Harry Caray felt Cubbie blues during the holidays, Mike Sherman was not the first NFL coach to go face to face with an opposing player, and the running of the Bulls fans to the United Center continues
Q. What do you think Harry Caray would have thought about the Cubs hiring Dusty Baker?
A. Harry would have been enthused, as he always was, about the annual prospects of the Cubs improving themselves. Harry lived for the baseball season. But many fans did not realize the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season was a particularly difficult period for the generally upbeat and exuberant Caray.
I interviewed Harry during spring training in Mesa, Ariz., eight years ago, and he talked about the cause of his holiday season melancholy.
“I’m an orphan,” Harry said. “All my life, because I never had a mother and a father . . . at Christmastime I would stay with friends of my father and friends of my mother. And I was finally raised by an aunt, Roxie, who was married to my mother’s brother. She raised me through my high school years. So every Christmas, I would be very sad. Now my kids are scattered all over the country. I could get them together and spend Christmas with them. But I have always wanted to be alone. I was always blue and depressed and I cried. I did not want to subject anybody else to that.”
Q. Wasn’t it unusual for Packers coach Mike Sherman to confront Tampa Bay’s Warren Sapp after Sunday’s game? Has that ever happened before?
A. Sure, it has. Former Bears coach George Halas often would confront opposing players and coaches on the field after games. He also was not shy about cursing out officials during contests. There just weren’t as many–if any–television cameras and microphones around in those days to capture the spicy dialogue for posterity.
Q. In your Monday interview with Jim McMahon, he mentioned having no real lingering injuries from his playing career. Why did he miss so many games at the end of the season and playoffs when the Bears needed him in the late ’80s?
A. McMahon lacerated his kidney in 1984, and after leading the Bears to the Super Bowl following the ’85 season, he had knee, arm and shoulder problems.
Q. The Bulls have not had a winning season since Michael Jordan left. Why do fans still pack the United Center?
A. Sometimes to watch opposing teams’ stars. Through five home dates, the Bulls still lead in the NBA in average tickets sold at 20,843. The Bulls are one of only three teams (Detroit and Washington are the others) averaging more than 20,000. Credit the Bulls’ marketing department.
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