Best Bob Costas story ever
Posted by Richard on September 5, 2009
Bob Costas was on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Friday night and told a wonderful story. He was walking down the street in New York and stopped at a corner. A young (~25-26), well-dressed black man ran up to him, going "Bryant! Bryant!" Costas responded, "You know, this is getting so old. I'm Greg Gumble. I know my brother's more well-known than me, but can't I get a little respect too?" Without missing a bit, the man replied, "Greg, I love you too!"
You can't make up a story like that.
BTW, I still have fond memories of "Later with Bob Costas" in the late 80s and early 90s. It was a one-on-one interview show with no studio audience, and that's when I developed my admiration for Costas. This wasn't sports (his current gig) — this was interviews with people like Martin Scorsese, Jerry Lewis, Julian Bond, Sonny Bono, Dan Rather, Barry Goldwater, …
He was terrific at interviewing his guests, getting them to open up and be themselves, treating them with respect and admiration, but not fawning and not throwing softballs. Some of those shows are among the best interviews ever, and I hope they've been preserved somewhere. I suppose I should see if any of them are available online so I can prove my point.
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