PEORIA, Ill. — At the young age of five years old, he announced Brooklyn Dodger games. It may have been from the basement of his home on Long Island, but that laid the foundation for Charley Steiner’s broadcasting career.
65 years later, he was announcing Los Angeles Dodgers games from his living room. Except this time, it was in front of millions as the Dodgers played in the World Series, not just his parents.
Steiner, who will be inducted into the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Hall of Fame in March 2022, told WMBD News he couldn’t have planned it to happen that way.
“The hows and whys I don’t dwell on a whole lot — other than it’s been a wonderful journey,” said Steiner.
About uncertainty, Steiner referenced a John Madden quote, “Don’t worry about the horse being blind, just load up the wagon.”
“I’ve been on this wagon led by this blind horse all these years,” said Steiner. “My first step was at Bradley.”
On Steiner’s very first day at Bradley, he walked across from his dorm room to the radio station and introduced himself.
“I said, ‘you’re going to see a lot of me over the next number of years,’” said Steiner. “That’s where it began and where it is now.
“I had no idea the journey would be as enjoyable and serendipitous as it’s been.”
Steiner chose Bradley partly because of the powerhouse basketball team that played for the school in the 1960s and 70s.
According to Steiner, New York newspapers would mention Bradley basketball, creating an interest in him to broadcast Bradley games.
Steiner doesn’t usually like to reflect on his career, but says he was forced to do so when the Dodgers won the 2020 World Series.
He said being inducted into the MVC Hall of Fame was another “WOW” chapter on his resume, of which he has plenty.
Steiner had plenty of advice for young professionals looking to do what he does someday.
“Work hard, do not be afraid of failure, do not take rejection personally, believe in yourself, and ultimately, be there,” said Steiner. “Do the best you can and only you know what the best is.”
Steiner recalled advice from his mother to pass along to others.
“If you’re going to give 100% of yourself 100% of the time — and you fail — you’ve done the best you can,” Steiner’s mother told him. “If you don’t give yourself 100% — 100% of the time — it’s your own fault.
“If you succeed, great — if you don’t, you have no apologies to make to anybody.”
When inducted to the MVC Hall of Fame in March, Steiner will go alongside names like Hersey Hawkins, Larry Bird, Oscar Robertson and Doug Elgin.
Steiner graduated from Bradley in 1971 and immediately launched his broadcast career in Peoria at WIRL.
In 2015, Bradley University renamed its sports communication program in honor of Steiner with the Charley Steiner School of Sports Communication becoming the first named sports communication school in the nation.
Full interview with Steiner:
