NBA Quiz: Who holds the record for most blocked shots in a
game? Yes, this is tough but b-ball junkies will recognize the
name. [Which in and of itself is your clue]. Answer below.
Winter Weather
Those of us in the Northeast haven”t seen much of it the last few
years but I realize in the Upper Midwest you have had some
recently. Yes, I was watching exciting Weather Channel video
late Monday night from Madison, WI. Anyway, here are some
cold weather records.and other odds and ends.
–The record low temperature in the U.S. was -80 degrees (F),
Prospect Creek, AK, 1/23/71.
–The record low in the continental U.S. is -70 degrees, Rogers
Pass, MT, 1/20/54.
–The record low in the world is -129 degrees, at the Soviet
Antarctic station of Vostok, 7/21/83. *That”s just air temp, folks.
–You”re sitting in a bar and a guy goes, “Yoh, has it ever been
below zero in Florida?” To which you shout from the other side
“Yeah, on Feb. 13, 1899, it was -2 in Tallahassee.”
Blizzard: The National Weather Service defines it as a severe
condition characterized by strong winds bearing a great amount
of snow, specifically, winds in excess of 35 mph or higher,
reducing visibility to less than + mile for at least 3 hours.
So, I”m scanning some news and I check out the weather
conditions in Irkutsk, Siberia…ahem. This is a typical weather
day there this time of year. “Generally overcast and dull.”
Temps ranging from a high of -18 F to a low of -25. Wear
plenty of layers.
“Sammy the Bull” Gravano on Mario Puzo
The Sunday Times had a piece written by Jeffrey Goldberg
profiling Gravano and the impact Puzo”s “Godfather” still has on
today”s mob.
Goldberg: I told Gravano that Puzo had told me he wrote the
book and collaborated on the screenplays, without the expert
advice of the mob. I had no reason to doubt him.
Gravano: “No way, somebody had to be helping him.” [Why?]
“Because he knew our life cold. He had the whole atmosphere,
the way we talked. That wedding scene – I mean, that was so
real.”
[Why do so many mobsters continue to believe that the
obviously mythical “Godfather” is an on-target depiction of the
gangster life?]
Gravano: “I”ll give you a for-instance. Remember that scene
when Michael goes to whack that drug dealer and the police
captain? Remember how Michael couldn”t hear anything as he”s
walking up on them? Remember how his eyes went glassy, and
there was just the noise of the train in the background, and how
he couldn”t hear them talk? That”s just like I felt when I killed
Joe Colucci.” [Colucci was the first man Gravano killed].
“Somebody who wrote that scene had to have a feeling for that.
I mean, I felt like I was pulling the trigger myself.”
[Did “The Godfather” influence the way he behaved?]
Gravano: “Well, I killed 19 people. (And) I only did, like, one
murder before I saw the movie.”
*I”m just getting fired up for “The Sopranos.”
Bob Baun
Sports Illustrated chose this man”s feat as one of the century”s 20
Greatest. The Toronto defenseman came off the ice late in Game
6 of the Stanley Cup Finals against Detroit after having had a
Gordie Howe slap shot fracture his right ankle. He told the
trainer to tape him up, then Baun scored in overtime. The next
48 hours he avoided the trainer and then played half of Game 7
in Toronto”s 4-0 victory.
John E. Berry Jr.
Johnny Mac passed this along to me. Berry was a star football
player at Williams College (a D-III power) but he forfeited his
senior year to donate a kidney to his 26-year old brother, a father
of 3. The NCAA bestowed the Award of Valor on John, only the
7th time it has done so. So, yes, there are some good folks out
there. The Rae Carruth”s of the world will be defeated!!
Bill Belichick.what the —-!
You know what? As a New York Jets season ticket holder I was
thinking on Monday, after Parcells quit, that 1) I was
contemplating dropping the tickets and 2) No way would
Belichick survive. But this is so bizarre. More comments later.
Top 3 songs for the week of 1/1/66: #1 “The Sounds Of Silence”
(Simon & Garfunkel) #2 “We Can Work It Out” (The Beatles)
#3 “I Got You (I Feel Good)” (James Brown).
Quiz Answer: Elmore Smith, 17, L.A. Lakers, 10/28/73. *Most
blocks in a quarter is 8, having been done twice by Manute Bol.
