Art Donovan

Art Donovan, or Fatso, as his teammates affectionately called him, was a man with a larger-than-life personality–and a physique to match. The former Baltimore Colts defensive lineman, who played weighing up to 300 lb. (136 kg), could deliver a crushing tackle.

The Hall of Fame member, who died Aug. 4 at 89, had a career that started out inauspiciously. The Colts drafted him in 1950, but the team folded at the end of that season, and so did the next two teams he played for.

In 1953 the Colts and Donovan returned to Baltimore. He would play out the rest of an illustrious career with the team, helping win two successive world championships, in 1958 and ’59. Although he retired from football in 1962, he enjoyed a late-career renaissance after the release of his memoir in 1987. Making numerous appearances on the Late Show With David Letterman, he shared anecdotes about his football-playing days, garnering new fans and taking audiences back to a time when a man called Fatso was one of football’s biggest stars.