At the advice of a friend, I took my family to see The Greatest Showman a couple nights ago. The story was incredible and the soundtrack was beyond description. It has become my go-to soundtrack for doing the dishes.
I picked up Kaylea from school early today. She’s part of the Springfield Youth Symphony that will be playing for the Missouri Music Educators Association at Tan-Tar-A tonight. On the way to today’s game of catch we passed Jenny Lind Hall. Jenny Lind was a character in The Greatest Showman and I’m curious if the real Jenny Lind has Springfield connections. I’ll ask the Answer Man.
On a perfectly gorgeous day, we pulled up to Phelps Grove Park a few minutes early. Kaylea warmed me up while we waited on Missouri Sports Hall of Fame broadcaster Art Hains.
“I recognized his voice as soon as I heard him talk,” Kaylea said.
Art’s been on the airwaves for 37 years and I can’t begin to count the number and variety of games I’ve heard him announce from all things related to the MSU Bears to the KC Chiefs network. My favorite part is listening to Art talk about the Royals during Sports Talk. With Hosmer, Moustakas, Cain, and Escobar still unsigned, I didn’t have the courage to ask him his thoughts about the free agents.
I was proud to be Art’s first catch-playing partner of 2018. He tossed a ball with his son in the hill country of Texas last summer, listening to the Royals play Boston while barbecuing around a pool.
I don’t have any real interviewing skills, I just talk while tossing the ball. With music on my brain I asked Art an odd question, “What’s your walk-up song?” I think Jim Connell is the only other person I’ve asked this question.
We continued the game while Art thought. He told me about going to see The Post, an incredibly important movie in this day and age. With as many newspaper friends as I’m making in this catch-playing craziness, I should probably see it soon, too.
After 15 minutes soaking up the sunshine and enjoying the pops of the leather, Kaylea took a picture of us. As we parted Art thought of his song, “Joy to the World. Three Dog Night.”
Parenting fail: Kaylea had never heard the song. I played it as soon as we got home.
