“Toni Stone” (playing at Roundabout at Laura Pels Theatre 111 West 46th Street), written by Lydia R. Diamond is a superb, humorous and meaningful play about Ms. Stone, who was the first woman to ever play baseball in a professional league, having done so in the so called Negro League, in 1953.
Obie-award winning, April Matthis leads a tremendous cast, telling Toni Stone’s story, her great pursuit of and love of playing baseball with humor, insight and a beautiful moving, “get with it” pace.
Again it is a superb cast. Their names follow: Eric Berryman, Harvy Blanks, who played “Alberga,” the older man Ms. Stone married and stayed such until his death at age 103 in 1987, Phillip James Brannon, Daniel J. Bryant, Jonathan Burke, those are alot of B’s and the buzz for this show is big and well deserved), Toney Goins, Kenn E. Head, Ezra Knight, and Ms. Matthis.
Click below for ticket information:
Toni Stone – Roundabout Theatre Company
Left to right, Toni Stone with her idol, the great Joe Louis.
I begin with the great Green Bay Packers’ radio announcer, Ted Moore’s legendary broadcast “Starr begins the count” and then /now let’s “count” the many great feats of the superb quarterback Bart Starr, who died days back at age 85, in addition to the most memorable, that frigid last day of 1967.
Bart Starr led the Packers to a still unmatched five NFL crowns in seven seasons, compiling the highest winning percentage .900 (9-1), as a quarterback, in “win or go home,” playoff games.
He was brilliant in the (37-0) Green Bay win over the New York Giants in the 1961 NFL Title game and even better, throwing four touchdown passes, in the Packers’ less heralded, but also great title game win vs Dallas, that the 1966 title tilt.
In less than ideal conditions, Bart, Jim Taylor, one of so many sports greats to die in the last year, and Jerry Kramer, finally put into the NFL “Hall” in the last year, led the offense (16-7) at Yankee Stadium vs the Giants to win it all in 1962.
It was deemed too cold for 7 year old Michael Santasieri Jr. to attend that game so he, my dad and me listened on the radio (no television). Ray Nitschke led the defense and appeared on What’s My Line that night, while depite the bitter cold, Mr.John Costas took his 10 year old son, Bob to the game.
In years to come, all three then (ouch!) younger ones, (Bob Costas, Santasieri and Andy B) would see football for something far less, Costas doing so publicly, yet hold good memories of games, from its past.
Bart had bad ribs and it was Zeke Bratkowski, who was in at quarterback in the Packers’ more than somewhat fortunate, (13-10) overtime win vs the Baltimore Colts to win the 1965 Western Conference crown in a playoff game.
No it was not greats, Bart Starr vs John Unitas that day but able back up Bratkowski vs Tom Matte, the latter having last played quarterback in college, before injuries to “John U.” and Earl Morrall, forced him into action at the position in 1965. (Trivia: Bob Costas did work for CBS before a long and great career at NBC and Tom Matte was an analyst, Costas on play by play, for at least one NFL game telecast by CBS.)
A week later in the mud of Lambeau Field, vs “my” defending champion Cleveland Browns, in what would be the great player, Jim Brown’s last game, Bart directed the “Pack” to a (23-12) win as Jim Taylor and especially Paul Hornung ran, as Ted Moore invoked “as if the days of yore.” It was the first of the still unprecedented three straight titles won with playoff game(s), by Green Bay.
I rooted both for and against the Packers, more against, and can tell you how Mr. Starr was as good as any, on third down or any clutch situation.
Bart does not get enough credit for the great quarterback he was. The Packers were great, so great, but people often forget how great a quarterback Bart Starr was.
His daring long passes to the likes of Carroll Dale or Boyd Dowler on third and a yard or less! They seemed to always work!
Starr was the MVP of the first two Super Bowls, each an easy Green Bay victory vs an upstart AFL team.
Oh yes, as the classic NFL Films presentation voice stated (not John Facenda) the Packers traversed 68 yards over a polar ice cap.” It was December 31, 1967!
My friend “Cheese” came down from upstairs. Dad, he and I watched, Bart talked to Vince Lombardi after first down, NOT right before the decisive play which was on third down.
Much happened, the names Jethro Pugh, Jerry Kramer, Ken Bowman, Chuck Mercein, the latter so great on the classic drive, resonate.
“Starr begins the count, he takes the snap, HE”S GOT The Quarterback sneak and HE”S IN FOR THE TOUCHDOWN–And the Packers are out in front (20-17). There’s 13 seconds showing on the clock and the Green Bay Packers are going to be World Champions, NFL champions for the third straight year.
Click below to hear that moment with a much more informative set up and others all broadcast by Ted Moore.
Please read the words from Bart Starr’s family by clicking below. Many pictures of Bart and others (66, Ray NItschke’s #) are included.
A message from the family of Bart Starr – packers.com
Bart Starr, pictured above.
The 2019 NHL final series, the eleventh final round entity between teams from Boston and St. Louis, begins tonight in Boston as the home team Bruins host the Blues.
This will be the first time in the six baseball or hockey final entities between the cities, in which the team with the better regular season record will have the series home advantage and also the first time that the better record team would automatically get home advantage, as was the case in all 4 Boston (Celtics) vs St. Louis (Hawks) basketball final rounds.
Boston has the home advantage/home opener for the eighth time in this, the tenth final round series between the cities. An eleventh entity, a one game contest/Super Bowl was played at a neutral site and won by Boston/New England (Patriots) vs the then St. Louis Rams, coincidentally now in L.A. and again denied by the Patriots, in the most recent Super Bowl.
In 1946, the Boston Red Sox had the better regular season record, however, the Cards of St. Louis had home advantage, riding it to the title in 7 games with Enos Slaughter racing home with the go ahead to stay, W.S. winning run, (B8) on Harry Walker’s double (not single as is often reported).
The Cardinals had the better record but opened at Boston, which had the home advantage in both the ’67 and ’04 World Series won by “St. Loo” in 7 and the Bo Sox in 4 straight, respectively.
In 2013, the year of the other Red Sox/Cardinals World Series clash, the teams had the same “reg” record. Boston had home advantage because the American League won the All-Star game (for this and other “brilliance” Bud Selig is in the Baseball Hall?!). They “titled” in six games.
The NHL West Blues had home advantage in their 1970 final vs the Bruins, however the heavily favored and “better record” Bruins won in 4 straight games.
Boston is (7-3) vs St. Louis in final round play; both the Pats and Bruins (1-0) vs the Rams and Blues respectively, the Celtics (3-1) vs the Hawks and the 4 W.S. split, 2 each, involving the Red Sox and Cardinals.
Boston is (6-3) in previous openers vs St. Louis, winning in ’46, ’04, ’13 World Series, ’60 and ’61 NBA final, and ’70 NHL final and “title-ing” in 5 of those years, failing in ’46, Mr. Slaughter’s “dash” (I do those from Starbucks and these type notes) referenced above.
St. Louis won openers in the ’67 World Series and ’58 NBA final at Boston en route to eventual crowns. They also won at Boston in the ’57 NBA final opener, but the Celtics prevailed in 2 overtimes to win a classic 7 game series, the first of an incredible 11 titles in 13 seasons for the Boston Celtics.
The great player, Bob Pettit, pictured above, still holds the record for the most points scored in a game that clinched the NBA title.
Bob scored 50 in game 6 as his St. Louis Hawks won the franchise’s only crown either in St. Louis or in Atlanta, where they have played the last 51 seasons, vs the incredible Boston Celtics.
The Toronto Raptors overcame a 15 point, second half deficit and led by Kawhi Leonard, “6’d” the NBA top seed, Milwaukee Bucks (now 2-7 in semis and sans a final round appearance since 1974), to advance to their first NBA final, in this their 24th season.
Toronto will host a final round opening game for just the second time in 55 years, (the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the ’64 NHL final round opener and titled in game 7 at home with goaltender Johnny Bower getting a shutout, while the Blue Jays opened the World Series at home in ’93, eventually winning it on Joe Carter’s home run a week later), when they host the Golden State Warriors in game one of the NBA final, Thursday night.
Golden State is a near three to one series favorite and a one point favorite, on the road, in game 1.
The city of Toronto is in its first final series since the aforementioned 1993 World Series, as the Maple Leafs have not been in a final since 1967.
One bright note for Toronto in that regard is that they have won six straight final round entities, having not lost since the greatest of the great, the 1960 Montreal Canadiens, swept the Leafs in the 1960 final. That victory gave Montreal, the last of 5 straight NHL titles (’56-’60).
Toronto won their last 4 NHL final series (’62-’64 and ’67) and the Blue Jays won in their only two World Series appearances (’92 and ’93).
Kawhi Leonard, pictured above.
The incredible final round history between Boston and St. Louis teams will begin to “write anew,” as its eleventh such entity commences Monday night, when the Boston Bruins (6-13) in NHL final round play, entertain the St. Louis Blues, who are (0-3) and in a final, for the first time in 49 years.
There will be more facts in the days to come, for now consider the great players that have been a part of Boston/St. Louis major North American sports league’s final round play.
Four greats named Bob are on the list, Boston’s Cousy vs St. Louis’ Pettit in all four Boston Celtics/St. Louis Hawks final round clashes in ’57, ’58, ’60 and ’61. Cousy is 90 years old while Pettit is 86.
St. Louis Cardinals’ pitching great Bob Gibson won 3 games, including #7 at Fenway Park as St. Louis 7’d the Boston Red Sox in the 1967 World Series.
The remarkable Bobby Orr scored in overtime of game 4 in the 1970 NHL final for the Bruins vs the Blues, giving Boston its first NHL crown in 29 years.
Certainly Orr is at or near the top of the list, as the subject of the NHL’s greatest player is considered.
Additionally, so are Bill Russell of the Boston Celtics and Tom Brady of the New England Patriots, each of whom played in Boston vs St. Louis final rounds.
Nobody has as many NBA titles as a player nor such Super Bowl wins as Mr.Russell (11) and (Mr. Brady is Robert Reed and Tom is still playing) Brady (6).
Add (so many others and apologies to those not cited) two all-time baseball players, Stan Musial of the Cardinals and Ted Williams of the Red Sox, who clashed in the 1946 World Series, another Red Sox player, Carl Yastrzemski, another awesome great, whose performance right through the 1967 World Series, is one of the best ever in a season.
Sam Jones with 10 titles for the Celtics, Lou Brock of the Cardinals, David Ortiz of the Red Sox, and Phil Esposito of the Bruins, all won more than one title, are all-time great considerations in important categories and of course, part of the storied final round history between the great sports and otherwise cities of St. Louis and Boston.
Among the great coaches/managers in the storied final round Boston/St. Louis history is Bill Belichick, pictured above.
Belichick won the first of his six Supe crowns as New England coach, vs the St. Louis Rams in the 2001 season Super Bowl.
Arnold “Red” Auerbach won the first of his 9 NBA titles as Celtics’ coach, vs the St. Louis Hawks, coached by Alex Hanumn in 1957.
The Celtics won an incredible 11 crowns in 13 seasons and only two Hanumn coached teams, one the 1958 St. Louis Hawks (the great ’67 Sixers, the other) denied them.
Eddie Dyer (1946 Cards), Red Schoendienst (’67 Cards), Harry Sinden (’70 Bruins) (vs Scotty Bowman, who went on to coach more NHL title teams than anyone), Terry Francona (’04 Red Sox, ending an 86 year title drought) and John Farrell (’13 Red Sox, the only home title clincher for the Red Sox in 100 seasons, 99 of which had a World Series and the first in 95 years) also guided their teams to titles in this great final round history.
I was tremendously moved as Fred Guttenberg spoke from the heart and against the National Rifle Association lobby last night at The Center For Jewish History, (15 West 16th Street– quite an impressive place in which one can lose oneself in their superb archives section).
Perhaps you are one seeking perspective, reality, emotion— consider that a rabbi satisfied him with a “reason,” his brother Michael Guttenberg, one who helped during the events of 9-11, died from cancer, age 50 in 2017 as a result.
Mr. Guttenberg, a passionate, eloquent driven advocate for gun control whose passion is to break the National Rifle Association lobby, however, can not find a “reason” for his daughter Jaime, being taken in a mass shooting.
As I watched and listened, my own emotions and life on the “endless loop,” Fred endures involving Jaime’s death, I do see a process in this because the man Fred Guttenberg, has his/the cause.
He will keep going, fighting for what he believes, history to be on his side and not those who “take to rake” the earth’s spoils.
As you do, Mr. Guttenberg– love your wife Jennifer and son Jesse. Another “J,” Jaime is watching and Fred will get his “J,” it is called justice, if in addition to any political reality involving senseless guns violence and use, we all improve in the category, of caring for others.
Center for Jewish History • 15 West 16th Street, NY, NY 10011
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense In America
Orange Ribbons for Jaime | #orangeribbonsforjaime
After six full weeks (the last 21 days of April, first 21 days of May—April games “shower” and “flower” more games in May) of at least one playoff game each day in either the NBA or NHL, there were none last night.
Three of the four final round participants in the two leagues are known as Golden State (Warriors) will be in their fifth straight NBA final, while the Boston Bruins are in their third in nine seasons.
Meanwhile the St. Louis Blues, last in the final 49 years ago when they were swept by the Bruins (Boston went (2-6) in 8 final round appearances, in the 47 completed seasons in which the Blues failed to make the final ’71-2018) will be Boston’s opponent, as the two great sports cities meet for the eleventh time in a final (Boston has won 7 of the 10).
Action in the one “semi” still going, resumes tonight (no game in either league tomorrow, Sunday and Tuesday) as the Milwaukee Bucks (2-6) in previous “semis,” host the Toronto Raptors (0-1) in such series, in the seemingly pivotal fifth game of a (2-2) series.
This is the first of nine Bucks’ semi-final series, in which the home team has won the first four games, just the second to be (2-2) and only the fifth not to be (3-0).
Toronto, where the first ever NBA, then the BAA game was contested between the Toronto Huskies, in their lone season (’46-’47) and New York Knicks, is bidding for their first road semi-final round win (0-5).
TV/(Why even call it the tail at this point?!) “Wags” 10 off days for the Bruins, 9 for the Warriors and 5 for the Blues!
The St. Louis Blues advanced to their first NHL final series since 1970, when they represented the expansion division, NHL West, winning their semi-final series vs the San Jose Sharks, in 6 games.
As was the case in 1970, the Blues will meet a “streaking” Boston Bruins’ team in the NHL final, this one not beginning until Monday night, which is 5 days hence.
In ’70 the Bruins won their last 10 games en route to their first title in 29 years, the last 4 vs the Blues.
This season the Bruins, who also swept the Blues in the ’72 semis, also en route to another Bobby Orr led title, go into the final with seven straight victories and will be decent sized, series favorites.
However, the Blues have already written quite a story in coming from last place in the whole league, to this final round appearance.
I will have many more notes in the days ahead and look forward to what I believe will be an intriguing NHL final.
The Golden State Warriors advanced to their fifth straight NBA final series, winning (119-117), as 3 point favorites at Portland (Trail Blazers) last night, completing a 4 game sweep, in their semi-final series.
Steph Curry and Dray Green led the way as the Warriors joined the legendary Boston Celtics, who advanced to the NBA final, double the number the Warriors have achieved, from (1957-1966), winning 9 of the 10 final series.
Golden State is (3-1) in the 4 final series, all vs the Cleveland Cavaliers, going (12-3), winning titles in ’15,’17 and ’18 and dissipating a (3-1) series lead, losing in seven games, in 2016.
Steph Curry, pictured above.
This past weekend I saw the affable, talented Kenny Kramer (“The Real Kramer”) and host /proprietor of “The Kramer Reality Tour,” which is a fantastic, reasonably priced choice in New York City entertainment.
The meeting rekindled my fond memories of “The Tour,” as well as giving me a chance to speak with the “cut above,” Kenny Kramer.
If you are a fan of the seminal show “Seinfeld,” “The Kramer Reality Tour” is as the Seinfeld network (NBC) coined regarding Thursday night shows past (I believe including “Seinfeld”), “MUST SEE”/MUST DO!
There is so much information about the show, a great tour on a comfortable bus, many great sights and a chance to savor that legendary delicious soup.
The 3-hour tour starts at The Producer’s Club Theater (358 West 44th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenue).
Book online at Kenny Kramer’s Home Page (by the way, an incredible site maintained by Kenny Kramer). Reservations are a must!
Tours are also available for private parties and corporate events.
Click Here for Kramer’s Reality Tour
Information and On-Line Booking
Kenny Kramer and that famous diner outline (take the tour and find out/pass the diner’s location) are pictured above.
Andy B Sports 