Houston Astros Quiz: The Astros and the New York Mets came
into baseball the same year, 1962. Amazingly, Mets pitchers have
never thrown a no-hitter. But the Astros have 9, by 8 pitchers.
1) How many of the 8 can you name? 2) Who has the most hits,
career? Answers below.
The Hindenburg
PBS is having a show on the Hindenburg this Wednesday so I
thought I”d jump the gun. The scene is 1937.
The Hindenburg was described as a “floating palace” nearly as
large and grand as the Titanic. It was to be the first of a fleet of
luxury lighter-than-air ships ushering in an era of Trans-Atlantic
zeppelin travel.
The airship had lavish accomodations for 50 passengers and a
crew of 30 that included a fine dining room and an elegant
lounge. Brochures spoke of reaching America from Germany in
an astonishingly short two days at a price of $400.
The Hindenburg was built for a cost of $5 million. The
framework measured ten stories high and it was 804 feet in
length. Propelling the ship were four twelve hundred horse-
powered Mercedes Benz engines, supplied with enough fuel to
travel eleven thousand miles and permitting a top speed of 84
mph.
The Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei Company, operators of the
airship, were struggling financially so they actually had to gain
funds from the Nazi party. Swastikas were placed on the fins, a
symbol of the power of the Third Reich. The U.S. was suspicious
of the military applications of the great zeppelins so, as the only
source for helium in the world, they priced the amount of gas the
Hindenburg would need at $600,000. Instead, the Germans
decided to fill it with highly volatile hydrogen gas instead of the
fireproof helium.
In its one-year history, the Hindenburg had successfully made ten
round-trips between Germany and the U.S. On May 6, 1937,
storms delayed the arrival from Frankfurt, Germany, into
Lakehurst, New Jersey by ten hours as the airship waited for the
conditions to clear before attempting to land.
At 7 p.m., the landing lines were dropped to the crew below and
the Hindenburg was carefully guided in. Only minutes from
completing the mooring, something went terribly wrong as smoke
and flames burst from the rear section. The flames spread quickly
along the shell until it reached the hydrogen supply with a final
terrific explosion.
As the ship crumpled to the ground, landing crews fled and
passengers aboard the ship leapt to their deaths. In just 34
seconds, the ship was reduced to a twisted, burning heap of
debris. 35 passengers and crew died, as well as one on the
ground.
Herb Morrison, a 31-year-old reporter from Chicago, was on the
ground recording the landing. Within minutes, his horrifying
account was to become the stuff of legends.
“It”s burning, bursting into flames and is falling on the mooring
mast and all the folks, we – this is one of the worst catastrophes in
the world! It”s a terrific sight. Oh, the humanity and all the
passengers!”
What caused it? Most experts over the years have said it was a
spark caused by static electricity which ignited hydrogen seeping
form a ruptured gas bag. But the PBS broadcast will challenge
the story. A NASA scientist notes that the ball of flame was red;
hydrogen burns blue. Addison Bain conducted research which
concluded it was the blimp”s cloth cover, coated with powdered
aluminum and iron oxide (the ingredients in rocket fuel), that
caught fire.
Regardless of the true cause, the Hindenburg disaster marked the
end of passenger zeppelins. It also marked the beginning of an
age in which electronic media routinely covered shocking events
as they occurred.
[Sources: “We Interrupt This Broadcast,” Joe Garner.
New York Times.]
Who Can Afford It!
Sports Illustrated”s E.M. Swift has an article in the May 15 issue
detailing the cost of attending today”s professional sporting
events. Since 1991, the cost for a family of four for midrange
seats, parking, four sodas, four hot dogs, two beers, two
programs and two souvenir caps has increased 80%, four times
the inflation rate. Following are some representative examples.
Atlanta Thrashers [NHL] – $330.05
Washington Redskins – $391.11
Boston Red Sox – $168.82
Toronto Maple Leafs – $522.06 [Holy Cow!]
Chicago Cubs – $135.33
Chicago Bulls – $306.85
Milwaukee Brewers – $100.68 [Awright! Money left over for
more brewskies!]
New York Rangers – $368.27
New York Mets and Yankees – both at $175
Pittsburgh Steelers – $226.03
Los Angeles Dodgers – $140.97 [Now that”s actually reasonable,
by comparison…great place to see a game.]
Indiana Pacers – $272.55
New Orleans Saints – $229.82 [Huge restrooms]
In a survey commissioned by SI, the top reason fans gave for not
wanting to attend a game today was “Total cost to attend.”
Underrated / Overrated, Continued
Most Overrated Military Quotation: According to author Brian
Burrell. Douglas MacArthur, “I shall return,” muttered upon
arriving in Australia. The Office of War Information asked him to
rephrase the pledge in the more inclusive first-person plural but
MacArthur refused.
Most Underrated Military Quotation: Burrell selects one from
Gen. Dwight Eisenhower on setting the D-Day invasion in
motion. “Not the one you have probably heard – ”The eyes of the
world are upon you, the hopes and prayers of liberty-loving
people everywhere march with you” – but the one you haven”t.
Like the pebble that touches off a landslide, it is humble and
innocuous, the kind of order you can imagine following
instinctively. ”Okay, let”s go,” is what he said.”
Top 3 songs for the week of 5/15/71: #1 “Joy To The World”
(Three Dog Night) #2 “Never Can Say Goodbye”
(The Jackson 5) #3 “Put Your Hand In The Hand” (Ocean).
Adam Petty, RIP
The fourth generation NASCAR star was killed in practice on
Friday at the New Hampshire International Speedway when he
spun out and hit a concrete wall at 130 mph. You just never
know. The car didn”t catch fire, but Petty died of massive head
injuries. A few weeks ago, I wrote about the passing of great-
grandfather Lee Petty. Adam”s grandfather is Richard and his
father is Kyle. Petty is the 7th NASCAR driver killed since 1989.
Quiz Answers: The 8 Astros pitchers to throw no-no”s are:
Don Nottebart, Ken Johnson (he lost the game), Don Wilson (2),
Larry Dierker, Ken Forsch, Nolan Ryan, Mike Scott, Darryl Kile.
2) Jose Cruz had 1,937 hits while playing for the Astros from
1975-1987.
Next Bar Chat, Wednesday…Fatima and The Guess Who.
