I think we all remember that horrible moment in Dec. 1980 when Monday Football colour man Howard Cosell was the first to break the news that John Lennon had been gunned down in New York City. 

What few recall is that he knew John Lennon and had worked tirelessly to try and reunite the Beatles for his TV variety show. This story, from the Washington Post, reveals how hard he tried to make it happen and Lennon's reaction to the suggestion that the Fab Four "Come Together" one last time. 

Great story and a lost bit of TV history. 

John Lennon, Howard Cosell and a magical ‘Monday Night Football’ moment