Fridays with Red: A Radio Friendship

by Bob Edwards

The author pays tribute to veteran sportscaster Red Barber in a collection of radio dialogues that spans decades

Genres: Baseball, Nonfiction, Biography, Sports, Memoir, History, Journalism

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Will Byrnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bob Edwards - image from Wikipedia

Every Friday morning Bob Edwards, erstwhile anchor of NPR’s Morning Edition radio news program interviewed Hall of Fame sportscaster Red Barber. They performed this ritual for twelve years. During that time, a bond grew, a father-son link. Edwards describes Red as a surrogate father. We learn a fair deal about Red’s history, although this is not a biography. He was a leader in the creation and sustenance of media coverage of baseball. He was there when Branch Rickey brought Jackie Robinson into the major leagues. He was there when television broadcast its first game. He saw and worked for the Dodgers and the Yankees under various managements. He is a broadcasting legend. He also could be a crusty pain in the ass. Edwards delights in sharing how Barber terrorized the NPR staff, changing planned discussion topics without warning.


Walter "Red" Barber on the job in 1955 - image from Wikipedia

To hear Edwards tell it, he sounds like the rawest of rookies. I suspect this is disingenuous. He had already been co-anchor for All Things Considered. Yet, he is so taken with Red. It was a very interesting read. A biography might be just as good, but we get to see not only the tight-assed prima donna announcer, but his mellowing in a way, dedicated to his wife, his garden, his cats, and eager to share with listeners the small news of his life in Tallahassee. Barber may have been the most popular voice on NPR over those twelve years. To hear Bob Edwards tell it, he was the most loved as well. Clearly Edwards loved him, and this book is an expression of that affection.

[Michael P. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a marvel that I like this book so much given that it is in many ways about a radio show I did not like and a feature on it that used to annoy me very much. I found Red Barber's interviews obnoxious. He seldom answered the questions asked and hopped from topic to topic in a self-indulgent way, I thought. This impression is challenged by the man who interviewed him, Bob Edwards. Oh, my impressions were absolutely correct, Edwards says, but he promotes the premise that this was the strength of the Barber interviews, not a demerit. That is not how I experienced the feature, but the outpouring of love after Barber's death clearly indicates that many hear the interviews as Edwards heard them.

The book actually spends more time on Barber's career as a sports announcer, which is where I came to admire him both by reputation and from some of the broadcasts that have been preserved. Red Barber more or less invented play-by-play announcing, and we see it develop in this part of the book. This material is fantastic for baseball fans, especially.

What comes thought most strongly, however, is the deep love Edwards and Barber developed for one another during their 12 years of working together. I found this very moving, and it deepened my love for self-indulgent Red Barber.

[Bobbi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really lovely book about Bob Edwards of NPR and his 12 years of on-air discussions with Red Barber. For those of us who anticipated and loved those 4 minutes each Friday morning, this book is a gem. Barber, who was in his late 70s and 80s, had an incredible memory for details of the baseball games he announced but also loved his Tallahassee home, his wife Lyla and his camellias. Red and Bob had millions of faithful followers who never missed a Friday, including me. I remember when Red died; it definitely left a hole in our lives.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is not meant to be a biography of Red Barber, though the most interesting parts are the outline of his life and career. Rather, it is a collection of memories and vignettes loosely strung together. Sometimes there is an attempt at a theme to the chapter, but with little transition to connect the segments, which I found confusing at first and annoying as it became a pattern.

This book was a gift from a friend who had not read it, but had heard about it. Ostensibly, it’s something I would enjoy as a person who makes radio and loves baseball. I think if I had more knowledge and interest in the decades of baseball Red covered, it might be near perfect for me. As it is, I found it interesting, but also a bit of a slog to get through.

[Steven Gauthier · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am one of the millions of aging listeners who enjoyed Barber's conversations with Bob Edwards. Red Barber was a somewhat uncontrollable force in NPR's sometimes rather precisely scripted presentations. As one of the pioneers in broadcasting baseball, Red was a professional off-the-cuff personality. Better than most he was flexible and could roll with unexpected events as they happened.
I do miss his voice and Edward's voice as well. I guess a cd of outtakes might show 2025-26 audiences a little of what they're missing.
I think the book is about double the length it needed to be; that Edwards isn't a natural writer; that if there was a lot of personal interface to be revealed about the men behind the microphones, for the most part it eludes enlightenment here.

[Tom Woodbery · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderfully amusing recollection of twelve years of NPR conversations between Bob Edwards and retired sportscaster Red Barber... told by someone who obviously relished the experience. Captures the wit and wisdom of the old redhead, who was the radio (later TV) voice of the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees for many years.

My only regret is that I didn't listen to the original broadcasts when they aired on Morning Edition.

[Mark Luongo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only saw & heard Red Barber late in his career but I always liked the "idea" of who he was and what he meant to so many people. Especially to us "Brooklynites." This book goes into the depths of the man as related by his last radio partner and colleague Bob Edwards of NPR. The word "erudite" doesn't seem sufficient when it comes to the "Ol' Redhead." Wish I could have heard him in his prime "sittin' in the catbird seat".

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Red Barber was a true classic. I loved his Friday conversations with "Baa Bedwords"

[Mark Schultz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fridays with Red: A Radio Friendship, by Bob Edwards, 1993. I really enjoyed this book by NPR broadcaster Bob Edwards. It is well-written and contains many excerpts from the chats Edwards held on NPR every Friday morning with the dean of radio sportscasters, Red Barber, from 1981 to 1992. Lots of great baseball stories, like a re-telling of the 3 Dodgers on third story from the 1926 season, or Barber’s memory of broadcasting the first-ever night game in major league history for the Cincinnati Reds on May 24, 1935 (FDR flipped the switch), and much more. I learned that Bill Veeck, the great Chicagoan who planted the vines in Wrigley Field and built AL pennant winners in Cleveland and with the White Sox, also marched at Selma during the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s. There’s a chapter on Jackie Robinson – Barber was the announcer for the Dodgers’ game in which Robinson broke baseball’s racist color barrier in 1947. If you remember NPR’s Morning Edition during the 80’s and early 90’s, or you are a baseball fan or have an interest in 20th Century American history, you’ll appreciate this book.
I especially appreciate this quote: “[Barber] recited the last verse of the Nineteenth Psalm before every broadcast: ‘Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be always acceptable in thy sight, O Lord.’”

[Margaret Carmel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Allow me to preface this review by saying that I read this book at the suggestion of both my parents who are avid NPR junkies. I did not know who Red Barber was, and I do not know anything really about sports.

I enjoyed most the parts that were about the history of Morning Edition, of NPR, broadcasting, and how sports used to be back when there were less entertainment options. I feel like I would have enjoyed the book a lot more if I had actual knowledge of who I was reading about and a connection of the man himself. Although, at the end where Edwards discussed his death I did feel like over the course of the book I got to know this brilliant and interesting character. This is a must read for fans of Red and those interested in sports history, but I do not fall into either of those categories so this book really didn't speak to me all that much. But, I do have a deep reverence for both Bob Edwards and the subject of this interesting memoriam.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a long time listener to NPR I have many fond memories of listening to Bob Edwards and retired sportscaster Red Barber discuss life every Friday morning as I drove to Brighton High School. The interviews were literate, thought provoking, humorous and sometimes poignant. This book is an edited version of many of those interviews. If you heard them on the radio, this brings back many warm memories and you can once again hear their voices in your mind as you read. If you missed them on air, you get to experience them in print. Either way...they are a delight. (NOTE: they are about much more than sports.)

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

A charming book. This makes me sorry I wasn't listing to NPR in the days when he interviewed Red Barber. I've read a less laudatory story about Red Barber in a biography of Walter O'Malley with a completely different take on why, in 1954, Barber was fired by the Dodgers, started broadcasting for the Giants, giving Vince Scully his big chance. Of course, there was another side to the story.

This is a pleasant easy-going book -- just like listening to Bob Edwards on the radio.

[Elizabeth Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not really start lisening to NPR until after Red had passed away but I still found this book a great read it let me meet not only Red Barber but see into some of the early history of NPR's Morning Edition and how it changed from the beginning to today. Though in the book Bob says this is not a biography of Red he tells us so much that is some ways it might as well be. I great and fun read for anyone even if like me they never heard Red and the Colonel talk.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

921 Barber For those of us who have listened to the radio a long time, the Friday morning talks between Red
Barber and Bob Edwards were sweet and touching. This is a memoir of their radio friendship.

[WBJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bob Edwards did a Friday interview w/ Red Barber on NPR for years until Barber's death. The two became close friends during the course of the regular Friday interviews during baseball season. Edward's affection for Barber comes through in the book.

[Margy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a wonderful reminder of those many conversations I heard on NPR on Friday mornings. I found myself with tears reading this book, and rejoicing in such civility. I loved the drama of the baseball scenarios that were recalled. A very sweet read!

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has everything to do with life and friendships and absolutely nothing to do with baseball.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this even though I hadn't actually heard many of the broadcast segments. Full disclosure: I love Bob Edwards....

[Lynn Eldredge · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved listening to Bob Edwards and Red Barber!

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of interesting stories about baseball in the early days. Good stuff about the Reds.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great motivating story about baseball broadcaster who ended up being a regular on NPR...wish I could have listened to him, he was an incredible guy.

[Philip Blen · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you listened to Red on NPR, then this book will be a must read, reliving the broadcasts.

If Red was before your time, but love Baseball, then enjoy the story of real baseball character.

[Shari · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the dearest books ever. It's what made me a fan of The Colonel and taught me a lot about the power of radio. Perhaps the best memoir out there. Definitely worth a re-read every few years.

[Apteryx · Rating 1 out of 5]

Red Barber knew a lot about azaleas and really important stuff like baseball statistics. Fascinating - not!

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't finish but skimmed the book. Not really a subject matter I am interested in. Some good stories though.

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is great for NPR junkies, Baby Boomers, and sports radio fans.