A true comedic great, Gene Wilder died yesterday at the age of 83.
I could not do justice to his greatness and “light,” by listing his movies and television appearances.
Instead it is that “light,” sometimes literal, he brought to almost every endeavor in which I saw him.
Mel Brooks saw it, Gilda Radner saw it and was loved by it, while Cleavon Little and he took that “light,” not the heat, and with a superb other cast made the film “Blazing Saddles” a classic comedy.
Ah, but a black sheriff working with a white gunslinger, years before prejudice dropped even the bit it has in over 100 years, maybe as Reverend Rodney King wished, we all could all get along.
There is that light again!
You see that light! The most beautiful Ingrid Bergman was both born and died on August 29th. She was so beautiful, made more so by beautiful lighting. Gene Wilder pictured above, also died on August 29th and always brought a different but still beautiful light. Meeting Ingrid upon “seeing the light,” could be happening to Gene Wilder just about now.
Somehow, despite far less than stellar play and with their one full season plus star player, Yoenis Cespedes, the New York Mets have stayed in tournament contention.
Of course, only the bogus wild card is available to them, but that is also the case involving all the other wild card contenders (St.Louis Cardinals, Miami Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates) save the L.A. Dodgers and San Francisco Giants.
That is because the N.L. Central will go to the top ranked Chicago Cubs and as I speculated despite early season “sloppiness” the N.L. East will go to the Washington Nationals.
The last two teams in the discussion of 3 straight league pennant winners had similar records but I feel one was discernibly better than the other.
Yet each of them was a truly excellent team that underachieved, perhaps in winning just one of the three World Series it entered during the 3 straight pennant seasons.
I believe the Baltimore Orioles, who won 3 straight American League titles from (1969-1971) were discernibly better than the Oakland A’s teams that won the A.L. flag from (1988-1990).
Each team lost, then won and lost in World Series play, however the Orioles’ loss in their third straight W.S. appearance to the Roberto Clemente and Steve Blass led Pittsburgh Pirates, was in a tough 7 game series, while the Cincinnati Reds, a big underdog swept the A’s in Oakland’s third straight World Series appearance in 1990.
The great Orioles’ third baseman, Brooks Robinson pictured above. I believe the above picture was taken in the final inning of the 1970 World Series aka “The Brooks Robinson Series.” Brooks made another great play, this one, again I believe, on a smash by the superb Reds’ catcher, John Bench.
On the last weekend of the 1967 season, an incredible three team race for the truly meaningful league pennant was down to the last two days.
While the Boston Red Sox did their part by winning both Fenway Park games vs the Minnesota Twins, to pass “Minne” in the standings, it was the Angels splitting 2 doubleheaders in Detroit, that clinched the race for Boston.
Boston had won a showdown 162nd game of the year vs the Twins to move one game ahead of them and eliminate them from pennant contention.
Detroit won the first game of a doubleheader from the Angels but with Red Sox players listening to the great Tigers’ broadcaster Ernie Harwell’s “pumped into their clubhouse ” broadcast, the Angels won that second game and “The Impossible Dream” Red Sox had their first pennant in 21 years.
Click below to view the Red Sox clinching at least a tie for the 1967 pennant. Later they listened as the Angels beat the Tigers to clinch the BoSox first pennant in 21 years. The announcer I believe is Mel Parnell.
MIN@BOS: Red Sox win on final day of season
Though their chances of getting the American League one seed were damaged, the Cleveland Indians still have a four and a half game lead over the Detroit Tigers in the A.L. Central despite dropping 3 of 4 games at Texas vs the Rangers.
Maybe our focus, at least some, should turn to the current leader in the race for the A.L. one seed, the Texas Rangers.
Yet for some reason it is the Cleveland Indians that have been our focus.
The Angels helped the Indians by winning two of three games at Detroit vs the Tigers. This is not even in the same stratosphere in terms of importance, though important, as compared with the Angels splitting a 4 game, end of the season series at Detroit, in 1967, that manifested in a pennant for the Boston Red Sox.
More on that series and the great 1967 pennant race in the next post.
There was another terrific Tonight Show, starring Johnny Carson, which aired on Antenna TV last night. Though I missed the beginning of the show when the original air date was given, I ascertained the show originally was broadcast close to Christmas Day in 1978.
The show included letters to Santa Claus, most touching being those from young people that were poor, but were asking for gifts for others. Carson eloquently and sincerely informed the audience they could send contributions to post office addresses around the country.
Later, the guests included Ann Margret, whose appearance in an NBC special was the next night (Thursday December 14th).
The special hosted by the great Gregory Peck, who once worked there and greeted actress Celeste Holm and her grandmother years before stardom, was part of an effort to help save Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
Mr. Carson, those 38 years ago was doubtful it could be done. However, efforts proved successful and the fact Radio City Music Hall is still around is something to be grateful for as the last week before Labor Day begins.
I will race back to a fine movie “The Whole Town’s Talking” on TCM.
Their great month of stars is featuring the classy actress, Jean Arthur today.
Ms. Arthur actually had top billing in the 1939 film, “Mr. Smith Goes To Washington,” aired earlier today on TCM and a big movie, if not the movie in James “Jimmy” Stewart’s rise to fame.
In the movie currently airing Arthur’s co-star is another screen immortal, Edward G. Robinson.
The beautiful, talented, classy Jean Arthur pictured above.
The Oakland Athletics of the early 1970’s were one of baseball’s best teams in its long history.
They were flamboyant both on and off the field and won 3 straight World Series crowns from (1972-1974).
Oakland won 5 straight division crowns, legitimate one quarter titles from (1971-1975) before free agency decimated this great team.
Such greats as yes their owner Charlie Finley, Reggie Jackson and Fury “Gene” Tenace all contributed mightily to a great run by the A’s,
The great run would have lasted longer had not the fact balance in sports mattered less, causing greats to be lost to the A’s team, with not even remotely fair player compensation.
Click below to listen to the great A’s broadcaster Monte Moore play by play account of the end of game 5 of the 1972 ALCS between the A’s and Detroit Tigers.
Wild last inning of 1972 ALCS A’s at Tigers
In a previous post regarding teams that won as many as three consecutive pennants, I cited the fact that the St. Louis Cardinals denied a great Philadelphia Athletics’ team a third straight title by beating them in the 1931 World Series.
Today a look at both a Cardinals and Athletics’ teams that won 3 straight pennants and enjoyed considerable World Series success thirty years apart.
The Cardinals won the National League Pennant in 3 straight seasons from (1942-1944). The Athletics then and now playing in Oakland, California after moving from both Philadelphia and Kansas City, duplicated the feat, thirty years later from (1972-1974).
Once I asked the great New York Yankees’ player and broadcaster, Phil Rizzuto about the World Series contested between the New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals in 1942 and 1943.
Mr. Rizzuto talked of how Yankees’ manager Joe McCarthy said the Cards’ outfielders, especially Terry Moore in center field (John Fogerty’s great album and song is “Centerfield” one word), covered the ground, as though “they were on motorcycles.”
St. Louis won 3 straight pennants from (1942-1944) and after splitting World Series vs the Yankees in 1942 and 1943, defeated their city rivals, the St. Louis Browns, in the 1944 World Series.
It was the only time the St. Louis Browns, who moved to Baltimore and became known as the Orioles a decade later, were ever in World Series play.
There will be talk of the Orioles as three time Pennant winners in a future post, the next one will be about those A’s of the 1970’s.
I will do the latest phenom, Gary Sanchez a favor and point out that many before him had these type streaks in the early going of their major league careers.
So many of them never had much of a career, some at best achieved mediocrity as a major league player.
This player, Sanchez, may not be Kevin Maas or Frank Tepedino. (So many others sorry to Kevin and Frank but alas you guys played in the big leagues!) Those two played and deserve credit but surely fell short of their expected glory.
It is the “Mikes” such as Lupica, Kay, Francesa and others who have mikes/forums and always seem to jump the gun that are to blame. That they are so often wrong and never held accountable and that is what bothers me, not Gary Sanchez.
Andy B Sports 