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I just got finished reading (most of) Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN by Jim Miller and Tom Shales. Yes, I bought it because of my not-so-secret crush on Dan Patrick and his voice (he's actually not in the book very much, but I suppose it says a lot about the book that I didn't care), but also because I used to watch a ton of ESPN, especially in the 90s. (I will never forget, Dan and Keith, the footage of the avalanche substituted for every one of the avalanche of goals scored by the Avalanche that one night. Thank you.)
( It's a book about a business! And sports! And a sports business! Told in first person by 500 people! Try to contain your excitement. )
This can't really be an unqualified recommendation, because I'm not going to say "Oh, you will all obviously love to read 700 pages of interviews about sports and business and people who run a sports business!" but I did want to praise Jim Miller and Tom Shales for their work. This book is the culmination of years of effort, and I was truly impressed both with the skill that they showed in putting all the pieces of interviews together, and in their philosophy of what to put in and what to leave out. I'm also impressed with their skills as interviewers. I know that Dan, for one, didn't really want to talk to them (Miller said, possibly joking, that Dan was one of the hardest people to get an interview with). They also managed to get access to ESPN, and for that alone they deserve a ton of credit for sheer perseverance. Good job, Mr. Miller, Mr. Shales.
( It's a book about a business! And sports! And a sports business! Told in first person by 500 people! Try to contain your excitement. )
This can't really be an unqualified recommendation, because I'm not going to say "Oh, you will all obviously love to read 700 pages of interviews about sports and business and people who run a sports business!" but I did want to praise Jim Miller and Tom Shales for their work. This book is the culmination of years of effort, and I was truly impressed both with the skill that they showed in putting all the pieces of interviews together, and in their philosophy of what to put in and what to leave out. I'm also impressed with their skills as interviewers. I know that Dan, for one, didn't really want to talk to them (Miller said, possibly joking, that Dan was one of the hardest people to get an interview with). They also managed to get access to ESPN, and for that alone they deserve a ton of credit for sheer perseverance. Good job, Mr. Miller, Mr. Shales.
