An Exclusive Interview with Jamie Most and Mike Carey
By:
Michael D. McClellan | Monday, February 21st 2005
Editor's Note: Authors Mike Carey and
Jamie Most have recently released a fine effort entitled
'Voice of the Celtics',
a book and CD combination that pays tribute to the
late Johnny Most, arguably the most important
broadcaster in NBA history. The book and CD are
wonderfully done, and are considered must-have items for
Boston Celtics fans everywhere.
 Authors:
Mike Carey and Jamie Most
Format: 8.5" x
11", hardcover; Includes Audio CD
Page Count:
160
Publication Date:
October, 2004
Publisher:
Sports Publishing, LLC
Price: $29.95
Click link below to order 'Voice of the Celtics'
http://www.sportspublishingllc.com/book.cfm?id=633
About the Authors:
The co-author of High Above Courtside: The
Lost Memoirs of Johnny Most, Mike Carey began
his career as an assistant city editor for the
Patriot Ledger of Quincy, Massachusetts. At
age 26, he was named news editor for the Boston
Herald American. Five years later, he became
the newspaper's sports editor. From 1981 through
1986, he covered the Boston Celtics for the Herald,
as well as writing monthly articles and the annual NBA
draft preview for The Sporting News. For
the past fifteen years, he has represented pro
basketball players in the NBA, CBA and overseas.
Mike is a graduate (journalism) of Boston University.
Jamie Most, born and raised in the Boston area, grew up
watching many Celtics games "high above courtside", and
by his father's side in the old Boston Garden.
After graduating from UCSD, Jamie was able to combine
his love for both filmmaking and sports when he
co-produced the home video "Winning Basketball with Red
Auerbach and Larry Bird". From there, he become
creative director for NBA Entertainment's in-house
advertising group, working one on one with many high
profile NBA players. Currently, Jamie is a
commercial television and film director.
Johnny Most - The Jamie Most, Mike Carey Interview
By:
Michael D. McClellan | Monday, February 21st 2005
It was a marriage and a love
affair all rolled into one, this thing between Johnny
Most and the Boston Celtics, a relationship so rich with
passion that the two have become inextricably linked,
radio broadcaster and storied franchise, a pairing
unmatched in the history of professional sports. Most
was there in the early days when Walter Brown’s Celtics
were struggling to remain economically viable, calling
games from high above courtside in the Boston Garden,
while a young coach named Red Auerbach barked commands
to future hall-of-fame players named Sharman, Cousy and
“Easy” Ed Macauley. These were heady days, pre-dynasty,
and Most was arguably the man most responsible for
spreading the Celtics’ hoop gospel. He called the games
from his heart. He loved the team, and it shone through
in his unique broadcasting style. He made people take
an interest. He saw the games the way George W would
have us see the War on Terror, with no shades of gray
and a very clear delineation between hero and villain,
and in the process we found ourselves sharing this
passion with Johnny Most, who we came to recognize as
the Boston Celtics’ singular voice and the team’s Number
One Fan.
The basketball landscape in the
1950s was vastly different from the corporate giant that
exists today. Back then, teams and owners did whatever
they could to survive. From playing promotional games
at midnight – the Milkman’s Matinee in the Boston Garden
is perhaps the most famous example – to barnstorming
throughout New England, playing twenty games in as many
nights, the Celtics were at the forefront of this
grassroots marketing campaign. Brown, a hockey man, was
convinced that professional basketball would succeed on
a grand scale. He also knew that there would be tough
times, as indeed there were: Brown would mortgage his
home just to keep the franchise afloat, and there were
times when players were asked to wait on paychecks
because there simply wasn’t enough money to pay the
bills. Most, who began calling games in 1953, saw all
of this unfold. He knew that the average New Englander
viewed the NBA in general – and the Celtics in
particular – as second rate entertainment. If they
wanted to watch basketball, they would take in a Holy
Cross game. If they wanted a real sport, there was
always the Red Sox or the Bruins. He also knew that the
team needed a voice, especially if the Celtics were to
gain a foothold in the consciousness of the average
Bostonian.
Johnny Most decided very early
on to be that voice. A self-proclaimed ‘homer’, Most
was unapologetic in the way he called the games. If you
were a Boston Celtic, you could do no wrong; if you were
the opposition, then you were Public Enemy Number One.
Under Most’s watchful eye, the Celtics never lost a game
– they simply ran out of time. It was a style borne of
that era, during a time when a true family atmosphere
permeated all NBA franchises, and Most was as much a
part of the Boston Celtics as the leprechaun himself.
He rode the bus with the team when they went on those
barnstorming tours, and he roomed with players on the
road during the regular season. And fans began to take
notice; Bob Cousy became “Rapid Robert” because of Most,
and phrases such as “fiddles and diddles” and “stops and
pops” worked their way into the lexicon of anyone who
tuned into Most’s radio broadcasts.
By the time Bill Russell arrived
midway through the 1956-57 season, Most had established
a loyal base of listeners and the Celtics had turned the
corner in terms of turning a profit. Tommy Heinsohn was
the other impact rookie on that team, and through the
years he would become one of Most’s closest friends.
With all of the pieces coming together, Most continued
calling the games with his unique passion. So vivid was
his play-calling that TV did little to encroach on his
popularity; even when the games were televised, an
overwhelming number of fans chose to turn down the
volume on their TVs and turn on the radio broadcast
instead, as Most turned every home game into an epic
struggle on the famed Boston Garden parquet. Russell,
Cousy, Sharman and Heinsohn were transformed from
basketball players to warriors, noble in cause,
honorable in spirit, and by season’s end the first of
the team’s sixteen championship banners was safely in
hand.
Continue to Page 2
| 
