The Chicken Runs at Midnight by Tom Friend

This book was selected for the November discussion of the Gables Book Club. We had planned a trip to Kentucky and at the suggestion of a number of members who tend to listen to audio books, I downloaded a copy of the book to play on the drive. Listening to a book was something I had never done before, but felt that this would be a good one and of interest to my husband. What a great decision that was. 

The Chicken Runs at Midnight is a bit of a memoir of Rich Donnelly, a former MLB player and coach. That he was associated with the Pittsburgh Pirates was an added bonus. But more than Donnelly's story, it is the touching narrative of the life of his daughter, Amy, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor at the age of 18. Donnelly was born and raised in Steubenville, Ohio, just about an hour from Pittsburgh. He was the son of an abusive father and loving mother. His only desire in life was to be a major league player and then to coach third base for the Pirates and win a World Series. When he was young, he lost his older brother, his coach and mentor to cancer, an event that indelibly marked his adolescent years. While at Xavier College, he met his wife Peggy. From there he became a MLB catcher with the Minnesota Twins and in the Washington Senators organization. His coaching career with the Texas Rangers saw him associated with Billy Martin, and then joined forces with Jim Leyland and the Pirates and eventually the Florida Marlins. During this time he was often the absentee father and at one point a partying baseball player/coach whose affair with a dental hygenist led to a messy divorce. His reminiscences about his days growing up listening to KDKA, Bob Prince and the Pirates' games brought back, for this reader, the fondest memories.  The description of the euphoria when Bill Mazeroski hit his 9th inning, game 7  walk-off home run in the 1960 World Series was palpable. 

But the most dramatic moment of the book occurred when his daughter, Amy, called and said, "I have a brain tumor. I'm sorry." Nothing could change the life of a parent more than hearing those words. Amy was a delightful child who idolized her father, without him reciprocating the feeling. Donnelly was more interested in his sons becoming the star athletes in the family. However, she did love baseball and when Donnelly was coaching for the Pirates developed a strong relationship with some of their superstars like Barry Bonds, Sid Bream, and Doug Drabek. She would often babysit the players' children in the "green room." As she watched her father coach 3rd base, cupping his hands and shouting to players, she wondered what he was saying. After one game, she asked, "Dad, what are you telling them? That the chicken runs at midnight, or what?" The phrase became a family catchphrase, often signalling a hello, goodbye, or an I love you. Little did anyone know that it would mark such an auspicious occasion as the winning of the 1997 World Series. Craig Counsell, one of my least favorite managers in baseball, is the central figure in fulfilling Amy's prophecy. I will look at him in a different light as he manages the Brewers.

Although the book has very strong religious overtones in its conclusion, it chronicled baseball and the realization that family and those relationships are meant to be of the utmost important basis of our lives.  This was just the best "listen" for bringing back all those wonderful baseball moments which I have seen and heard. 

 

Big Russ and Me by Tim Russert

It was a sad day for me when Tim Russert died in June, 2008. He was a wonderful news person, extremely intelligent and articulate. I never missed a Sunday of Meet the Press when he was the moderator, if I could help it. And what was election night without Tim and his whiteboard? Big Russ and Me is Tim's memoir and tribute to his father and mentor, Big Russ.

Tim Russert was the son of a garbage collector and newspaper courier, Tim Russert Sr., and Betty Russert. The family was a very blue collar, middle class family who lived in Buffalo, New York. The book reads as if Tim is actually talking to the reader. It is down to earth and personal. Big Russ was a wounded vet from World War II and was grounded in hard work and honesty. These two virtues he passed on to his son. Being nearly the same age as young Tim, I recognized many similarities in upbringing, values, interests, and viewpoints. Tim Russert was educated in the Catholic school system of Buffalo and then proceeded to attend Cannisius College, a Jesuit institution. From there he went to John Carroll University Law School in Cleveland. He was a devout man, although not over zealous. His descriptions of meeting the Pope convey his adoration of the man and the position. Through a series of being in the right place at the right time and very hard work, Russert rose through the political offices of the city of Buffalo, Daniel Patrick Moynihan's staff, and NBC news.

The chapter titles of Big Russ and Me resonate with many boomers as major aspects of one's life. - Work, Faith, Food (love the Beef and Weck of Buffalo), Baseball, Fatherhood, Discipline, 1968, Cars, and Loss. In each Russert describes that aspect of his love in almost a reverend way. Reading about him and his father, and uncle traveling to Cleveland each year for an Indians game - usually a doubleheader - brought back so many fond memories of the afternoons I spent at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. So much of the history of the 60s is detailed with his reactions to it. John Glenn orbiting the earth, the assassination of John Kennedy, and the subsequent killings of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy are major turning points in his life as they were in all of our lives. His descriptions are heartfelt and insightful as he reminisces.

As much is this book is a tribute to Russert's father, it is also a love song to the city of Buffalo. This was his home and although he moved to Washington, D.C., he never felt far away from his hometown. How painful for him to endure those 4 Super Bowl losses. Yet the book is also written for his son, Luke as he prepares to leave the nest for college. His words are encouraging and loving and how untimely it was that Tim Russert died right after Luke graduated from college.

This book was a wonderful read. It begged to be savored as much as the Buffalo fish fries, the German food at Broadway market, or baked goods from the Quality Bakery. Yes, I do still miss Tim Russert, but am grateful that he shared a bit of his life for all of us to enjoy in this book.

Kiss it Good-bye by John Moody

Kiss It Good-bye: The Mystery, the Mormon, and the Moral of the 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates was a trip down memory lane for me. Moody grew up in the Pittsburgh area in the late 50s and early 60s and relates how the city and especially the Pittsburgh Pirates influenced his life. This is such an easy concept to which I can easily relate. I spent most Sunday afternoons at Forbes Field watching double headers with my family. My mother would pack us a picnic lunch/dinner (usually ham salad sandwiches and potato salad, cookies and lemonade) and we would make a day and sometimes an evening out of it if a game would go into extra innings. Those were the days when you could bring food into a ballpark and not have to worry about having your children hear inappropriate language. It didn't matter that the Pirates were a horrible team, they were our city's baseball team and we knew all the player stats and had our own family favorites. My brother loved Bob Skinner, my dad, Bill Virdon, Mom's was Dick Groat and mine was Bill Mazeroski. We kept score for every game we saw and loved the Bucs. When we weren't at Forbes Field we sat on our patio and listened to Bob Prince and Jim Woods on the radio as he announced the games. We all knew his nicknames for the players, his signature phrases and most of all we enjoyed the way his excitement became ours.

In Moody's book we are able to relive this era as the author tells the story through the eyes of Vernon Law, the Cy Young winner of 1960. Law, the ace pitcher of the team, is a devout Mormon who distanced himself from alcohol and profane language. He was recruited by a member of the Pirate Board of Directors - Bing Crosby. The mystery is the accident that happened on the plane after the Pirates clinched the pennant in Milwaukee. Many of the Pirates were drunk that evening and celebrating, during the course of which Law's ankle was hurt. This change the course of the rest of the season and World Series. It had never been revealed who had been responsible for the injury until the publication of this book.

The desire of Danny Murtaugh, Law and the Pirates that year was to bring a pennant to the long suffering city. Their resurgence was a parallel to the renaissance that the city was experiencing. It was through hard work and a few instances of luck that this happened. It was then that they should bring a World Series title to complete the year. But against the Yankees? Anyone who grew up in Pittsburgh at that time knows the rest of the story and the joy that was felt when Mazeroski hit the 9th inning home run. For many of us, we didn't have voices to scream at that point because of Hal Smith's tying home run the inning before. October 13, 1960 was a glorious day.

Throughout the book are those remembrances from days gone by: Ed and Wendy King's Partyline and the nightly Party Pretzel, the Jenkins Arcade, Pittsburghese galore, and often forgotten Pirates like Gino Cimoli, Ducky Schofield, and Rocky Nelson. It was an uplifting read for the middle of a most dismal baseball season for Pirate fans. Maybe the present day owners should look to the past and see how to bring a team back. Surely there is another Murtaugh and Joe L. Brown out there who can work a little magic for us. Please.......