Former USC pitcher, 90-year-old Bill Camp, throws treats to fans at baseball games
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Bill Camp may not be able to throw a baseball after injuring his shoulder pitching for South Carolina more than 60 years ago, but there is one thing he can still throw — candy.
Students and fans nicknamed Camp “The Candy Man” after he roamed USC baseball games for decades handing out free candy, a practice he continues today. Camp says he gets a thrill from aiming and precisely throwing candy at his targets.
“I’d tell my buddy, ‘Watch that boy. See that little crate that has the cheese in it. Watch me throw one in his cup,’” Camp said. “It went bloop, right in the middle of it. He picked it up, licked all the cheese off, opened it and just ate the candy like dessert.”
Camp, who says he never sees half of the plays during the games he attends, is incredibly precise when aiming his candy pitches.
“I can almost flick candy in anyone’s hand. I am really accurate. It goes by the weight,” he said of his technique. “It is easier to throw underhanded.”
Camp, who is approaching his 90th birthday, is always posted behind home plate, but not for long periods of time, as he walks around the stands for his alternative to the seventh-inning stretch — showering fans with a sugar rush.
“I stand up and say, ‘I need a rally here,’ and try to get something started,” Camp said, adding that he does so by tossing candy in the air. “That is just how I do it.”
His tradition began at Sarge Frye Field, but Camp says he gives out candy everywhere he goes now — “church, the bank, grocery stores” — and he even carries around a bag inscribed “Candy Man.”
At the baseball games, Camp stuffs his jacket pockets instead, and stadium officials let it slide.
“I used to have to hide it, but they know what I do,” Camp said.
His supply of Werther’s Original Caramels and Caramel Creams yields no obstacles at game entrance gates anymore. Camp has become accustomed to special treatment at games.
“This helps you make friends,” Camp said. “Lots of people know me. I will talk to anyone who will talk to me.”
Camp’s kindness extends beyond candy. He served six years in the Navy before graduating from Carolina with a business degree, and he advises students to practice frugality for a long prosperous life.
Spending upward of $180 a month on candy may not sound frugal, but Camp said he saves the rest for his family’s future.
Rarely missing a game, Camp encourages Gamecocks to stop by to say hi at their next game.
Whether winning or losing, who can take a sour game and sweeten its results? Like the classic lyrics say, “The Candy Man can because he mixes it with love and makes the world taste good.”