SHOOT FOR THE STARS — THE TOM HEARDEN STORY

My fourth novel SHOOT FOR THE STARS — (The Tom Hearden Story) is a work of historical fiction. It is not affiliated with The Chemist crime trilogy. Shoot For the Stars is a story that recounts the early years of the Green Bay Packers, covering the decades from Curly Lambeau’s founding of the team in 1919, to the hiring of Vince Lombardi in 1959. But this story is far from a mere football book. I attempted to bring life to the characters involved, and the result is part historical fact/part love story. The premise is simple: What if the Packers had hired a coach other than Vince Lombardi? How would the course of history have been changed? Not just for the Packers, but for the entire National Football League? It’s not as far-fetched as it sounds. The team was in turmoil after a decade of none-winning seasons. There were many credible names being bandied about after Lisle Blackbourn was fired after his (3 – 9) 1957 season. And one of the names which rose to the forefront of possible new coaches was Blackbourn’s head assistant, a coach named Tom Hearden.

Over the years, my father, Alvin Mancheski, used to tell me the story of how his old high school football coach (Tom Hearden) almost was hired by the Packers to be their new head coach for the 1958 season. Three years ago, I interviewed my dad for the purpose of writing this book. And the story evolved into something much more than a football book: it became, instead, about how one man’s dream can challenge him throughout his lifetime. Tom Hearden’s story is one of successes and failures, one of joy and tears. But throughout the story one thing never changes: Tom’s driving desire to attain the goal he set for himself when he was just a boy: to someday become head coach of his favorite team, the Packers.

As this is my father’s tale, and it’s about a man he knew and respected. I elected to allow him to tell the story in his own words. I also did a brief interview with Al Mancheski about his mentor and friend, Tom Hearden, which I’ve enclosed in this blog. Enjoy. And remember: never lose sight of your dreams.

9 Questions for Dr. Al Mancheski about Tom Hearden

1) How well did you know Tom Hearden?

AM: Quite well. I grew up in Denmark, Wisconsin. We lost our family farm during the Depression and moved to Green Bay when I was ten-years old. I was an only child, and my dad passed away a few years later. So Tom — my high school football coach — became like a second father to me.

2) What was Tom Hearden like as a football coach? His strengths? His weaknesses?

AM: Being a Navy man, he was always well organized. And he had his own experience playing multiple positions at Notre Dame as a two-way player: everything from defensive lineman to blocking and running back. So he understood the game inside and out. He told me once that he learned strategy from Coach Rockne, and the passing game from Curly Lambeau.

3) In Shoot For the Stars: The Tom Hearden Story, Tom gives some very effective pregame and halftime speeches to his teams. Was he really a good motivational speaker?

AM: Tom was very passionate as a speaker. Sometimes to the point where his face and neck would redden as he became more and more stirred up.

4) Do you remember Coach Curly Lambeau and the Packers at the old City Stadium? Back when you were playing for East High in ’39 – 40? 

AM: The Packers practiced on the same field, but at different times. We’d watch them warming up beyond the fence. But it wasn’t that big a deal back then. Most often, both of us used the east side practice field, to help preserve the turf on the real field. But occasionally we practiced inside the stadium. 

5) Do any players or coaches stand out in particular? That you remember from back then?

AM: Two of them that I remember most. For a time as a young boy—maybe 11 or 12—I picked up the nickname “Mike” after Mike Michalske. He and Hank Brouder would sneak a few of my friends and me into the games, rather than us climbing the fence or sneaking through a cut hole on the bottom. During cold games, they’d sneak us into the stadium sometimes tucked beneath their long cold-weather coats.

5) You knew Dominic Olejniczak quite well. Do you recall any specifics about him as a person? Or stories about him relating to the Packers?

AM: Ole was a good friend of mine, and he followed my own East High teams as an alumnus. He was always interested in how we did. And he was also exceptionally kind to my mother (Frances), and helped her get a maintenance job at Washington Junior High.

6) Did Tom Hearden ever mention any stories about Curly Lambeau? Or back at Notre Dame playing for Knute Rockne? Or of Jim Crowley at East High, or with him at Notre Dame?

AM: Not very much. And as high schoolers, we weren’t smart enough to ask him. But everyone knew it back then. Once in a while, when he’d give his fiery speeches, we used to kid among ourselves that he was impersonating “Knute Rockne again.”

7) Did Tom Hearden ever mention being close to getting the Packers’ head coaching job for the 1958 season? Was it close, or really only a long shot?

AM: I talked to Tom quite frequently in those days. Every two or three weeks or so. I examined his eyes (I’d become an optometrist by then) a few times over the years, and had him come up to Sturgeon Bay to speak to my football team. (Sturgeon Bay High School). Tom told me that he’d been hired by the Packers. That they had a verbal agreement. This was right before he suffered his stroke.

8) What made Tom Hearden so exceptional as a football coach? 

AM: He was a winner, and could out-think most other coaches. He seemed to run circles around them intellectually. And he was great in the locker room. I remember hearing stories about him as a Packers’ assistant coach: all the Packers’ players loved him. So I think he’d have done quite well as a head coach. 

9) Is there anything else you’d like to add about playing for Coach Hearden? 

AM: As I said earlier, Tom was like a father to me. He helped me out by suggesting I go to Wisconsin to play college football, instead of my initial desire to go to Notre Dame. And back then, the war was screwing everything up for everybody. But Tom was a great guy to have as a friend and advisor for all the years that I knew him.

Shoot For the Stars — The Tom Hearden Story is available now through Amazon Press.