[2][3] His first real job was for publishing tycoon William Randolph Hearst's organization in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston and Chicago.

"This meant choosing strong young men comfortable fighting with fists, clubs, knives, chains and, when they could get them, handguns," author Ted Schwarz wrote.

"They were the business equivalent of the street gang, and McBride's salary depended on how well he organized his newsboys to avoid losing their corners to one or more violent rivals.

[2] In the late 1930s, he leveraged his newspaper connections to launch a wire service that supplied bookmakers with the results of horse races.

[9] He invested in the Continental Press and Empire News, both based in Cleveland and run by mobsters Morris "Mushy" Wexler and Sam "Gameboy" Miller.

[13][14] In 1944, however, Chicago Tribune sports editor Arch Ward proposed a new professional league called the All-America Football Conference.

[12] McBride, who knew Ward from his days in the newspaper business, eagerly signed on as the owner of the eight-team circuit's Cleveland franchise.

[16] McBride later met with Brown, whose star was on the rise after bringing Ohio State its first national championship in 1942, and offered him $17,500 a year (equivalent to $326,334 in 2023) – the biggest salary for any football coach at any level – and an ownership stake in the team.

[16] Brown accepted the position, saying that while he was sad to leave Ohio State, he "couldn't turn down this deal in fairness to my family.

[18] Brown went out and signed future stars including tackle and placekicker Lou Groza, wide receiver Dante Lavelli and quarterback Otto Graham, who got $7,500 a year and a $250 monthly stipend until the end of World War II.

A capacity crowd of 35,964 saw the Browns play their first preseason game at the Akron Rubber Bowl, and the team led all of football in attendance in 1946 and 1947.

[24] McBride proposed for the Browns to play an inter-league championship game with the National Football League champion Philadelphia Eagles in 1948 and 1949, but the NFL shot down the idea.

[25] He also played a role in negotiating peace between the AAFC and NFL after competition for talent drove up player salaries and ate into owners' profits.

[31] In January 1951, McBride testified in nationally televised hearings before the Kefauver Committee, where he was questioned about his Continental Press Service and alleged ties to organized crime and illegal gambling.

[34] The old stockholders were McBride and his son Edward, along with minority owners including taxi business associate Dan Sherby, Brown and four others.

[39] One of the new ownership group's first acts was to assure Cleveland fans that Brown would retain complete control over the football side of the operation.