Remember this Titan (16 page)

I didn’t see much of that movie. Sitting right behind me was Wonder Woman. I spent
the two hours peeping at Linda Carter. When the movie ended, the President wanted
to get on stage with the original Titans. The Secret Service was having a fit. They
hadn’t heard that Julius was no longer hanging with the Panthers. It was a wonderful
night.

You don’t know what other people’s lives are like until you get to walk in their shoes.
Over the years I heard about what living in New York was like. I read what was required
to make ends meet. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t believe it. Then the summons came
and I was asked to be on
Good Morning America
. The first thing I thought was that I needed to cash a check. I decided
100 would get me to and from New York and allow me to have a night on the town. I
figure after seventy-four years of scrimping I’d earned one night of big-time fun.
The teller asked me how I wanted my money and I told her to give me five
20 bills. I told her I was going to the Big Apple.

It was the most pocket money I’d ever carried and I was feeling a little like Daddy
Warbucks. I landed and a limousine picked me up. I felt I should give the driver a
tip. I gave him a twenty and held out my hand for change. He put the twenty in his
pocket, looked at my hand and gave it slap. I met the doorman at the Trump Plaza.
All I had was another twenty. I asked him for change. He said he didn’t have any.
I was down to
60 and going south. The bellman took my
bag to my room. I wanted to stiff him but I just couldn’t. I knew he had family to
feed. He was happy to take my twenty. I got into my room and put my money on the table.
I hadn’t been in New York an hour and my net worth had been cut by 60 percent. I decided
maybe I should employ a little “cotton picker” frugality to the situation. I’d get
a burger for dinner. I found a deli down the block. Hamburger—
15.95. Coke—
4.00. Apple pie—
7.05. I looked at the check and wanted to leave the waitress a dime for her tip but
I just couldn’t. I knew she had a boyfriend to feed.

As I was leaving the restaurant I had a panic attack. Did I have enough for breakfast?
I thrust my hand into my pocket and pulled out the remaining money. I breathed a sigh
of relief. I’d be okay.

The next morning I went and grabbed a menu. I took a peek and decided I wasn’t all
that hungry. I ordered a coffee—
6.95. I wanted a piece of toast but didn’t have enough money. The waitress asked me
if I would like anything else. I asked her how much the pats of butter on the table
were. She smiled and said no charge. I told her to give me two . . . over easy.

As
Remember the Titans
played in theaters and became one of the top grossing movies of all time, my phone
began to ring. People wanted the guy on the screen to be part of the action. I was
invited to everything. At a sport trade show in Las Vegas I was given the royal treatment.
I sat at my table with a number of VIPs but they were nothing in comparison to the
others that filled the room. At one table sat Babe Ruth. In the distance, Hercules
and Jim Thorpe were chewing the fat. I looked around to see who else was coming. As
my eyes glanced at the entrance my heart began to pound. I was hyperventilating. Venus,
aka Cory Everson, the women’s world body building champion had just arrived. She had
dominated the sport for years and I was one of her biggest fans. Not only could she
bench press a house but she also looked great in a thong. To be honest I had a crush.
It seemed every man in the room wanted Cory to sit with him. She looked around and
approached my table. At seventy-six, your giddy-up is not supposed to get so excited.
Mine was doing back flips. “Mr. Yoast,” she said. “Do you mind if I sit with you?”

Thank you Jerry Bruckheimer!

I didn’t want to bring it up. Yes, there was lots of money made and to this day, Disney
and gang continue to reap financial rewards.
Remember the Titans
is one of the most popular movies of all-time. And now it’s on television, video,
cable, and DVD. I heard they were showing it at football camp in Shanghai.

Denzel Washington wanted to build a monument to Boone and me in his courtyard. It
turns out he has made more money off that role than anything he has done. I can’t
guess how many people have a new Ferrari because I didn’t get the job. I can tell
you there are two that don’t.

For years I went to my mailbox looking for an envelope with a Hollywood return address.
I knew it would be filled with cash. It never arrived. Remember that
100? At least it was tax-free.

People have asked me if I’m angry about my payday. How could I be? Over the past five
years so many wonderful things have happened. I’ve been given keys to the city, trophies,
plaques, and kisses on the cheek. My name is on a barbeque. I’ve dined with “the beautiful
people” and governors know my name. So does the President. A couple parades asked
me to be Grand Marshall. The All-American High School East-West Bowl lets me be a
coach. But best of all, I’ve been invited to share my thoughts on teamwork, leadership,
and racial diversity across North America. I’ve been given the opportunity to look
into young men and women’s eyes and shake their hands.

Someone once said “wealth exists not in what we have but in the fewness of our wants.”
I want for nothing. No, I didn’t get much of a payday and really don’t care.

The difference between a life fulfilled and one that missed the mark has nothing to
do with scope. I wouldn’t have said that in 1939 or 1999. But after examining where
I came from and how I got here, my views have changed. As I look back on experiences,
a number of things come to mind. First and foremost is that I was always the happiest
when I was helping someone else. I can’t explain it. There is just something about
seeing others succeed that makes me feel better. To be a part of another’s success
is special. When they appreciate what you have done for them it’s even better. There
are people who understand it. And because of their existence, others have been allowed
to breathe easier. Mary was one of them. She had nothing, but gave everything.

As I’ve navigated my way I’ve been taught so many things. I learned that hard work
was its own reward, that being proud of what you do makes you proud of who you are,
that doing better was more important than becoming better off.