NBA Playoff Quiz: 1) Name the five players who scored in
double figures for the 1970-71 champion Milwaukee Bucks.
[This squad whipped the Bullets 4-0 in the finals.] 2) Name the
six players who scored in double figures for the 1978-79 Seattle
Supersonics. [Seattle beat the Bullets 4-1 in the finals. Not
including Tom LaGarde, who played in just 23 games.] Answers
below.
Bob Hope
The other day I was watching NBC’s special on Bob Hope’s
career, Hope turning 100 today, and there was a touching bit
about one of his USO trips to the South Pacific in 1944, where he
performed before some Marines who, unbeknownst to Hope and
the soldiers themselves, were about to see action in Peleliu.
Hope said it was the most meaningful of all his shows, because
so many of these men met their death just days later. Hope’s
visit was the last real joy many of them experienced.
So I checked out some of my World War II sources and sure
enough, in “The Story of World War II” by Donald L. Miller,
reference is made to this event.
Eugene B. Sledge, “Sledgehammer” to his fellow buddies in K
Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine
Division, recalls the visit by Bob Hope to their base on Pavuvu.
“While we were preparing for Peleliu, which incidentally we
weren’t told about until the day before we shipped out, Bob
Hope was over in (the nearby island of) Banika entertaining the
troops in the naval hospital. When he heard the 1st Marine
Division was on Pavuvu he flew over with his entertainment
group in a Piper Cub and put on a wonderful show with Jerry
Colonna, Frances Langford, and (the dancer) Patti Thomas….
He said after the war that of all of the shows that he had done for
military men, this was the one that stuck in his mind….After we
suffered such staggering casualties at Peleliu, Bob saw some of
our wounded at a naval hospital in the States. One teenage
Marine turned to him and said, ‘Hey Bob, remember Pavuvu?’
Hope later wrote that he got so choked up he could not go
through the ward with its long rows of cots with all the Peleliu
casualties…But he sure gave us a spark at Pavuvu. It was a
wonderful treat, and that was the last real laugh a lot of my
buddies had…in their short lives.”
So many Americans these days have no idea what a tremendous
job Bob Hope did in entertaining the troops for some 50 years,
up until he was in his late 80s.
*I also realize I never did a piece on what many call the most
savage major battle of the Pacific Theater in World War II,
Peleliu. When you read about it, what strikes you is the feeling
among many experts that it was one of the worst intelligence
blunders of the entire war as well.
*Peleliu, a 6 mile by 2 mile island 550 miles east of Mindanao,
was to be a key support facility for General Douglas
MacArthur’s return to liberate the Philippines after his disastrous
defeat there years earlier.
But Admiral “Bull” Halsey wanted to avoid Peleliu, fearing it
would be another “Tarawa” (previously covered in Bar Chat, see
archives), while Admiral Chester Nimitz, overall commander of
the Pacific fleet, believed intelligence reports that Peleliu was a
2- or 3-day operation.
As it turned out, due to earlier successful actions by Halsey in
cleaning up the theater prior to MacArthur’s landing, Peleliu
wasn’t even necessary, but the Marines were just 3 days away
from invading and Nimitz failed to call them back.
The Japanese defenders of Peleliu put up a sign.
“We will build a barrier across the Pacific with our bodies.”
The horrific story of Peleliu next Bar Chat, with further
commentary from “Sledgehammer.”
—
Great Feats
In December 1999, Sports Illustrated’s Richard Hoffer did a
piece on “Our Favorite Feats” of the 20th century. As Hoffer
wrote, “Let’s agree that certain events – not merely athletic
milestones, but also exultant displays of spirit and work and (yes)
luck – have established the outer boundaries of human
achievement.”
1a and 1b were Roger Bannister (May 6, 1954) becoming the
first to break the four-minute mile and Edmund Hillary’s assault
on Mount Everest (May 29, 1953).
3. Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak.
4. Red Grange, the “Galloping Ghost,” and his scoring the first
four times he touched the ball against Michigan in Illinois’ big
win, 39-14 (October 18, 1924). [Grange, see archives, ran back
the opening kickoff 95 yards and then scored on runs of 67, 56
and 44 yards.]
5. Babe Didrikson (July 16, 1932), winning six gold medals at
the women’s AAU nationals. She also broke four world records
that day.
6. Johnny Vander Meer (June 11-15, 1938). Consecutive no-
hitters.
7. Wilt Chamberlain scoring 100 points (March 2, 1962).
8. Cy Young (1890-1911), 511 wins.
9. Edwin Moses (September 2, 1977-June 4, 1987) and his 107-
race winning streak in the 400-meter hurdles that commenced a
year after he won the gold medal in the event at the ’76
Olympics.
10. Byron Nelson (March 8-August 4, 1945) for his 11 straight
PGA Tour victories.
11. Wayne Gretzky for his career, 1979-1999, and his 2,857
points.
12. Secretariat (June 9, 1973). Winning the Belmont by a record
31 lengths to capture the Triple Crown.
13. Paavo Nurmi (July 10, 1924) for winning the 1,500 meters
and the 5,000 within a span of 70 minutes at the Paris Olympics.
You know, I didn’t realize the races were that close to each
other. Awesome, dude.
14. Mark Spitz (August 28-September 4, 1972) and his seven
gold medals in Munich.
15. Bob Beamon (October 18, 1968) for his spectacular long-
jump of 29’ 2 1’2” at the Mexico City Olympics. He beat the
world record by 21 ¾ inches!
16. Ben Hogan (April 9-July 10, 1953). Four years after an auto
accident that nearly killed him, Hogan won the Masters, the U.S.
Open and the British Open. He skipped the PGA because it
overlapped with the British Open.
17. Bob Baun (April 23, 1964). “Toronto defenseman Bob Baun
came off the ice late in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals against
Detroit after a Gordie Howe slap shot fractured his right ankle.
He told a trainer to tape him up, then scored in overtime. Baun
spent the next 48 hours ducking the team doctor, then played half
the game in Toronto’s 4-0 win in Game 7.”
18. Greg LeMond (July 23, 1989). LeMond raced the final Paris
segment of the Tour de France faster than any cyclist ever had in
making up ground that no one thought was possible as he
captured the event.
19. Bill Walton (March 26, 1973). In the NCAA championship
game, Walton scored 44 points on 21-of-22 field goal attempts in
UCLA’s 87-66 defeat of Memphis State.
20. Richard Petty (1960-1984) for his NASCAR record 200
career wins. [Hey, I love Petty and all, but it’s not quite as
spectacular as it seems. Someday I’ll go into the specifics.]
Nets / Devils
Can these two teams that play out of the New Jersey
Meadowlands, next to the home of the mosquito, capture their
respective titles? The seven prior times we’ve had the same city
in both the NBA and NHL Finals it didn’t happen.
1957: Boston – Celtics won NBA title; Bruins lost in Cup Finals
1958: Boston – Celtics and Bruins both lost
1972: New York – Rangers and Knicks both lost
1974: Boston – Celtics won; Bruins lost
1980: Philadelphia – 76ers and Flyers lost
1992: Chicago – Bulls won; Blackhawks lost
1994 – New York: Rangers won; Knicks lost (thanks to Patrick
Ewing! John Starks didn’t help either, if I recall)
[Source: The Star-Ledger]
“Big Train”
So the other day I make note of baseball great Walter “The Big
Train” Johnson and immediately receive an irate note from Harry
K. in Toronto. “How could you not know that the real ”Big
Train” is Lionel Conacher?” Harry wrote. Yeah, yeah, I replied.
But HK does have a point. To wit:
Lionel Conacher is possibly Canada’s Greatest Athlete.
Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame
Canadian Football Hall of Fame (Toronto Argonauts)
Hockey Hall of Fame (12 years in the NHL)
Canadian Sports Hall of Fame
Amateur wrestling champion
Played for Triple-A championship Toronto Maple Leaf baseball
team in 1926.
Undefeated light-heavyweight boxer
And, member of the Canadian House of Commons.
But he died of a heart attack in 1954, playing softball.
Stuff
–Last time I noted that a Sherpa had broken the record for
climbing Mt. Everest from the final base camp. But another,
Lakba Gelu Sherpa (that’s how they list their names….and who
am I to make fun of it) did the climb in under 11 hours, two
better than the previous guy. Geezuz, what do they have these
days, a carpeted staircase? Also, the first black reached the
summit, a South African game warden, clearly searching for the
elusive Woolly Mammoth.
[If you are new to the site, you can check the archives for my
story on Edmund Hillary.]
–U.S. News & World Report has a piece in the current issue
concerning California Rep. Linda Sanchez, who “tossed her
cookies” during the House vote on the tax cut. “Sanchez,
described by observers as tipsy, rushed off the House floor to a
balcony and threw up as a doorman held her.”
A spokeswoman said she caught her heel on the floor and fell,
bruising her back. Yup, that’s what made her nauseous, the staff
claims, not booze. You’re reading Bar Chat.
–Good for Philadelphia 76ers coach Larry Brown, who left after
six seasons. Would you want to put up with Allen Iverson’s off-
court B.S.?
–In Lancashire, England, a bull escaped from a local auction
mart and “ran amok in a Lancashire antique shop,” destroying
some valuable items and flinging a woman around (she’s OK).
Unfortunately, the bull was destroyed and we assume chopped
up, so now his Mad Cow disease-ridden parts are working their
way through the food chain. [The rest of the media jumped on
the story and said it was a “china” shop for added effect. But
here at Bar Chat, it’s the truth that matters.]
–Wow, I need to stop getting on the Detroit Tigers, or at least
mention the San Diego Padres in the same breath. I mean to tell
ya, the Padres suck, too.
Detroit: 13-38
San Diego: 15-38
*As of 5/29/03
–Well, Roger Clemens didn’t win his 300th yet, but the debate in
these parts is whether or not he is the best pitcher of his era, say
post-1950. Hell, I can’t stand the guy, but how can you argue
with six Cy Youngs, six ERA titles, six 20-win seasons and a
.660 career winning percentage, along with being #3 on the
career strikeout list?
Johnny Mac reminds me that Clemens was also drafted out of
high school by the Mets (meaning he would have come up with
Dwight Gooden), but opted instead to go to the University of
Texas.
–Johnny also tells me that the other day the Yankees had bat
night. So check this out. The security guards pat you down
entering the stadium, confiscating pen knives and such, then
hand you a freakin’ club and point you towards the beer vendor.
–In the June 2 issue of the Weekly Standard, Arnold Beichman
has a piece on JFK and his recklessness. Beichman relates that
he once was told by Arthur Goldberg, then secretary of labor,
how and where Kennedy’s sex exploits took place in Manhattan.
JFK used the Carlyle Hotel on Madison and E. 76th Street,
“where he could enjoy the privacy not available at the White
House. Kennedy stayed in the Carlyle’s huge penthouse, (with a
great view of Central Park). The lady of choice would arrive –
perhaps after a cocktail party hosted by Henry Fonda at an East
Side brownstone.”
The reporters were then told by press secretary Pierre Salinger
that “the lid was on,” meaning there would be no more breaking
news the rest of the day, i.e., make yourselves scarce. “The
assignation,” Goldberg told Beichman, “would actually take
place in rooms on the floor below the penthouse, where the
chosen lady could arrive unseen by the Secret Service guards
stationed outside the penthouse doors.”
Kennedy would then use a back stairway. And now you
know….just a small portion of the rest of the story.
–John Haigney died. He was the former CEO of Rheingold
Corp., makers of Rheingold Beer. Of course we honor all the
suds heroes of yesteryear at Bar Chat.
Top 3 songs for the week of 5/31/69: #1 “Get Back” (The
Beatles) #2 “Love (Can Make You Happy)” (Mercy) #3
“Aquarius / Let The Sunshine In” (The 5th Dimension)
And for our graduating seniors….from the Four Freshmen, as
popularized by the Beach Boys.
“Graduation Day”
There’s a time for joy
A time for tears
A time we’ll treasure through the years
We’ll remember always
Graduation day
At the senior prom
We danced ‘til three
And there you gave your heart to me
We’ll remember always
Graduation day
Though we leave in sorrow
All the joys we’ve known
We can face tomorrow
Knowing we’ll never walk alone
When the ivy walls
Are far behind
No matter where our paths may wind
We’ll remember always
Graduation day
We’ll remember always
Graduation (day) day!
[OK, all together now….tell your boss I gave you permission.]
NBA Quiz Answers: 1) Scoring: 1970-71 Milwaukee
Bucks…Kareem, 31.7 ppg; Oscar Robertson, 19.4; Bob
Dandridge, 18.4; Jon McGlocklin, 15.8; Greg Smith, 11.7.
[McGlocklin was a bomber and hit .535% of his field goal
attempts. Imagine him that year with the 3-point line. Fyi…
Bob Boozer averaged 9.1 ppg.] 2) Scoring: 1978-79 Seattle
Supersonics….Gus Williams, 19.2 ppg; Dennis Johnson, 15.9;
Jack Sikma, 15.6; Fred Brown, 14.0 (off the bench); Lonnie
Shelton, 13.5; John Johnson, 11.0. [“Downtown” Freddie Brown
was another player who wasn’t able to take advantage of the 3-
point line until it was instituted the following season.]
Next Bar Chat, Tuesday.
