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A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Broadcast Booth
“A treasure trove of anecdotes and memories, a rollicking read brimming with humor, insight, and good nature.”
-- Bob Costas, Emmy-Award winning sportscaster
In A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Broadcast Booth, Hall of Fame sportscaster Steve Albert chronicles the ups, downs, and unforeseen mishaps that occurred throughout his lifelong journey on the air.
From getting nailed in the head by an errant LeBron James pass, to ducking bottles thrown in boxing arena riots, to frightful flights and car trips, Steve discovered that doing play-by-play was a surprisingly hazardous profession. Thankfully, calling games and fights was also pretty entertaining.
In a seriously funny collection of humorous and autobiographical essays, Steve recalls encounters with Mickey Mantle pinching, Eddie Murphy boxing, and Meat Loaf serenading. Steve also describes his many unusual experiences, including the morning he smashed through a stuck bathroom door to get to a show on time, saw his broadcast partner Ralph Kiner set his own chair on fire, bolted from a hornet’s nest in his booth, and announced the infamous Mike Tyson “Bite Fight.”
Best known for his decades of blow-by-blow for Showtime Championship Boxing and his play-by-play in the NBA, calling sports was Steve Albert’s life. It was also the life of Steve’s brothers, Marv Albert and Al Albert, and now it’s the life of his nephew, Kenny Albert. Against the backdrop of 1950s Brooklyn and all its glorious nostalgia, Steve shares what life was like growing up in a sportscasting family. Steve describes how, as young brothers, they used to hone their skills by calling baseball off a small TV and by announcing their rowdy ping-pong games, and how, as adults, they ended up calling professional games against each other.
From the moment he stepped into a cramped radio booth in Cleveland, Ohio, to call hockey, to hanging up his mic almost a half-century later, Steve found that sports was more than wins and losses. To Steve Albert, it was comedy fodder.
-- Bob Costas, Emmy-Award winning sportscaster
In A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Broadcast Booth, Hall of Fame sportscaster Steve Albert chronicles the ups, downs, and unforeseen mishaps that occurred throughout his lifelong journey on the air.
From getting nailed in the head by an errant LeBron James pass, to ducking bottles thrown in boxing arena riots, to frightful flights and car trips, Steve discovered that doing play-by-play was a surprisingly hazardous profession. Thankfully, calling games and fights was also pretty entertaining.
In a seriously funny collection of humorous and autobiographical essays, Steve recalls encounters with Mickey Mantle pinching, Eddie Murphy boxing, and Meat Loaf serenading. Steve also describes his many unusual experiences, including the morning he smashed through a stuck bathroom door to get to a show on time, saw his broadcast partner Ralph Kiner set his own chair on fire, bolted from a hornet’s nest in his booth, and announced the infamous Mike Tyson “Bite Fight.”
Best known for his decades of blow-by-blow for Showtime Championship Boxing and his play-by-play in the NBA, calling sports was Steve Albert’s life. It was also the life of Steve’s brothers, Marv Albert and Al Albert, and now it’s the life of his nephew, Kenny Albert. Against the backdrop of 1950s Brooklyn and all its glorious nostalgia, Steve shares what life was like growing up in a sportscasting family. Steve describes how, as young brothers, they used to hone their skills by calling baseball off a small TV and by announcing their rowdy ping-pong games, and how, as adults, they ended up calling professional games against each other.
From the moment he stepped into a cramped radio booth in Cleveland, Ohio, to call hockey, to hanging up his mic almost a half-century later, Steve found that sports was more than wins and losses. To Steve Albert, it was comedy fodder.
295 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 26, 2025
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644 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 17, 2025
Honored to be the first GoodReads review of this book.
Steve and I go back to 2017, where we met as part of a college project I had just begun undertaking, to interview the TV announcer for all 30 NBA Teams. He could not have been more gracious. And the night we first met in person, was the same day Devin Booker scored 70 at TD Garden. He also said "Be ready to jump in from your seat if I can't make it through the game."
His brilliant sense of humor shined through on every page, and having known Steve a long time now, reading this book felt like story-time, but perhaps just a bit longer than your normal version.
The whole Albert family history is contained within these pages, and it is absolutely worth reading it not just once, but three times.
A sensational read from one of the most enthralling voices in sports over the past five decades.
Steve and I go back to 2017, where we met as part of a college project I had just begun undertaking, to interview the TV announcer for all 30 NBA Teams. He could not have been more gracious. And the night we first met in person, was the same day Devin Booker scored 70 at TD Garden. He also said "Be ready to jump in from your seat if I can't make it through the game."
His brilliant sense of humor shined through on every page, and having known Steve a long time now, reading this book felt like story-time, but perhaps just a bit longer than your normal version.
The whole Albert family history is contained within these pages, and it is absolutely worth reading it not just once, but three times.
A sensational read from one of the most enthralling voices in sports over the past five decades.
July 9, 2025
A ton of very brief stories, many of which are entertaining. The lack of organization is distracting. The stories bounce around from topic to topic leapfrogging years and coming back again. This truly would've been a great read if there was more depth to Steve's experiences. As a sports fan who grew up listening to all 3 Albert brothers, I was excited to get some meaty insight into the business of sportscasting. Sadly, that's not what we get here. It's a hodgepodge of quick recollections, similar to what you might expect bumping into someone in an elevator. While most stories I enjoyed, I expected and wanted a lot more. I'm still a fan, though.
July 14, 2025
Broadcast Booth
I think if I was 10 years older, I would have gotten more out of this book. The author had a lot of details. It must have come from all the notes he took before the games. If you're into sports, then you should read this book.
I think if I was 10 years older, I would have gotten more out of this book. The author had a lot of details. It must have come from all the notes he took before the games. If you're into sports, then you should read this book.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews