Mr BioFile Interviews by Scoop Malinowski
By Scoop Malinowski
Status: Major League Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop for New York Yankees (1941-56).
Ht 5-6 Wt: 150
DOB: September 25, 1917 In: Brooklyn, NY (died 2007 at age 89)
Childhood Heroes: Babe Ruth, my number one. Joe Louis. Notre Dame.
Favorite Movies: North By Northwest. Casablanca.
Hobbies/Interests: Watching all sports… baseball, basketball, hockey, football, soccer, track, anything with competition. Competition did so much for me. It brings out the best in you.
Favorite TV Shows: Milton Berle. The Jackie Gleason Show. The Ed Sullivan Show. I like mysteries but I don’t like unhappy endings.
Early Baseball Memory: My uncle Mike taking me to the All Star Game in the Polo Grounds when Carl Hubbell struck out five straight great batters – Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, Al Simmons, Joe Cronin. 1934. We sat out in the bleachers and they were far away. I’ll never forget that game.
Favorite Books: Gone With The Wind. Mickey Spillane – I read every one of his books. To Kill A Mockingbird. I like to read the books that movies are made of and compare the book and the movie.
Nicknames: Phil – Fiero Francis Rizzuto. The Scooter.
Favorite Meal: Italian dish. Any kind of pasta.
Musical Tastes: Any kind, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett. I don’t understand the music today. I didn’t even understand Meatloaf when I did that song ‘Paradise On The Dashboard Light.’ I’ve had more arguments on who was better, Frank Sinatra or Bing Crosby.
Last Halloween Costume: Charlie Chaplin.
Greatest Sports Moment: My first game in the big leagues in Washington DC. President Roosevelt threw out the first ball. Who would have ever thought I’d be that close to a President? Also being named MVP in 1950… broadcasting Mickey Mantle’s drive that went out of Yankee Stadium… Roger Maris’s 61st homer – I couldn’t believe that… And Chris Chambliss’s home run that beat Kansas City in 1976 to win the American League pennant.
Toughest Competitors Encountered: Nellie Fox. Billy Martin. Hank Bauer.
Favorite Place: Home (Hillsdale, NJ).
Little Known Fact: I used to sit in the first row, first seat in class. I was good student, not with great grades but behaviorally. I wasn’t the teacher’s pet but I liked to be in front, so I could see everything.
Family: Wife, Cora; son, Phil Jr., daughters, Penny, Cindy, Patti.
Future Ambition: To live and see the 21st century.
Career Accomplishments: Seven-time World Series winner; 1950 AL MVP; As SS turned 1,217 double plays ranks second only to Luke Appling; Uniform no. 10 retired in 1985; Inducted into Hall of Fame in 1994; 40 year career as Yankees radio and TV announcer.
(Note: This interview was done at Yankee Stadium in 1992.)
