left West Virginia with his accented “Hi-ya’ Maw”…His race for the first Stroh’s Bohemian began immediately…He always won that race…Only sobriety lost.
The majestic piles of ancestral appetizers dominated the kitchen table.
Joe, stogie in one hand, “Syrian Bread” in the other, encased the summit of raw calves’ liver bouncing the red-blood meat ceremoniously in the mounds of salt and pepper - black and red…He would always eat the most… regardless of the fare…his badge of honor.
Could the Lions do it without their hero Layne? Who was this Tobin Rote guy? Could he step up… accept the mantle?
Sam, the instigator and the clown, jaunted down the steps, yelling for the first shot…for luck… the Canadian whiskey would contort his face, Red Skelton style…the room would snort and hoot and encourage another.
How do you stop the sensational rookie Jim Brown…nearly a thousand yard season…could they contain Cleveland’s real threat?
Maybe it was me, but the room darkened when George strutted in…his ego unfounded…bloviating to all…and no one caring to listen to his fearful diatribe in favor of Cleveland…the louder he spoke, the less he was heard.
Liquor flowing… volume rising…kickoff approaching…anxious laughter… C’mon Lions!
Don, the youngest, yet the leader, urged all off the phone…bets were waiting… wagers were faded…the line was 3…(my learning curve began)…Rolling a Parliament in his pursed lips like a cast member from Guys And Dolls, he truly was the sun of sons…
Here we go…foot to pigskin…Let’s do it Lions!
Fast Eddie, the ultimate host, never sat down…he made certain the Kibbee, the Arak, the multitudes of food and the side action kept flowing …He was, among the seven, his mother’s keeper…a testament to him…good fortune to us…On long distance with the kid sister Vivian, her voice got passed around adding fuel to the growing boom.
Could this be? Was our beloved home team crushing the outmatched Browns? Was it really 2 touchdowns per quarter? 31-7 at the half!
Another toast…this one to their immigrant father 5 years gone…all the Joseph boys…three decades removed from the hills of West Virginia…thirty years casting their fortunes in the city of cars… rooting and gambling on Detroit… here they were again…cheering… almost out of breath…
The second half…scoreboard spinning…coronation assured…59-14…Put it in the archives…Elation abounds…Post Game celebration continues until…just like that…the party’s over…they’re all gone now…the house echoes in their absence.
Today, only my Lions remain…Six decades from their last championship.
The party’s over…the boys are all gone now…
Only the distant memories linger of my lions from Wheeling –
of my forever champions…
Burial Sites - Mt. Olivet Cemetery - Detroit
WILLIAM S. "LEFTY" JOSEPH
WILLIAM S. "LEFTY" JOSEPH
WILLIAM S. "LEFTY" JOSEPH
- Joseph, William S. Date of Interment: 11/29/1982 Cemetery: Mt. Olivet Cemetery Location: Section A - Garden of the Rosary, Tier 4, Space 207
JANE T. JOSEPH
WILLIAM S. "LEFTY" JOSEPH
WILLIAM S. "LEFTY" JOSEPH
- Joseph, Jane T. Date of Interment: 03/30/2012 Cemetery: Mt. Olivet Cemetery Location: Section A - Garden of the Rosary, Tier 4, Space 206