Sitting in the Catbird Seat

BirdNote^®
Sitting in the Catbird Seat
Adapted from a script by Ellen Blackstone

This is BirdNote.

Red Barber: Join us for another Brooklyn ballgame! This is the Ol’ Redhead, Red Barber.

Longtime Brooklyn Dodger and later New York Yankee announcer Red Barber grew up in Mississippi and was known for his folksy way of speaking...

Red Barber:  They call him the big cat and he swings that heavy bat as though it weighed no more than a dry turkey feather.

One of his best known catchphrases was that a player in a winning position was “sitting in the catbird seat.”

Red Barber:  …delivers outside for ball three. And it’s three nothing — Price is sitting up there in the catbird seat…

But… what is a “catbird seat”? And what, for that matter, is a catbird?! Well, the catbird part is easy: it’s a cousin of the mockingbird, in the bird family known as the mimids. And it does sound a little like a cat.

         [Mewing of Gray Catbird]

As for the saying — it’s been around since the 19th century, probably originating in the southern U.S., where there are lots of Gray Catbirds. The bird is normally a skulker, foraging near the ground or in dense underbrush.

         [Mewing of a Gray Catbird]

But during the breeding season, Gray Catbirds sometimes fight amongst themselves for the best territories. As part of the competition, the two combatants sing their way to higher and higher perches. The one who finally takes the highest perch is… well… sitting in the catbird seat! With the best view, in control, top bird, so to speak.

          [Song of Gray Catbird]

So, take it from Red Barber: the catbird seat is the place to be.

          [Song of Gray Catbird]

For BirdNote, I’m Michael Stein.

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Senior Producer: Mark Bramhill
Producer: Sam Johnson
Managing Editor: Jazzi Johnson
Managing Producer: Ariana Remmel
Content Director: Jonese Franklin

Red Barber audio provided by the Miley Collection and Indiana University Bloomington Media School Archive. Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Gray Catbird ML163377 recorded by Matthew D. Medler.
BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2025 BirdNote July 2013 / September 2025
Narrator: Michael Stein

ID# catbird-01b-2025-09-04    catbird-01b