2012 Salute to Nurses Breakfast
2012 Cincinnati Reds
Dancing With The Stars finale
Book Nook provides readers with insights into the world of books. Vick Mickunas takes you into the center of the publishing world with the latest book buzz, book reviews, and exclusive chats with authors..Home > Blogs > Book Nook > Archives > 2011 > December > 01 > Entry
The agony of being a Cleveland sports fan…
Scott Raab knows the excruciating pain of being a Cleveland sports fan. Raab grew up in Cleveland. He was there in 1964 at the last significant Cleveland sporting event that came out in Cleveland’s favor, a football game in 1964. It has been sheer misery ever since.
Raab has had a successful career as a writer for magazines like Esquire. He just published his first book. It is a book about the pain of being a Cleveland sports fan and he puts his focus on the most recent wrenching, depressing thing that happened there, the day that LeBron James, their homegrown superstar, deserted the Cleveland Cavaliers for the white sands of Miami Beach.
This book is rude and obscene and vicious. It is also tender, deeply personal, and thoroughly entertaining. Time Magazine just published a review of it. If you want to read the review and discover the name of this book (a shocking name) click HERE:
Raab still carries around his ticket stub from that 1964 football game. I called him yesterday and told him how much I enjoyed his book. I’m hoping to tape a radio interview with him in the near future. Stay tuned…
p.s. Special bonus: the 2 million dollar comic book.
Vick Mickunas
p.s. Follow me on Twitter: @BookNookVick
Permalink | Comments (10) | Post your comment | Categories: secret passions
Tweet
Comments
By vick
December 3, 2011 9:58 AM | Link to this
wow. I mean, WOW! Amazing story, Raoul.
By Raoul
December 2, 2011 11:10 PM | Link to this
That is awesome Vick. Who knows how many fantastic finds are out there, hiding in a box in some attic. I have another story you might like. On the night that Mark MaGwire broke the single season home run record I was driving home from a late night class listening to the broadcast on the radio. Just as he hammered that record breaking blast down the left field line I was driving by Howell Field by DeWeese Parkway on Ridge Avenue. There was a game being played under the lights and as I heard the report on the radio I glanced over just in time to see the batter connect with one, and lo and behold it cleared the right field fence and bounced into the road just as I drove by, narrowly missing my car. On the radio there was pandemonium, and I thought wow, no one will ever believe this. Do you? It’s all true.
By vick
December 2, 2011 10:59 AM | Link to this
Great story, Raoul. Years ago when I was living in Des Moines I helped someone out with an estate sale. This is a weird story. An elderly doctor and his wife had spent 50 years battling. Finally, they got a divorce. Then, weeks later, they both died at the same hospital on different floors within 24 hours of one another. One of their daughters was trying to deal with their estate. Lots of stuff; original Elvis ’45s, antiques, you name it. After I hauled boxes for a few days the daughter was grateful. She said: “you can have one thing, any thing that is here. But just one.” I had spotted an old baseball in a box of toys. It was dirty and grass stained. Clearly it had been used for kids’ ball games. It was covered with signatures. It had been signed by the entire St. Louis Cardinals ball club; Musial, Peanuts, Red, etc. All there. I was able to date the ball to one week in August of 1954. There was a signature on there by some guy who was called up for 10 days that year and never made it back to the bigs again. When I was leaving Des Moines I had an auction and I listed the ball in my ad to try to get more people to attend. Lo and behold some old timer bid on the ball. He got it for several hundred dollars. He had inspected it and was impressed. He told me he was buying the ball on behalf of Tony LaRussa. True story.
By Raoul
December 2, 2011 6:13 AM | Link to this
I have fuzzy memories of the 64 title game. Soon after, my uncle gave me and my brother an autographed football signed by all the players in commemoration of the championship over the Colts. Not knowing any better, we played with that football all the time until one day it dissapeared. How was I to know it would be their last championship? I would give anything to have it back as a long suffering fan. I have always wondered if somehow our wreckless handling of that football somehow invoked a curse on the team. But hey, don’t blame me for the Indians and Cav’s. Living with my shame regarding the Brown’s is hard enough!
By Irishguy
December 2, 2011 12:56 AM | Link to this
To your point Mr WM, From the WSJ: We feel for Cleveland fans, but maybe they should allocate some of their wrath to the state politicians who keep driving high-income individuals and their businesses to financially sunnier climes. While LeBron’s departure got extraordinary media attention, it is hardly unique. * In the early 1990s, Ohio was the home of 43 Fortune 500 companies. Twenty years later the number is 24. * Census Bureau data show that from 2004-2008 Ohio saw a net outmigration of $6 billion of income and some 97,000 taxpayers. * Even Ohio’s famously liberal Senator, the late Howard Metzenbaum, moved to Florida late in his life to reduce his estate taxes. WSJ: LeBron’s Tax Holiday, July 10, 2010
By ClevelandGuy
December 1, 2011 5:51 PM | Link to this
Follow the Cleveland teams? Please pass the antacids! It’s what makes us tough.
By Cleveland Guy
December 1, 2011 5:47 PM | Link to this
This is why Cleveland sports fans are so tough! Pass the antacids, PLEASE…
By Cleveland Guy
December 1, 2011 5:45 PM | Link to this
Yep, if you follow Cleveland sports, you better keep the antacids handy! This stuff makes us tough and probably shortens our lives. Oh well….
By waterboard Madoff
December 1, 2011 2:41 PM | Link to this
Vic, If you get the interview, you might ask him to comment about the influence of state and city income taxes in Ohio upon Lebron’s decision. It has been reported that the Cleveland Cavaliers offered James four million dollars more per year than Miami, but after state and local taxes in Ohio his net would have been less than Florida, which has no state income tax.
By bill
December 1, 2011 1:22 PM | Link to this
It IS amazing all the things that have happened to the Browns over the years.. Brian Sipe’s interception in 1981 Elway’s 98 yard drive in 1987 Earnest Byner’s fumble in 1988 One out away from the world series in 1997