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No one ever cared as much about the Boston Celtics as did Johnny Most, the radio voice of the Celtics for 37 years including their 16 championship seasons. To him, no one in the green and white ever made a mistake. No opposing player failed to be a "bum" who was "mugging" the Celtics. The referees were all suspect . . . especially Jake O'Donnell. His rants anticipated the development of that form of entertainment, and came equipped in four different voices . . . depending on how outraged he was. Humor was always interceding as Johnny was known to get into brawls with fans, light himself on fire while smoking, insult the security guards who tried to get him to stop smoking, and told one revealing personal story after another that would leave us in stitches. But we never laughed at the man . . . but with him . . . because we knew he loved the Celtics. Like almost everyone who loved the Celtics, I usually listened to his broadcasts on the radio even when watching the games on television (with the sound off). I would turn on the radio to hear the post-game show whenever I left a home game. My eye would often sweep up to see what antics he was up to while attending a game. Basketball broadcasting hasn't been the same since Johnny left the field. Tommy Heinsohn is the closest we have now, but he's not the total fan (atic) that Johnny was. The book is remarkable in many ways. It fills in the gaps in Johnny's story -- as a World War II hero, as someone learning to be a broadcaster in New York, as a New York-born Jew suffering from discrimination, as a loving father of four, a good friend to everyone on the Celtics, a hilarious (but challenging) companion during road trips, a patient recovering from a stroke, and a man keeping his dignity during his final illnesses. Almost every page has an insider's story about one or more of the Celtics or other basketball insiders which I had never heard or read before. The stories are mostly heart-warming and are often quite funny as we find out more about the pranks that were pulled and by whom. Within those stories are subtle observations about why the various Celtics teams prospered or did not. Former owner John Y. Brown (who was widely despised in Boston) would do well to avoid this book. While most autobiographies build the person up at the expense of others, the comments by many of the Celtics greats at the end seem to suggest that Johnny's comments actually understate his significance to the team, the franchise and to them personally. One of the most fun parts of the book is where Johnny picks his top 15 opposing players (done before the full development of Michael Jordan because this book was begun many years ago while Johnny's health began to fail). The only thing missing from this book is a CD of Johnny calling some of the most famous moments in Celtics history. But if you've ever heard his voice, you can hear him as you read his words. Johnny may be famous for screaming, "Havlicek stole the ball," but in this autobiography "Most stole the scene." Keep cheering, Johnny, wherever you are!
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