Resurrecting The Champ Page #2

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Thank you. Thank you.

- Talk to Metz.

- Sure.

So, um, listen, I was, uh- I was sorry

to hear about your old man.

Mmm. Thank you.

It was cancer, right?

Yeah. Uh, here.

Hmm. Of all places.

- Ironic, right?

- Yeah. We got the iced teas coming?

- Mm-hmm, sure.

- Thank you.

Look, we've read your stuff,

Fred Roselle and I.

And I'm sorry to say,

it's just not there.

Not yet anyway.

The consensus

was that it lacked personality.

Exactly.

I mean, Bing, last year, under Kirby,

I had 192 bylines.

That's the most of any reporter

in the history of the newspaper.

You say my stuff is thin?

Of course it is.

A lot of typing, no writing.

I don't have time.

And this year, I have a new editor.

So I keep an open mind.

And guess what? He's working me

even harder than Kirby was.

I mean, he thinks I'm a machine.

Anytime I bring in a story with just

an ounce of heart, Metz spikes it.

I mean, this is stuff that I think that the magazine should have

- magazine deserves.

- Okay, give me an example.

- Well-

- Is that the mango?

- Yeah.

- It's not the peach?

- No, it's the mango.

Sorry. I'm sorry.

Give me an example.

I mean, there's- I have so many.

But sometimes I feel blocked.

- I'm not very good at this.

- No, no, no. Just anything. Just give me an example.

Um, crossroads. Uh, Elway.

You know, what does he do now

at this point in his life?

- Maybe he runs for governor.

- I get that one proposed and rejected twice a week.

People don't want to hear

about their heroes aging.

Okay, okay.

Well, then what about Coors Field?

- The worst place to pitch-

- The worst place to pitch in America.

Uh, strikin' out.

Um-

Well, there's this boxer.

An ex-heavyweight contender.

He's, uh, living on the streets of Denver.

- He's living in the trash.

- Yeah?

Yeah. And, you know, he kind of patrols the

neighborhood. He calls himself the Champ.

He's a- He's a lovely guy.

And the story, it's beautiful.

It's touching.

But I tell Metz about it,

and he says, "Forget about it.

It's a dry hole.

Go cover theJermaine fight. "

What's his name, the, uh- the boxer?

Satterfield.

Bob Satterfield?

- Yeah. Bob.

- Wow.

Are you sure? My dad used to idolize

that guy. I thought he was dead.

- He- No, he's dead.

- That's what everybody thinks.

And that's why I think that this story

is such a great story.

I want to call it

"Resurrecting the Champ. "

- And he's here in Denver?

- Yeah.

- Bob Satterfield?

- I saw him yesterday.

What are your plans for this?

Well, I thought maybe

I'd take my time.

You know, really work well on it,

work hard. Think quality.

And see if I can get Metz

to come around.

Well, if, uh-

If you can't bring him around,

I'd be glad to take a look at it.

Well, that'd be great.

That'd be terrific.

When he won in California,

it was already too late.

Mondale had already

had enough delegates.

Um, no, I think so.

Uh, November 30

- I don't have an exact date. I can find one.

- Hey.

- One second. Okay.

No, I'll get it for you and I'Il-

Okay. Bye.

- Hey.

- Hey. How's it goin'?

- Great.

- Can you keep a secret, Molly?

- Can you?

- Sure.

- Can you?

- Sure.

My name's not Molly.

Yes, that's true.

'Cause it's Millie, right?

- Polly.

- Polly.

Close. Yeah.

What can I do for you?

Uh, well, I'm doing

a story on a heavyweight fighter...

from the 1950s named Bob Satterfield.

But, um, nobody can know about it.

You're moonlighting.

It's none of Metz's business.

- You got it.

- Yeah.

What do you need?

Well, um, there wasn't much on him

on the Internet.

So I guess you're gonna have to

go old school on this one.

I kind of need everything

you can find on him.

From our library, New York Times,

L.A. Times, Ring magazine, of course.

If you can find out if there's

a Boxing Hall of Fame, that'd be great.

Anybody he may have fought.

Uh, trainers, anything.

Shouldn't you write this down

or something?

Plausible deniability.

I've got to take that.

- I will get the information and bring it to your cubicle.

- Okay.

Let's go. Drive it in.

Take it into the hoop.

I'm a big ol' slow guy. You can't take it

inside on me. You can't do it!

- Foul!

- Foul?

Okay. Take some free throws then.

Aim for my hand, all right?

Front of the rim, my hand.

Get it up there.

You gotta roll it off

the ends of your fingers, okay?

- I suck.

- You don't suck.

You think Shaq was hittin' baskets

when he was your age?

- Yeah.

- Well, he wasn't.

He told me so himself.

He said that he was a big ol' spaz

when he was your age.

- Really?

- Yeah, really.

But he told me that in confidence, buddy.

So you can't tell anybody, okay?

- Dad?

- Yes?

Have you called upJohn Elway yet

and asked if he's playing next year?

You know, we keep missing

each other, buddy.

I hope he comes back.

The Broncos need him.

You know, I told him that you said that.

And he said he'd consider it.

- Really?

- Really.

So if he comes back,

you're partially responsible.

Are you gonna stay for dinner tonight?

Mom's making spaghetti and meatballs.

Would you like me to?

Hi, sweetie. Hey, Erik.

So, Teddy was just inviting me to stay

for spaghetti and meatballs.

What do you think?

- How'd it go with Whitley today?

- We'll talk about it later.

Are you gonna make more money

at the magazine?

Mmm, no. But that's not

really the point, buddy.

It's about the prestige.

And I'd probably have to write

maybe 15 articles a year. Maybe.

- That's a lot of stories.

- Actually, it's not.

It's only about one

every three and a half weeks.

That means I can really

concentrate on them, make them good.

Then maybe I can become

as respected as your mom.

It could be like a ticket

to the big time kind of thing.

Los Angeles Times, New York Times.

Like the story on the boxer

that you pitched to Whitley?

Exactly.

In fact, I better get back to the alley,

see ifhe's still sleeping there.

There's a man sleeping in the alley?

Yeah, buddy. Some people do that.

They don't have a home.

Or friends or family.

They gotta sleep in the alley.

This sounds like

it's gonna be a very sad story.

No, buddy. It's gonna be a hopeful story.

Don't worry.

Who's coming to Career Day, you or Mom?

Well, I'm sure your friends

would rather hear about...

your dad's work as a sportswriter...

than my conversations...

with Herb... Milton.

He's the city mass transit accountant.

That was awesome.

I'm gonna go find Satterfield.

Your mom and I will talk about who's

coming to Career Day. Okay, buddy?

I love you. See you, buddy.

- Bye, Daddy.

- Bye.

- Good evening,

all you boys and some girls.

This is Erik "The Wow Man"Kernan.

And, wow, was there a fight tonight!

In the hot, stale air of Las Vegas,

it was a three-round affair...

that carried the weight of war and sin

on its head and shoulders.

There was a winner. That's for sure.

Jesus Christ!

You're Champ, right?

Your last name is Satterfield?

Yeah. Battlin' Bob Satterfield,

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