Baseball Quiz: [Before the season starts, I thought I”d get my
“active player” list questions out of the way.] Name the 6 active
pitchers with 180 or more career wins. [Hint: One or two of
them may struggle to make a team this year.] Answer below.
Johannes Gutenberg
This year is the 600th anniversary of the birth of Johannes
Gensfleich zur Laden zur Gutenberg. So quaff an ale to the
inventor of the printing press.
[The Chinese had movable type for centuries, some say, but they
used it for silk printing, not books.]
Gutenberg (that is his real name above, by the way), was born in
Mainz, Germany. Little is known of his early days, like did he
play in the dirt sketching out models for his later invention?
What we do know is that in 1428 he moved to Strasbourg and
became involved in the jewelry and metalwork business, skills
that would obviously come in handy. Back then he was the
victim of several lawsuits involving debts he had incurred
developing his business of manufacturing “pilgrim badges,”
artifacts purchased by pilgrims as mementos and proof of their
various journeys. [So he is also the inventor of Olympic badges
and pins, I guess.]
Shortly thereafter, Gutenberg began to develop a press adapted
from one used by binders; a machine for creating type forms. He
also came up with a formula for ink – in secret, since he had
several creditors who would have disapproved of his use of their
funds, or confiscated his invention as payment.
Around 1445, Johannes returned to Mainz with the printing
system having reached a considerable degree of refinement. He
established a partnership with the financier Johann Fust for the
purpose of printing an edition of the Bible.
Fust grew impatient when work didn”t proceed at the desired
pace so he called his loan and confiscated Gutenberg”s
machinery as well as the first printings of the Bible – the famed
42-line Bible that was Gutenberg”s masterpiece and his first
publication.
Fust then joined forces with Gutenberg”s skilled assistant, Peter
Schoffer. Schoffer had testified against Gutenberg in court and
now set out to print the Psalter, a book of prayers with hundreds
of ingeniously produced letters and designs that clearly bear the
stamp of Gutenberg”s work. But the book, the first to bear the
name of the printer, lists Fust and Schoffer as its creators.
So, you see, poor Johannes spent a good part of his life in court
(which is where we pick up our limited knowledge of him). No
one successfully challenged his place, however, as the inventor
of movable type and the printing press. It is thought his last
years were spent trying to regain his leadership in printing but he
had failing eyesight and may have gone blind (which perhaps
explains the crazy alignment of keys on a typewriter…actually,
he had nothing to do with this…just musing).
In the book “1,000 Years, 1,000 People,” authors Gottlieb and
Bowers (two husband and wife teams) list Gutenberg as #1 in
importance. “Because his press unharnessed the power of ideas
on the world, we rank him ahead of the people whose ideas
found an audience through printing.”
Were it not for Johannes Gutenberg, Columbus (#2 in the book)
might never have set sail, #5 Shakespeare”s genius could have
died with him, and Martin Luther”s (#3) Ninety-five Theses
would have hung on that door unheeded.
Gutenberg died in 1468. It is said his last words were, “Can I
have a handi-wipe to get the ink off of my hands?”
[Other source: “The Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages,” Norman
Cantor.]
Harlem Globetrotters / Wilt Chamberlain
The Globetrotters are retiring the first uniform in their history,
the #13 worn by Wilt the Stilt. Chamberlain played with the
Trotters between his graduation from Kansas and his first season
in the NBA with the Philadelphia Warriors. In a touch of class,
the uniform is being placed in Wilt”s high school alma mater,
Philadelphia”s Overbrook High School, already a shrine to Wilt”s
career.
Chamberlain was very fond of his days with the Globetrotters.
In his last television interview, sportswriter Jerry Izenberg notes,
Wilt dealt extensively on them.
“I liked them so much that I almost didn”t want to come back and
play in the NBA,” said Wilt. “You must understand, as a kid of color
in those days, the Harlem Globetrotters were like movie stars. Being
one of them was your dream.”
If you haven”t seen the Trotters and you have small children, go.
The kids will love you for it.
NCAA Tidbit
In the 1990 NCAA tournament, Loyola Marymount”s Bo Kimble
shot his first free throw of each game with his left hand to honor
teammate and friend Hank Gaithers, who had collapsed and died
of heart failure at a game two weeks before the tournament
began. [It”s hard to believe that was ten years ago.]
Marymount was an 11th-seed and made it to the Sweet 16 where
they blasted defending champion Michigan, 149-115. Kimble
sank each one of his left-handed tributes. At the time Bo said, “It
may sound corny, but it makes me believe I”ve got a little bit of
Hank inside me. I feel his strength.”
Regis
According to Marilyn Beck, Regis Philbin now commands
$150,000 an appearance, plus transportation costs for his
personal jet! What the heck does he do? I”m picturing him at a
convention, walking through the exhibit area, “Is that your final
answer? Ha ha.” A common response must be, “Get the hell
out of here, you a——!”
Shaq
In scoring 61 points against the Clippers on Monday night,
Shaquille O”Neal was the first NBA player to score 60 or more
since David Robinson scorched the Clippers for 71 on 4/24/94.
Shaq was 24-35 from the field and 13-22 from the foul line.
We await the Lakers choke in the playoffs.
Top 3 songs for the week of 3/4/72: #1 “Without You” (Nilsson)
#2 “Hurting Each Other” (Carpenters) #3 “Precious And Few”
(Climax).
Quiz answer: Roger Clemens (247), Greg Maddux (221), Orel
Hershiser (203), Dwight Gooden (188), Tom Glavine (187),
David Cone (180).
Next Bar Chat, Friday.
