April 4, 2025 • 11 mins
For Shop Talk, we dive into the late Jimmy Valvano’s speech at the ESPY Awards, which he delivered only 58 days before losing his battle with cancer.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:10):
Hey, everybody, it's Bill Courtney with an army and normal folks.
Welcome to the shop. Thanks Feta Chop Talk number forty eight.
It's March and I'm time stamping this a little.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Bit, but but I will well.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
It doesn't matter. It'll be close March Madness and probably
not the national champ Well, if the National Championship has
been decided by the time this airs, still in the
honor of March Madness, we're going to talk about laughing
and crying and thinking and thinking. Jimmy Valvano, Jimmy v
(00:50):
Many basketball fans will remember them, but those who don't.
He was an American basketball player, coach, and broadcaster. His
coaching career culminated at North Carolina State, whereas team won
the nineteen eighty three NCAA Division One men's basketball title
against really improbable Odds and Alex. I think about the
(01:13):
clip of right after the game of him running all
over the floor just looking for somebody to hug, and
how excited he was, And I mean it was a
David vers Elias story.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
So it's Houston, the Houston Cougar.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
It was the you know, the Fisslama Jama group. I
think Clyde Drexler at keem olaj one. It ended up
beating with a bunch of no names who eventually became
a bunch of NBA Hall of Famers. And at the
end a guard shot the ball and it came up
woefully short, and a guy named the last name of Charles,
(01:47):
I think, caught it and put it in right at
the last second and placement crazy. It's it's really what
makes March madness so mad? What it is? Yeah, so mad.
In June ninety two, Jimmy v was diagnosed with cancer,
and on March fourth, nineteen ninety three, he gave a
(02:08):
now famous speech at the spe Awards that's been called
the don't give up speech. As one person's commented on YouTube,
he died fifty eight days after giving the speech. But
those eleven minutes of that speech, who is more live
than anyone in the room. After the break, we'll play
for you one of our favorite parts of that speech,
(02:29):
and then tell you what we kind of want to
share with you, in honor of March madness, in honor
of this time of year, and in honor of an
amazing man and motivator, Jimmy Valvano. Right after these brief
messages from our general sponsors. Everybody welcome back Shop talk.
So from an amazing speech by coach Jim Valvano thirty
(02:56):
second clip for you to listen to before we comment.
People say to me, how do you get through life?
Speaker 2 (03:03):
Or each day's the same thing? To me? There are
three things we all should do every day.
Speaker 1 (03:08):
If we do this every day of our life, you're
gonna have what a wonderful Number one is laugh, You
should laugh every day.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Number two is think, you should spend some time in thought.
And number three is you should have your emotions moved
to tears could.
Speaker 1 (03:23):
Be happiness or joy.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
To think about it.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a
full day.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
That's a heck of a day.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
You do that seven days a week, you're gonna have
something special. Laugh, think, cry every day and that's a
full day. You know, it's so true. And what better
things to do than to experience the raw motion of
(03:54):
real laughter and the raw motion of crying. And you know,
as we all know, crying can be sorrow, but it
can also crying can be extreme gratitude, emotion, being moved.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
And I have always tell people I have three happy
cries when I watch Undefeated, three happy cries and the
scene where you guys tell him you just got a
full ride to college. Yeah, and then somebody who's going
to pay for his tuition. The scene I'm always blanking
on the players, but at the very end after the
game that you guys are hugging and basically telling each
other how much you love each other. Yeah, And I'm
(04:34):
forgetting the third part. But you know, I always chokingly
tell people. Harry Potter said that he cried four times
Daniel Ratcliff his favorite sports film, and he cries four
times in the last four But I mean that's actually
a good example of a really happy cry that you've being.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
As spoke about that, and he ranks it his best
sports movie ever, which is kind of a you know,
on the one hand, that's, you know, an honor. On
the other hand, we are talking about a wizard, so
I don't.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Know he's a real human being built.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
Yeah, I guess you want to know when I cried
first time I ever saw it?
Speaker 2 (05:09):
Where well that the guy I actually know about go ahead.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
As when we were walking off the field and I
was holding Max's equipment, I had no idea they I
didn't even know the cameras are there. I'd never I
didn't remember doing that, but it was such a juxtaposition
of me as a father versus me as a kid,
and holy smokes, I bought like a baby and I,
you know, only an idiot laughs at his own jokes,
(05:35):
So I guess only an idiot gets moved by a
movie'es in, but I did anyway. Good Good for the
directors and editors for doing that. Laugh, think, cry, the
third ones think, and you know, to spend a little
quiet time in thought, and the thought about what you
(05:57):
can do in the world especially is really good advice.
So as I think about what we do as an
army of normal folks, you know, if we can tell
stories or we can make challenges to our listeners that
(06:21):
make them laugh, that make them cry, and that make
them think, then we've done our job. And if we haven't,
we've missed the mark. Likewise, if you can engage in
things outside of your life, outside of your busy, normal
(06:42):
lives that make you laugh and cry and think, odds
are you're doing something worthwhile. Not not make the people
you're serving laugh, crime, think, but make you laugh crime think.
If you if you were if you were engaged in
something that makes you happy and smile and laugh and
(07:04):
joyous and cry because you want to do more, or
cry because of the successes that you see and the
people you serve, and then make you think about what
next about maybe are the people you serving changing some
preconceived motions in your mind? Laugh, cry? Think if we
(07:27):
had an army of normal folks engaged in things that
make them laugh, cry and think, I think we reached
the world. We think, alex.
Speaker 3 (07:41):
Amen, brother, you chose eerarained conversations with people every day,
and you know there's like a line never talk to
people about politics and religion, and then my family growing
up really screw that word.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
Yeah, so it's two of the three things I like
talking about the most, politics, religion and sports.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Well, the sports is about to be a part of
my negative or if like what do you just want
to talk about the weather in sports all day? Like
that's I mean, not that there's anything wrong with that,
but like having actual, meaningful conversations with people, and as
you always say, if you do it respectfully.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
My dad actually says this, you know.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
So he's in the finance world, right and he talks
about politics and religion with his clients that a lot
of people would say, you're nuts, like, why would you
like jeopardize, you know, a potential relationship with somebody.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
But I would argue that if you do it civilly
and in a non threatening way, you're not jeopardizing relationships,
but you're actually building.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Them absolutely and they respect them, you know.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
If they differ with you, if they can garner respect
for your viewpoint and they recognize you're not crazy for
thinking the way you do even though you differ, you
can build a relationship on those differences.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
And so when you're wearing conversations with people, what can
we add to a conversation that's going to make people laugh,
think and.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
Cry and think?
Speaker 1 (09:00):
And what can we do in our lives that make
us laugh, cry and thing. That's the depth of an
army in normal folks, And that's how you build relationships.
And I think that's how you change the world.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
So tw other things from his speech he said, as
Dick Vitel said, I'm a very emotional and passionate man.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
I can't help it.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
That's being the son of Rocco and Angelina Volvano. It
comes with the territory we hug, we kiss, we love.
I just let you hear his voice stated too, it's
so good, the Italian voice that just hey, we live life.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
In this very vibrant way.
Speaker 3 (09:33):
I don't know if actually I once told the story
with the biographer of Sam Phillips. Yeah, I mean, you
could probably tell the story better than me. But what
he did Johnny Cash and Elvis and all these.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
Lewis and Patty Roy Orbison, all of it.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
But he grew up in like half.
Speaker 1 (09:52):
The traveling Willlbury's he recorded and.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Like Florence, Alabama or somewhere out there where you know
a lot of those musicians you know, came from. And
he would actually say of that, like he would stand
outside the black church and just like how rockous you
know it was, Here is this white guy standing outside
the church. He's even got some line in the book
like they're allowed to church.
Speaker 2 (10:11):
They make love.
Speaker 3 (10:11):
Loud, Like everything is just vibrant and loud and like,
and that's kind of what Jimmy V Is saying too,
like we huggly kiss, you know, we're not ashamed of it.
This is let's live this vibrant, fun life.
Speaker 1 (10:22):
We're emotional, but that's what creates laughter and tears and
makes you think and it's, uh, that's awesome.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
What's what other funny Jimmy v things.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
So at the very end, he's going over time and
he's like this clock keeps telling me I'm thirty seconds left.
But frankly, I don't care that the guy in the
back of the room is saying this, I'm about to die.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
A guy that can make you laugh about his own
own impending death is a pretty special guy. You guys
got to look up the the speech.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
It's called that Don't give Up Speech.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
Don't give Up Speech from the spis I think in
eighty three and google it. It's eleven minutes. And if
you want to laugh, think, and cry, recognize that the
man was dead fifty eight days later when he gave
that emotional speech with a smile on his face, so
happy about every moment that he had. So that's it
(11:20):
shop talk number forty eight. Engage in things that make
you laugh, think, and cry, and share those with around
you and see if your life and the lives of
those around you aren't deeply enriched by those three things.
That's shop talk number forty eight. We'll see you next week.
Hey, everybody, it's Bill Courtney with an army and normal folks.
Welcome to the shop. Thanks Feta Chop Talk number forty eight.
It's March and I'm time stamping this a little.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Bit, but but I will well.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
It doesn't matter. It'll be close March Madness and probably
not the national champ Well, if the National Championship has
been decided by the time this airs, still in the
honor of March Madness, we're going to talk about laughing
and crying and thinking and thinking. Jimmy Valvano, Jimmy v
(00:50):
Many basketball fans will remember them, but those who don't.
He was an American basketball player, coach, and broadcaster. His
coaching career culminated at North Carolina State, whereas team won
the nineteen eighty three NCAA Division One men's basketball title
against really improbable Odds and Alex. I think about the
(01:13):
clip of right after the game of him running all
over the floor just looking for somebody to hug, and
how excited he was, And I mean it was a
David vers Elias story.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
So it's Houston, the Houston Cougar.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
It was the you know, the Fisslama Jama group. I
think Clyde Drexler at keem olaj one. It ended up
beating with a bunch of no names who eventually became
a bunch of NBA Hall of Famers. And at the
end a guard shot the ball and it came up
woefully short, and a guy named the last name of Charles,
(01:47):
I think, caught it and put it in right at
the last second and placement crazy. It's it's really what
makes March madness so mad? What it is? Yeah, so mad.
In June ninety two, Jimmy v was diagnosed with cancer,
and on March fourth, nineteen ninety three, he gave a
(02:08):
now famous speech at the spe Awards that's been called
the don't give up speech. As one person's commented on YouTube,
he died fifty eight days after giving the speech. But
those eleven minutes of that speech, who is more live
than anyone in the room. After the break, we'll play
for you one of our favorite parts of that speech,
(02:29):
and then tell you what we kind of want to
share with you, in honor of March madness, in honor
of this time of year, and in honor of an
amazing man and motivator, Jimmy Valvano. Right after these brief
messages from our general sponsors. Everybody welcome back Shop talk.
So from an amazing speech by coach Jim Valvano thirty
(02:56):
second clip for you to listen to before we comment.
People say to me, how do you get through life?
Speaker 2 (03:03):
Or each day's the same thing? To me? There are
three things we all should do every day.
Speaker 1 (03:08):
If we do this every day of our life, you're
gonna have what a wonderful Number one is laugh, You
should laugh every day.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Number two is think, you should spend some time in thought.
And number three is you should have your emotions moved
to tears could.
Speaker 1 (03:23):
Be happiness or joy.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
To think about it.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a
full day.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
That's a heck of a day.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
You do that seven days a week, you're gonna have
something special. Laugh, think, cry every day and that's a
full day. You know, it's so true. And what better
things to do than to experience the raw motion of
(03:54):
real laughter and the raw motion of crying. And you know,
as we all know, crying can be sorrow, but it
can also crying can be extreme gratitude, emotion, being moved.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
And I have always tell people I have three happy
cries when I watch Undefeated, three happy cries and the
scene where you guys tell him you just got a
full ride to college. Yeah, and then somebody who's going
to pay for his tuition. The scene I'm always blanking
on the players, but at the very end after the
game that you guys are hugging and basically telling each
other how much you love each other. Yeah, And I'm
(04:34):
forgetting the third part. But you know, I always chokingly
tell people. Harry Potter said that he cried four times
Daniel Ratcliff his favorite sports film, and he cries four
times in the last four But I mean that's actually
a good example of a really happy cry that you've being.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
As spoke about that, and he ranks it his best
sports movie ever, which is kind of a you know,
on the one hand, that's, you know, an honor. On
the other hand, we are talking about a wizard, so
I don't.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Know he's a real human being built.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
Yeah, I guess you want to know when I cried
first time I ever saw it?
Speaker 2 (05:09):
Where well that the guy I actually know about go ahead.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
As when we were walking off the field and I
was holding Max's equipment, I had no idea they I
didn't even know the cameras are there. I'd never I
didn't remember doing that, but it was such a juxtaposition
of me as a father versus me as a kid,
and holy smokes, I bought like a baby and I,
you know, only an idiot laughs at his own jokes,
(05:35):
So I guess only an idiot gets moved by a
movie'es in, but I did anyway. Good Good for the
directors and editors for doing that. Laugh, think, cry, the
third ones think, and you know, to spend a little
quiet time in thought, and the thought about what you
(05:57):
can do in the world especially is really good advice.
So as I think about what we do as an
army of normal folks, you know, if we can tell
stories or we can make challenges to our listeners that
(06:21):
make them laugh, that make them cry, and that make
them think, then we've done our job. And if we haven't,
we've missed the mark. Likewise, if you can engage in
things outside of your life, outside of your busy, normal
(06:42):
lives that make you laugh and cry and think, odds
are you're doing something worthwhile. Not not make the people
you're serving laugh, crime, think, but make you laugh crime think.
If you if you were if you were engaged in
something that makes you happy and smile and laugh and
(07:04):
joyous and cry because you want to do more, or
cry because of the successes that you see and the
people you serve, and then make you think about what
next about maybe are the people you serving changing some
preconceived motions in your mind? Laugh, cry? Think if we
(07:27):
had an army of normal folks engaged in things that
make them laugh, cry and think, I think we reached
the world. We think, alex.
Speaker 3 (07:41):
Amen, brother, you chose eerarained conversations with people every day,
and you know there's like a line never talk to
people about politics and religion, and then my family growing
up really screw that word.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
Yeah, so it's two of the three things I like
talking about the most, politics, religion and sports.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Well, the sports is about to be a part of
my negative or if like what do you just want
to talk about the weather in sports all day? Like
that's I mean, not that there's anything wrong with that,
but like having actual, meaningful conversations with people, and as
you always say, if you do it respectfully.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
My dad actually says this, you know.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
So he's in the finance world, right and he talks
about politics and religion with his clients that a lot
of people would say, you're nuts, like, why would you
like jeopardize, you know, a potential relationship with somebody.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
But I would argue that if you do it civilly
and in a non threatening way, you're not jeopardizing relationships,
but you're actually building.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Them absolutely and they respect them, you know.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
If they differ with you, if they can garner respect
for your viewpoint and they recognize you're not crazy for
thinking the way you do even though you differ, you
can build a relationship on those differences.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
And so when you're wearing conversations with people, what can
we add to a conversation that's going to make people laugh,
think and.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
Cry and think?
Speaker 1 (09:00):
And what can we do in our lives that make
us laugh, cry and thing. That's the depth of an
army in normal folks, And that's how you build relationships.
And I think that's how you change the world.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
So tw other things from his speech he said, as
Dick Vitel said, I'm a very emotional and passionate man.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
I can't help it.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
That's being the son of Rocco and Angelina Volvano. It
comes with the territory we hug, we kiss, we love.
I just let you hear his voice stated too, it's
so good, the Italian voice that just hey, we live life.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
In this very vibrant way.
Speaker 3 (09:33):
I don't know if actually I once told the story
with the biographer of Sam Phillips. Yeah, I mean, you
could probably tell the story better than me. But what
he did Johnny Cash and Elvis and all these.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
Lewis and Patty Roy Orbison, all of it.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
But he grew up in like half.
Speaker 1 (09:52):
The traveling Willlbury's he recorded and.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Like Florence, Alabama or somewhere out there where you know
a lot of those musicians you know, came from. And
he would actually say of that, like he would stand
outside the black church and just like how rockous you
know it was, Here is this white guy standing outside
the church. He's even got some line in the book
like they're allowed to church.
Speaker 2 (10:11):
They make love.
Speaker 3 (10:11):
Loud, Like everything is just vibrant and loud and like,
and that's kind of what Jimmy V Is saying too,
like we huggly kiss, you know, we're not ashamed of it.
This is let's live this vibrant, fun life.
Speaker 1 (10:22):
We're emotional, but that's what creates laughter and tears and
makes you think and it's, uh, that's awesome.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
What's what other funny Jimmy v things.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
So at the very end, he's going over time and
he's like this clock keeps telling me I'm thirty seconds left.
But frankly, I don't care that the guy in the
back of the room is saying this, I'm about to die.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
A guy that can make you laugh about his own
own impending death is a pretty special guy. You guys
got to look up the the speech.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
It's called that Don't give Up Speech.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
Don't give Up Speech from the spis I think in
eighty three and google it. It's eleven minutes. And if
you want to laugh, think, and cry, recognize that the
man was dead fifty eight days later when he gave
that emotional speech with a smile on his face, so
happy about every moment that he had. So that's it
(11:20):
shop talk number forty eight. Engage in things that make
you laugh, think, and cry, and share those with around
you and see if your life and the lives of
those around you aren't deeply enriched by those three things.
That's shop talk number forty eight. We'll see you next week.
Host
Bill Courtney
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