Excerpt from the Sistinass Sessions: Pop's thoughts on writing / Tory Toppart

So Dad, what makes good writing in your opinion?

Well to me, good writing needs to keep your interest. There are a lot of times when I read a book and, I don’t know, it seems to go into too much detail explaining things that aren’t that important. That’s one reason I like textbooks. They get right to the point. Lately I’ve been looking through my old calculus text book from college. Trying to work through some of those problems to keep my mind sharp. Man, some of that stuff gets pretty hard. I like those Suduko puzzles too. Some of those can get pretty difficult too though. Sometimes I just have to give up on them.

OK. But Sudoku puzzles really don’t qualify as literature. What other types of things do you like to read?

I like reading about war. I’m telling you what those guys went through in World War II or the Korean War or Vietnam? It was something else. Those stories really make you appreciate - I mean war is so much different nowadays. I don’t think soldiers now have to make their way through jungles with viet cong waiting in the trees. I mean those guys were completely out of their element. The Americans I mean. I used to get these Time Life books but after a while it just got too expensive and the books weren’t as good. Sometimes the best things about them were the pictures really. I don’t know how they ever got some of those photographs. They were right in the action. They were unbelievable. I think some of those pictures even won some awards.

Do you have a favorite author?

Jerry Kramer wrote a book about the 1967 Green Bay Packers called ‘Instant Replay’. That book has to be one of my favorites. It was all about the players back then and coach Lombardi. I tell you what, Vince Lombardi knew how to motivate those guys. What a coach! I don’t think they’ll ever be another coach like that. And the things those guys got away with. There were some pretty funny stories about players sneaking out of their rooms at night and going to bars and meeting up with ladies and stuff. I don’t know if Lombardi ever really found out about that but if he did I’m sure he’d give them a good talking to. Ha!

Did Jerry Kramer write any other books?

I don’t think so. He was a speaker at our high school my senior year. He was a real nice guy. He was a hell of a player too. He played right guard I think. And when he played the Packers had one of the best running games in the NFL. They had this play called the power sweep and it was almost unstoppable. I don’t know if Jerry Kramer made the NFL Hall of Fame or not but he should if you ask me. I mean, he was something else.

Thanks for your time.