George Caywood

The alley behind the mission used to be a dead end. It went just beyond the mission and then widened into a turn around for cars. There were benches along the alley. Men gathered there for conversation and to smoke. The men talked about the things men usually talk about. things like woman, sports, gossip, religion, politics and women again. Sometimes they also talked about memories; old hurts, lost families, cars they had owned, and military experiences.

Once in awhile, I heard laughter. Often I heard anger. A few times I was called upon to break up fights. Once I overheard someone say, “There goes George and that damn smile.” I took it as a compliment.

Los Angeles had the privilege of having two of the greatest sports announcers in the history of broadcasting. Vin Scully did the Dodgers baseball team and Chick Hearn did the Lakers. If the Lakers or…