Editing Joe Foss (section)

==Later careers==
===American Football League===
After serving as governor, Foss spent a short time working for [[Raven Industries]] before becoming the first Commissioner of the newly created [[American Football League]] in 1959. He oversaw the emergence of the league as the genesis of modern professional football. During the next seven years, Foss helped expand the league and made lucrative television deals, including the initial five-year, $10.6 million contract with [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] in 1960 to broadcast AFL games. The next contract was also for five years, but with [[NFL on NBC|NBC]] for a substantially greater $36 million, starting in [[1965 American Football League season|1965]].<ref name="uptvrts">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=BusxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=EuMDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5992%2C4622151 "AFL, NBC ink pact"], ''Eugene Register-Guard'', January 29, 1964, p. 3B.</ref><ref name="aflex66">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jZcrAAAAIBAJ&sjid=vPQFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5397%2C2441193 "American Football League may be expanded in 1966."] ''Nashua Telegraph'', May 23, 1964, p. 8.</ref>

Foss stepped aside as commissioner in April [[1966 American Football League season|1966]],<ref name="fqpaafcz">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=z4tRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_hAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5072%2C1524235 "Foss quits $50,000 post as AFL czar."] ''Milwaukee Sentinel'', April 8, 1966, pg. 2, part 2.</ref> two months before the historic agreement that led to the [[AFL-NFL merger|merger]] of AFL and [[National Football League|NFL]] and the creation of the [[Super Bowl]].<ref name="Bernstein">Bernstein, Adam. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A3931-2003Jan2&notFound=true "WWII Ace, SD Gov. Joe Foss Dies; Also Headed Football League, NRA."]{{dead link|date=June 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} ''Washington Post,'' January 3, 2003. Retrieved: February 22, 2016.</ref> [[Al Davis]] succeeded him,<ref name="apdvascz">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0ItRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_hAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5166%2C1877683 "Appoint Davis as AFL czar"], ''Milwaukee Sentinel'', April 9, 1966, pg. 1, part 2.</ref> but disagreed with the merger and resigned after {{frac|3|1|2}} months. [[Milt Woodard]], the assistant commissioner under Foss, was named to the new office of president of the AFL in July and served through the league's final season in [[1969 American Football League season|1969]].<ref name="widoiafl">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KHhQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=VBEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4057%2C4872186 "Woodard in, Davis out in AFL"], ''Milwaukee Sentinel'', July 26, 1966, pg. 2, part 2.</ref>

===Television career===
Drawing on a lifelong love of hunting and the outdoors, Foss hosted [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] [[television]]'s ''[[The American Sportsman]]'' from 1964 to 1967, which took him around the world for hunting and fishing excursions. He then hosted and produced his own [[television syndication|syndicated]] outdoors TV series, ''The Outdoorsman: Joe Foss'', from 1967 to 1974. In 1972, he also began a six-year stint as Director of Public Affairs for [[KLM|KLM Royal Dutch Airlines]].<ref name="Bernstein"/>

===National Rifle Association===
Starting in 1988, Foss was elected to two consecutive one-year terms as president of the [[National Rifle Association of America]].<ref name="Legend"/> In his later years he maintained a rigorous speaking schedule and spoke out for conservative causes on what he considered a weakening of gun owners' rights. He was portrayed on the cover of the 29 January 1990 issue of ''[[Time Magazine]]'' wearing his trademark [[Stetson]] hat and holding a revolver.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=TIME Magazine Cover: Joe Foss |url=http://www.time.com/time/covers/0%2C16641%2C19900129%2C00.html |magazine=TIME |access-date=August 3, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071025034010/http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19900129,00.html |archive-date=October 25, 2007 |date=July 29, 1990 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Philanthropy===
[[File:President John F. Kennedy Meets with Representatives of the Easter Seal Campaign (02).jpg|thumb|Easter Seal Twins, Paula and Patricia Webber (Sumter, South Carolina); National Easter Seal Chairman Art Linkletter; President [[John F. Kennedy]]; President of the National Society for Crippled Children and Adults, Joseph Foss; Governor of South Carolina [[Ernest Hollings]]. Oval Office, White House, Washington, D.C. in 1961.]]
Foss, who had a daughter with cerebral palsy, served as President of the [[Easter Seals (U.S.)|National Society of Crippled Children and Adults]].<ref name="Bernstein"/> Foss's other charities included the Easter Seals campaign, [[Campus Crusade for Christ]], and an Arizona program for disadvantaged youths.

===The Joe Foss Institute===
In 2001, Foss and his second wife, "Didi,"{{#tag:ref|Foss married Donna Wild Foss, known as "Didi" in 1967.<ref>Harriman, Peter. [http://www.mastermason.com/elriadclowns/foss_obit.htm "S.D. loses legend, American hero."] ''Argus Leader,'' January 2, 2003. Retrieved: August 3. 2011.</ref>|group=Note}} founded the [[Joe Foss Institute]], a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The institute works with veterans and educators around the United States to educate the nation's youth on history and civics, and to inspire them to become informed and engaged citizens.<ref>D'Amico, Diane. [http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/education/press/article_1633471e-ed50-11df-b38c-001cc4c002e0.html "Education Writer."] ''Press of Atlantic City'', December 10, 2010. Retrieved: February 22, 2016.</ref> Through classroom presentations, curriculum and scholarships, the Joe Foss Institute has served more than 1.35 million children, as of June 2014, nationwide. Currently, the institute offers three primary programs; Veterans Inspiring Patriotism (VIP), You are America Civics Series and scholarship contests which run year-round. Foss did many of these school visits himself, speaking to children of all ages about service, responsibility, patriotism, integrity and commitment.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20130516162721/http://www.joefossinstitute.org/ "Home: The Joe FossInstitute."]}} ''The Joe Foss Institute.'' Retrieved: August 4, 2011.</ref>
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Joe-foss-1990s-photo.jpg|thumb|left|Joe Foss, c. 1990]] -->

===Other honors and recognition===
Foss co-authored or was the subject of three books including the wartime ''Joe Foss: Flying Marine'' (with Walter Simmons); ''Top Guns'' (with Matthew Brennan); and ''A Proud American'' by his wife, Donna Wild Foss. Foss also provided the foreword to ''Above and Beyond: the Aviation Medals of Honor'' by [[Barrett Tillman]], and was profiled in Tom Brokaw's 1998 book about World War II and its warriors, ''[[The Greatest Generation (book)|The Greatest Generation]]''. Brokaw characterized Foss: "He had a hero's swagger but a winning smile to go with his plain talk and movie-star looks. Joe Foss was larger than life, and his heroics in the skies over the Pacific were just the beginning of a journey that would take him to places far from that farm with no electricity and not much hope north of Sioux Falls."<ref>Brokaw 1998, p. 115.</ref>''Brave Eagle'', a 1955 postwar effort to film a story of Foss's life, starring his friend, [[John Wayne]], fell through in 1956 when Foss refused to allow the producers to add a fictitious love story.<ref name="Bauer p. 82">Bauer May 1990, p. 82.</ref> ''American Ace: The Joe Foss Story'' was an award-winning, hour-length television documentary, produced by the [[South Dakota Public Broadcasting]], first aired in fall 2006.<ref name="SDPB">[http://www.sdpb.org/JoeFoss/default.asp "American Ace: The Joe Foss Story."] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928112828/http://www.sdpb.org/JoeFoss/default.asp |date=2011-09-28 }} ''South Dakota Public Broadcasting'', 2011. Retrieved: August 4, 2011.</ref>

Foss was inducted into the [[National Aviation Hall of Fame]] in 1984.<ref>[http://www.nationalaviation.org/enshrinees/ "Enshrinees."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110312033710/http://www.nationalaviation.org/enshrinees/ |date=2011-03-12 }} ''National Aviation Hall of Fame.'' Retrieved: August 3, 2011</ref> He also was a president and board chairman of the [[Air Force Association]] and as a Director of the [[United States Air Force Academy]].<ref name="Bernstein"/> In 2000, he served as a consultant on the popular computer game ''[[Combat Flight Simulator 2]]'' by Microsoft.<ref>Seal, Jon and Michael Ahn. {{cite web|url=http://www.microsoft.com/games/combatfs2/articles_foss.asp |title="An Interview with Joseph Jacob 'Joe' Foss." |website=[[Microsoft]] |access-date=2012-10-22 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060209105228/http://www.microsoft.com/games/combatfs2/articles_foss.asp |archive-date=February 9, 2006 }} ''Microsoft Games Studios,'' March 2000. Retrieved: August 3, 2011.</ref> A complete listing of Foss's affiliations and honors is given at The Joe Foss Institute.<ref>[http://www.joefoss.com/about-us/about-joe-foss/accomplishments-and-affiliations "Accomplishments and Affiliations."] ''The Joe Foss Institute.'' Retrieved: August 4, 2011.</ref>