The Big Ten Basketball Tournament will take place at New York City’s Madison Square Garden from February 28th through March 4th. The winner will receive the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Purdue and Ohio State have done well in their regular seasons so far.
A great place to watch all the games is Rick’s Cabaret New York, the upscale gentlemen’s club where the beautiful girls and the staff’s warm hospitality will make you feel welcome. And if you are at the games, I recommend you visit for some post-game fun.
Recently, I spotted Howard Stern Show character “Ronnie the Limo Driver,” former NY Met Lenny Dykstra, and wrestling star Bubba Dudley at the club. Rick’s Cabaret NYC Girl Kendra told me that they get a lot of celebrities and sports stars, and that Ronnie was her favorite. “He is unique and a truly nice person.”
Located just one block from Madison Square Garden at 50 West 33rd Street, Rick’s Cabaret has three floors of entertainment, and a full-menu Steakhouse on the second floor.
I truly enjoyed the movie “A Tree Grows In Brooklyn” which aired last Sunday on TCM (Turner Classic Movies).
The cast led by Peggy Ann Garner, a “movies Garner,” before James and certainly Jennifer, was superb.
Dorothy McGuire, two years before her great “turn” in Gentleman’s Agreement, is also noted, however, again the whole cast moved me.
One coincidence it is actor Lloyd Nolan who informs Ms. McGuire’s character (Mrs. Nolan) that her husband (Mr. Nolan played by John Dunn), is ill.
Both the 1974 and 1975 respective NHL and NFL titles were won by Philadelphia and Pittsburgh teams.
The Philadelphia Flyers, in just their seventh season took the 1974 NHL title. It was a very quick crown for a 1968 expansion team.
Thus when the Steelers took their first title in their 42nd possibility in ’74, “Philly” and “Pitts” had simultaneous champions.
Both teams repeated as title winners in 1975, meaning Philadelphia and Pittsburgh had simultaneous champions from the time Pitts (16-6’d) Minne in Jan ’75 until the great 1976 Montreal Canadiens ended the two year Flyers’ title run by sweeping the Flyers in the ’76 NHL Final.
This is not the first time Pittsburgh and Philadelphia have simultaneous major North American sports league champions.
Today, a look at the two most recent Eagles’ crowns this one in ’17 and the one in 1960.
The Eagles’ ’60 title was preceded by a Pittsburgh Pirates victory in the 1960 World Series.
The Eagles are current NFL champions simultaneously with the two time NHL champion, Pittsburgh Penguins.
Nelson Agholor, pictured above, had three big positive plays on the Eagles’ decisive touchdown drive in the most recent Super Bowl.
I am always moved watching “A Raisin In The Sun” from 1961.
Each actor is superb, today I particularly noticed Claudia McNeil, Louis Gossett Jr. and John Fiedler.
Oh a dream deferred, oh a dream not at all.
Yet the acting and production of “Raisin,” a dream not to be, but I did meet and was greeted warmly, by both Sidney Poitier and Ruby Dee.
What an honor to have met Sidney Poitier Pictured above. That’s me, Andy B. standing next to him, when he was honored in 2011.
I thoroughly enjoyed watching “The Freshman” on “Movies” earlier today.
A few notes will follow.
Marlon Brando was of course, the “Godfather, Vito Corleone,” in the superb film, “The Godfather.”
In “The Freshman,” he not only parodies that role but does play scenes with Bruno Kirby, who in “Godfather: Part Two,” was future “higher up,” “Clemenza,” in flashback scenes with Robert DeNiro as the young Vito.
In “The Freshman,” with Matthew Broderick as Clark, there is a famed scene from “Godfather:Part Two,” with Al Pacino and John Cazale shown.
James Broderick, Matthew’s father, had a role in “Dog Day Afternoon,” with both Pacino and Cazale.
A superb actor, John Cazale, pictured above.
Two favorites, two really good players, Wally Moon and Tito Francona each with a glorious ’59, have died 59 years after, in early 2018.
Moon, who played on 3 Dodgers’ title teams, was a major contributor to the first L.A. crown in 1959.
He hit what became “Moon Shots”, Wally a left handed batter taking advantage, by tailoring his swing, of the short left field, at the L.A. Coliseum, where the Dodgers played that title season.
Francona, playing for the second place Indians hit a remarkable .363 in 1959, falling 34 official at bats from that season’s A.L. batting crown, which went to Harvey Kuenn with a .353 mark.
That season the White Sox won the A.L. pennant, losing in 6 to L.A. in the World Series.
Moon caught Luis Aparichio’s fly ball for the final out. L.A. won their first 3 W.S. in L.A, before losing in 4 straight games to the Baltimore Orioles in ’66, a team whose shortstop was Luis Aparichio.
Francona’s son Terry managed 2 title teams with Boston, but father Tito left the earth, after bitterly disappointing Francona/Indians’ post-season losses in each of the last two seasons, and with the team, still sans a title since 1948.
I recall each player fondly, part of a time I liked baseball so much.
Tito Francona pictured above.
There was a really good between movies, old feature on TCM today relaying a timeless message.
“Heavenly Music” won the two reel, short feature Academy Award in 1943.
Frederic Brady stars as singer trying for his place among the immortals in a special place in heaven.
Steven Geray is Ludvig von Beethoven. Entertaining, fine music and to the point of its timeless nature. This was a real treat.
The record of teams with previous Super Bowl victories vs teams sans such a win, fell to a still imposing (21-8) when Philadelphia now (1-2) in Supes beat New England which is (5-5).
Only the Patriots, winning one (in ’01 vs the Rams) and this most recent loss have been involved in more than one of the eight games in which a team won its first Super Bowl vs a previous such winner.
Another link between the current baseball and football champions, the Astros and Eagles (recall the great Philadelphia vs Houston ’80 NLCS) is that the Astros/Eagles first time World Series and Supe wins respectively, marked just the third time, first time winners emerged the same year/season.
The other two were in successive years, the aforementioned Patriots with the Arizona Diamondbacks in ’01 and the Tampa Bay Bucs with the Angels in ’02.
The iconic Philadelphia Phillies’ broadcaster (he did much else including work for NFL Films) Harry Kalas pictured above.
Perhaps this photo goes back to his days with the Houston Astros which included calling Ed Mathews’ 500th home run.
A little baseball, but there will be more notes concerning football ahead.
One game is still more famous than the other, though it yielded a pennant to a team that eventually lost the subsequent World Series, while the lesser known game yielded a decisive seventh game won by the team that won the dramatic game, not known as well as the other.
The games are the better known decisive third game of the best of three playoff for the 1951 National League pennant and the sixth game of the 2011 World Series.
More details later in the week, for now each game ended on a home run by a third baseman, who earlier in the tilt had made a defensive error.
In ’51 the hero third baseman was Bobby Thomson, while in 2011 it was David Freese.
The great Abbott and Costello had “I don’t know” at third base. St. Louis pictured on Mr. Abbott’s uniform is appropriate as the St. Louis Cardinals won the above referenced game 6 of the 2011 W.S. and subsequent 7th game.
Andy B Sports 