Vin Scully, who died on Aug. 2, 2022, is widely viewed as the greatest baseball announcer of all time. But for an earlier generation, his mentor, Red Barber, held that distinction.

In our recent biography “Red Barber: The Life and Legacy of a Broadcasting Legend,” we uncovered moving private letters and public references documenting the rich personal bonds between these two great voices of the game.

In 1939, Barber brought daily radio broadcasts of Dodgers baseball to Brooklyn’s fans for the first time. By the time Scully arrived in 1950, Barber – known as “the Old Redhead” – was the toast of Flatbush.

For a combined century – 33 years for Barber and 67 for Scully – the two blessed baseball fans with some of the sharpest word pictures ever painted of the grand old game. Together in the Brooklyn booth for four crucial years, from 1950 to 1953, they forged a relationship that proved to be both demanding and gratifying.

The chance of a lifetime
After Scully graduated with a degree in English from Fordham University in 1949, he papered East Coast radio stations with applications. He eventually scored an interview with CBS Radio, where Barber was director of sports. Barber came away impressed, but there were no openings at the time.

Barber later phoned Vin Scully when, at the last minute, he needed a reporter to cover a college football contest at Fenway Park in Boston for CBS College Football Roundup. Scully’s mother answered the phone and took the message for Vin that “Red Skelton” wanted to talk to him about a job – confusing Barber with the popular entertainer.

Fortunately, Scully figured out who was calling. He hustled to the park, only to learn there was no room for him in the press box. With only a light topcoat to defend himself against the cruel New England elements, he had to call the entire game from the roof.

Read more: https://theconversation.com/how-vin-scully-scored-his-dodgers-gig-at-22-years-old-188264