Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer

In the bustling newsroom of the Pittsburgh Guardian, amidst the clatter of typewriters and the crackle of telegraph wires, a legend waits to be written. This is the story of Orville Mulligan, a sportswriter with a nose for a scoop and a knack for getting under the skin of even the most seasoned athletes. Join us as we delve into the exhilarating world of 1920s sports journalism, where Orville navigates the smoke-filled locker rooms, the tranquil back alleys, and the roaring grandstands in pursuit of the truth.

His typewriter is his weapon, his words his bullets. Orville doesn't just report the news; he exposes it, unearthing scandals, chasing down leads, and championing the underdog with a wit as sharp as his fedora brim. But his relentless pursuit of the truth often puts him at odds with influential figures, from crooked team owners to shady gamblers, all with secrets they desperately want to keep buried.

This isn't just a story about sports; it's a human drama. Orville's journey is as much about redemption as it is about headlines. He grapples with personal demons, haunted by a past he can't escape. Yet, his love for the game, as well as possibly his editor, and his fierce loyalty to his fellow writers keep him going, forging friendships that endure through triumph and heartbreak.

Prepare to be swept away by the crowd's roar, the chase's adrenaline rush, and the poignant beauty of second chances. Orville Mulligan is a character you will remember, a testament to the power of the written word and the unwavering spirit of the underdog. So, grab your press pass, tune in, and get ready to experience the golden age of sports journalism, where every game is a story waiting to be told.

New Year’s Day, 1925. The Rose Bowl: As the capper to the college football season, it’s the Big One, the kingmaker, the Grandaddy of Them All.

By the mid-1920s, the Rose Bowl’s reputation as a top highlight on the sports calendar was already well affirmed and the 11th game featured two programs about to enter the national consciousness forever: the Pop Warner-coached, Ernie Nevers-led Stanford University versus the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame.

Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer, having flown across nearly the entire country and witnessed via ghostly vision the future of the game, is set to cover sports history in the making. But when radio whiz kid Freddy Carson is incapacitated, can Orville and the daughter of the late sportswriter Ernie Doogle call an audible to save the day – on radio…?

Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer is an audio drama podcast from Number 80 Productions and the Sports History Network.

The Rose Bowl script and story by Os Davis.

Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer stars Doug Fye, Ilona Fye, and Eric Bodwell. The Rose Bowl co-stars in order of appearance Caedmon Holland, Abrianna LaValley, John Roberts and Forrest Hartl.  

December 1924. Legendary Ernie Doogle has passed away – but that’s not about to stop him from having some fun with his old pal in the trenches, Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer.

By the grace of the almighty Harold, the man most knew as “Doogs” returns in ghostly form to take Orville on a metaphysical ride to witness Football Past, Football Present and Football Future.

Traveling (or does he?) from the 1880s to 1920 to the far-flung marvelous future of the 1950s, Orville may gain deeper insight  into the proverbial meanings of life, universe and everything, but he’ll definitely learn a thing or too about the evolution of football…

December 1924. When Orville Mulligan, Sports Writer for the Pittsburgh Guardian newspaper is assigned to cover the Rose Bowl in five days, he figures he’s out of luck – until learning he’ll be traversing the country in a whole new way: Via air.

Piloting Orville to the big game is Walter Lees, a private-sector test pilot, member of the Caterpillar Club, and top competitor in the recently-born world of air-racing.

Along the journey of 3,000 miles, Orville learns of the early history of aeronautics and gets of view of the commercial possibilities for the exciting new technology.

Thanksgiving Day, 1924. The recently-established tradition of the University of Pittsburgh Panthers football team hosting the Pennsylvania State Nittany Lions on the afternoon of the national autumnal holiday continues. 

Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer is sent to cover the Pitt-Penn State “Keystone Classic” of 1924; in so doing, he discovers a throughline of the football-on-Thanksgiving tradition going back to 1621 (okay, actually, that’s going back to 1869) and reminds us that high-level football games on Thanksgiving are nearly as old as the official Thanksgiving holiday itself.  

Major League Baseball’s 1924 World Series was an instant classic, a seven-game thriller between the New York Giants and Washington Senators that for 50 years was unquestionably considered the finest ever played.

But that same year another Fall Classic for the ages was played” The 1924 Colored World Series was the first of its kind, a meeting of the Eastern League champion Hilldale Giants (alternatively known as the Hilldale Darby Daisies or, simply, Hilldale) and the juggernaut Negro National League consecutive champion Kansas City Monarchs played out over 10 games in four cities.

November 1924. Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer is but a few weeks removed from witnessing game 7 of the World Series, thought by nearly all to have been the Finest Ever Played, alongside President Calvin Coolidge and First Lady Grace Coolidge. Now, Orville is about to learn another World Series just as fine had also been played that very same year: The inaugural Colored World Series of 1924.

When Ray Easter, Orville’s counterpart from the Pittsburgh Globe newspaper, arranges a meeting with Kansas City Monarchs superstar leftfielder Oscar “Heavy” Johnson, he not only hears tell of a titanic battle of behemoths from K.C. and Philadelphia, he discovers an entire universe of baseball with its own rules and economics, featuring legendary teams like the 25th Infantry Wreckers, the All Nations club and of course the Homestead Grays. 

After all, sometimes you don’t have to be “Major League” to play major league baseball…

November 1924. Orville Mulligan is assigned to cover two football games - one college, one NFL - in Roaring Chicago. In episode 1, the leadup to Red Grange & U. Illinois vs the Chicago Maroons.

Along with the notorious Ernie "Doogs" Doogle, Orville and his sports reporter peers 1920s-style trash talk their way through a long train ride, and get the inside dope at pressers with Grange, Amos Alonzo Stagg, and Bob Zuppke.

Orville also gets a lead on a potentially much bigger score: A one-on-one interview with speakeasy owner/private sports club manager with ties to organized crime...

Interlude: A Cabbie’s Tale

November 1924. On his way to meet with alleged crime boss and manager of the Ragen Athletic Club, a taxi driver regales Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer with a story of his chance meeting with the great Babe Ruth when he came through Chicago back in ’21.

The strangest interview ever done by Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer? That one he gave while suspended 50 feet up in the air, of course.

Meet Alvin “Shipwreck” Kelly, pioneer of the 1920s fad known as polesitting – unless you count a certain saint who lived in Byzantium in the 5th century AD…