Transcribing in parts so be patient. This will take some time. This is from the podcast "The Transparent Truth" entitled "Breakfast with Bookie" hosted by Keith Miller and Greg Biggins. I'm picking it up at about the 23 minute mark...
PART ONE: EARLY LIFE AND THE #44
Miller: Where'd the name "Bookie" come from?
Bookie: The name came from my mom calling me that before I was even born. Or that's the story I was told. It was basically a me and her thing. It wasn't supposed to grow to anybody else. I was just going to be Bookie to her. But then when I was born my dad, my brothers and my sisters, it just grew to everybody and I just took it around with it.
Miller: Tell the people listening a little bit about your mom, about your dad, about your family.
Bookie: My mom is from Los Angeles. My dad is from Los Angeles. They met when they were around 19 years old. They were just friends at first, then down the line -- I think they always knew there were going to be together but I don't know. They ended up getting together. Then I was born.
My mom has been the best mom for me. She's been there for me my entire life. She's made the most sacrifices that any person could ever do. She uprooted her entire life and basically moved to another state for me to go to Bishop Gorman my 9th and 10th grade years. She's the best mom I could ever dream for.
My dad is the same exact way. The sacrifice he made he didn't have to. Certain things that he did, certain wisdom that he taught me throughout my whole life -- I couldn't repay him for it. From taking me places my whole life to always being there, a phone call away to be right there for me. I never had to hesitate to call him ever my entire life.
My brothers, they were my coaches. My big brother was my coach my entire life so I'd have to give my brother my on-field credit. They basically taught me the tough side. You know I was blessed with certain aspects of football but certain things you can't teach and I have that. But some things you can and my brothers taught me to always be tough, to fight through the end, to start fast and finish strong.
Miller: That's a great piece right there. For those of you who don't know, I've got a background with Bookie and his family that probably most people don't know. I grew up with Bookie's older brother, his name is Bryan Webb -- we called him "Bub" -- and we grew up playing football together when I was seven and he was 8 years old. And we pretty much played until we were about 12 or 13. We were middle linebackers together in our vaunted Okie defense -- 5-2. I was the strong side inside LB, Bub was the weakside inside LB. And we held it down together for many, many years over at the Carson Coast Pop Warner off of Victoria Park. We back really good friends.
Also Bookie's oldest brother Brandon, he grew up playing with my older brother and we were all really close...
So Bookie, in terms of your brothers teaching you how to play, tell me about your Pop Warner experience. I know you're pretty much a Pop Warner legend down here in Southern California. Tell us a little about what your Pop Warner experience was like.
Bookie: I would say it comes from always having to look up to my older brother Lucky. We're only 7 years apart but that's like my twin. I can always call him for anything and he's always going to be the first one to jump right on it and come straight to me. It really always came from him setting the standard. And Bub was my coach so it was like, "You gotta do it. If he could do/did it, you have to double it." That's how we basically always looked at everything.
He would have the record for the specific team we would be playing for throughout the whole park, you have the touchdown record. That first year when he left it was like I believe my 2nd or 3rd year of football. It was like basically, "You wear #44 now, this is your number at this park. This is who you are. Lucky passed you the throne. Let's see if you can hold it up. And I actually beat him (laugh). I barely beat him. I beat him by I think it was like 4 touchdowns. I think he has somewhere around 28 and I hit like 32 that specific year.
Miller: Tell us what's so special about that number 44.
Bookie: The number 44 is a family number that has been around my family for 60 or 70 years now. My uncle(s), he wore it when he was... a while ago. He'd tell me it was just given to him. Then his son wore it. And his son was best friends with my brother Brandon. So he wanted to wear it because him and his best friend basically wanted to wear the same number. Then my brother right behind him Bub wore it. So it became our family number. Then all my cousins would wear it because Bub wore it and Brandon wore it. So it was like a tradition. This is our number now. So then Luck wore it. Then after Luck wore it, I had no choice but to do so. So it was basically handed down to me.
But I actually have my own specific reason why I wear it. I actually have it on my arm now. I have it and wear it every day on my chain. My older brother, he passed away four years before I was born and our birthdays are actually four days apart. So it's like 4-4. So I feel like he lives through me and I'm the one who's basically going to finish his life for him.
(more coming...)
PART ONE: EARLY LIFE AND THE #44
Miller: Where'd the name "Bookie" come from?
Bookie: The name came from my mom calling me that before I was even born. Or that's the story I was told. It was basically a me and her thing. It wasn't supposed to grow to anybody else. I was just going to be Bookie to her. But then when I was born my dad, my brothers and my sisters, it just grew to everybody and I just took it around with it.
Miller: Tell the people listening a little bit about your mom, about your dad, about your family.
Bookie: My mom is from Los Angeles. My dad is from Los Angeles. They met when they were around 19 years old. They were just friends at first, then down the line -- I think they always knew there were going to be together but I don't know. They ended up getting together. Then I was born.
My mom has been the best mom for me. She's been there for me my entire life. She's made the most sacrifices that any person could ever do. She uprooted her entire life and basically moved to another state for me to go to Bishop Gorman my 9th and 10th grade years. She's the best mom I could ever dream for.
My dad is the same exact way. The sacrifice he made he didn't have to. Certain things that he did, certain wisdom that he taught me throughout my whole life -- I couldn't repay him for it. From taking me places my whole life to always being there, a phone call away to be right there for me. I never had to hesitate to call him ever my entire life.
My brothers, they were my coaches. My big brother was my coach my entire life so I'd have to give my brother my on-field credit. They basically taught me the tough side. You know I was blessed with certain aspects of football but certain things you can't teach and I have that. But some things you can and my brothers taught me to always be tough, to fight through the end, to start fast and finish strong.
Miller: That's a great piece right there. For those of you who don't know, I've got a background with Bookie and his family that probably most people don't know. I grew up with Bookie's older brother, his name is Bryan Webb -- we called him "Bub" -- and we grew up playing football together when I was seven and he was 8 years old. And we pretty much played until we were about 12 or 13. We were middle linebackers together in our vaunted Okie defense -- 5-2. I was the strong side inside LB, Bub was the weakside inside LB. And we held it down together for many, many years over at the Carson Coast Pop Warner off of Victoria Park. We back really good friends.
Also Bookie's oldest brother Brandon, he grew up playing with my older brother and we were all really close...
So Bookie, in terms of your brothers teaching you how to play, tell me about your Pop Warner experience. I know you're pretty much a Pop Warner legend down here in Southern California. Tell us a little about what your Pop Warner experience was like.
Bookie: I would say it comes from always having to look up to my older brother Lucky. We're only 7 years apart but that's like my twin. I can always call him for anything and he's always going to be the first one to jump right on it and come straight to me. It really always came from him setting the standard. And Bub was my coach so it was like, "You gotta do it. If he could do/did it, you have to double it." That's how we basically always looked at everything.
He would have the record for the specific team we would be playing for throughout the whole park, you have the touchdown record. That first year when he left it was like I believe my 2nd or 3rd year of football. It was like basically, "You wear #44 now, this is your number at this park. This is who you are. Lucky passed you the throne. Let's see if you can hold it up. And I actually beat him (laugh). I barely beat him. I beat him by I think it was like 4 touchdowns. I think he has somewhere around 28 and I hit like 32 that specific year.
Miller: Tell us what's so special about that number 44.
Bookie: The number 44 is a family number that has been around my family for 60 or 70 years now. My uncle(s), he wore it when he was... a while ago. He'd tell me it was just given to him. Then his son wore it. And his son was best friends with my brother Brandon. So he wanted to wear it because him and his best friend basically wanted to wear the same number. Then my brother right behind him Bub wore it. So it became our family number. Then all my cousins would wear it because Bub wore it and Brandon wore it. So it was like a tradition. This is our number now. So then Luck wore it. Then after Luck wore it, I had no choice but to do so. So it was basically handed down to me.
But I actually have my own specific reason why I wear it. I actually have it on my arm now. I have it and wear it every day on my chain. My older brother, he passed away four years before I was born and our birthdays are actually four days apart. So it's like 4-4. So I feel like he lives through me and I'm the one who's basically going to finish his life for him.
(more coming...)
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