Elvis Presley and I had at least one thing in common: A love of racquetball.
Sports
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
Autograph Collecting as a Feat of Historical Inquiry
The graphing community [“graphing” is a term for the craft of autograph seeking] is one of uncommon depth, into which people have spent decades carving their fiefdoms and burrowing out their niches, whether that be players in the single-A Midwest League or members of the Whig Party. Flam’s fellow grapher Rich Hanson supervises inspections at a meatpacking […]
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
The Loaded Expectations and Hopes of a Fan Relationship
The fan relationship is often built on expectations and hope, however unfair they might be. My expectation going to Dominique [Moceanu]’s hotel that night in 1998 was that she’d come down from her room even after a long day of training and competing, and grant me an autograph or, if I was really lucky, a […]
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
Why Watching ‘Survivor’ Is Like Watching Sports
Dawson suggests these shows are more closely related to sporting events than scripted dramas. In the case of Survivor, viewers get an experience similar to televised sports, Papacharissi explains: “You can root for your favorite castaway like you do for your favorite team, and vicariously experience her triumphs and setbacks from episode to episode.”
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
Can a Reporter Go a Whole Day Without Learning Who Won the Super Bowl?
Getting to his desk near the Journal sports department required passing innumerable copies of the day’s paper, which had the result printed across the top of the front page. He recruited nearby coworkers to alert him to possible danger—the newsroom has enough televisions to make a Best Buy manager envious—and when an editor from another desk walked by wearing a Patriots jersey, a friend warned Carney not to look up. At one point, Carney had nineteen unread text messages and eighty-six unclicked e-mails.
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
How the NFL Is Like a Blockbuster Movie Franchise
The industry term for or a blockbuster movie franchise is a “tentpole”—it’s the asset that holds the whole operation up. At the height of mass culture, in the second half of the 20th century, it was enough to be on television to command an audience in the tens of millions. But as channels multiplied, the difference between […]
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List
Longreads Best of 2014: Sports Writing
We asked a few writers and editors to choose some of their favorite stories of the year in specific categories. Here, the best in sports writing.
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List
1964: A Sidelong View of Sports
Below is a guest reading list from Daniel A. Gross, a journalist and public radio producer who lives in Boston. * * * Fifty years ago, a champion boxer picked up his son from school, a literary critic was tackled by NFL players, and a famed NASCAR racer tended to his chicken farm. Such was the […]
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List
1964: A Sidelong View of Sports
Below is a guest reading list from Daniel A. Gross, a journalist and public radio producer who lives in Boston. * * * Fifty years ago, a champion boxer picked up his son from school, a literary critic was tackled by NFL players, and a famed NASCAR racer tended to his chicken farm. Such was the […]
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and a ‘Failure of Accountability’
He sometimes barks when asked to bend his principles, the ones he learned from his late father, a U.S. senator. He gets enraged when someone, even an owner, tarnishes the integrity of the game or challenges his judgment. Many players and union leaders talk about his failure of accountability. “Right now the league office and […]