Bittersweet: The Life of Walter Payton

Jeff Pearlman has written a real biography of Walter Payton.  This is not some glam filled, highlight reel of the best of Walter Payton.  It’s a real biography that tells about the real bitter sweet life of Walter Payton.

Payton grew up poor in a racially segregated Colombia, Mississippi.  While Payton never experienced firsthand violence growing up, it was a segregated community with all the racial prejudice against blacks that implies.  African Americans were treated as inferior and lived in a specific section of town.  His father was a hard worker and decent man but an alcoholic who didn’t seem to have a great deal of influence in Payton’s life.  But his mother was a hard worker who was the family disciplinarian and real glue that held them together.  This segregated community and overt racism of his childhood is probably what gave Payton a chip on his shoulder for the rest of his life, out to prove that he was inferior to nobody.

As schools were integrated and Payton went on to play high school football, he of course became the darling of the town, as great athletes often are, and was one of the most sought after football prospects.  He ended up, through some shenanigans by the coach, heading to Jackson State in Mississippi near his hometown for his college football career.

There he had a career that landed him as the fourth overall pick in the 1975 National Football League draft by the Chicago Bears, where he had a Hall of Fame career, setting the then NFL record for rushing yards (16,726 yards).  He won a Super Bowl ring when the Chicago Bears won Super XX over the New England Patriots.

This isn’t a biography, however, only about Payton’s nearly unmatched professional football career.  It’s about the man who lived it.  And there we find the darker side of Walter Payton.

Walter lived a happy but sheltered childhood and his sheltered life at Jackson State probably did not prepare him to live in the real world, especially the one outside of football.  There he met his future wife Connie who eventually moved to Chicago with him.

What was Payton’s real personality like?  Fun loving; happy go lucky, and a prankster.  Kind hearted to strangers, children, and those who were in need.  He was quite a compassionate human being.  But he was also childish, jealous, petulant, and someone who always wanted to have things his way. 

What do we find out about Walter Payton in this biography?

First, while he was great teammate and superb player he was also a bit petulant when things didn’t go his way.  He wanted the ball and to be the superstar, but also had a quiet way of going about it.  In one of the more telling moments, he hid in a broom closet after the Bears won Super Bowl XX because he didn’t score a touchdown.  What should have been one of the happiest moments in his life turned out to be one of the most bittersweet as he cried in anger and refused to come out to talk to the press after the Super Bowl win, without some cajoling.  Coach Mike Ditka says it is one of his biggest regrets that he didn’t make sure Walter got the ball for a score in the blowout win.

Second, during his playing career Payton abused the painkiller Darvon, often popping them like candy.  He continued to abuse painkillers after his playing career, possibly as self-medication for depression.  Darvon is very hard on the liver and while Pearlman does not draw a direct line to his drug abuse and the live disease that ultimately killed him, he certainly implies it.

Third, Walter Payton struggled badly with loneliness and being out of the spotlight once his playing days were over.  He reportedly contemplated suicide, maybe on more than one occasion, and suffered from depression.

Fourth, Payton was a philanderer and liked women.  He clearly had fell out of love with his wife Connie and didn’t really live with her for most of his post-football life.  In fact, he fathered a child with another woman and had another long-term relationship with a flight attendant. 

This lead to another bittersweet moment in Walter Payton’s life.  Against his wishes his girlfriend showed up at his Hall of Fame induction ceremony, unbeknownst to his estranged wife Connie.  In public, Payton, and probably more so Connie, put on the façade of the happy couple.  Payton was angry that his girlfriend showed up and she was literally just a few rows back from his wife and children during his induction speech.

So once again, what should have been one of the happiest moments in Walter Payton’s life instead turned into a nerve wracking, bittersweet experience.

A fifth aspect of Walter Payton that is apparent, even if Pearlman doesn’t say this directly, is he was probably a manic depressive.  If the behaviors exhibited in the biography are accurate, one moment he is manic and happy go lucky, being out public, and trying to make a living on his up and down again business interests.  And at other times he is darkly depressed, not wanting to be out in public, and even contemplating suicide.

Pearlman also points out all of Walter Payton’s good traits.  Even though he trusted very few people, he cared about people and went out of his way to make people around him feel good and he was very charitable to those in need.  He was also a great teammate who led by example on the field and was real locker room leader, even when the Bears had dreadfully inadequate talent around him.  The persona that surrounded Payton as a caring, hardworking, class act was a real part of Walter Payton too.

Jeff Pearlman has been unfairly castigated by many of Walter Payton friends, family, and fans for this biography because he dares tell the real story of Walter Payton.  Mike Ditka said he wanted to spit on him and has no respect for him.  Others claim the biography is not truthful and essentially fiction.  And Connie Payton and his children also claim the biography is mostly untrue.

I think the veracity of this book is hard to question for one very simple reason.  Nearly all of Pearlman’s sources are identified by name.  Only two sources are not – his longtime girlfriend who showed up at his Hall of Fame induction and the woman with whom he has a child (which he never acknowledged).  Otherwise, former agents, players, long-time personal assistant, family members, coaches, and other acquaintances who Pearlman interviewed are all there, speaking through the author.  I have yet to see any of these people come out and refute what they said to Pearlman.  I know that the truth might be painful for many, but Pearlman has done a service to the memory of Walter Payton.

Calico Joe: A Home Run for John Grisham

**Review Contains What Could Be Considered Spoilers**

Calico Joe is a fantastic novel.

When Joe Castle comes up to the big leagues he has an unbelievable run, especially for a rookie, taking the league by storm and whacking homers at an unbelievable clip. Being from the small town of Calico Rock, Arkansas the press tagged him with Calico Joe.

Joe Castle, meet Warren Tracey, an average pitcher and a horrible human being. Mean spirited to his family and teammates, and seemingly embittered by his mediocre career, despite making millions and being one of the elite few in playing major league baseball.

And Warren Tracey lived by "the code" but and maybe a little beyond it, as he was known as someone who frequently hit batters, and often aiming for the head. One day Calico Joe hit a homer off Warren Tracey. His next at bat Tracey made in pay with a heinous act that ruined both of their careers.

Warren Tracey's son Paul was there that day. And he idolized Joe Castle. And hated his father. Years later he wanted to set things right for Joe Castle.

This novel is told from the point of view of Paul Castle and it is both nostalgic and sad. The entire novel is wonderful and the ending fantastic.

Review of House Made of Dawn by Scott Momaday

I always find it interesting that authors who write such opaque prose are lauded as great writers.  Isn’t the point of great writing to make it easier for the reader to live in the world the author creates? 

Momaday seems to be another one of those writers in that vein, being praised for evocative stories that are frankly not very interesting or fun to read.  His writing style is not stylish but turgid and maudlin.

Here Momaday tells the story of Abel, a young Native American going from a life on an Indian Reservation off to war, and then back to the alien world of America.  He struggles with the past, both the near past and the distant pass of his lost ancestral home, which appears to be the point of the story.  We see Abel disintegrate as he struggles with his past and the lost past of his ancestors. 

The novel is certainly sad and evocative of a lost world.  But those who bemoan an age that no longer exists are doomed to live in an unreality, as is the case for Abel.

This novel mostly was boring with a few flashes of insight.  And some ways I almost found it to be propaganda with a point lost in a convoluted prose, jumping from one time frame to another with little warning to the reader.  Great writing?  Well to some I obviously so since it won a Pulitzer Prize, but I wouldn’t recommend it.

Shaq In His Own Words

When I told someone I was reading Shaquille O'Neal's new autobiography they laughed and said: "Why? His life has been an open book." I had to chuckle. While it is true there is nothing particularly new here that hasn't been reported on, maybe numerous times, it's refreshing because it is clearly told in Shaq's voice and on his terms.

So what to say about Shaq Uncut? (I have to wonder if this isn't a play on words.)

For starters, as a general outline of his life story, he grew up with a stepfather in the Marines and lived a vagabond life, with a good part of his youth spent in Germany. He quickly grew to be oversized and wasn't particularly athletic but picked up basketball and made it his life's passion. Being in Germany wasn't particularly easy for him but he learned the rough and tumble of hardnosed basketball playing with adults. That, and probably from a good dose of tough discipline from his stepfather that can only be described as a little on the violent side.

As everyone knows Shaq went to Louisiana State University to play college basketball and found another father figure in coach Dale Brown. Three years later he was the number one pick in the NBA draft. After leading the Orlando Magic to the playoffs but never entering the promised land he eventually was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Los Angeles and the outsized body and ego of Shaq? What a match. But it took teaming up with the young phenomenon Kobe Bryant to win three NBA championships, and then the feud between the two of course. Fun stuff.

Shaq and Kobe couldn't coexist in the end, so Shaq headed to the Miami Heat to play second option to Dwayne Wade to win another NBA Championship.

All the while making rap albums, playing in movies, and being a cultural icon.

So what did I learn about Shaq in this book?

First he has big ego and is very immature. But there is a very endearing aspect to this. Not only does he admit it, he seems to relish in his immaturity. And makes no apologies for it, nor should he. He admits to being somewhat of a bully as a kid. He talks about going into a car dealership to buy a Benz but if another sports star has bought one, he has to buy two just to one up them. The oddest story is where he had $200,000 worth of quarters from a string of car washes he owned mounted on his wall because he "likes to see his money." His lifelong trusted agent/accountant started looking for the missing money and wondered where it went and ultimately found out.

And that personality feeds into his feud with Kobe. He describes it as two alpha males who can't coexist. He doesn't trash Kobe at all in this book, but instead seems to admire him. Placing the feud into the context of two big egos, two alpha males on the same team, which just isn't going to work, puts the entire episode in context. And he really lets Kobe off the hook a bit, because Shaq proved he can be a team player in Miami.

A second thing I learned is that Shaq is pretty smart. While he spends lavishly, he invested wisely and found a trusted adviser who had his back. There are plenty of examples of stars who made nearly as much as Shaq that went broke by overspending, bad investments, and stupidity. Not Shaq, clearly.

Third, despite the ego, Shaq has a big heart. While it is in his own words, he talks about spending money on charity as his way to give back and sometimes his spending is impetuous and not maybe the wisest decision. Most sports fans will recall when Shaq paid for George Mikan's funeral. Who is George Mikan? The first big man in the 1940's and 1950's who helped carry the NBA. Some say the first great big man. Nobody asked him to do it. He just found out that the family was in financial trouble and volunteered to pay for the funeral. There is a brief mention of this in the book, but the episode is well documented.

Fourth is Shaq's self-awareness. He did rap and movies because he always dreamed of it. Part of that ego, but really part of his childhood dreams he lived out. He admits he's not the best actor or rapper, but he notes that if you have the money and the celebrity to live out a childhood dream, why wouldn't you do it? He got great pleasure from both endeavors, so why not?

And the player he thinks is the greatest besides himself? Tim Duncan. It was refreshing to see Shaq recognize someone else for greatness.

There may be nothing new here, but Shaq tells his story, in his own words, and that is what makes it interesting.

Know Thy Enemy: Rex Ryan Speaks

Rex Ryan is an obnoxious, undisciplined, loud mouth jerk just like his father. When I saw he "wrote" a book, I could help myself. I had to read it.

I still believe Rex Ryan is an obnoxious, undisciplined, loud mouth jerk, and fully understand why the Baltimore Ravens did not hire him as a head a coach after he had been their defensive coordinator. A coach who lets the inmates run the asylum (one of Bill Parcels favorite sayings), and who shows no self-discipline himself, will have an obnoxious undisciplined team that can't win the big game. I don't think Ryan will ever win a Super Bowl. His teams will always choke on their bravado. And they can't seem to keep their mouths shut when they should.

That aside, this autobiography of Rex Ryan was somewhat interesting. Everybody knows he grew up in a coaching family. His father Buddy Ryan, probably the progenitor of the bounty game that has caught up with the New Orleans Saints, is famous for his 46 defense and the 1985 Super Bowl Champion Chicago Bears where his defensive team may have been the best ever, and for being an obnoxious cretin.

Well, Rex Ryan is kind of lovable in his own way unlike his father. Herein he tells his life story of wanting to be a coach and growing up being taught to be so by his father.

His relationship with his mother, an educator, was quite interesting. Ryan reveals he is dyslectic and that hampered his academic career, but of course not his football one. His poor mother never realized this problem and blamed herself for his struggles as a youngster in the classroom. This was probably the most revealing part of the book.

Ryan of course relays all his playing and coaching history and actually throws some begrudging respect to Bill Belichick, his coaching better, and Tom Brady. Now if he'd grow up just a tad, he might actually be a decent coach himself.

This book was interesting enough and Ryan clearly loves football and being a head coach. His tenure as the Jets head coach is front and center, as one would expect. As a result you don't see much new that you didn't see on HBO's Hard Knocks featuring the Jets, but it was interesting nonetheless.

But as seen in the 2011 NFL season the Jets are less than that the sum of their parts. Yes, I know they went to the AFC Championship game twice riding on the emotions of an emotional coach. But did they win? Did they go over the top? No. The squabbling teammates and lack of discipline in 2011 is a reflection of the coach. I don't see much changing. As a disclaimer I am a New England Patriots fan so take that for what it's worth. But I thought his father was a jerk, and Rex is just the happy go lucky dumb son of one.

Despite that, for football fans this is definitely worth the read.