One can never go wrong watching the classic films such as “On the Waterfront.”
In seeing it again last night as part of TCM’s “31 Days of Oscar,” I noticed the superb character actor, Nehemiah Persoff in a key non speaking role as the driver shown after the famous “I could have been a contender” scene between Marlon Brando’s “Terry” and Rod Steiger’s “Charlie.”
That scene is practiced in more acting classes than any other.
Just about everyone can relate to writer Budd Schulberg’s immortal words as so many of us wonder about another path not taken opened or closed.
Persoff, now 96 years old, went on to so many roles including that of gangster “Little Bonaparte” in Billy Wilder directed “Some Like It Hot.”
Nehemiah Persoff, pictured above, has a body of work that is incredible.
The Denver Broncos’ (an original AFL team beginning play in 1960) denial of an expansion Carolina Panthers’ title means only three times since any expansion took place in the NFL or major league baseball, that two expansion one in each sport won titles in the same year.
That is 55 completed seasons in both sports (1960-2015) with there having been no World Series in 1994.
The first time it happened, a pair of the same expansion teams the baseball Toronto Blue Jays and Dallas Cowboys won titles together in back to back years in 1992 and 1993.
The only other and last time it happened was 2002 when the Anaheim Angels and Tampa Bay Buccaneers won crowns together in 2002.
This just completed 2015 seasons first had yielded an expansion Kansas City Royals title but the Panthers were denied.
Joe Carter pictured above just after hitting the World series winning home run for the 1993 Toronto Blue Jays.
A rainy day, still in winter, so thoughts “naturally” turn to Gene Tenace.
Great baseball memories and stories still are a nice thing. Fury “Gene” Tenace was known to me as having a decent Strat O Matic Baseball card, before taking the baseball world by storm in the 1972 World Series, when he hit 4 home runs and was named the MVP, as his Oakland Athletics won it all.
After beating the Cincinnati Reds in an excellent 7 game “W.S.”- the A’s eventually became the first non New York Yankees team to ever win 3 straight World Series titles, something still true through at least next season.
Tenace had a poor ALCS at the plate, getting just one hit, but that hit drove in the winning run in the decisive 5th game vs the Detroit Tigers.
The hit drove in Reggie Jackson, who unfortunately broke his leg on the play and missed the subsequent World Series.
In the World Series, Tenace homered in his first two World Series at bats and was on his way.
Tenace played on 4 World Series winners, drawing a key 7th game walk in the 1982 World Series for the St. Louis Cardinals.
Oh, that Jackson fellow and World Series. He was MVP in the next one in 1973 and again this time for the Yankees in 1977. Altogether, he was a major figure on 5 title teams, all starting with the 1972 title led by Gene Tenace’s World Series feats.
One of the greatest teams in NFL history were the 1973 Miami Dolphins, many, including me, believing they were even better than their undefeated team the season before.
Miami under Don Shula had a (12-2) record, one loss in a meaningless game vs the Baltimore Colts in the penultimate regular season game, the other before an incredible Oakland Raiders’ crowd not at the Oakland Coliseum but in Berkeley, California.
Certainly Miami won much easier in the 1973 post-season than in 1972, but some of that manifested from the fact in the days before the better record gained home advantage, the arbitrary method of ascertaining home advantage, forced an undefeated ‘Phins” team to sojourn to Pittsburgh, for the 1972 AFC title game.
However the incredible domination by the run first, short pass Miami team, most evident in a methodical win vs a very good Minnesota Vikings’ team in the 8th Super Bowl, puts that 1973 team just about at the top of the list for any one NFL season.
Running greats Larry Csonka (number 39) toting “the pigskin” with #22 “Mercury” Morris blocking, teamed with Jim Kiick to form arguably the greatest one team trio of running backs in NFL history.
Imagine a total of 321 points being obliterated as the NBA all stars amassed 369 points in a (196-173) win by the far superior Western Conference.
The All-Star win is not why they are far superior.
I will cite the performances of two fine players, Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder and the winning West (as in Jerry, who recently and shamefully was ranked less than 25th in a sham ESPN poll of the NBA’s greatest players) and Paul George of the Eastern Conference, Indiana Pacers.
Westbrook joins the great St. Louis Hawks’ forward Bob Pettit as the only players to win consecutive MVP awards in the All-Star game as Pettit won the award in 1958, the year he led the Hawks franchise, now in Atlanta to its only NBA crown and shared the award with another great forward, Elgin Baylor of the then Minneapolis Lakers, playing their penultimate season in “Minne,” in 1959.
George scored 41 points in yesterday’s tilt, as in a pinball game going TILT with scoring.
Speaking of tilt, the word rhymes with Wilt (as in Chamberlain) and George just missed breaking Wilt’s All-Star game record of 42 points set in 1962, the year his amazing scoring average in real games, was over 50 points per game.
The great Wilt Chamberlain, shamefully ranked behind LeBron James in that horrible ESPN poll, pictured above.
The Super Bowl victory by the Denver Broncos was their third and the tenth by an original AFL team since the AFC/NFC configuration began in 1970.
Other original AFL team, 1970 or later Supe titles are New England Patriots (4) while the Oakland Raiders have notched three titles
There were Supe victories by original AFL franchises, the New York Jets in 1968 and the Kansas City Chiefs in 1969.
Add two by an AFL expansion team, the Miami Dolphins and there have been 14 victories by AFL teams.
Thus NFL/NFC teams have a resounding (36-14) lead in Super Bowl victories as the other 4 teams to play in the old AFL, the Buffalo Bills, Tennessee Titans, San Diego Chargers and Cincinnati Bengals have all failed to win the “big game.” Their combined record in those tilts is (0-8).
Yet the AFC/AFL has a far more respectable (24-26) record in Super Bowls as the three NFL franchises asked to move into the American Football Conference (the AFC), the Pittsburgh Steelers (6), Indianapolis Colts and Baltimore Ravens (two each) have enjoyed Super Bowl success.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, with six, have won the most Super Bowl crowns.
Today I will be in Brooklyn to watch a President’s Day NHL afternoon tilt between the host New York Islanders and original six team, Detroit Red Wings.
Each team is currently in position to make the NHL playoffs which this season is more wide open than usual.
Later when I look around the new Islanders’ home, the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, I will see the 4 Stanley Cup banners hanging from the ceiling.
Similarly I recall 4 different Red Wings’ Stanley Cup winning teams, in my time.
The Islanders won 4 straight Stanley Cups from (1980-1983) with such stars as Mike Bossy and goaltender Billy Smith.
The Red Wings a glory team in the 1950’s with hockey immortal Gordie Howe, won titles in 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2008.
The first three of those were under Scotty Bowman a mentor of Al Arbour, the man, who guided the Islanders to their 4 straight titles.
While watching some of the featured “Love American Style,” in what is called the “Decades Binge” on the Decades channel, I noticed a striking similarity between an episode and the great play/movie “Barefoot in the Park.”
The “Love American Style” episode was called “Love and the Deal” and the couple seeking a better bed were the Bradders, certainly Paul and I think I heard “Corrie” as in the movie.
There is a free living neighbor upstairs in the movie, Charles Boyer and in the episode, Hans Conried.
My favorite were the two phone company men who visit the Bradders, specifically “Mrs.” In the movie, the part was played by Herb Edelman. The role was played by Frank Campanella, the older brother of Joseph Campanella, in the episode.
In conclusion nice similarities and an homage to Neil Simon’s “Barefoot in the Park” starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda which was another autobiographical work by Simon, recalling his great love and first apartment with first wife Joan.
The great playwright, Neil Simon pictured above.
Twice in his career in home games in which the Yankees trailed by two runs facing post season elimination, Jorge Posada made the last out.
In the 2003 World Series in game six, Josh Beckett completed his masterful (2-0) World Series clinching win for the Florida Marlins, by fielding Posada’s little grounder and tagging the Yankees’ catcher between home plate and first base.
Then in the 2007 division series, Joe Torre’s last game as Yankees’ manager, Indians’ relief pitcher Joe Borowski got Posada to strike out swinging and give the Indians a (3-1) series victory with the (6-4) win in game four.
Twice the Indians defeated the Yankees in division series, both series being clinched on a Monday night.
The other was in the decisive 5th game of the 1997 division series. Those two seasons 1997 and 2007 were the only seasons in the 12 Joe Torre managed with the Yankees that they did not win a one eighth division title
.
Three times with his Texas Rangers’ team winning but 1 of 10 games, the superb catcher Ivan Rodriguez tasted post-season defeat in the division series vs the New York Yankees. Each time the Yankees went on to win the title winning 12 straight World Series games after dropping the first two games at home in the 1996 World Series.
Things changed for Rodriguez vs the Yankees when the Marlins and he capped an incredible post-season run and 6’d the Yankees in the 2003 World Series.
There are so many negative aspects regarding the NBA.
In my opinion, it is greedy of them to schedule what amounts as an exhibition game, their All Star Game at 8 o’clock Eastern time.
Even the Super Bowl started an hour and a half earlier.
The total for this joke of a game is 319, so not much, if any, defensive play is expected.
Worse is that in some circles, the retiring once great player Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers is even money to win the MVP award.
I thought he was a good choice for those who bet such things in moderation, as surely they will try to make him look good.
However, that line indicates there is a distinct possibility they will do more than try to make him look good.
I once loved the NBA and did so for a long time. My great appreciation peaked with Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Larry Bird putting the pass back into the game.
Once I liked its All-Star Game especially so in 1968 when Hal Greer, pictured above, won the MVP of the game which was played that year in Madison Square Garden in New York City.
