Paterno (46 page)
Authors: Joe Posnanski
Maybe the last of these sentences is the truest. Maybe the team that makes fewer mistakes wins.
—
“
SO TELL ME SOMETHING, GIUSEPPE
, how are you going to get my whole life into one book?” Paterno asked me on our last visit.
“I have no idea,” I told him. “It’s a big life.”
“Yeah, it’s not bad,” Joe Paterno said. “Not bad at all.”
The vast majority of material in this book was obtained through several hundred interviews and email exchanges, along with access to Joe Paterno’s personal files and letters, granted by Paterno and his family. In cases where previously reported information was used, I have tried to acknowledge the sources directly. When quotes were given in a public setting, such as a press conference, and were reported in more than one publication, I was more general (for example, “Paterno told reporters”).
I wish to express special gratitude to all the Paterno family—especially Joe and Sue Paterno—for their openness. Every member of Joe Paterno’s immediate family was generous, both in their participation and their patience, but I would particularly like to thank Mary Kay Hort, Jay Paterno, and Scott and Heather Paterno. In addition, I thank the Paterno Library, the Nixon Library, the Brown University archives, Guido D’Elia, Penn State’s sports information director, Jeff Nelson, Dan McGinn, Mara Vandik, Paul Levine, John Schulian, Bill Blatty, Rich Scarcella, David Jones, Tom Donchez and the many people involved with the documentary
The Joe We Know
, and the good people at the Mid-Continent Public Library in Kansas City. I also want to make special mention of Don Abbey; the long interview he gave me in his home was thoroughly enlightening.
A selected bibliography follows, but I would like to make note of three books that were particularly helpful. First there was Joe Paterno’s
autobiography,
Paterno: By the Book
, written with Bernard Asbell. Second was the well-researched
No Ordinary Joe
by Michael O’Brien. And finally there was Lou Prato’s
Penn State Football Encyclopedia.
No one knows more about Penn State football than Lou Prato, and he was kind and helpful throughout.
Asbell, Bernard, and Joe Paterno.
Paterno: By the Book.
Random House, 1989.
Bergstein, Mickey.
Living Among Lions
. Trafford Publishing, 2007.
———.
Penn State Sports Stories and More
. RB Books, 1998.
Centre Daily Times Staff.
40 Years of the Joe Paterno Era at Penn State
. Canada Hockey LLC, 2006.
Denlinger, Ken.
For the Glory
. St. Martin’s Griffin, 1994.
Fitzpatrick, Frank.
The Lion in Autumn
. Gotham Books, 2005.
———.
Pride of the Lions
. Triumph Books, 2011.
Hagdu, David.
The Ten-Cent Plague
. Farrar, Strauss & Giroux, 2008.
Halvonik, Steve and John Cappelletti.
Cappelletti: Penn State’s Iron Horse
. Ethic Sports, 1998.
Hyman, Jordan and Ken Rappaport.
Playing for JoePa
. Sports Publishing LLC, 2007.
Hyman, Mervin D. and Gordon S. White.
Joe Paterno: Football My Way.
Collier Books, 1978.
Kriegel, Mark.
Namath: A Biography.
Viking, 2004.
Maraniss, David.
When Pride Still Mattered
. Simon & Schuster, 1999.
Missanelli, M. G.
The Perfect Season.
The Pennslvania State University Press, 2007.
Monti, Ralph.
I Remember Brooklyn
. Birch Lane Press, 1991.
Moore, Lenny and Jeffrey Jay Ellish.
All Things Being Equal: The Autobiography of Lenny Moore
. Sports Publishing LLC, 2005.
Newcombe, Jack.
Six Days to Saturday
. Farrar, Strauss & Giroux, 1974.
O’Brien, Michael.
No Ordinary Joe
. Rutledge Hill Press, 1998.
Paterno, George.
Joe Paterno: The Coach from Byzantium
. Sports Publishing LLC, 2001.
Pencek, Matthew and David Pencek.
The Great Book of Penn State Sports Lists.
Running Press, 2011.
Peterson, James A. and Dennis Booher.
Joe Paterno: In Search of Excellence.
Leisure Press, 1983.
Pittman, Charlie and Tony Pittman.
Playing for Paterno: A Father’s and Son’s Recollections of Playing for JoePa.
Triumph Books, 2007.
Prato, Lou.
The Penn State Football Encyclopedia
. Sports Publishing Inc., 1998.
Prato, Lou and Scott Brown.
What It Means to Be a Nittany Lion.
Triumph Books, 2006.
Riley, Ridge.
Road to Number One: A Personal Chronicle of Penn State Football
. Doubleday, 1977.
Rudel, Neil and Cory Giger.
They Know Joe.
Altoona Mirror, 2010.
Sandusky, Jerry and Kip Richeal.
Touched: The Jerry Sandusky Story.
Sports Publishing Inc., 2000.
Werley, Kenneth.
Joe Paterno, Penn State and College Football—What You Never Knew.
University of New Haven Press, 2001.
This book was the most challenging and emotional project of my life. Because of this, I am determined to keep these acknowledgments short; if I try to thank everyone who helped and guided me, I will double the word count. I hope I have personally thanked everyone who helped me, inspired me, and stood up for me while I was working on this book. If I have not, I promise I will soon. I will never forget your friendship.
I must begin by thanking Joe Paterno. He did not want me to write a book about him, but he was unfailingly kind and generous to me, even after the worst had happened. The only thing he ever asked of me, even at the end, was “Write the truth.” I have done my best to live up to that mission. I thank the entire Paterno family, beginning with Sue Paterno, for their guidance, patience, and honesty. Diana, Mary Kay, David, Jay, and Scott, along with their spouses and children and close friends, gave of themselves for this book, even as their own lives were thrown into turmoil, and I will never have enough words of gratitude for them.
I want to thank the hundreds of players, friends, coworkers, fans, critics, and rivals who took the time to communicate their feelings about Joe Paterno. Many of their names are included in the book, but unfortunately at least as many of their names are not. Joe Paterno lived a big life. There are two other books, at least, on the cutting-room floor.
Too many friends helped for me to list them all, so I will name five: Mike Vaccaro, for pushing me through the darkest hours;
Tommy Tomlinson and Alix Felsing, for always being there for us; Michael Schur, for a frank conversation in a bizarre hotel lobby that I clung to often; and Bill James, who was my steadying influence in the storm. I must also take a moment to thank a hero of mine, David Maraniss, whom I did not know before I started this project, but whose wisdom guided me more often than I can say.
No acknowledgments section would be complete without a nod to the agent, and I am lucky enough to have the best one in the world, Sloan Harris at ICM. I do not have words strong enough to thank my editor, Jonathan Karp, who never wavered. From Simon & Schuster, I also want to thank assistant editor Nick Greene, whose blunt suggestions were of great help, along with art director Jackie Seow, marketing specialist Nina Pajak, associate publisher Richard Rhorer, publicists Anne Tate and Kelly Welsh, copy editor Judith Hoover, designer Joy O’Meara, production editor Jonathan Evans, production manager John Wahler, assistant managing editor Gina DiMascia and managing editor Irene Kheradi. I would also like to thank Terry McDonnell and the wonderful people at
Sports Illustrated
for their support, as well as Larry Burke and Steve Madden at my exciting new project,
Sports on Earth
.
I was fortunate to have Matt Brown as my research assistant, fact-checker, sounding board, and Penn State history buff. I could not have done this book without him. Someday, after Matt writes his fifth bestseller, his role in this book will make for a great trivia question.
Finally, I thank my family: first my parents, Frances and Steven Posnanski, who instilled in me everything that is good, and also my brothers and my in-laws. This book affected all of them. Then there are the three most important people in my life. I’m one of the lucky ones; my wife, Margo, is also my best editor and my best friend. Our daughters, Elizabeth and Katie, were so patient and supportive and did their homework throughout, often without complaining. Every now and again, though, they would ask, “Is the book written yet?” We had promised them a puppy when I finished writing. Well, girls, the book is written.
ALSO BY JOE POSNANSKI
The Soul of Baseball
The Machine
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Abbey, Don,
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Abbey, Mr.,
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police escort for,
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Alexander the Great,
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Allen, Woody,
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All-Ivy League team,
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Allyn, Stanley C.,
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Alpha Delta Phi fraternity party,
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