The Babe in Boyland

She's bold, brash and always looking for a tussle. She's not afraid to put George Steinbrenner on hold, and she will hang up on anyone, anytime, if they don't have anything interesting to say. Dubbed "the hottest new voice in the airstream" by Newsweek, she's taken sports radioby storm as the most entertaining, audacious and the only female sports talk-show personality in the business. She's the Fabulous Sports Babe, and if you're not already a Babe-aholic, you will be after reading The Babe in Boyland, an account of her riotous journey into the jungle of modern sports.

Nanci Donnellan, known to her legion of fans as the Fabulous Sports Babe, has been shocking and delighting sports fans for two years with her hilarious, informative, top-rated nationally syndicated sports talk show on ESPN Radio, and her TV show on ESPN2. Known for her on-air crankiness and razor-sharp insights, the Babe and her program have rocketed to success in the highly competitive and macho world of sports broadcasting, where she's the only personality to shout, "Get a job, get a haircut, get a life!" to the thousands of devoted yet annoying fans who clog her phone lines every day.

Now, in The Babe in Boyland, the Babe lets loose an uncensored blast of fresh insights and outrage in a book that is equal parts memoir, expos, and diatribe against the greedy owners, players and agents who control the world of sports. No one is safe from the always provocative Babe: golfer Greg Norman is a "golfing weasel and PR scam-meister"; O.J. Simpson a "lying, murdering bastard"; and Don Fehr, head of the baseball union, is a "disgusting sleazebag and despicable human being."

When the Babe isn't ripping into the idiots who own and play professional sports, she's providing a guided tour through her beloved airwaves, with behind-the-scenes peeks at life on The Fabulous Sports Babe Show and inspirational stories about how she kicked and clawed her way through the boys' club of sports radio from stations in Tampa and Seattle to ESPN. And what a wild ride it's been: See the Babe deftly skewer over a quarter of a million "goobers," "rich boys" and "bubbas" who call her program each month. Sympathize with her sidekick and slave, Sportsboy, who she keeps chained to the radiator and abuses mercilessly on-air. Meet Lenny the Phone Freak, the world's most outrageous call-screener. Hear how Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott's dead dog, Schottzie, helped get the Babe's assistant pregnant. Rejoice in the Babe's winning the battle against the "tree-hugging granola heads" in Seattle who like their coffee strong but not their talk-show hosts. And read what happens when the biggest names in sports, from Mike Tyson to Pete Rose to Faye Vincent, show up on-air to debate, discuss and defend themselves. Fresh, funny and wildly entertaining, The Babe in Boyland is a fascinating book by an inspiring sports personality, a tough, outrageous woman who's not afraid to yell a hearty, "Blow me!" to the phonies and jerks of the sports world.

In 1988, a gorgeous young radio personality asked her listeners if they wanted to "spend the day in bed with a fabulous babe." The rest is history. Eight years and millions of fans later, The Fabulous Sports Babe has the No.1 syndicated sports talk show in the country on ESPN Radio.

But Dr. Suess appealed to a much more intelligent audience. I tried to grasp where this woman's obvious bitterness came from. Um, memo to Nanci- Bulldog Briscoe is the one they make fun of on Fraizer. There's no need to try to be the female who emulates him- or similar sports talk gabbers such as Pete Franklin and Mark Madden.

Let's see some experts from this book. Telling her life story, she said that she dropped a lot of LSD when she was 24 and "grew up a lot that summer".

You know, I thought you grew up when you STOPPED doing drugs. But this is the Fabulous Sports Babe logic that we know and love so well, and why she made that wonderful career choice to leave ESPN for the now defunct Sports Fan Radio Network.

Her favorite football coaches are John Cooper and Dennis Green, for crying out loud! Me, I like Noll and Holtz, but, hey, that's only because I like to win come the post season and don't evaluate a coach by how many softball interviews he gives you.

I love sports talk, but if you're looking for a good sports book written by a talk show host- try "You Could Argue But You'd Be Wrong" by Pete Franklin. That will have the attack mode you're looking for, actually be funny, and actually is factually correct.

Me, I'm still trying to figure out when that undefeated season that she said John Cooper enjoyed at Ohio State was . . . .


Foul Mouthed And Not Very Insightful   April 20, 2000
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

I listened to Nanci regularly in Seattle, and generally enjoyed her show. Often she didn't let the facts get in the way of a good story, but that isn't uncommon in radio broadcasting. She was always entertaining.

I couldn't wait for her book to come out, but found myself very disappointed at the result. It is riddled with mindless vulgarity and has very little thoughtful insight into the broadcating business and sports. When in doubt, spew a few f words and hope the audience will laugh. I'm sorry, it doesn't work.

While railing against the idiocy of the average sportstalk caller, this book instead contributes to the dumbing down of the American sports fan.


This book made me laugh.   November 14, 1998
I drive a lot for my job and I listen to The Fabulous Sports Babe Show on the radio every day. I bought this book(when it was available) when my father was in the hospital. I thought it would take my mind off the situation. I ended up reading it to him and we got to laughing so much the nurses all came in to see what was going on. She's the best. Great stories. I wish she would have written more about herself though. I would have liked to know her climb to the top, etc. Now, my dad is hooked and listens to her every day.


Great for a long car ride....she makes you laugh a lot.   June 25, 1998
The Babe tears up the rules in this one-way ride thru God-knows-what! Hold on is right! She has a charismatic way about her that is charming one minute and biting the next. She knows her stuff though and isn't afraid of making sure you know it. I read the book a few years back, but just recently purchased the tape for the car. The stories are great; the sound effects are great, her commentary is always right on the money. She makes you laugh a lot. I don't think it's really autobiographical, and I was disappointed by that. But, maybe The Babe will write another one to give her fans an inside peek at what makes her tick. I gave a copy of it to my dad for father's day. Great idea for a salesman, driver, or anyone traveling a lot.