A Man of Few Words, 90% of Them Memorable

In what way is the book you wrote different from the book you set out to write?

I didn’t think I was going to spend so much time writing about the abuse he took and how he dealt with it, because it really did shape a lot of his life.

Yogi faced a constant stream of insults and slurs — from the fans, bench jockeys, the media and from his teammates. Italians faced a lot of discrimination in those days. He got so much abuse for his vocabulary, his Italian heritage, his looks. He got it from people he respected and liked, not just fans who disliked him. Everyone thought he let it roll off his back, but nothing could be further from the truth. His first manager, when Yogi was all of 17 years old, took him aside and said, “If you respond, it’s only going to get worse.” His advice was to ignore it, and Yogi did; he buried it deep, but he never forgot it.

Who is a creative person (not a writer) who has influenced you and your work?

Springsteen. I love his music, and we’re only a couple of years apart in age. My second job was in Toms River, N.J., which is right down the road from Asbury Park, so I lived the life he wrote about. Sadly I never got the luck some people did, where you were at a bar or club on the shore and suddenly there’s Bruce Springsteen and his band.

I’m a rhythm writer, there’s a drumbeat that pulls you through. If you’re going to write long, which I tend to do, a thriving beat that makes the reading go fast is essential. In Bruce’s songs, there’s a beat that drives you right through, whether it’s a three-minute song or an 11-minute song.

He’s great at telling stories, and obviously I aspire to tell stories in a way people can relate to. I’ve been to many of his concerts, and you just hope, when you write a book or you write anything, that you can bring that kind of joy to people. So that’s where the bar is: Suspend everything in your life, and forget about everything else that’s going on. And at this point in time, where we are, I hope this book will help, because God knows we need a diversion.

Persuade someone to read “Yogi” in 50 words or fewer.

Miss baseball? Want to spend time with Yogi, watch him move from his childhood through war and early disappointment, never losing the certainty that baseball was his life? Want to witness great moments in baseball history from the inside? Want to know who Yogi really is? This is your book.

This interview has been condensed and edited.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/12/books/yogi-berra-biography-jon-pessah-interview.html