National Pastime Radio: Wait Wait remembers Yogi Berra

October 2, 2015

Usually I listen to Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me, hosted by my Jersey homeboy Peter Sagal, on Mondays on the way to work. But my schedule was a bit altered due to Jewish holidays, so I just got to this today.

In the opening segment — “Who’s Bill This Time?” — we were treated to this about the late great Yogi Berra:

PETER SAGAL: All right, Theresa, for your – your last one is actually a series of quotations.

BILL KURTIS: When you come to a fork in the road, take it.

SAGAL: And…

KURTIS: Baseball is 90 percent mental and the other half is physical.

SAGAL: And finally…

KURTIS: It ain’t over till it’s over.

SAGAL: Well, sadly, it is over now as, this week, we lost what baseball great and homespun philosopher who died at the age of 90?

https://i1.wp.com/www.businessnewsdaily.com/images/i/000/002/002/original/Yogi-Berra-Glove.jpg?resize=346%2C232THERESA MEYER: Yogi Berra, from my hometown.

SAGAL: Yes, Yogi Berra. Yes, you’re from St. Louis?

MEYER: No, Montclair, NJ.

SAGAL: Oh, yeah, you’re from Montclair. He lived in Montclair.

MEYER: Oh, yeah.

SAGAL: You know, it’s interesting. He was born in St. Louis, Yogi Berra was, and he lived most of his life in Montclair. And some years ago, before his wife died, his wife said to him, Yogi, when you die, would you like to be buried back in St. Louis, your hometown, or here in New Jersey? And Yogi said, I don’t know, surprise me.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: He was, in addition to being quotable, he was a Hall of Fame catcher who played with DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle. He was the last of an era. Now that he’s gone, there are no more athletes alive that aren’t jerks.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: And the – and, you know, what do athletes say now? They – all your quotes are like, I’ll give 110 percent or I’ll also give 110 percent and not guilty, your honor.

(LAUGHTER)

LUKE BURBANK: Didn’t he have, like, a long-running beef with the Yankees…

SAGAL: Yeah.

BURBANK: …After being a star and a manager for the Yankees?

SAGAL: He was a star for the Yankees, he managed the Yankees and, like, some ridiculous, like, 20 games into the season, if that, some underling came and said, oh, by the way, Yogi, you’re fired. And Yogi was so offended he never stepped foot in Yankee Stadium for 14 years.

TOM BODETT: What happened to bring him back, they had a picnic basket there?

SAGAL: The pic-a-nic (ph) basket?

(LAUGHTER)

BODETT: Oh, wait.

SAGAL: Bill, how did Theresa do on our quiz?

KURTIS: She got three right. She’s a winner. But since the pope is in town, that automatically multiplies to 30.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: I didn’t know the pope had that effect.

ILIZA SCHLESINGER: Yeah.

SAGAL: Congratulations, Theresa, thanks for playing.

MEYER: Thanks so much.

There was another baseball reference in the program but out of respect for Berra’s passing, I’ll just tell you it comes at the end of the lightning round so you can listen for yourself if you are so inclined.

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