April 22, 2022 • 46 mins
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Doug Krikorian makes his debut appearance on the “Fifth Hour with Ben Maller, and Danny G Radio.” Krikorian has seen it all, done it all, heard it all, starting as a beat writer with the Lakers in 1968, he has a unique perspective on the changing sports landscape. Doug and Ben have been radio pals for many years, they share classical stories about the classical days. What made the McDonnell-Douglas show with Big Joe McDonnell so successful in LA radio? What was it like traveling with the Lakers? Did Wilt Chamberlain really sleep with 20,000 women? Having a Rams player charge at you like a bull? Beefs with NFL owners and Dodgers legend Tommy Lasorda, the rise and fall of the newspaper business? His induction this weekend into the National Boxing Hall of Fame? It's all covered in this extra groovy edition. Follow Doug nowhere, he’s happily retired from the media world after a glorious and decorated career. Follow Danny G Radio on Twitter @DannyGradio, Follow Big Ben on Twitter @BenMaller, and listen to the original "Ben Maller Show," Monday-Friday on 400+ terrestrial Fox Sports Radio affiliates, iHeart stream, and SiriusXM Radio channel 83, 2a-6a ET, 11p-3a PT!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Kaboom. If you thought four hours a day, minutes a
week was enough, I think again. He's the last remnants
of the old republic, a sole fashion of fairness. He
treats crackheads in the Ghetto Cutter the same as the
rich pill poppers in the penthouse the Clearinghouse of Hot
takes break free for something special. The Fifth Hour with
(00:23):
Ben Maller starts right now in the air everywhere and
a very Happy Friday to you. Is another edition of
The Fifth Hour with Ben Maller and Danny g Radio
And we welcome into the podcast do Joe, So you
(00:47):
know the drill. Normally on Friday Friday Friday, we like
to bring somebody into the podcast that I know, someone
who I am a fan of. And this week we
are in for a special. If you're familiar with the
Los Angeles media scene, uh you know who this guy is.
But if not, you're gonna learn all about him. One
(01:09):
of the more interesting characters in media. He a longtime,
longtime writer, beat writer columnists Between the by Lines his autobiography.
He wrote a while back there about his career in
sports journalism. But Doug chric Corean is the name he
(01:30):
hosted a very popular radio show in Los Angeles. Co
hosted the McDonald Douglas Show on the airwaves around l
A for a number of years. But his bread and
butter as a sportswriter at the Los Angeles Herald Examiner,
the Long Beach Press Telegram, and back in the days
when being a sportswriter was a massive, massive undertaking, newspapers
(01:53):
dominated the landscape. It's not like today with the Internet
and social media and all that stuff. And Uh, Doug's
the perfect guy to get on because we're gonna talk
to Doug about all his career and all that stuff.
But he also knows Jerry West better than just about anybody.
And we can get into the documentary that has been
going on, the docuseeries, not a documentary, the docuseriies about
(02:16):
the Lakers. Also, I've got to get in to some
point here with Doug Wilt Chamberlain and the bigger than
life stories about Wilt, and Doug traveled with the Lakers
and was around Wilt new Wilt very well for a
number of years. So we'll get into some of that
and uh and get into it. So right now, let's
give it up for the man, the myth, the legend
(02:40):
Doug Chrick Coreyan, who joins us now on the Fifth
Hour with Ben Maller and Danny g And Doug, I've
known you a long time. I'm a massive fan. Why
have we not had you on this podcast? Suit of
bad job by me? Dog? I don't know, but it
has been a cultural derivation for me to talk to you.
(03:01):
You know, man, how much I like you. I patterned
my radio career after you. You got to remember that
you were my favorite. And uh, of course I get
that much older than you. I don't ain't sure when
I started were you in radio? Back know, I was
a listener. I listened to you and the Big Nasty
(03:22):
Joe McDonald. You guys said you dominated the afternoon drive
airwaves in l A. And then, uh, it was one
of you, one of the people that when I got
to know you, I'm like, oh, this is pretty cool
you and and Big Joe and those guys, because because
I listened to you, and then I got into the business,
and then you guys kind of became my friends and stuff.
So that was pretty cool early on. And well, you
(03:44):
hold let me tell you something that I've never told you. This.
You hold the distinction of being one of the few
people in sports talk radio and in sports the big
nasty never he liked you. He really genuine like you.
I don't know how you did it. You and him
for buddies. Yeah, we we had a few radio beefs,
(04:06):
a couple of but we we did actually we had
a couple of radios. But but Joe and I became
you know, we were good friends, and we had a
little radio like a radio beef at a M eleven fifty.
But then we but then we were good to go.
Then we were we were we were, we were great
and uh, you know, miss Joe, Uh, why can you imagine?
You know, for those who don't know that didn't hear
(04:28):
Doug hosted the number one afternoon show. You know how
many years did that show run? Doug? You and Camp
we were there three years, and then at eestn we
were there five years. And then of course we were
a k Max and you know, we did some stuff
out here in Long Beach, but we were together off
and on for thirteen years, really solid for nine years. Yeah,
(04:51):
And what made that show so good? What do you
think the secret? You know, I think the uniqueness of
our show. Ben at the time time was and started.
I was a lifetime sportswriter in Los Angeles. You know,
I go back to ninety governor Lakers in the series
against the Celtics. I mean, I was a beat writer
for the Lakers and Will Chamber and Jerry Western Eljam
(05:14):
Baylor were there. And Joe went to every sporting event
as you know, every Godger game, every Clipper game, every
Laker game, and every Ram game, Raider game. Joe was
working in radio. So I think because of you've got
a lot of inside stuff because of us. Because I
was part of the sporting senior all those years, I
(05:35):
knew everyone, you know. I was very good friends with
Al Davis and John Wood and I mean you name it,
and I knew him because I covered them all. You know. Yeah,
I think that was the uniqueness. A lot of people
that get in sports talk radio did not have that
kind of background where we were actually when we were working,
like for instance, when I was on the radio at
(05:57):
that time. Now it's not so unique. Today's wortswriters are
in it, but not a lot of sportswriters when I started,
there was no sport. Very few they start hiring them then,
but very few sportswriters were on the air in those days.
You know, I think maybe Krnheiser was. I'm not even
sure back but that's what made us unique in Los
(06:17):
Angeles because when you listen to us, we knew what
what we were talking about because we have so much
inside information. Well, and and Big Joe like ran the
Dodger locker room. I it was unreal like everybody, the
Dodgers and the Lakers. I mean he was there every
single day. I didn't go to very Dodger game. I
(06:39):
went to a lot of Laker games. I definitely, you know,
in New Time and everything else, I definitely did that.
But I think what made that it was a free
flowing as you know operation. We used to rip the
hell out of me. I mean, what other radio show
where the here co host RiPPs you all the time
and that's okay. We used to have an argument and
(07:00):
my a moron or my imbecile? Amight, Indio, what's one
I might today? Joe? You know, it was all tongue
in cheek, but a tongue of cheek on the square
with Joe, as you know, yeah, yeah, for sure, for sure.
And then you know you think about oh boy, you know,
Joe passed away a few years ago, but the what
he would have been doing with some of the stuff
that's happened Doug the last five years or so? Ho
(07:21):
canoli man the world? The world we live in now,
she's the GM of the Lakers. Would be assassinated, verbally, persecuted,
assassinated and viscerated. I can use one word after another
and describing what happened. Yeah so so so do let
me ask you, now, you were a very successful sports writer,
(07:43):
the beat guy columnists for a long time. What was
what was easier for it was the radio? Is it right?
In the column? What what did you find writing a column?
You know my nature. I'm a writer, you know, I
literally thousands and thousands of stories and thousands of sports columns.
I mean, I became a sports comics in nineteen Thrillo
(08:06):
gave me the column that I think it was seventy three,
seventy two or seventy three. And you know, I was
the beat writer for a long time. I covered the Lakers,
I covered the Rams for seven seasons during the seventies,
and I coduced basketball there in the Walton years Sydney
which years, and you know, and did all the boxing.
But I became an actual Pool Time columnist in nineteen
seventy eight met On. That's all I wrote were columns said,
(08:30):
although although I took ironically you get to kick out
this Ben and nineteen eighty five, I believe who was
it was. I think Spencer left the Laker beat at
the Hero examuter to go to the post, or somebody
left and I took over the Laker beat. I wrote
(08:51):
the column still, but I took over the Laker beat
midway through the season that they finally exercised the Boston
Celtic ghost member. They beat the Celtics in n and
I covered that team the second half of the season. Okay,
so when you writing, how many columns do you think
you wrote in your time there, I would say literally,
(09:13):
I mean, but this way, Harold, I was writing four
column vote vote papers, Prestogram and Harold four columns a year,
and yeah, right, uh, I'm sorry, of course, Yeah, you
just got to do the math. I can't do it, Offen,
but literally, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of them. I
got it. At the end of the Long Beach prest
(09:38):
Long Beach Press Telegram, I did a cityside column once
a week. Also in the last two years era, which
I really enjoyed, I got into hard news. I did
a lot of stuff on cityside, and I recently did
that with the late and great Long Beach Report, which
I did one story. It was more political, you know,
(09:58):
knocking the local mayor and stuff like that. Yeah. So
the nice thing about that column, even though it was
very political, I never mentioned Republican, I never mentioned Democrat.
I never mentioned Trump, I never mentioned Biden. I just
mentioned the local people. And you know that I wasn't
left when your right winger, I wrote what I thought
(10:21):
was fair. Anyway, that was a different time of my life. Well,
and also we'll get to that, but I'm gonna go
right in the column, like did how often did you
get writers? How often did you get writer's block? We
just didn't have anything. Never you never got it. You
never you want something. Then when you write columns, and
there's certain you know, obviously I would interview a lot
(10:41):
of people, but there's a lot of columns you right
off the top of your head, I think, well, like
I'd wake up on a for instance, at the Press
telling you am, I'd wake up on a Monday. They
wanted a Tuesday, and maybe I didn't go off the
Dodger Stadium on uh Sunday or Anaheim Stadium, or maybe
I didn't cover a RAM game, or they weren't in town.
(11:03):
You know, this is early they left the ninety four.
Of course, the last six to the last parts of
my career, they weren't even in town. But I would
come up with stories on my own, you know, and
I think some of the best columns I ever wrote
those kinds of stories, just making them up on the
you know, just I get an idea and expanded into
(11:25):
a column and I thought it would be pretty good.
And a lot of times I would I would do
a local piece. I'd go for a walk around and
just do a mood piece and be not a lot
of my sports columns were non sports, and people love
those kind of columns. Yeah. And when you when you
were doing you worked in the newspaper business, and the
hay kind of the heyday. I don't know the hey day,
but one of the hey days of the newspapers when
(11:48):
you when you see what happened to your industry, and
I see it in radio. Radio is a much different
medium now than it was when I started. The way
the business is run. But you you worked at some
huge news papers, you had a lot of influence, and
now you look at newspapers today, it's just not the same. Though.
What's your perspective on what you've seen in your lifetime
with a newspaper business. That's a great question. And then
(12:10):
first off, I go back so far the first five
years of my career. I sent my columns in her
stories in like, for instance, from the Forum a Western
Union Perdie Parristein would be there in the Western Union
machine and I've given my piece of paper and it'd
send it Western Union. When I was in Philadelphia, a
guy uh would send it Western Union. That's the way
(12:33):
it was sent in those days. When you're on the road,
you do a Western Union. But what is so dramatically different,
and it really is when you were sportswriter, especially at
the Harold Los Angeles Hero examer which was a very
prestigious sports section. The guy named Bud Fellow was sports
in there when I got there, and we were the
top sports of the people in town. Read the Harold
(12:56):
Examber's sports You're too young to remember, but it was
a very good sports page. Melvin Derst to call him.
You know, Alan Mallaman was. You know, they had so
many good writers, Lyle Spencer, I could go on on
Tom Singer, Dick Miller, Bob Hunter. You know, we had
a lot of good people. They're very good people. And
sportswriters were treated like a king's I mean because in
(13:20):
those days when I got there, in you know, before
I I apprenticed at uh Cameriell Daily News and the
Pacific Colisadium Post and Hilario Das Register, and then I
got into the Hero Exameter. But they were treated on
my gosh. I would go into Little Joe's at North Broadway,
(13:41):
and Andie Stagnon, who was the bartender, never paid for anything.
Ernie tasked at the Gaylor. I'll go have a drink
or dinner. You you know, they would take care of sportswriters.
There was there was prest There was prestige, right, There
was a lot of because you didn't get see people
read the newspapers in those days. Your only other outlet
was TV and and the TV sports tasters would beyond
(14:03):
for three minutes so you'd get your big info. You know,
it's three minutes at eleven o'clock a night or something
like that. But remember you couldn't wait to get the
paper the next morning. And the Harold Examiner. When I
first got there, was an afternoon paper, but then it
became a morning paper and they would read, you know,
what we wrote. They hinged on every word. I mean
when I was with the Rams for seven years and
(14:27):
I was a little different sportswriter from the normal guy.
I injected my humor into my game stories, not the humor,
my opinions, you know, and some humor of course, but
but and writers in those days, a lot of them
didn't do that. And I took very strong stands. Writers
didn't do that in those days. In factors, some pettiness
among my colleagues that would even talk to me on rampchips,
(14:49):
because you know I would. I used to rip a
guy named Chuck Knox how conservative he was, and you know,
people just didn't do that in those days. Well I did,
you know, Yeah, you're too young to remember, Chuck. I'm not.
I remember you. I remember you guys talking about my show.
You called them what ground shuck was it was as nickname.
(15:10):
One other thing that Ben that was dramatically different. When
I covered the Lakers like I was a twenty four
year old kid. Can you imagine this? Here I am
from a little place, a little farm community, a ten
miles south of President or the southern Pacific town that
started because of the railroad and stopped there. And you
know this and that my graduating class was sixty five
(15:34):
people in Bud frill Will assigned me to the Lakers.
The Laker beat writer and left or whatever wasn't there
and I took it over here. I'm traveling. But in
those days, the writers traveled with the team. Do you
understand what I'm saying? Traveled with the teams. THEE and
the Times didn't travel that year during the regular season.
(15:56):
They didn't send their beat writer, who I think was
Dan after that year or Mouth Florence. I think it
was Dan Affton. So so I would be with the
team and would fly first class. Here I am flying
first class. My first trip. Chick Heer and took me
to every player on the team, Elgin Baylor, Jerry West.
I played hearts. You love this story is a great story.
(16:19):
On the first time I ever was on a Laker
road trip, I played hearts. I was the fourth member.
I knew how to play Hearts World Chamber, Jerry West,
Elgin Baylor and me played Hearts together. Can you imagine
what a twenty four year old wide eyed in my
my boyhood idol was Elgin Baylor? Right, even doing the
ticks he used to do with us. You remember they
(16:40):
go to the side and everything, Well, you wouldn't twitchy
and I. I loved Elgin and he was a great
He and I used to play after that. We played
a lot of Gin together. I never beat him. He
was a great gin player. He and Chick were very
good players. But here I am with the team. So
you really get to know. Guys don't do that today?
(17:00):
Are you kidding? Do you think they travel with the team.
The sportswriters they'll do that, and the players don't want it, right,
the players today don't want anything. They don't like it. No, No,
in those days, you get you got to build the players.
I mean, I knew Will Chamber. He didn't have anything
going on. He called me doug'scot to dinner. Okay, fine,
(17:20):
you know that it would we were that close. I'll
walk around and walking around with him in the multiple
one time we're walking, that's when you know, well, you
have to understand Will, I loved it. He didn't talk
to me the last ten years of his life. He
got mad at me. But that's another story I might
tell you later. But we were walking. You gotta understand.
Will was very liberal with the truth, you know, hyperple
(17:44):
levers his middle name. I could tell you a story
after story with Will. He said, yeah, you look like it.
In those days, I was kind of waiting with the
I was a big guy with to Tim. You know,
they were not the guy you see now. I was.
I was within heavy weights and this. You said, yeah,
I've been spressed six hundred one time, and I knew
he didn't come on. I mean, I know, wait, you
(18:06):
know I worked out when I was in college, and
for four years I worked out three three hours every
other day, was trying to get big and all that stuff.
And I know, wait, with six hundred pounds, you gotta
be kidding. At that time, not very few many men
in the world. Because Ben Spress six other towns and
that was a great exaggeration as his claimed to have
(18:28):
gotten to bed with. Yeah. I was going to ask
you about that though, because that's the great urban legend.
But she started. He wrote in his book that he
he betted twenty thousand women there. You traveled with you
travel with him? Yeah. We were in New York one
one year, my second year of the team. He calls you, guy, said, well,
(18:49):
what are you doing? Well? Well do everyone in New York?
He called me. I thought, just called the dinner. We
went out to dinner a big galloners, some damn place.
You know, I will say this, but you know, out
with Will at nighttime, I mean I could the point
after Boston one time. It really was. I mean, people
gravitated to him. My god, he was a complete you know.
(19:10):
He told me the great story in Cincinnati. He went
to a mattenee in the afternoon, walked in and some
ladies screens. She thought, you know, I mean, think of it.
You see it walk what was a very imposing figure.
He has seven one it boks in it. He had
the longest slaves ever. Jabar doesn't have those long lads.
(19:32):
We'll have those long you remember you said, did I
did at the form and some woman's screams she got scared.
He said, yeah, that's that's happened to me a couple
of times. He gets scared because he liked to go
to the Mattenees. You know, he didn't see movies and stuff.
I mean, I could go on and on about wild stories.
What other story A great story. It was during the series,
(19:53):
the nineteen NBA series, Alan alamand me and Wilter got
off the plane and we were in the cab going
to the you know, the hotel there. I can't remember
what hotel it was. But he saw a couple really
nice look and they were college girls and tells the
cap stuff I want to get out, goes over there,
talks to him, and then he comes back. He says,
(20:16):
since I was it going, that's all right? So I
think it was that night is when I went to
the point after I saw him. I wasn't with him
when I went there. The point after it was. There
used to be one out in the San Fernando Valley.
It was a very popular disco, you know, nice for
kids that you know, not teenagers. You know, there's a nightclub.
(20:39):
We're in there and we're sitting I see well, I said, well,
what happened those two girls? I got him this afternoon
and eastful? I mean, come on, they were both eighteen
or night He said, oh yeah, but but he was
in dery you just took it with it, like Jerry said,
take it with a shrug. You know it was a
(20:59):
dry Hello, Yeah, what do you what do you mean? No?
I never saw Will play in person. I've heard amazing
I've seen the numbers, I've seen video of him. But
was he would be a dominant Yeah? He was a
great player, great rebounded, really a good rebounding, great player.
But the problem with Will, and there was a reason
(21:20):
why I only won two World championships. There were times
that he would hide. He just did not have the
show we say competitive passion, even Shaquille. I mean I
saw it. I saw it the first half of Game
seven of the Celtics and Lakers. I was there. I
saw it. First Halmlet happened. Russell out played him like
(21:43):
you can't believe. They built that eight team for whatever.
The big lead at half time and they caught up
this or that. But Will was not very good that
first half. And then I guess he got this legage
when he came out and BBK should have put a
back in, but he didn't. Then they lost by what
one point or two points? Made death? You know you
(22:06):
shot You're the perfect person as this because lately some
of the chatter shows have been going back and forth
and and just besmirching the name of all these guys
that you covered back in the old days with the
Lakers and saying just the NBA in general, like these
guys weren't real, they couldn't do anything today and today's
NBA and you've you're the perfect guy because you you
(22:27):
covered those teams and now you you still I'm assuming
you still watch the NBA occasionally there. How, how accurate
are those people slamming the old NBA? Uh? What do
you think about comparing the different eras and how the
sports evolved? Well, I think, wait a minute, the players
today athletically there was nothing like that. Yeah, all these teams,
(22:48):
they had a lot of big, slow, white guys and
they also unfortunately had a quota on a lot of
those teams. You know that there'll only be so many
African Americans even when I covered in not the Celtics,
but there were certain teams that you knew but the
great players could have played today, a lot of players
(23:09):
would have been very mediocre, probably wouldn't even make it.
I mean, just looked at every team, Anthony Edwards and Maranthum.
You just go every team has a stud now, yeah,
I mean there's just so many better athletes, and the
athletes are better, and the teams would be better. But
I'll tell you something. That good Laker team with will
(23:33):
let's put this way, no one's going out rebounded. They
would not rebound them today. You know they might be
to my guest, Jim McMillan was six five and news
the other forward on that team. Uh who was the
other forward on the great Laker team of UHL was gone. Yeah.
(23:53):
But like the other thing too, about the you know,
the different eras and all that you think about Judge that, Yeah,
I mean the nineteen seventy Yankees would get slaughtered today.
Come on, a lot of the guys were five ft tan.
But the best player route to play today. But I
gotta tell you, though, that I do kind of respect
(24:14):
the grit that guys had to have back in the
olders when they had jobs. They had other jobs because
they weren't making enough money in their sport and they
had to do They had to become a construction worker,
drive a truck, or sell cars or something like that.
Can you imagine Can you imagine today? Though, like if
the players today, I had to go out and get
a job in the off season because they needed to
pay their books. Yeah, it lose their minds. It was
(24:38):
totally different then. I mean, do you think guys a
guy like Elgin Bayder, I doubt if he lifted weights.
Fabulous player, I'm telling you Eli in his prime, people
before he heard his knees couldn't hold his only games anybody.
I mean, there were guys Maurice Stokes who died very young.
He could have been. There were Bill Russell would have
been a very very good player today. To leave it
(25:00):
was quick. He could get down there. You know, he
couldn't shoot, but boy was here. They talked about this
Williams and Boston Mark Williams or whatever's day. Men. Russell
would have been great today defensively and he blew out
of play. They're best players in those days, the Oscar Robertson's,
Jerry West and those kind of walk. Prasiers and Well
(25:21):
Walton came later, but they were great players. But there
were I'd say the NBA that I covered sixty eight, uh,
you know, starting in sixty eight, I'd say two thirds
of players couldn't play today. I hate to say that
that they couldn't because it maybe they could play better
if they had the condition. Do you understand maybe need
(25:43):
to stop these guys too, but there were two there
were so many guys. Uh, Larry Siegfried maybe to play today,
I doubt it. You know. Well the other thing too also,
as I just popped in my the late great Tommy Hawkins,
who I knew a little bit, but you and you
know him. I know Tommy was around forever. But okay,
(26:03):
there you go, perfect. So you Tommy told me a
story one time in the early days when when the
Lakers moved from Minneapolis, they were so desperate to get
people to go to these games at the sports Arena
that during the day sometimes they would drive around on
a flat, flatbed truck around l A with a megaphone.
That's that's insane, dog. You you think about what how
(26:25):
that started and what it is like today. It's like
a cult around around the Lakers these days, and what
it was. It's insane. When you in this in sixty eight,
when you started covering the team, what was the what
was the buzz about where the Lakers? Did they own
the town? It seemed like it was the Dodger town
up until the Lakers took over at some point, maybe
the eighties, but what was that dynamic light? Yeah, the
(26:47):
Dodgers still were living off you know, the nineteen sixties.
What they won three World championships? I think, Yeah, but
there were no good anymore. Remember sixty nine? Have any teams?
They were no good. They got a little better than
seventy one. They want a penance, I believe seventy two,
seventy four they got the worst series. Yeah, but the
(27:08):
Lakers started when they got will they start selling out
the form they get and you know, an exciting team
and it was a good. Then you gotta help me.
Who's the foreword on that seventy gonna? I'm gonna look
it up now, nineteen what I haven't Yeah, all right,
(27:29):
I'm looking at up nuts right now. I mean it's
gotta be a very good player that I forget. The
seventy two Lakers we're looking at? Is that what we're
looking at? Yeah? Good Rich and West for the back.
All right? So here, let me give me the right
you got Keith Lee roy ellis happy, happy Hairston. There
you go, Yeah, you're right happy here. Number fifty two
(27:50):
Doug in the program, Number fifty two. But number one,
you are there, Yeah, joined crazy and not talking. Let
me one of the reasons I to have you on
here this crazy story which has been bouncing around this
week about a guy that you know very well, Jerry West,
and this documentary that he filed the lawsuit over this.
(28:13):
I have not full disclosure. I have not watched the documentary.
I have all my producers are huge Laker guys dog
and they tell me, they tell me these things, and
I've read stories about it. I've not actually seen it first,
but apparently it's very demeaning to the legacy of Jerry
Red Jerry West. I saw you wrote a column on
(28:34):
I saw it on Facebook. You know that's where it was,
and you explained in great detail there. But for the
listener who doesn't have access to that dog on a
scale of one at ten, obviously, Jerry's filed the lawsuit,
But where where is this ad on the scale of
anger here? For for Jerry and minus minus chian minus
Chan's complete faith news, complete disinformation, complete, I mean the
(29:01):
portrayal of Jerry West as a public persecution of one
of the nice, nicest, grounded, amiable superstars in the history
of sports. I know you've probably met him. I'm sure
you met him at the forum because you're a nicer guy.
I guarantee it's very nice to you. He's nice to everyone.
(29:23):
And to portray him in this manner, uh, you know,
he's not. I talked to Jerry all the time. I
mean I talked to him twice yesterday. And you know
he's going to be at my I'm going to be
inducted into this Hall of Fame on on Sunday, the
National Boxing Hall of Fame. Jerry, of course he's coming, Jerry, Jerry.
Let me tell you about Jerry West, my friendship going
(29:44):
back fifty four years. I'll tell you. Of course I
am to him. He went to my wife's second wife's,
my wedding with her, and then he went to her
funeral unfortunately she passed away, you know, very young. And
then he also to my retirement party. He came to
my book signing when I had my book. He has
been the most loyal and loyal friend that I have.
(30:08):
That's how loyal. If I asked Jerry to do something,
he does it for me. He's always done it, and
I'll do anything for him. This this guy is the
nicest guy, and for them to do what they're doing,
you know, portraying him as some sort of intemperate boso.
I mean, come on, they have him just among other things,
they have him screaming and a pussing at Jerry Buss.
(30:31):
He would never do that. That's not Jerry. Yes, he
has his moves stuff like that, but I mean, Jerry
what has been overlooked. He's had his big impact on
the success of the Lakers that anyone in its history
think of this. Then who do you think, uh during
the showtime years, who supplied all the chemistry players? Just
(30:55):
answer the question? Who you want to keep going about? Cooper,
Jerry West, he he made sure James Worthy, I like
an idiot, campaigned in the Herald, you gotta get dominic.
Wil becons he's the most exciting player, and Jerry tried
to explain he wouldn't hit in. Of course, he wouldn't
have pit in. You know, he wouldn't be James Worthy.
He took worthy instead of dominant. And then that uh
(31:18):
Bus was on the threshold, as we all know, after
they lost to Sampson and the Houston Rockets. I remember
that I do that last that shot they were going
to make the big trade for I think it was
was an agent that Marcot Wire. I think it was
Marcot Wire or market Market I think yet it was
(31:43):
market markt Wire. And the trade was made. I wrote
it in the Herold Examiner. It was a big story
in the Herald Lakers. The trade worthy environed Stott, you know,
the to the to the Mavericks for this and that
and the only reason it was made. He went to
Jerry Busts and I'm resigning, you can't make this trade.
(32:04):
And of course he didn't make the trade. And they
went on the win the They beat the Pistons in
and the Detroit uh and the Celtics here whenever they
said I was, I think the Celtics in the Pistons
and then they lost to the Pistons and they came
back and went, yeah, yeah, they lost the Pistons because
(32:27):
pat Riley took the damn team over to Santa Barbara
after they were twelve and oh in the playoffs Byron
Scott tour Hamstring, don't you remember that? And the magic
Johnson went out the second day. Yeah. Well, that was
the best Laker team I ever saw. Was the eighty
nine team that that team was really good, really good. Yeah,
(32:48):
so was Old, but it was better than the team
to beat the Pistons the year before. But you know
the thing about the thing about Kareem, which is, and
I've never understood this sty the most dominating, the most
unstoppable shot and I've ever seen in my life and
any any athletic endeavor the sky hook, and no one
other than Kareem has been able to really consistently pull
(33:11):
that shot off. You think if you could take a
young player and teach them that move when they're thirteen
or fourteen, by the time they got to the NBA
and the rest of the wy'd be unstoppable that no
one could do. You know, Kareem, here's something that's gonna
stunt you. What I said and I had, I did
not have a good relation personal action ship with Kareem.
(33:33):
I'm the one that in the Harrow Examber when Year
said they should trade trade him. You know, after he
got one rebound in the game, and that was all
because it wouldn't working on his hook, wouldn't force to
do that. But it was a soft you know, he
didn't have that book shot. And then he developed it.
He realized and he's the most underrated player in the
(33:53):
history of basketball. A lot of people say he's the
greatest player. He might be, and look what he did accomplish.
Six World champion ships, three college championships at u c L.
A great player, great competitor, this all said. You know,
he was very He was kind of borish with the media.
He wasn't you know, although he would always answer my
(34:15):
questions when once he was on talk radio. He came
down to the studios when I was at ESPN, and
he actually we talked about it and he said, Val
used to kissed me off all the time, and this
and that. But he was you know, I'll say one thing.
He always answered my questions and he was always civil
with me, even though he hated he despised me a
(34:36):
couple of he's become even more grumpy as he's gotten older.
Here it's great player, though, you can't take that away.
And he's he's the best center in NBA history history irrespectable.
Will I love Will, But Kareem was a savage competitor.
You know who could have been the best center if
he stayed healthy. Bill Well, he was unbelievable. He had
(34:59):
one of yeah, two healthy years and that was it.
All right? So do the greatest the great player debate? Doug.
You've covered the NBA fifty years, You've been around the NBA.
I'm a Jordan guy something. Where you who's the greatest
player that you've seen in your life in the NBA?
The greatest player I've seen in my life? Well, you know,
(35:21):
Jordan was very good. I mean, I mean obviously as
the greatest ever. You know, I'll tell you who's really
was good and we don't. I mean Kobe was pretty
good too, sure, yea very very good, better offensively that Jordan.
Not defensively, but offensively. How do you ever stopped Kobe?
(35:43):
Couldn't stop him, No one could stop him. Yeah, I
guess you have to get the Jordan Obo. There's a
case to be made for Kareem. Kareem was a great player.
I mean, how do you not for you he got
six World championships. Yeah, you could say Jordan never lost,
but you know, I think the Acres faced much sterner
competition and they were also hurt by injuries. A lot
(36:06):
of injuries happened with the Lakers, you know, key like
losing to the Pistons that year in four straight please.
Then how were they going to beat the Pistons without
Byron Scott and Magic Johnson? You answer the question, that's
what I'm gonna have. All that could have been another
championship for the Magic, which would have given him six.
(36:27):
You know, Jordan was very fortunate, but not I have
to face great Celtic teams when they were good. He
was very I'm serious he was. Those Celtic teams were great,
you know that. Yeah, and the expansion area he was
very ports I mean he faced that, you know, Portland Trailblazers,
Seattle SuperSonics and Utah was good. But you know, Utah
(36:50):
please the Lakers when king they never beat the ladies
for sure. Yeah, I guess you would have to give
up the Jordan. But I'll tell you there's it's close.
It's very close. Yeah. Alright, So the all these years
as a sportswriter, dog, biggest jerk athlete you ever covered,
the guy that just was a pain in the behind,
(37:11):
who would it be? Well, for a time we became
friends later on that you know. I don't know if
you know my history with a linebacker named Isaiah Robertson.
He tried to beat me up at it was big
headlines in the Times l A Times back then. In
in an afternoon practice, he went after me, had a
(37:33):
helmet his hand and he was tackled by Ray Malavas.
And I can't remember the other guy that Larry Mark.
What was the upset? What was the upset? What did
you write about? What he was upset about? Rich Saul?
That choked him out in the locker room. And I
found out about it, and I made a terrible mistake.
I told sportswriter from the l A Times named Ted
(37:55):
Green up in the press box the previous RAM game,
that about it. I told him about it, and then
he called me. I had a cap in the l A. Times.
I was. I always went to the Ram practice in
those days. They practiced blair Field on Long Beach, you
know the baseball field there there during the season. They
(38:15):
practiced there during the week. And he says, I'm going
to write it in Tomorrow's l A Times. You know
other people know about this, Doug, and I think he
d s and me. I mean, he just wanted to
write it, so that forced me to right. I wasn't
going to write it. I mean I I I Isaiah
cussed me out every time I went out there, he
(38:37):
called me an s ob this and I took people
said why didn't you just well, I'll tell you that
story in a second. So I went up to Isaiah
and I says, is there any truth to the rumor
that you were choked out by? You know? He went crazy,
crazy and took off his helmet and came after me. Yeah,
(38:59):
and Malabay, see a guy named Larry Marshall tackle to
hit me over the head of that damn helmt he
killed me and uh Ken Burney writer then working for
the l A Daily News. Remember he recovered the Dodgers.
Remember Kenny Gerney, I do I do he just retired.
He's discovering. I think he's with the MLB right now. Yeah,
I think I think he just retired. I think, yeah,
(39:21):
I think. And he said, you look faster than Carl
lewis you. I've never seen a guy run that past
and I did. I mean it was a general and
I got the hell awaight, and Carol rosen Blue said
get the hell out of here. And Rosenblue, of course
the owner, and he was a friend of mine too.
I had two people at the end of their lives
(39:41):
not talk to me Wilt Chamberlain for ten years and
Carol Rosen, who was very nice, very nice. In fact,
my first year on the beat, he bought bought me
some Gucci loafers, blue loafers, the big joke. I don't
know why I saw, I love your loafers and nixt
Island living. I have no today if you if I
(40:01):
said that, oh my god, you're taking that. You know?
He sent it to my apartment in uh in Belmont
Shore was with my first wife. These beautiful loafers, I
mean those days, they probably cost seventy eight bucks. My god,
and that was a running choke of oh yeah, they
were beautiful. I couldn't have pulled but that guy. And
(40:26):
there's a follow up to that story. Okay, New Year's
Eve the night uh it was right after or before
I can't remember. They believed that it was before they
got beat in the playoff game by the Cowboys. I
think of seventy eight, I can't remember. I think they
did by then. Malavasi was the coach. No, no, Chuck,
(40:51):
Chuck might have still been the was he the coach?
Was he probably still was the coach. Okay, Okay, so
I'm in a place called Bobby mcvies here in Long
Beach and I walked in and there's Isaiah New Year's
He he chased me out, and they say that the bodyguards,
(41:11):
they said they had to get him, like the guys
that though. The security guys grabbed and I ran out
to my car and got out of it. But we
made up. Later he saw me at a reunion and
we shook hands and he actually came into the ESDM
studios with Joe. We laughed about it. You know that's
years yeah, yeah, sure, sure, sure sure. Unfortunately he died
(41:31):
I think in a car accident. That's too bad. So
before I get you out of here, Doug, I kept
you a wife. But one of my other favorite Doug
recorin stories when Tommy was sorta he he was the
GM briefly of the Dodgers, and and this is hilarious.
I still laugh when I think about this. So as
I remember the story, Doug Tommy when he took over
(41:51):
his I think it was the interim GM of the Dodgers.
He had told the media, right, whatever you want, say
whatever you want about me, I don't mind, I'm fine whatever.
Two days later, I'm in the I'm in the press
box at Dodger Stadium, in the press dining room there
and Tommy comes. It was a Sunday. He comes storming
(42:13):
into the press box. Where's Pricry and where's dog? And
he was furious with you. I don't know what you wrote, Doug.
I don't know what that was all, but he, Tommy
was on a mission to find you because of something
that you had written. Don't you even even remember? I
think that was the Bill Russell story that I wrote
that Russell said that it was Russell the manager. Yeah,
(42:36):
Bill Russell was the manager. Yeah, yeah, that's that was it.
He got piste off about that that I wrote that
how could you write that? This? And that? Wouldn't talk
to me for two years. I don't you remember when
I used to go on that that Sports Writers show.
Remember they used to have it, Yeah yeah, yeah, the
Round the Round Table. And I looked at always they
(42:56):
have me on a lot, and now look at Tommy,
please talk to me. And finally, at the two thousand
World Series between the invested Yankees, I saw Tommy and
Rod Dado I think it was Tipty Third Street walking
in New York, and I said, Rod, tap Tommy to
talk to me. He said, what do you mean, because
rod Dado loved me, you know, you'd always say this
(43:19):
that take a lot of story. Short. We shook hands,
but we didn't talk. You know, we didn't talk at all,
you know, for for two years, two years, right, Yeah,
and I was his biggest booster. My god, I wrote
one one. Uh you know, funny. It was always kind
of a funny call up with Tommy. Yeah it was.
(43:41):
It was wild. But anyway, we'll talk to listen. I
love you to death. Dog. You You're a great guy,
and thank you for doing this. I appreciate it. And
you have nothing, you have nothing to wrote you you
are going to Boxing Hall of Fame. But you said, right,
what did it tell me? More? Yeah? This this? Yeah,
this satur National Boxing Hall of Fame. I'm the recipient
of Howie Steinler Award. I always was a farmer, owner
(44:01):
of the Main Street Jam. He was murdered in nineteen
seventies seven by a couple of guys that they don't know.
They never found him, and his daughter picked me to
be the recipient. And because I'm a recipient of that award,
I'm automatically inducted to the Hall of Famous. My fourth
Hall of Fame I've been in. This is what happens
when you be seventy eight years old, started getting in,
(44:24):
you get start getting in. What give me the list
of all? You said? Boxing Hall of Fame? What other
hall of fames is dr it's just small ones. Armenian
Hall of Fame, half Armenian at the Giant. I'm in
the California State Hall of Fame, National Boxing Hall of
Fame and the San Pedro Hall of Fame. The athletic
(44:47):
call it the San Pedro one they have. Actually, it's
like a Hollywood star out there. My name's out there.
Oh that's cool, that's nice. That's for those would be
my fourth one and uh, Jerry West will be at
our table. What about the nice? What about the PHIL
Trainees Hall of Fame? Do they have a PHIL Trainees
Hall of Fame? You gotta should training trade Bil training. Well,
(45:10):
there's a gym in Long Beach. I want the Boys
and Girls Club gym. There's a PHIL training gym. Yeah,
Well for those who don't know, for those the fellows
who know, the PHIL training is famous locational Long Beach.
I've only been there a couple of times. But Doug
and Joe. You guys all, I mean you ran the place. Yeah.
And I'm gonna tell you, Ben, don't don't make me
(45:31):
endure years of cultural depervation by not having me on
your great show. Oh no, I love yes, I love you.
You haven't called me and it's very hurtful. I mean,
you're my friend. I patterned my career. Now. I promised
that we'll we'll have you on again, and I do
thinking have a a great rest of your Daniel. I
(45:54):
congratulations on the Boxing Hall of Fame. That is I
did not know that. That is awesome and and thank you.
We'll talk to you and thank you dog. I love you, Ben,
thank you, thank you all.
Kaboom. If you thought four hours a day, minutes a
week was enough, I think again. He's the last remnants
of the old republic, a sole fashion of fairness. He
treats crackheads in the Ghetto Cutter the same as the
rich pill poppers in the penthouse the Clearinghouse of Hot
takes break free for something special. The Fifth Hour with
(00:23):
Ben Maller starts right now in the air everywhere and
a very Happy Friday to you. Is another edition of
The Fifth Hour with Ben Maller and Danny g Radio
And we welcome into the podcast do Joe, So you
(00:47):
know the drill. Normally on Friday Friday Friday, we like
to bring somebody into the podcast that I know, someone
who I am a fan of. And this week we
are in for a special. If you're familiar with the
Los Angeles media scene, uh you know who this guy is.
But if not, you're gonna learn all about him. One
(01:09):
of the more interesting characters in media. He a longtime,
longtime writer, beat writer columnists Between the by Lines his autobiography.
He wrote a while back there about his career in
sports journalism. But Doug chric Corean is the name he
(01:30):
hosted a very popular radio show in Los Angeles. Co
hosted the McDonald Douglas Show on the airwaves around l
A for a number of years. But his bread and
butter as a sportswriter at the Los Angeles Herald Examiner,
the Long Beach Press Telegram, and back in the days
when being a sportswriter was a massive, massive undertaking, newspapers
(01:53):
dominated the landscape. It's not like today with the Internet
and social media and all that stuff. And Uh, Doug's
the perfect guy to get on because we're gonna talk
to Doug about all his career and all that stuff.
But he also knows Jerry West better than just about anybody.
And we can get into the documentary that has been
going on, the docuseeries, not a documentary, the docuseriies about
(02:16):
the Lakers. Also, I've got to get in to some
point here with Doug Wilt Chamberlain and the bigger than
life stories about Wilt, and Doug traveled with the Lakers
and was around Wilt new Wilt very well for a
number of years. So we'll get into some of that
and uh and get into it. So right now, let's
give it up for the man, the myth, the legend
(02:40):
Doug Chrick Coreyan, who joins us now on the Fifth
Hour with Ben Maller and Danny g And Doug, I've
known you a long time. I'm a massive fan. Why
have we not had you on this podcast? Suit of
bad job by me? Dog? I don't know, but it
has been a cultural derivation for me to talk to you.
(03:01):
You know, man, how much I like you. I patterned
my radio career after you. You got to remember that
you were my favorite. And uh, of course I get
that much older than you. I don't ain't sure when
I started were you in radio? Back know, I was
a listener. I listened to you and the Big Nasty
(03:22):
Joe McDonald. You guys said you dominated the afternoon drive
airwaves in l A. And then, uh, it was one
of you, one of the people that when I got
to know you, I'm like, oh, this is pretty cool
you and and Big Joe and those guys, because because
I listened to you, and then I got into the business,
and then you guys kind of became my friends and stuff.
So that was pretty cool early on. And well, you
(03:44):
hold let me tell you something that I've never told you. This.
You hold the distinction of being one of the few
people in sports talk radio and in sports the big
nasty never he liked you. He really genuine like you.
I don't know how you did it. You and him
for buddies. Yeah, we we had a few radio beefs,
(04:06):
a couple of but we we did actually we had
a couple of radios. But but Joe and I became
you know, we were good friends, and we had a
little radio like a radio beef at a M eleven fifty.
But then we but then we were good to go.
Then we were we were we were, we were great
and uh, you know, miss Joe, Uh, why can you imagine?
You know, for those who don't know that didn't hear
(04:28):
Doug hosted the number one afternoon show. You know how
many years did that show run? Doug? You and Camp
we were there three years, and then at eestn we
were there five years. And then of course we were
a k Max and you know, we did some stuff
out here in Long Beach, but we were together off
and on for thirteen years, really solid for nine years. Yeah,
(04:51):
And what made that show so good? What do you
think the secret? You know, I think the uniqueness of
our show. Ben at the time time was and started.
I was a lifetime sportswriter in Los Angeles. You know,
I go back to ninety governor Lakers in the series
against the Celtics. I mean, I was a beat writer
for the Lakers and Will Chamber and Jerry Western Eljam
(05:14):
Baylor were there. And Joe went to every sporting event
as you know, every Godger game, every Clipper game, every
Laker game, and every Ram game, Raider game. Joe was
working in radio. So I think because of you've got
a lot of inside stuff because of us. Because I
was part of the sporting senior all those years, I
(05:35):
knew everyone, you know. I was very good friends with
Al Davis and John Wood and I mean you name it,
and I knew him because I covered them all. You know. Yeah,
I think that was the uniqueness. A lot of people
that get in sports talk radio did not have that
kind of background where we were actually when we were working,
like for instance, when I was on the radio at
(05:57):
that time. Now it's not so unique. Today's wortswriters are
in it, but not a lot of sportswriters when I started,
there was no sport. Very few they start hiring them then,
but very few sportswriters were on the air in those days.
You know, I think maybe Krnheiser was. I'm not even
sure back but that's what made us unique in Los
(06:17):
Angeles because when you listen to us, we knew what
what we were talking about because we have so much
inside information. Well, and and Big Joe like ran the
Dodger locker room. I it was unreal like everybody, the
Dodgers and the Lakers. I mean he was there every
single day. I didn't go to very Dodger game. I
(06:39):
went to a lot of Laker games. I definitely, you know,
in New Time and everything else, I definitely did that.
But I think what made that it was a free
flowing as you know operation. We used to rip the
hell out of me. I mean, what other radio show
where the here co host RiPPs you all the time
and that's okay. We used to have an argument and
(07:00):
my a moron or my imbecile? Amight, Indio, what's one
I might today? Joe? You know, it was all tongue
in cheek, but a tongue of cheek on the square
with Joe, as you know, yeah, yeah, for sure, for sure.
And then you know you think about oh boy, you know,
Joe passed away a few years ago, but the what
he would have been doing with some of the stuff
that's happened Doug the last five years or so? Ho
(07:21):
canoli man the world? The world we live in now,
she's the GM of the Lakers. Would be assassinated, verbally, persecuted,
assassinated and viscerated. I can use one word after another
and describing what happened. Yeah so so so do let
me ask you, now, you were a very successful sports writer,
(07:43):
the beat guy columnists for a long time. What was
what was easier for it was the radio? Is it right?
In the column? What what did you find writing a column?
You know my nature. I'm a writer, you know, I
literally thousands and thousands of stories and thousands of sports columns.
I mean, I became a sports comics in nineteen Thrillo
(08:06):
gave me the column that I think it was seventy three,
seventy two or seventy three. And you know, I was
the beat writer for a long time. I covered the Lakers,
I covered the Rams for seven seasons during the seventies,
and I coduced basketball there in the Walton years Sydney
which years, and you know, and did all the boxing.
But I became an actual Pool Time columnist in nineteen
seventy eight met On. That's all I wrote were columns said,
(08:30):
although although I took ironically you get to kick out
this Ben and nineteen eighty five, I believe who was
it was. I think Spencer left the Laker beat at
the Hero examuter to go to the post, or somebody
left and I took over the Laker beat. I wrote
(08:51):
the column still, but I took over the Laker beat
midway through the season that they finally exercised the Boston
Celtic ghost member. They beat the Celtics in n and
I covered that team the second half of the season. Okay,
so when you writing, how many columns do you think
you wrote in your time there, I would say literally,
(09:13):
I mean, but this way, Harold, I was writing four
column vote vote papers, Prestogram and Harold four columns a year,
and yeah, right, uh, I'm sorry, of course, Yeah, you
just got to do the math. I can't do it, Offen,
but literally, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of them. I
got it. At the end of the Long Beach prest
(09:38):
Long Beach Press Telegram, I did a cityside column once
a week. Also in the last two years era, which
I really enjoyed, I got into hard news. I did
a lot of stuff on cityside, and I recently did
that with the late and great Long Beach Report, which
I did one story. It was more political, you know,
(09:58):
knocking the local mayor and stuff like that. Yeah. So
the nice thing about that column, even though it was
very political, I never mentioned Republican, I never mentioned Democrat.
I never mentioned Trump, I never mentioned Biden. I just
mentioned the local people. And you know that I wasn't
left when your right winger, I wrote what I thought
(10:21):
was fair. Anyway, that was a different time of my life. Well,
and also we'll get to that, but I'm gonna go
right in the column, like did how often did you
get writers? How often did you get writer's block? We
just didn't have anything. Never you never got it. You
never you want something. Then when you write columns, and
there's certain you know, obviously I would interview a lot
(10:41):
of people, but there's a lot of columns you right
off the top of your head, I think, well, like
I'd wake up on a for instance, at the Press
telling you am, I'd wake up on a Monday. They
wanted a Tuesday, and maybe I didn't go off the
Dodger Stadium on uh Sunday or Anaheim Stadium, or maybe
I didn't cover a RAM game, or they weren't in town.
(11:03):
You know, this is early they left the ninety four.
Of course, the last six to the last parts of
my career, they weren't even in town. But I would
come up with stories on my own, you know, and
I think some of the best columns I ever wrote
those kinds of stories, just making them up on the
you know, just I get an idea and expanded into
(11:25):
a column and I thought it would be pretty good.
And a lot of times I would I would do
a local piece. I'd go for a walk around and
just do a mood piece and be not a lot
of my sports columns were non sports, and people love
those kind of columns. Yeah. And when you when you
were doing you worked in the newspaper business, and the
hay kind of the heyday. I don't know the hey day,
but one of the hey days of the newspapers when
(11:48):
you when you see what happened to your industry, and
I see it in radio. Radio is a much different
medium now than it was when I started. The way
the business is run. But you you worked at some
huge news papers, you had a lot of influence, and
now you look at newspapers today, it's just not the same. Though.
What's your perspective on what you've seen in your lifetime
with a newspaper business. That's a great question. And then
(12:10):
first off, I go back so far the first five
years of my career. I sent my columns in her
stories in like, for instance, from the Forum a Western
Union Perdie Parristein would be there in the Western Union
machine and I've given my piece of paper and it'd
send it Western Union. When I was in Philadelphia, a
guy uh would send it Western Union. That's the way
(12:33):
it was sent in those days. When you're on the road,
you do a Western Union. But what is so dramatically different,
and it really is when you were sportswriter, especially at
the Harold Los Angeles Hero examer which was a very
prestigious sports section. The guy named Bud Fellow was sports
in there when I got there, and we were the
top sports of the people in town. Read the Harold
(12:56):
Examber's sports You're too young to remember, but it was
a very good sports page. Melvin Derst to call him.
You know, Alan Mallaman was. You know, they had so
many good writers, Lyle Spencer, I could go on on
Tom Singer, Dick Miller, Bob Hunter. You know, we had
a lot of good people. They're very good people. And
sportswriters were treated like a king's I mean because in
(13:20):
those days when I got there, in you know, before
I I apprenticed at uh Cameriell Daily News and the
Pacific Colisadium Post and Hilario Das Register, and then I
got into the Hero Exameter. But they were treated on
my gosh. I would go into Little Joe's at North Broadway,
(13:41):
and Andie Stagnon, who was the bartender, never paid for anything.
Ernie tasked at the Gaylor. I'll go have a drink
or dinner. You you know, they would take care of sportswriters.
There was there was prest There was prestige, right, There
was a lot of because you didn't get see people
read the newspapers in those days. Your only other outlet
was TV and and the TV sports tasters would beyond
(14:03):
for three minutes so you'd get your big info. You know,
it's three minutes at eleven o'clock a night or something
like that. But remember you couldn't wait to get the
paper the next morning. And the Harold Examiner. When I
first got there, was an afternoon paper, but then it
became a morning paper and they would read, you know,
what we wrote. They hinged on every word. I mean
when I was with the Rams for seven years and
(14:27):
I was a little different sportswriter from the normal guy.
I injected my humor into my game stories, not the humor,
my opinions, you know, and some humor of course, but
but and writers in those days, a lot of them
didn't do that. And I took very strong stands. Writers
didn't do that in those days. In factors, some pettiness
among my colleagues that would even talk to me on rampchips,
(14:49):
because you know I would. I used to rip a
guy named Chuck Knox how conservative he was, and you know,
people just didn't do that in those days. Well I did,
you know, Yeah, you're too young to remember, Chuck. I'm not.
I remember you. I remember you guys talking about my show.
You called them what ground shuck was it was as nickname.
(15:10):
One other thing that Ben that was dramatically different. When
I covered the Lakers like I was a twenty four
year old kid. Can you imagine this? Here I am
from a little place, a little farm community, a ten
miles south of President or the southern Pacific town that
started because of the railroad and stopped there. And you
know this and that my graduating class was sixty five
(15:34):
people in Bud frill Will assigned me to the Lakers.
The Laker beat writer and left or whatever wasn't there
and I took it over here. I'm traveling. But in
those days, the writers traveled with the team. Do you
understand what I'm saying? Traveled with the teams. THEE and
the Times didn't travel that year during the regular season.
(15:56):
They didn't send their beat writer, who I think was
Dan after that year or Mouth Florence. I think it
was Dan Affton. So so I would be with the
team and would fly first class. Here I am flying
first class. My first trip. Chick Heer and took me
to every player on the team, Elgin Baylor, Jerry West.
I played hearts. You love this story is a great story.
(16:19):
On the first time I ever was on a Laker
road trip, I played hearts. I was the fourth member.
I knew how to play Hearts World Chamber, Jerry West,
Elgin Baylor and me played Hearts together. Can you imagine
what a twenty four year old wide eyed in my
my boyhood idol was Elgin Baylor? Right, even doing the
ticks he used to do with us. You remember they
(16:40):
go to the side and everything, Well, you wouldn't twitchy
and I. I loved Elgin and he was a great
He and I used to play after that. We played
a lot of Gin together. I never beat him. He
was a great gin player. He and Chick were very
good players. But here I am with the team. So
you really get to know. Guys don't do that today?
(17:00):
Are you kidding? Do you think they travel with the team.
The sportswriters they'll do that, and the players don't want it, right,
the players today don't want anything. They don't like it. No, No,
in those days, you get you got to build the players.
I mean, I knew Will Chamber. He didn't have anything
going on. He called me doug'scot to dinner. Okay, fine,
(17:20):
you know that it would we were that close. I'll
walk around and walking around with him in the multiple
one time we're walking, that's when you know, well, you
have to understand Will, I loved it. He didn't talk
to me the last ten years of his life. He
got mad at me. But that's another story I might
tell you later. But we were walking. You gotta understand.
Will was very liberal with the truth, you know, hyperple
(17:44):
levers his middle name. I could tell you a story
after story with Will. He said, yeah, you look like it.
In those days, I was kind of waiting with the
I was a big guy with to Tim. You know,
they were not the guy you see now. I was.
I was within heavy weights and this. You said, yeah,
I've been spressed six hundred one time, and I knew
he didn't come on. I mean, I know, wait, you
(18:06):
know I worked out when I was in college, and
for four years I worked out three three hours every
other day, was trying to get big and all that stuff.
And I know, wait, with six hundred pounds, you gotta
be kidding. At that time, not very few many men
in the world. Because Ben Spress six other towns and
that was a great exaggeration as his claimed to have
(18:28):
gotten to bed with. Yeah. I was going to ask
you about that though, because that's the great urban legend.
But she started. He wrote in his book that he
he betted twenty thousand women there. You traveled with you
travel with him? Yeah. We were in New York one
one year, my second year of the team. He calls you, guy, said, well,
(18:49):
what are you doing? Well? Well do everyone in New York?
He called me. I thought, just called the dinner. We
went out to dinner a big galloners, some damn place.
You know, I will say this, but you know, out
with Will at nighttime, I mean I could the point
after Boston one time. It really was. I mean, people
gravitated to him. My god, he was a complete you know.
(19:10):
He told me the great story in Cincinnati. He went
to a mattenee in the afternoon, walked in and some
ladies screens. She thought, you know, I mean, think of it.
You see it walk what was a very imposing figure.
He has seven one it boks in it. He had
the longest slaves ever. Jabar doesn't have those long lads.
(19:32):
We'll have those long you remember you said, did I
did at the form and some woman's screams she got scared.
He said, yeah, that's that's happened to me a couple
of times. He gets scared because he liked to go
to the Mattenees. You know, he didn't see movies and stuff.
I mean, I could go on and on about wild stories.
What other story A great story. It was during the series,
(19:53):
the nineteen NBA series, Alan alamand me and Wilter got
off the plane and we were in the cab going
to the you know, the hotel there. I can't remember
what hotel it was. But he saw a couple really
nice look and they were college girls and tells the
cap stuff I want to get out, goes over there,
talks to him, and then he comes back. He says,
(20:16):
since I was it going, that's all right? So I
think it was that night is when I went to
the point after I saw him. I wasn't with him
when I went there. The point after it was. There
used to be one out in the San Fernando Valley.
It was a very popular disco, you know, nice for
kids that you know, not teenagers. You know, there's a nightclub.
(20:39):
We're in there and we're sitting I see well, I said, well,
what happened those two girls? I got him this afternoon
and eastful? I mean, come on, they were both eighteen
or night He said, oh yeah, but but he was
in dery you just took it with it, like Jerry said,
take it with a shrug. You know it was a
(20:59):
dry Hello, Yeah, what do you what do you mean? No?
I never saw Will play in person. I've heard amazing
I've seen the numbers, I've seen video of him. But
was he would be a dominant Yeah? He was a
great player, great rebounded, really a good rebounding, great player.
But the problem with Will, and there was a reason
(21:20):
why I only won two World championships. There were times
that he would hide. He just did not have the
show we say competitive passion, even Shaquille. I mean I
saw it. I saw it the first half of Game
seven of the Celtics and Lakers. I was there. I
saw it. First Halmlet happened. Russell out played him like
(21:43):
you can't believe. They built that eight team for whatever.
The big lead at half time and they caught up
this or that. But Will was not very good that
first half. And then I guess he got this legage
when he came out and BBK should have put a
back in, but he didn't. Then they lost by what
one point or two points? Made death? You know you
(22:06):
shot You're the perfect person as this because lately some
of the chatter shows have been going back and forth
and and just besmirching the name of all these guys
that you covered back in the old days with the
Lakers and saying just the NBA in general, like these
guys weren't real, they couldn't do anything today and today's
NBA and you've you're the perfect guy because you you
(22:27):
covered those teams and now you you still I'm assuming
you still watch the NBA occasionally there. How, how accurate
are those people slamming the old NBA? Uh? What do
you think about comparing the different eras and how the
sports evolved? Well, I think, wait a minute, the players
today athletically there was nothing like that. Yeah, all these teams,
(22:48):
they had a lot of big, slow, white guys and
they also unfortunately had a quota on a lot of
those teams. You know that there'll only be so many
African Americans even when I covered in not the Celtics,
but there were certain teams that you knew but the
great players could have played today, a lot of players
(23:09):
would have been very mediocre, probably wouldn't even make it.
I mean, just looked at every team, Anthony Edwards and Maranthum.
You just go every team has a stud now, yeah,
I mean there's just so many better athletes, and the
athletes are better, and the teams would be better. But
I'll tell you something. That good Laker team with will
(23:33):
let's put this way, no one's going out rebounded. They
would not rebound them today. You know they might be
to my guest, Jim McMillan was six five and news
the other forward on that team. Uh who was the
other forward on the great Laker team of UHL was gone. Yeah.
(23:53):
But like the other thing too, about the you know,
the different eras and all that you think about Judge that, Yeah,
I mean the nineteen seventy Yankees would get slaughtered today.
Come on, a lot of the guys were five ft tan.
But the best player route to play today. But I
gotta tell you, though, that I do kind of respect
(24:14):
the grit that guys had to have back in the
olders when they had jobs. They had other jobs because
they weren't making enough money in their sport and they
had to do They had to become a construction worker,
drive a truck, or sell cars or something like that.
Can you imagine Can you imagine today? Though, like if
the players today, I had to go out and get
a job in the off season because they needed to
pay their books. Yeah, it lose their minds. It was
(24:38):
totally different then. I mean, do you think guys a
guy like Elgin Bayder, I doubt if he lifted weights.
Fabulous player, I'm telling you Eli in his prime, people
before he heard his knees couldn't hold his only games anybody.
I mean, there were guys Maurice Stokes who died very young.
He could have been. There were Bill Russell would have
been a very very good player today. To leave it
(25:00):
was quick. He could get down there. You know, he
couldn't shoot, but boy was here. They talked about this
Williams and Boston Mark Williams or whatever's day. Men. Russell
would have been great today defensively and he blew out
of play. They're best players in those days, the Oscar Robertson's,
Jerry West and those kind of walk. Prasiers and Well
(25:21):
Walton came later, but they were great players. But there
were I'd say the NBA that I covered sixty eight, uh,
you know, starting in sixty eight, I'd say two thirds
of players couldn't play today. I hate to say that
that they couldn't because it maybe they could play better
if they had the condition. Do you understand maybe need
(25:43):
to stop these guys too, but there were two there
were so many guys. Uh, Larry Siegfried maybe to play today,
I doubt it. You know. Well the other thing too also,
as I just popped in my the late great Tommy Hawkins,
who I knew a little bit, but you and you
know him. I know Tommy was around forever. But okay,
(26:03):
there you go, perfect. So you Tommy told me a
story one time in the early days when when the
Lakers moved from Minneapolis, they were so desperate to get
people to go to these games at the sports Arena
that during the day sometimes they would drive around on
a flat, flatbed truck around l A with a megaphone.
That's that's insane, dog. You you think about what how
(26:25):
that started and what it is like today. It's like
a cult around around the Lakers these days, and what
it was. It's insane. When you in this in sixty eight,
when you started covering the team, what was the what
was the buzz about where the Lakers? Did they own
the town? It seemed like it was the Dodger town
up until the Lakers took over at some point, maybe
the eighties, but what was that dynamic light? Yeah, the
(26:47):
Dodgers still were living off you know, the nineteen sixties.
What they won three World championships? I think, Yeah, but
there were no good anymore. Remember sixty nine? Have any teams?
They were no good. They got a little better than
seventy one. They want a penance, I believe seventy two,
seventy four they got the worst series. Yeah, but the
(27:08):
Lakers started when they got will they start selling out
the form they get and you know, an exciting team
and it was a good. Then you gotta help me.
Who's the foreword on that seventy gonna? I'm gonna look
it up now, nineteen what I haven't Yeah, all right,
(27:29):
I'm looking at up nuts right now. I mean it's
gotta be a very good player that I forget. The
seventy two Lakers we're looking at? Is that what we're
looking at? Yeah? Good Rich and West for the back.
All right? So here, let me give me the right
you got Keith Lee roy ellis happy, happy Hairston. There
you go, Yeah, you're right happy here. Number fifty two
(27:50):
Doug in the program, Number fifty two. But number one,
you are there, Yeah, joined crazy and not talking. Let
me one of the reasons I to have you on
here this crazy story which has been bouncing around this
week about a guy that you know very well, Jerry West,
and this documentary that he filed the lawsuit over this.
(28:13):
I have not full disclosure. I have not watched the documentary.
I have all my producers are huge Laker guys dog
and they tell me, they tell me these things, and
I've read stories about it. I've not actually seen it first,
but apparently it's very demeaning to the legacy of Jerry
Red Jerry West. I saw you wrote a column on
(28:34):
I saw it on Facebook. You know that's where it was,
and you explained in great detail there. But for the
listener who doesn't have access to that dog on a
scale of one at ten, obviously, Jerry's filed the lawsuit,
But where where is this ad on the scale of
anger here? For for Jerry and minus minus chian minus
Chan's complete faith news, complete disinformation, complete, I mean the
(29:01):
portrayal of Jerry West as a public persecution of one
of the nice, nicest, grounded, amiable superstars in the history
of sports. I know you've probably met him. I'm sure
you met him at the forum because you're a nicer guy.
I guarantee it's very nice to you. He's nice to everyone.
(29:23):
And to portray him in this manner, uh, you know,
he's not. I talked to Jerry all the time. I
mean I talked to him twice yesterday. And you know
he's going to be at my I'm going to be
inducted into this Hall of Fame on on Sunday, the
National Boxing Hall of Fame. Jerry, of course he's coming, Jerry, Jerry.
Let me tell you about Jerry West, my friendship going
(29:44):
back fifty four years. I'll tell you. Of course I
am to him. He went to my wife's second wife's,
my wedding with her, and then he went to her
funeral unfortunately she passed away, you know, very young. And
then he also to my retirement party. He came to
my book signing when I had my book. He has
been the most loyal and loyal friend that I have.
(30:08):
That's how loyal. If I asked Jerry to do something,
he does it for me. He's always done it, and
I'll do anything for him. This this guy is the
nicest guy, and for them to do what they're doing,
you know, portraying him as some sort of intemperate boso.
I mean, come on, they have him just among other things,
they have him screaming and a pussing at Jerry Buss.
(30:31):
He would never do that. That's not Jerry. Yes, he
has his moves stuff like that, but I mean, Jerry
what has been overlooked. He's had his big impact on
the success of the Lakers that anyone in its history
think of this. Then who do you think, uh during
the showtime years, who supplied all the chemistry players? Just
(30:55):
answer the question? Who you want to keep going about? Cooper,
Jerry West, he he made sure James Worthy, I like
an idiot, campaigned in the Herald, you gotta get dominic.
Wil becons he's the most exciting player, and Jerry tried
to explain he wouldn't hit in. Of course, he wouldn't
have pit in. You know, he wouldn't be James Worthy.
He took worthy instead of dominant. And then that uh
(31:18):
Bus was on the threshold, as we all know, after
they lost to Sampson and the Houston Rockets. I remember
that I do that last that shot they were going
to make the big trade for I think it was
was an agent that Marcot Wire. I think it was
Marcot Wire or market Market I think yet it was
(31:43):
market markt Wire. And the trade was made. I wrote
it in the Herold Examiner. It was a big story
in the Herald Lakers. The trade worthy environed Stott, you know,
the to the to the Mavericks for this and that
and the only reason it was made. He went to
Jerry Busts and I'm resigning, you can't make this trade.
(32:04):
And of course he didn't make the trade. And they
went on the win the They beat the Pistons in
and the Detroit uh and the Celtics here whenever they
said I was, I think the Celtics in the Pistons
and then they lost to the Pistons and they came
back and went, yeah, yeah, they lost the Pistons because
(32:27):
pat Riley took the damn team over to Santa Barbara
after they were twelve and oh in the playoffs Byron
Scott tour Hamstring, don't you remember that? And the magic
Johnson went out the second day. Yeah. Well, that was
the best Laker team I ever saw. Was the eighty
nine team that that team was really good, really good. Yeah,
(32:48):
so was Old, but it was better than the team
to beat the Pistons the year before. But you know
the thing about the thing about Kareem, which is, and
I've never understood this sty the most dominating, the most
unstoppable shot and I've ever seen in my life and
any any athletic endeavor the sky hook, and no one
other than Kareem has been able to really consistently pull
(33:11):
that shot off. You think if you could take a
young player and teach them that move when they're thirteen
or fourteen, by the time they got to the NBA
and the rest of the wy'd be unstoppable that no
one could do. You know, Kareem, here's something that's gonna
stunt you. What I said and I had, I did
not have a good relation personal action ship with Kareem.
(33:33):
I'm the one that in the Harrow Examber when Year
said they should trade trade him. You know, after he
got one rebound in the game, and that was all
because it wouldn't working on his hook, wouldn't force to
do that. But it was a soft you know, he
didn't have that book shot. And then he developed it.
He realized and he's the most underrated player in the
(33:53):
history of basketball. A lot of people say he's the
greatest player. He might be, and look what he did accomplish.
Six World champion ships, three college championships at u c L.
A great player, great competitor, this all said. You know,
he was very He was kind of borish with the media.
He wasn't you know, although he would always answer my
(34:15):
questions when once he was on talk radio. He came
down to the studios when I was at ESPN, and
he actually we talked about it and he said, Val
used to kissed me off all the time, and this
and that. But he was you know, I'll say one thing.
He always answered my questions and he was always civil
with me, even though he hated he despised me a
(34:36):
couple of he's become even more grumpy as he's gotten older.
Here it's great player, though, you can't take that away.
And he's he's the best center in NBA history history irrespectable.
Will I love Will, But Kareem was a savage competitor.
You know who could have been the best center if
he stayed healthy. Bill Well, he was unbelievable. He had
(34:59):
one of yeah, two healthy years and that was it.
All right? So do the greatest the great player debate? Doug.
You've covered the NBA fifty years, You've been around the NBA.
I'm a Jordan guy something. Where you who's the greatest
player that you've seen in your life in the NBA?
The greatest player I've seen in my life? Well, you know,
(35:21):
Jordan was very good. I mean, I mean obviously as
the greatest ever. You know, I'll tell you who's really
was good and we don't. I mean Kobe was pretty
good too, sure, yea very very good, better offensively that Jordan.
Not defensively, but offensively. How do you ever stopped Kobe?
(35:43):
Couldn't stop him, No one could stop him. Yeah, I
guess you have to get the Jordan Obo. There's a
case to be made for Kareem. Kareem was a great player.
I mean, how do you not for you he got
six World championships. Yeah, you could say Jordan never lost,
but you know, I think the Acres faced much sterner
competition and they were also hurt by injuries. A lot
(36:06):
of injuries happened with the Lakers, you know, key like
losing to the Pistons that year in four straight please.
Then how were they going to beat the Pistons without
Byron Scott and Magic Johnson? You answer the question, that's
what I'm gonna have. All that could have been another
championship for the Magic, which would have given him six.
(36:27):
You know, Jordan was very fortunate, but not I have
to face great Celtic teams when they were good. He
was very I'm serious he was. Those Celtic teams were great,
you know that. Yeah, and the expansion area he was
very ports I mean he faced that, you know, Portland Trailblazers,
Seattle SuperSonics and Utah was good. But you know, Utah
(36:50):
please the Lakers when king they never beat the ladies
for sure. Yeah, I guess you would have to give
up the Jordan. But I'll tell you there's it's close.
It's very close. Yeah. Alright, So the all these years
as a sportswriter, dog, biggest jerk athlete you ever covered,
the guy that just was a pain in the behind,
(37:11):
who would it be? Well, for a time we became
friends later on that you know. I don't know if
you know my history with a linebacker named Isaiah Robertson.
He tried to beat me up at it was big
headlines in the Times l A Times back then. In
in an afternoon practice, he went after me, had a
(37:33):
helmet his hand and he was tackled by Ray Malavas.
And I can't remember the other guy that Larry Mark.
What was the upset? What was the upset? What did
you write about? What he was upset about? Rich Saul?
That choked him out in the locker room. And I
found out about it, and I made a terrible mistake.
I told sportswriter from the l A Times named Ted
(37:55):
Green up in the press box the previous RAM game,
that about it. I told him about it, and then
he called me. I had a cap in the l A. Times.
I was. I always went to the Ram practice in
those days. They practiced blair Field on Long Beach, you
know the baseball field there there during the season. They
(38:15):
practiced there during the week. And he says, I'm going
to write it in Tomorrow's l A Times. You know
other people know about this, Doug, and I think he
d s and me. I mean, he just wanted to
write it, so that forced me to right. I wasn't
going to write it. I mean I I I Isaiah
cussed me out every time I went out there, he
(38:37):
called me an s ob this and I took people
said why didn't you just well, I'll tell you that
story in a second. So I went up to Isaiah
and I says, is there any truth to the rumor
that you were choked out by? You know? He went crazy,
crazy and took off his helmet and came after me. Yeah,
(38:59):
and Malabay, see a guy named Larry Marshall tackle to
hit me over the head of that damn helmt he
killed me and uh Ken Burney writer then working for
the l A Daily News. Remember he recovered the Dodgers.
Remember Kenny Gerney, I do I do he just retired.
He's discovering. I think he's with the MLB right now. Yeah,
I think I think he just retired. I think, yeah,
(39:21):
I think. And he said, you look faster than Carl
lewis you. I've never seen a guy run that past
and I did. I mean it was a general and
I got the hell awaight, and Carol rosen Blue said
get the hell out of here. And Rosenblue, of course
the owner, and he was a friend of mine too.
I had two people at the end of their lives
(39:41):
not talk to me Wilt Chamberlain for ten years and
Carol Rosen, who was very nice, very nice. In fact,
my first year on the beat, he bought bought me
some Gucci loafers, blue loafers, the big joke. I don't
know why I saw, I love your loafers and nixt
Island living. I have no today if you if I
(40:01):
said that, oh my god, you're taking that. You know?
He sent it to my apartment in uh in Belmont
Shore was with my first wife. These beautiful loafers, I
mean those days, they probably cost seventy eight bucks. My god,
and that was a running choke of oh yeah, they
were beautiful. I couldn't have pulled but that guy. And
(40:26):
there's a follow up to that story. Okay, New Year's
Eve the night uh it was right after or before
I can't remember. They believed that it was before they
got beat in the playoff game by the Cowboys. I
think of seventy eight, I can't remember. I think they
did by then. Malavasi was the coach. No, no, Chuck,
(40:51):
Chuck might have still been the was he the coach?
Was he probably still was the coach. Okay, Okay, so
I'm in a place called Bobby mcvies here in Long
Beach and I walked in and there's Isaiah New Year's
He he chased me out, and they say that the bodyguards,
(41:11):
they said they had to get him, like the guys
that though. The security guys grabbed and I ran out
to my car and got out of it. But we
made up. Later he saw me at a reunion and
we shook hands and he actually came into the ESDM
studios with Joe. We laughed about it. You know that's
years yeah, yeah, sure, sure, sure sure. Unfortunately he died
(41:31):
I think in a car accident. That's too bad. So
before I get you out of here, Doug, I kept
you a wife. But one of my other favorite Doug
recorin stories when Tommy was sorta he he was the
GM briefly of the Dodgers, and and this is hilarious.
I still laugh when I think about this. So as
I remember the story, Doug Tommy when he took over
(41:51):
his I think it was the interim GM of the Dodgers.
He had told the media, right, whatever you want, say
whatever you want about me, I don't mind, I'm fine whatever.
Two days later, I'm in the I'm in the press
box at Dodger Stadium, in the press dining room there
and Tommy comes. It was a Sunday. He comes storming
(42:13):
into the press box. Where's Pricry and where's dog? And
he was furious with you. I don't know what you wrote, Doug.
I don't know what that was all, but he, Tommy
was on a mission to find you because of something
that you had written. Don't you even even remember? I
think that was the Bill Russell story that I wrote
that Russell said that it was Russell the manager. Yeah,
(42:36):
Bill Russell was the manager. Yeah, yeah, that's that was it.
He got piste off about that that I wrote that
how could you write that? This? And that? Wouldn't talk
to me for two years. I don't you remember when
I used to go on that that Sports Writers show.
Remember they used to have it, Yeah yeah, yeah, the
Round the Round Table. And I looked at always they
(42:56):
have me on a lot, and now look at Tommy,
please talk to me. And finally, at the two thousand
World Series between the invested Yankees, I saw Tommy and
Rod Dado I think it was Tipty Third Street walking
in New York, and I said, Rod, tap Tommy to
talk to me. He said, what do you mean, because
rod Dado loved me, you know, you'd always say this
(43:19):
that take a lot of story. Short. We shook hands,
but we didn't talk. You know, we didn't talk at all,
you know, for for two years, two years, right, Yeah,
and I was his biggest booster. My god, I wrote
one one. Uh you know, funny. It was always kind
of a funny call up with Tommy. Yeah it was.
(43:41):
It was wild. But anyway, we'll talk to listen. I
love you to death. Dog. You You're a great guy,
and thank you for doing this. I appreciate it. And
you have nothing, you have nothing to wrote you you
are going to Boxing Hall of Fame. But you said, right,
what did it tell me? More? Yeah? This this? Yeah,
this satur National Boxing Hall of Fame. I'm the recipient
of Howie Steinler Award. I always was a farmer, owner
(44:01):
of the Main Street Jam. He was murdered in nineteen
seventies seven by a couple of guys that they don't know.
They never found him, and his daughter picked me to
be the recipient. And because I'm a recipient of that award,
I'm automatically inducted to the Hall of Famous. My fourth
Hall of Fame I've been in. This is what happens
when you be seventy eight years old, started getting in,
(44:24):
you get start getting in. What give me the list
of all? You said? Boxing Hall of Fame? What other
hall of fames is dr it's just small ones. Armenian
Hall of Fame, half Armenian at the Giant. I'm in
the California State Hall of Fame, National Boxing Hall of
Fame and the San Pedro Hall of Fame. The athletic
(44:47):
call it the San Pedro one they have. Actually, it's
like a Hollywood star out there. My name's out there.
Oh that's cool, that's nice. That's for those would be
my fourth one and uh, Jerry West will be at
our table. What about the nice? What about the PHIL
Trainees Hall of Fame? Do they have a PHIL Trainees
Hall of Fame? You gotta should training trade Bil training. Well,
(45:10):
there's a gym in Long Beach. I want the Boys
and Girls Club gym. There's a PHIL training gym. Yeah,
Well for those who don't know, for those the fellows
who know, the PHIL training is famous locational Long Beach.
I've only been there a couple of times. But Doug
and Joe. You guys all, I mean you ran the place. Yeah.
And I'm gonna tell you, Ben, don't don't make me
(45:31):
endure years of cultural depervation by not having me on
your great show. Oh no, I love yes, I love you.
You haven't called me and it's very hurtful. I mean,
you're my friend. I patterned my career. Now. I promised
that we'll we'll have you on again, and I do
thinking have a a great rest of your Daniel. I
(45:54):
congratulations on the Boxing Hall of Fame. That is I
did not know that. That is awesome and and thank you.
We'll talk to you and thank you dog. I love you, Ben,
thank you, thank you all.
Host
Ben Maller
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