"The date is unforgettable for me: May 30, 1927.
Decoration Day, then; Memorial Day now.
The anatomy of my first day at a major league ball park:
First, the sound leading the sight...
the musical note of batmeeting ball in hitting practice.
Second, the beguiling aroma of popping corn and the dusty scent of peanuts.
Third, and particularly appealing, the odor of grilled hot dogs buried in sweet buns still smelling of the bakery." (3-4)
This quote shows the passion that Bob Broeg had for baseball, even at a young age. When this biography was written he was a very old man; and for him to remember in such detail his first baseball game ever is amazing.
(St. Louis Cardinals Logo)
"During the span of my childhood,
in terms of general public affection,
baseball was first and boxing was second.
When i was only six, however,
Red Grange's dazzling six-touchdown performance
for Illinois against Michigan helped glamourize college football." (6)
Broeg enjoyed all sports. Although he wasn't very athletic, his writing made up for it. Bob could not participate in sports because he had many health issues. When he was just born the doctor had told his mother that if Bob ended up living he would be crazy. And the reason was because of an incident that happened while his mother was giving birth to him. The female M.D. who had been assiting Mrs. Broeg was in a rush to a dinner party the day Bob was born. Because she was in such a hurry she wanted the birth of Bob to go a little faster; as a result, the M.D. grabbed baby Bob with tongs and scratched his left eye, making his vision forever blurred. And the other tong dug a hole, or a large dent, in the back of his head. Despite the fact that Bob could never play the sports he dreamed of playing; he had a good attitude about it and got out of althletics what he could. His health situation ended up being very benificial to him in the long run.
"As a kid, I had a love-hate relationship with the Babe,
hating his ample guts for carving up the
Cardinals in the 1928 World Sereies.
But I would go out deliberately to see
him wearing his number "3."
The Yankees popularized uniform numbers in 1929,
striping monkey suits to slenderize the so-called Big Monkey." (16)
When Bob was a kid he got to
meet Babe Ruth; he signed a baseball
for him. When he was 10 years old Bob convinced his dad to take him to the Cardinals vs. Yankees game in St. Louis; it was the first time he saw Babe play right in front of his eyes. He describes himself as "awe-stricken" at that ball game.
(Babe Ruth)
Baseball was a huge part of Bob Broeg's life from begining to end. As a kid living in South St. Louis, he went to every baseball game he could in the summers. And in his elder years a baseball game would always he on in his living room; and he was always there, sitting in his big chair, watching a ball game.
"Daily broadcasts are continually appealing, especially to the elderly, handicapped, and unemployed. For all, and especially for the confined, the daily ball game is a narcotic, picking up or letting down a fan. Every summer day has a special hook--- the baseball game." (36)
Having dinner with Leo Weard after one game, I wondered about a noise I'd heard whenever Musial batted that day at Ebbets Field. Said Ward, "They were chanting 'Here comes the man."
"That man," I corrected, using an expression of the times.
"No," Leo insisted, "The Man."
So I began to refer tohim as Stan (TheMan) Musial. As you may have noticed, it caught on.
Stan Musial played 22 seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1941 to 1963. He is known to be one of the best baseball players of all time; but to the city of St. Louis he is considered to be the greatest ball player in the St. Louis Cardinals history. Bob Broeg and Stan Musial were very good friends, and stayed good friends untill Broeg died in 2005. Bob gave his good friend Stan the nickname of Stan TheMan Musial; many would agree that the nickname helped Musial's fame expload. Stan Musial is still alive today and is still known as Stan the Man to St. Louisians.
Biography:
Bob Broeg was born on March 18, 1918 in south St. Louis, Missouri. At birth, Broeg's mother was told that her son, if he lived, would be crazy. When he was born the female M.D. scratched his left cornia with tongs perminatly blurring his vision. Not only did she ruin his vision, but she dug a hole in the back of his scull with the other tong. Broeg never got to participate in sports; but he loved watching them as much as he wished he could play. Broeg liked all sports, but baseball was by far his favorite. He lived and breathed St. Louis Cardinals baseball. He attended Cleveland High School and graduated in 1936. For college, he attended the University of Missouri Journalism School; MU (Mizzou) is known as one of the top journalism schools in the country. At Mizzou, Broeg met his first wife, Dorothy Alice Carr. They were married on June 19, 1943. That same year Broeg also enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps. Broeg served in Washington due to his eye injury. After returning to St. Louis, Broeg got a job at the Post-Dispatch, a St. Louis newspaper. His dream job payed $75 a week and he ended up in the sports department. Bob Broeg's sportswriting career escalted from there. On November 1, 1975 Dorothy died of cancer. Months later, in 1976, Broeg met a young-woman named Lynette Anton Emmenegger. She had two children; Greg and Lisa. After some time, Broeg found himself in love with Lynne. They were engaged for over a year before getting married on July 23, 1977. Shorty after Broeg took the title of sports editor at the Post-Dispatch. Bob broeg wrote many books, mostly about the St. Louis Cards and the Mizzou Tigers. He was well known for being one of the nicest guys around. On October 28, 2005 Bob Broeg died; but he died happy 5 hours after the '05 World Series, the Cardinals had won. He was 87 years old. The press box in the New Busch Stadium is named the "Bob Broeg-Rick Hummel Press Box."
Awards and Honors:
1964, Sportswriter of the Year Award- Rockne Club
1969, University of Missouri Faculty Alumni Award
1971, University of Missouri Jounalism Medal
1972, named to the Board of Directors of the Baseball Hall of Fame
1978, Missouri Sports Hall of Fame
1979, Cooperstown Baseball Writers Hall of Fame
1979, J.G. Taylor Spink Award- National Baseball Hall of Fame
1997, Sportswriters and Sportscasters Hall of Fame
1998, National Baseball Congress Hall of Fame
2007, the New Busch Stadium names the new press box the "Bob Broeg-Rick Hummel Press Box"
Resources:
Broeg, Bob . Memories of a Hall of Fame Sportswriter. Champaign, Illinois: Sagamore Publishing, 1995.
Bob Broeg
March 18, 1918 - October 28, 2005
(Bob Broeg)
Decoration Day, then; Memorial Day now.
The anatomy of my first day at a major league ball park:
First, the sound leading the sight...
the musical note of batmeeting ball in hitting practice.
Second, the beguiling aroma of popping corn and the dusty scent of peanuts.
Third, and particularly appealing, the odor of grilled hot dogs buried in sweet buns still smelling of the bakery." (3-4)
(Babe Ruth)
This quote shows the passion that Bob Broeg had for baseball, even at a young age. When this biography was written he was a very old man; and for him to remember in such detail his first baseball game ever is amazing.
(St. Louis Cardinals Logo)
(William Harrison (Jack) Dempsey),
one of Broeg's chilhood heroes.
"During the span of my childhood,
in terms of general public affection,
baseball was first and boxing was second.
When i was only six, however,
Red Grange's dazzling six-touchdown performance
for Illinois against Michigan helped glamourize college football." (6)
Broeg enjoyed all sports. Although he wasn't very athletic, his writing made up for it. Bob could not participate in sports because he had many health issues. When he was just born the doctor had told his mother that if Bob ended up living he would be crazy. And the reason was because of an incident that happened while his mother was giving birth to him. The female M.D. who had been assiting Mrs. Broeg was in a rush to a dinner party the day Bob was born. Because she was in such a hurry she wanted the birth of Bob to go a little faster; as a result, the M.D. grabbed baby Bob with tongs and scratched his left eye, making his vision forever blurred. And the other tong dug a hole, or a large dent, in the back of his head. Despite the fact that Bob could never play the sports he dreamed of playing; he had a good attitude about it and got out of althletics what he could. His health situation ended up being very benificial to him in the long run.
hating his ample guts for carving up the
Cardinals in the 1928 World Sereies.
But I would go out deliberately to see
him wearing his number "3."
The Yankees popularized uniform numbers in 1929,
striping monkey suits to slenderize the so-called Big Monkey." (16)
(Babe Ruth)
When Bob was a kid he got to
meet Babe Ruth; he signed a baseball
for him. When he was 10 years old Bob convinced his dad to take him to the Cardinals vs. Yankees game in St. Louis; it was the first time he saw Babe play right in front of his eyes. He describes himself as "awe-stricken" at that ball game.
(Babe Ruth)
(The 1934 Gas House Gang)
"That man," I corrected, using an expression of the times.
"No," Leo insisted, "The Man."
So I began to refer tohim as Stan (TheMan) Musial. As you may have noticed, it caught on.
(155-156)
(Stan Musial)
Stan Musial played 22 seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1941 to 1963. He is known to be one of the best baseball players of all time; but to the city of St. Louis he is considered to be the greatest ball player in the St. Louis Cardinals history. Bob Broeg and Stan Musial were very good friends, and stayed good friends untill Broeg died in 2005. Bob gave his good friend Stan the nickname of Stan TheMan Musial; many would agree that the nickname helped Musial's fame expload. Stan Musial is still alive today and is still known as Stan the Man to St. Louisians.
Bob Broeg was born on March 18, 1918 in south St. Louis, Missouri. At birth, Broeg's mother was told that her son, if he lived, would be crazy. When he was born the female M.D. scratched his left cornia with tongs perminatly blurring his vision. Not only did she ruin his vision, but she dug a hole in the back of his scull with the other tong. Broeg never got to participate in sports; but he loved watching them as much as he wished he could play. Broeg liked all sports, but baseball was by far his favorite. He lived and breathed St. Louis Cardinals baseball. He attended Cleveland High School and graduated in 1936. For college, he attended the University of Missouri Journalism School; MU (Mizzou) is known as one of the top journalism schools in the country. At Mizzou, Broeg met his first wife, Dorothy Alice Carr. They were married on June 19, 1943. That same year Broeg also enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps. Broeg served in Washington due to his eye injury. After returning to St. Louis, Broeg got a job at the Post-Dispatch, a St. Louis newspaper. His dream job payed $75 a week and he ended up in the sports department. Bob Broeg's sportswriting career escalted from there. On November 1, 1975 Dorothy died of cancer. Months later, in 1976, Broeg met a young-woman named Lynette Anton Emmenegger. She had two children; Greg and Lisa. After some time, Broeg found himself in love with Lynne. They were engaged for over a year before getting married on July 23, 1977. Shorty after Broeg took the title of sports editor at the Post-Dispatch. Bob broeg wrote many books, mostly about the St. Louis Cards and the Mizzou Tigers. He was well known for being one of the nicest guys around. On October 28, 2005 Bob Broeg died; but he died happy 5 hours after the '05 World Series, the Cardinals had won. He was 87 years old. The press box in the New Busch Stadium is named the "Bob Broeg-Rick Hummel Press Box."
Awards and Honors:
Resources:
Broeg, Bob . Memories of a Hall of Fame Sportswriter. Champaign, Illinois: Sagamore Publishing, 1995.
Wikipedia. . 28 Oct. 2008 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Broeg>.
Wikipedia. . 2 Dec. 2008 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Busch_Stadium>.
Wikipedia. . 2 Dec. 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Musial.