The San Francisco 49ers are among the most dynamic franchises, not only in the National Football League but in all of professional US sports. Dave Newhouse provides a fascinating look at the 49ers' early years through the eyes of the players who gave the franchise its foundation.

Dave Newhouse has written eleven books during a half-century career as an award-winning sports journalist and columnist, primarily at the Oakland (CA) Tribune. He first saw the 49ers play in the 1940s and then covered their rise to respectability in the 1970s and beyond. He lives in Oakland.