There is much conversation regarding the movie “Silver Linings Playbook” which netted Jennifer Lawrence a Best Actress Oscar last night.
As I stated in my post on 1/31/13, “Silver Linings Playbook” was truly entertaining and moving, but likely very unrealistic. Why the need for happy endings when there are so few in real life?
I am no “scrooge” and love fictional happy endings but do not demand them. This is a huge topic far beyond my scope and probably beyond most people’s realm.
One thing I know is sports history and how to look it up. One factual falsehood in the movie, perhaps among many, is when Lawrence’s “Tiffany” character said the Philadelphia Phillies dominated Tampa Bay in game four of the World Series on Halloween. They did ease to a (10-2) victory in game 4 of the World Series in 2008, but the game was played on Sunday night October 26th. (Oh to be able to hear the late, great Harry Kalas calling a home run as I did that night!).
There are other sports facts stated as part of the unrealistic gambling subplot and I would love to check on their accuracy. That would involve seeing the movie again, which despite my criticisms thereof, would be far from an unpleasant task.
The Academy Awards will be presented tonight in Hollywood, televised nationally by ABC television. The awards are “apples and oranges” and have been at times, “highway robbery.”
I love the movie “Cat Ballou” for many reasons and Lee Marvin was an excellent actor. However, it was an injustice when he and not Rod Steiger won the Best Actor Award for 1965. Steiger’s performance was so powerful that perhaps it is the reason “The Pawnbroker” has rarely been shown on television. The movie is just too “real” for the public.
I once asked the late, great Geraldine Fitzgerald, who played a social worker in the movie, why the movie was/is not shown? She had “no idea,” she said, at least when giving her answer.
Two years later, Steiger won the Best Actor Award for a lesser, albeit excellent performance as a southern sheriff, in the movie, “In the Heat of the Night.” One could label that a “makeup call.”
Usually the favorites, aka “the chalk,” win the Academy Awards. Therefore, very likely “Argo,” a seven to one favorite, and a fine film will win the Best Picture Award. At first, the race for “The Best Picture” award was considered tight between “Argo” and “Lincoln.” Now that is not the case. Yet Steven Spielberg, the director of “Lincoln” is a three to one favorite to win Best Director. As I said “apples and oranges” and you can always throw in politics when talking about The Academy Awards.
Rod Steiger Accepts the Academy Award
Exhibition baseball starts today and it may be as exciting as regular season basketball which certainly in college, is almost meaningless as far as determining a champion.
Nobody benefited more from the end of last year’s NBA lockout than LeBron James. Not that he was worried with all his riches, but had there been no season, his no title status would have weighed a bit heavier.
However, the season was played and down 3 games to 2 in the semis, James delivered 45 points in a win at Boston. The Heat starting at that point, won 6 of 7 games and the NBA title.
Now playing in the far inferior Eastern Conference, the Heat are prohibitive favorites to at least make the Finals. Since the Western Conference teams figure to exert much energy to survive, one would think the Heat will be favored to win the finals when and if they get to that point.
Having said that the games must be played. When the playoffs start, there will be coverage here, both in the NBA and NHL. Right now, the regular season games that people, incredibly pay high prices to attend, mean little more than nothing as far as determining a champion.
Something made me think about Mike Hershberger, a pretty good player whom I remember as a member of the Chicago White Sox. Sadly, he died last year.
I did discover some interesting things about Mike and the mid-sixties White Sox. They had some really good records but did not win any pennants. (No bogus wild card then.) The closest they came to a pennant was in 1964 when they finished one game behind the Yankees. (The Orioles with MVP Brooks Robinson finished only two out but the Yankees did clinch the pennant on the next to last day.) It is worth noting that the Yankees had won 14 pennants in 16 seasons at that point, but would not win another for 12 years.
In the great American League pennant race of 1967, the White Sox were dealt a crushing blow when they lost a last week doubleheader at Kansas City vs the second division A’s, who moved to Oakland the next season.
Hershberger was then with the A’s and told friend, ex teammate, and ’67 White Sox fine pitcher, Joel Horlen that the A’s would beat the Chi Sox in that doubleheader. This despite going with two “kids” as pitchers.
The A’s “kid” pitchers were Chuck Dobson, who had a decent career and went (15-5) for the A’s first post season team in 40 years (1971) and Jim “Catfish” Hunter, who pitched on five World Series winning teams and is in the baseball Hall of Fame.
In searching about Mike Hershberger, I found an interview Hershberger had with Mark Liptak of “White Sox Interactive.” It was most informative and highly recommended.
Doctor Jerry Buss, who died yesterday at age 80, has a very positive association with “80” as in 1980 and did a truly kind deed two days after his Lakers won the NBA Title.
I was as intense a Lakers’ fan as there was dating back to the days of Wilt Chamberlain and even before then feeling their “pain” in so many Championship Round losses to great Boston Celtics’ teams.
In 1980, I paid my way from New York to Los Angeles feeling I had to be there for the remaining games of the NBA Finals which were tied two games apiece vs the Philadelphia 76ers. I went to Game 5 at the Los Angeles Forum, a close Lakers win, but in the game Kareem Abdul Jabbar got hurt.
Kareem did not even accompany the team to Philadelphia for game six but with Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Jamaal Wilkes leading the way the Lakers captured the title with a stunning (123-107) win. It was a great win for the team, fans like me, and a rookie owner named Dr. Jerry Buss.
I tried to get all I could from the victory and two days later stood in the parking lot of the Forum hoping to get into the “Victory Party.” I deserved to be there as I lived and agonized with the Lakers’ quest. In hindsight, I realize that not only did I talk with Buss’ sister but a young girl introduced as his daughter, who had to be Jeanie, later to win titles of her own as part of Lakers’ management. They loved my story of coming from New York and my loyalty to the team. However, they could not get me into the victory party.
I was walking in another direction when a limousine pulled up and out came Dr. Buss with a beautiful starlet on his arm. This man had money, power, a beautiful woman and most important to naive me, an NBA Title in his first season as owner.
I approached him and told him my story asking if I could go into the party. He said “Sure come on in” and it was one of the nicest things to ever happen to me. That fact is sad but what Buss did was a great kindness that meant so much to me. On that alone, and he did so much else, when Buss gets to the “pearly gates,” surely God will echo what Dr.Buss said to me on May 18, 1980, “sure come on in.”
Mark Messier is a New York sports hero; he was an integral part and team captain of the New York Rangers’ Stanley Cup victory in 1994–the only one in the last 71 hockey seasons. He also achieved greatness as a key member of five Edmonton Oilers’ Stanley Cup winners.
I focused on his Oilers’ glory when interviewing the very gracious hockey great after a game between Russian and American All Stars held February 15th to aid hockey diplomacy.
I asked Mark about the Oilers’ Cup victory in 1990 and he cited the pride and hard work of the players who persevered and won it all in just the second season after Wayne Gretzky had been traded from the Oilers. It is a very big accomplishment to Mark and one that fills him with great pride.
Next, Mark talked about the Oilers’ first Stanley Cup victory in 1984 when Edmonton dethroned the four time Stanley Cup Champion Islanders. Mark said “we had great respect for the Islanders” and we both agreed Game 3, the first of three straight Oilers’ wins to clinch the Cup was pivotal. Mark’s incredible hard work turned the series irrevocably in the Oilers’ favor.
Messier recounted the Oilers’ close win in game one at Long Island and said “The Islanders had beaten us pretty badly in game 2 so we were truly focused in game three at home.”
As O.A. “Bum” Phillips once said attempting to rank the great running back Earl Campbell, likewise I do not know if Mark Messier is the greatest hockey player ever, but it sure does not take long to call the roll (regarding his name.)
It was an honor speaking with the gracious Messier, a member of six Stanley Cup Champions.
Yesterday there was an exhibition hockey game between Russian and North American players played at Sky Rink, located at Chelsea Piers. The game which featured such great players as Viacheslav Fetisov and Mark Messier was part of the “International Hockey Diplomacy Initiative.” This will manifest in four games between America’s Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Hockey teams and the MHL (Minor Hockey League) Red Stars, an all star team of players aged 19-21 from Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Latvia, Lithuania, and Slovakia.
“Hockey is a great unifier and we are pleased that some of the most talented players in the MHL will have the opportunity to come to the United States and face off against storied ECAC hockey programs,” said Alexander Medvedev, President of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
The personable Medvedev, who played in yesterday’s game (The Russian team pulled away for a (10-5) win) went on to say “We believe we all have something to learn from each other and we find it fitting to make this announcement about hockey diplomacy on Hockey Across America Weekend.”
The ECAC teams will face the MHL All Stars during the 2013-2014 hockey season. The ECAC teams that will take part are Yale University (Friday, December 27, 2013), Harvard University (Saturday December 28, 2013), Union College (Tuesday December 31, 2013) and Cornell University (Friday January 3,2014).
The game and event had rich New York hockey flavor including: Fetisov (who was once part of New Jersey Devils’ glory) and Rod Gilbert, (who coached the North American team), Ron Duguay, Paul Stewart and the beautiful Supermodel Carol Alt who all conjured up great New York Rangers memories.
It was an honor to interview Ranger legend Mark Messier after the game, and in my next post, you can read what he had to say.
Alexander Medvedev
“Night Games,” one of three Marvell Repertory Theatre productions currently playing at The Barrow Group Arts Center (312 W. 36th Street in NYC), was a truly riveting story that kept the audience in suspense for the entire two plus hours of the play.
Isaac Woofter stars and is fabulous as German soldier “Willi” (It is German soldier week for us as I saw “Valkyrie” as cited in our last post) who faces a life crisis and am reasonably sure was in every scene. His was a far reaching performance.
The entire cast was excellent and I cite Emma Rosenthal as “Leopoldine” and John Windsor-Cunningham as “Consul Schnabel” for their key roles. Each has a certain power over Woofter’s “Willi” and the interaction is superb.
Night Games was written and directed by Lenny Leibowitz adapted from the great Arthur Schnitzler’s (“Eyes Wide Shut” was based on one of his work) novella.
Schedules for future performances of “Night Games” as well as the other two “Marvell Rep” productions “Flirtation” and “Secrets” can be found at marvellrep.com. Additionally, when attending you are very likely to be greeted warmly by Bradley Eckerson, who is the Guest Services Manager of Marvell Repertory Theatre, and does a great job.
Isaac Woofter
I definitely have been affiliated with many coincidences. While not believing anything “hook, line and sinker,” I do think there may be something to it.
Now I know the science and certainly know something about probability. There are so many days or any measure of time when there are no coincidences. I also know I am more likely to get a coincidence because I often listen to or watch old prerecorded tapes, dvds, compact discs and yes, audio cassettes. Those are full of possible coincidences with my thoughts or even my “live” work or television watching.
This post is just about yesterday’s television watching coincidence. I came home at around six and put the television on around six fifteen. “Valkyrie” starring Tom Cruise was on and held my usually wandering attention. The movie certainly dealt with the government in place in Germany from 1933-1945. The coincidence is I was thinking about “All in the Family” which I can watch at 8 p.m. on Antenna TV.
My association between the movie “Valkyrie” and All in the Family was the episode of “All in the Family” in which a swastika, a symbol of the horror in Germany at the aforementioned time, was mistakenly painted on “Archie Bunker’s” door. Sure enough and you can look it up I suppose, that episode aired right after “Valkyrie” ended on another channel, I believe “The Movie Channel.” Trust me I was thinking of it and then it aired.
Gregory Sierra, who had a nice guest role on that “All in the Family” episode and eventually was a regular on “Barney Miller,” is 72 years old. I wish him and the world well. We all need good wishes. All in the Family Episode
This is the first week with no football. The anticipation (cue Carly Simon) is now for NBA, NHL and NCAA basketball to move into post season. That is at least a six week wait.
Baseball is also highly anticipated but two months away. I tried to get into a baseball mood this first week without football by listening to a tape of Game 7 of the 1992 NLCS from radio station KDKA in Pittsburgh and heard little through the static. So often I would be hearing static and not the game as I tried to tune in such stations back then.
The Atlanta Braves rallied for three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to win (3-2) in game 7. The Pirates lost that decisive LCS game just like they had lost twenty years earlier vs the Cincinnati Reds. In 1972, the Reds scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to win a decisive 5th game from Pittsburgh.
The 1972 Pirates had won the World Series the year before and would win another seven years later. Additionally, the Pirates won two divisional titles and seriously contended two other times from (1973-1978.)
However, after the horrible loss to Atlanta, the Pirates have finished under the .500 mark in all twenty seasons (one ended by a baseball strike), played since the ’92 NLCS.
Andy B Sports 