Longtime sports writer Maury Allen dead at 78

Longtime sports writer Maury Allen, who penned biographies of everyone from Jackie Robinson to Joe Namath and spent 27 years writing for The New York Post, has died of lymphoma. He was 78.

Allen primarily covered the New York Yankees for The Post, which confirmed that the author died Sunday at home in Cedar Grove, N.J. Allen also worked for The Journal News and Sports Illustrated, wrote more than three dozen books and served as an adviser on "The Bronx is Burning." Allen made a cameo in the ESPN miniseries about the 1977 Yankees, along with a minor acting role in "The Odd Couple." He also was a staple in several sports documentaries.

He recently completed a book about former Brooklyn Dodgers outfielder Dixie Walker, which was released earlier this year. - AP