LANDRY, TOM

born Sept. 11, 1924, Mission, Texas, U.S. died Feb. 12, 2000, Dallas, Texas byname of Thomas Wade Landry American professional football coach, notably with the National Football League (NFL) Dallas Cowboys from 1960 to 1989. He molded the Cowboys into a dominant team from the late 1960s to the early '80s. Landry began his professional career as a player with the All America Football Conference New York Yankees (1949) and moved to the NFL New York Giants (195055) as a cornerback. He was a player-coach (195455) and an assistant coach in charge of defense through the 1959 season. Landry became coach of the newly formed Cowboys team in 1960, and in his first season they won no games, lost 11, and tied 1. Losing seasons continued for the team through 1964. The Cowboys then went on to 20 consecutive winning seasons. They competed in two NFL championship games, in 10 National Football Conference championship games, and in five Super Bowls, losing three games (1971, 1976, and 1979) and winning two (1972 and 1978). His overall record was 270 wins, 178 losses, and 6 ties, a .601 winning percentage. After several consecutive losing seasons, Landry was dismissed as coach of the Cowboys in 1989, when the team was sold to a new owner. In 1990 he was elected to the National Professional Football Hall of Fame.