Occupation: Best-selling author.
DOB: July 19, 1946 In: Manhattan
Hobbies/Leisure Activities: “Love to play softball. Love to read. And love to garden.”
Last Book Read: “I’m in the middle of it. Actually, two books, hold on, I’ll tell you both titles…“Edward Kennedy: An Intimate Portrait” by Burton Hersh. And “Play Their Hearts Out” by George Dohrmann.”
Favorite Movies: “I love The Godfather. Galaxy Quest. Gone With The Wind. And Citizen Kane.”
Musical Tastes: “I loved Elvis. The Rolling Stones. Beatles. Eric Burton & The Animals. The Beach Boys are my favorite. Bob Dylan.”
First Job: “I worked for Clairol in Stamford CT during college. My job was to transport 10-gallon bottles of hair dye. I started at 9 am and quit at noon.”
First Car: “Was the car that was unsafe at any speed. Chevrolet – I forget the name of it. The car that Ralph Nader wrote about (in the 1965 book “Unsafe At Any Speed” about the Chevy Corvair).”
Childhood Dream: “Boy, that’s an interesting question. I wanted to be centerfielder for the New York Yankees.”
Early Writing Memory: “Two books were very inspirations to me. When I was at summer camp, I found the book “Hawaii” by James Michener. When I started to read it, I was absolutely captivated. And “The New York Yankees” by Frank Graham. It gave me the chance to read about Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and Lou Gehrig – and the inspiration for my first book, which was ‘Dynasty: 1949-1964.’”
Inspirations: “Certainly Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Dr. Joseph R. Kidd, who was the headmaster at St. Luke’s School in New Canaan, CT. He was the one who made us write compositions. He made us read. Taught us the importance of proper grammar.”
Greatest Career Moment: “It’s difficult. I’ve been doing this for 40 years…[pause]…was interviewing Mickey Mantle in the clubhouse of Yankee Stadium when I was doing research for my first book “Dynasty.” It was July 1974.”
Most Painful Moment: “Getting stiffed by Paul Hornung. (What happened?) It’s too lengthy to go into. Let’s just say Hornung and I could have written a sensational book if he hadn’t been so greedy.”
Favorite Meal: “Breakfast. An onion bagel, slice of ham and a fried egg.”
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “The one with the cherries in it. Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia.”
Funny Career Memory: “Listening to the St. Pete Pelicans baseball players diss each other on the bus, as they traveled on the bus to the game. They were former Major Leaguers in the senior league (Peter wrote a book about the season titled “The Forever Boys”). They only played one season – in 1989. On that team were Bobby Tolan, Dock Ellis, Milt Wilcox, Steve Henderson was MVP.”
Embarrassing Career Memory: “No.”
Funniest Athletes Encountered: “Sparky Lyle was a delight. He could really make me laugh. Phil Esposito. Those were the two most entertaining. Tony Curtis, the late actor. He was wonderfully entertaining.”
Last Vacation: “July 4th at Dennis, MA in Cape Cod.”
Favorite Quotations: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” And “If you come to the fork in the road – take it.”
People Qualities Most Admired: “A sense of humor. Honesty. Kindness.”
Future Projects: “I’ve got a couple on sports and I’m working on a couple on former FBI agents.”
Education: Dartmouth.
Career Accomplishments: Author of such titles as: “Dynasty”, “Bronx Zoo”, “Balls” (Graig Nettles), “Number 1″ (Billy Martin), “Bums: An Oral History Of The Brooklyn Dodgers”, “American Prince” (co-written with Tony Curtis), “Personal Fouls” (Jim Valvano and NC State), “American Zoom: History of NASCAR”, “Thunder and Lightning: A No-BS Hockey Memoir” (Phil Esposito), “The Forever Boys”, “Bats”, “Fenway”, “Wrigleyville”, “The Last Lap”, “The Spirit Of St. Louis.”
Topics: Burton Hersh, Career Moment, Chevy Corvair, Citizen Kane, Eric Burton, F Scott Fitzgerald, Galaxy Quest, George Dohrmann, James Michener, Joe Dimaggio, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle, New Canaan Ct, New York Yankees, Painful Moment, Paul Hornung, Peter Golenbock, Proper Grammar, Ralph Nader, Yankee Stadium
Biofile with Peter Golenbock | 