There were a lot of things that the late Harry Caray was known for during his career – his glasses, his hair, his tone of voice, and his constant misinterpretations of various names to name a few. But a diary that was inherited after Caray passed adds another wrinkle to his legend – Caray was a habitual drinker, almost to the point of disbelief.
Neil Steinberg of the Chicago Sun-Times had access to the diary from 1972 and shared some of the stunning content with his readers. For instance, Caray went out to various bars across the country for 288 consecutive days. Before a week-long vacation in Acapulco to close out the year, Caray went to a total of 61 different bars and drank an astounding 354 of 357 days. Why was he doing this? Well, to write off all of the tabs, of course. Caray would entertain various people when he went out, using the opportunity to go out as a business expense.
Some of the people listed in the diary as being entertained by Caray include Wilt Chamberlain, Don Drysdale, Gale Sayers, Jack Dempsey, and Jack Benny, among many others. The meticulous nature of the diary is incredible, and I’d love to know the details of what was in his other diaries.
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