Reddit reviews Badasses: The Legend of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden's Oakland Raiders

First off Mr. Kluwe, please go read Badasses to get a feel of where the legacy of the Raiders began. Get insight into the insane world of the Snake, The Assassin, and The Ghost. Only when you come from that place can you begin to bleed the silver and black.

To tackle your questions:

1. In my opinion the division hate goes in this order. Broncos, Chiefs, Chargers. However, for myself, Phillip Rivers is the most loathsome individual in our division. If you get close to him tell him that Charles said he is a douche. We used to really hate the Steelers because of all the 70's playoff games that includes the scam of the Immaculate Reception. That has been waning. I'm am largely of the opinion that every true Raider fan should hate the 49ers and those rooting for them in the playoffs last year should get shanked.
   
   
2. You are not risk of getting stabbed. 49er fans don't stab. We stab. That is a clear distinction that needs to be made. If you walk around in a Raiders hat in SF you may notice people get out of your way as you walk down the street. This is especially effective if you have a teardrop tattoo.
   
   
3. I think stabbed and shanked are both completely appropriate. To put it another way, you stab someone but you get shanked. I would argue that shived is more of a prison stabbing, but considering the large number of Raider fans in prison, I can see how this one would catch on.
   
   Last tip, your first regular season game at home walk to the Black Hole. Keep your helmet on, this is important. The with arms wide lean into the rugged arms of men with painted faces and liquor on their breath. I wish that I got that experience.

The Raiders.

They're just so cool. The uniforms, logo, and name are badass. I don't know what it is, but the fact their colours are silver and black just really sticks with me. I remember watching one of the NFL Super Bowl champ rundown and they mentioned Al Davis always checking the uniforms to make sure they were silver, not grey.

On the topic, Al Davis was such a badass.

> He remains the only executive in NFL history to be an assistant coach, head coach, general manager, commissioner and owner.

• He was also active in civil rights:
  
  > refusing to allow the Raiders to play in any city where black and white players had to stay in separate hotels. He was the first NFL owner to hire an African American head coach and a female chief executive. He was also the second NFL owner to hire a Latino head coach.
  
  
• His motto, 'Just win, baby'.
  
  
• John Madden coached them and reading his book was really fun.
  
  
• Raider nation.
  
  
• The Black Hole. Talk about intimidating.
  
  
• Howie Long is one of my favourite ever players. Started after I read Maddens book.
  
  
• Bo Jackson. I'm 21 and didn't grow up in the States much, and I had vaguely heard of Bo. Watching his 30 for 30 was beautiful.
  
  
• Seen as working class team with an aggressive play style (historically).
  
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  ^^I ^^also ^^think ^^the ^^ ^^49ers ^^are ^^cool.
  
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  EDIT: For those interested, John Maddens book is called 'One Knee Equals Two Feet'. Here's a link for it on Amazon. It's quite old, but still a stonking great read.
  
  Also that word reminded me of the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. Buy it as well.
  
  EDIT 2: "If you're buying any of the books mentioned in these comments, Amazon has a physical book sale today. 30% off, use promo code HOLIDAY30" - thanks to /u/Mandarinez.
  
  EDIT 3: If you're interested in some Raider history check out Badasses: The Legend of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden's Oakland Raiders by Peter Richmond. - thanks to /u/Imaygetyelledat.

Most here will encourage watching some vids. That's cool and worthwhile effort, but let me say that I really think you should start with 2 books :

• Bad Asses
  
• John Madden : A Biography
  
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  Here is an excerpt from Madden : https://www.reddit.com/r/oaklandraiders/comments/3wbnia/how_john_madden_influenced_cbss_football_coverage/
  
  and another :
  
  https://www.reddit.com/r/oaklandraiders/comments/3dnrpn/john_madden_said_that_game_was_the_most_proud/
  
  And here is one for Bad Asses :
  
  https://www.reddit.com/r/oaklandraiders/comments/3nac0n/gerald_irons_recalls_how_he_learned_the_raider/
  
  
  

I've actually read two books in the past couple of months. "Badasses" by Peter Richmond:

https://www.amazon.com/Badasses-Legend-Maddens-Oakland-Raiders/dp/0061834319

and "Just Win, Baby: Al Davis and His Raiders" by Glenn Dickey:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0151465800/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and I also have on my shelf 'Slick: The Silver and Black Life of Al Davis' by Mark Ribowsky. I have not started this one yet:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0026025000/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

​

Badasses covers the team mostly through John Madden's years up through 1976 and a few words through the '78 season, I believe. It was actually a really good book if you want to know more about how the Raiders established themselves and finally broke through after losing the eventual champions for so many years. I loved it. Absolutely one of the best football books I've ever read and a key to understanding the establishment of what it meant to 'be a Raider'. It was published in 2013, so it's certainly a bit more recent than either Al Davis biography.


Dickey's book is centered strictly around Al Davis with plenty of anecdotes, mostly from the viewpoint of an old beat writer. It felt a little light at times but makes for a great continuation from what 'Badasses' established. From memory, it really focuses on the more high profile incidents involving Davis including the feud with Rozelle around the Raider's move to LA and it does a GREAT job of highlighting the negotiations between Davis and Oakland and Davis and LA. You have to keep in mind that the Raiders wouldn't return to Oakland until 1995 and this book was published in 1991.


I believe Richmond cited Ribowsky's book quite a bit in 'Badasses'. As mentioned, I haven't read it yet, but it looks a bit more dense than Dickey's book. It seems like it was released at the same time as Dickey's book and perhaps was a bit of competition between book companies based on the fact they were both released about the same time.


As far as being 'hit' pieces, 'Badasses certainly isn't, as it is centered around the team more than Davis himself. Dickey's book was fair enough and reads like an Oakland beat writer wrote it. Nothing that really made me stop and think, 'Well, that was a unnecessarily harsh.'

A Fan's Notes while not so much an in depth football book as it is a literary work, A Fan's Notes is still a brilliant read for any football fan. Deals with the authors alcoholism, nihilism, the bizarre relation a fan has to his team, and the fear of spending ones life on the sidelines of the action. An all around excellent read. It does have some nice insight to the 60's Giants as well.

Some other more traditional books I'd recommend would When Pride Still Mattered, Run to daylight, Instant Replay, and for one none packer book: Badasses. All four of those provide excellent looks into storied franchises at their best, and When Pride Still Mattered is the definitive book for the NFLs greatest coach.

Thanks OP, I've been meaning to make this thread for awhile now and I love reading books about football and sports in general. I really do heavily recommend A Fan's Notes though, that novel is excellent.

And while I'm still here I guess, even though it isn't football, I'll quickly recommend A Season on the Brink as one of the greatest sports books ever.

EDIT: On the off chance anyone takes an interest in this I have lots more I could recommend.

Ah, the Mr Burns of the NFL... Ever read Badasses? http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0061834319/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1404521045&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40

I'm reading a great book right now it's called Badasses: The Legend of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden's Oakland Raiders by Peter Richmond, and it's fucking awesome and a great read. I'd totally recommend it.

This would be a good start then.

Welcome!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0061834319/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=1BSE26R0JR2AT&coliid=I3BTG5YHLYPYXP

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmVBeFmvvYk