Customer Reviews

Jack Buck: That's a Winner

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you want to read about the St. Louis Cardinals any book written by either Jack Buck or Bob Broeg is sure to provide you with solid reporting. Buck has been announcing for the Cardinals since the mid-1950's and spent many of those years with another hall-of-famer named Harry Caray. Jack provides the reader with insights into his army career prior to entering baseball, his many years as an announcer for KMOX radio in St. Louis, and those glorious years with the Cardinals of the 1960's and 1980's. He also provides us with his opinions on the changes that have taken place in both baseball and the world from what it used to be. You don't have to be a Cardinals' fan to enjoy this book. If you enjoy baseball history, reading a book written by the much-respected Jack Buck is an enviable treat.

I bought this book to read Jack Buck's stories about the St. Louis Cardinals. That material is there, but not in the quantity one might expect. The book is immensely enjoyable for other reasons, ones that I didn't expect when I first bought it. Buck tells a number of moving stories, in a matter-of-fact manner, about growing up poor and serving in World War II. These stories, and not the Cardinals material, were my favorite parts of the book. There are other things as well. Buck tells of getting baseball tickets for a mobster (and, later, for the FBI agents that were keeping tabs on him); enduring a Joe DiMaggio temper tantrum when Buck asked him to sign a baseball; and his relationship with Harry Caray. He also tells some unflattering stories about the Cardinals, including his dislike for some of the teams of the 1970s and 1980s and a poignant story about how he once suggested an airline meal of franks, biscuits and beans for a Cardinals team flight, and the players all refused to eat it.

This book really comes at sports from a perspective few think about. The broadcaster watches hundreds of games every year, and knows the games just as well as the players but few think to consider their perspective. I learned a ton from the life of Jack Buck and about sports over the past half of a century. I highly recommend grabbing this book if you have a day or two of free time.

Jack Buck was a splendid announcer, whose warm and friendly demeanor became his trademark. This was a truly humble man who cared about people; but he also wasn't afraid to confront those who were self-absorbed or shallow. His biography is a fascinating story of his humble beginnings, his slow rise to broadcasting prominence, and his remarkable ascension to the top of the mountain; very few have attained such greatness in his profession. It's no wonder he was such a revered part of Cardinal baseball folklore, and it's no wonder he's enshrined in the broadcaster's wing at Cooperstown.

This story, in essence, is a wonderful anatomy of a Hall of Fame career; it's definitely a winner.

I would like to give 3.5 stars. Good stories and thoughts, but...
seems a bit "all over the place". But, reading this book
is definitely a pleasure.

A tough old coot, Jack Buck tells the story of coming through the early years of baseball media. Pride and a competitive spirit were fundamental to success in the industry. Buck lays it on the table: there were fewer jobs than hopefuls. Only the best prevailed. And industry politics frequently interfered.

While not rivoting, the book is one of few available that provides a window on this very small piece (sports announcing) of a small industry (media announcing).

I liked Buck's open discussion of various baseball commentators. A fresh view from inside that confirms some of my suspicions, and clouds others.

If you are a real baseball fan, then this book will open doors of further appreciation for the sport.

What an inspiration Jack Buck is to all of St. Louis. Wouldn't we all like to be remembered as a truly happy person, just a nice guy? That is who and what Jack Buck was. We are richer for having known him in our lives, and thankful he shared this essay with all of us. Jack Buck loved St. Louis, but that love is returned 100 fold to Jack Buck. He's a winner!

What an inspiration Jack Buck is to all of St. Louis. Wouldn't we all like to be remembered as a truly happy person, just a nice guy? That is who and what Jack Buck was. We are richer for having known him in our lives, and thankful he shared this essay with all of us. Jack Buck loved St. Louis, but that love is returned 100 fold to Jack Buck. He's a winner!

Picking up the autobiography of legendary baseball announcer Jack Buck, you'd think you're in for a light summer read full of good-natured homilies, humorous anecdotes, and "I was there" accounts of great games and players. That doesn't set the bar very high but would make for a good baseball book. "That's A Winner" doesn't deliver on even these modest expectations. First, Buck himself doesn't come across as a very likeable guy. Free with his back-handed criticisms, judgmental of others, once slamming the door in the face of a desperate pregnant woman, and generally keeping his head down as the inveterate corporate guy trying to keep his job. Second, he doesn't really have much to offer. Less than half the book is about baseball, so the reader has to wade through chapters on Buck's youth aboard a boat, in World War II, going to school, reciting names of family and friends as though reading a phone book. There are futile discussions of Castro and the death penalty and Vietnam, issues to which Buck brings no insight and that merely serve to distract the reader looking for some sports. Third, when the baseball finally comes, it's feeble and fleeting. A few thoughts on drugs use in the late 1970s, praise for Whitey Herzog and Ozzie Smith, and that's about it. For a guy who's been around some of the greatest players in the history of the game and become famous for his steady deep-voiced announcing, Buck has written a book that manages to suck the life out of the games and players. No stories, no funny anecdotes, nothing to interest a fan. If you're researching Buck's life and need to know about his military service, this is the book for you. If you want to pass a weekend with a good baseball book, pick up Roger Angell instead.