Baseball Quiz: Name the top ten, active, in hits. Answer below.
John Finn, Medal of Honor Recipient
Retired Navy officer John Finn died the other day. He was 100, the oldest surviving recipient of the Medal of Honor and the only recipient still alive among those who received the medal for actions during the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Dec. 7, 1941…as reported by Tony Perry of the Los Angeles Times.
“Rousted from bed by the explosions that chaotic morning in Hawaii, Finn immediately manned a machine gun and began firing at the Japanese attack planes that swooped low over the naval air station at Kaneohe Bay on their way to their primary target, the U.S. planes and ships at Pearl Harbor.
“ ‘I loved the Navy,’ he often told reporters, ‘and that day I was just furious because the Japanese caught us napping and made us pay for it.’
“Wounded numerous times by bullets and shrapnel, Finn refused to be evacuated. His leadership and courage gave heart to dazed sailors to begin fighting back against the new enemy….
“When the attack began, Finn found a .50-caliber machine gun [Ed. another report I read said .30-caliber] in the armory and mounted it on an instruction platform, which provided him with no protection. Despite his wounds, he kept firing and reloading for more than two hours.”
Finn later remembered: “I got shot in the left arm and shot in the left foot, broke the bone. I had shrapnel blows in my chest and belly and right elbow and right thumb. Some were just scratches. My scalp got cut, and everybody thought I was dying: Oh, Christ, the old chief had the top of his head knocked off! I had 28, 29 holes in me that were bleeding. I was walking around on one heel. I was barefooted on that coral dust. My left arm didn’t work. It was just a big ball hanging down.”
“ ‘It was only by specific orders that he was persuaded to leave his post to seek medical attention,’ according to the Medal of Honor citation. ‘Following first aid treatment, although obviously suffering much pain and moving with great difficulty, he returned to the squadron area and actively supervised the rearming of returning planes.’”
It’s not known if Finn actually shot down any planes. He would go on to serve aboard several ships, including aircraft carriers, until he left active duty in 1947.
Ten of the 15 servicemen who received the Medal of Honor for their actions at Pearl Harbor died in the attack, including the commander of the Arizona. Four of the 15 survived the war. The other, Cmdr. Cassin Young, died in the battle for Guadalcanal.
So I have a hankering to get to the Dwight D. Eisenhower library in Abilene, Kansas, and in looking up the site for it over the weekend I just thought I’d share the opening to his biography as posted there.
“On December 12, 1941, just five days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Brigadier General Dwight D. Eisenhower received the phone call that would alter the course of his life forever. At the time, Eisenhower was at the top of his professional form; competent in his work and remarkably self-confident in his demeanor. Since returning from the Philippines in late 1939, he had completed a series of stateside assignments that fulfilled his deep-seated desire to work directly with troops. In June of 1941, he had been transferred here, to Ft. Sam Houston, where it had all begun some 26 years before. On the other end of the line was the voice of Colonel Walter Bedell Smith, secretary of the General Staff, insisting that ‘The Chief,’ General George C. Marshall, wanted him in Washington, immediately.
“With apprehension and dread at the prospect of returning to a staff job and sitting out the war, Eisenhower instructed his aide to pack a small duffel, assuring Mamie he wouldn’t be gone long. When Eisenhower arrived at the Army Chief of Staff’s office in Washington, D.C., Marshall took him aside and delivered a 20-minute briefing on the status of the United States military situation in the Pacific. When he had finished, General Marshall had just one question: ‘What should be our general line of action?’ Eisenhower, momentarily taken aback, asked for a few hours and a desk; sat down and typed ‘Steps to Be Taken,’ and began to think it through….
“As a result of that December 12 summons to Washington, Eisenhower was transferred to the War Plans Division in Washington, D.C., where Marshall tested his abilities with an amazing array of responsibilities in rapid succession. The Army Chief of Staff was impressed with Eisenhower’s thinking, organizational, and people skills; in turn, Eisenhower was promoted to Major General by March of 1942. Eisenhower’s prediction to Mamie – that he would not be gone long, had been ironic at best.”
Well, I told you how when I went through the World War II Museum last week that you really gain an appreciation for Ike’s greatness through the steps taken and his caring for the troops. C-Span’s recent “Historian’s Survey of Presidential Leadership” places Eisenhower in the top ten, and ranks him fifth in the category of “Moral Authority,” bested only by Washington, Lincoln, and the two Roosevelts.
—Dario Franchitti led 155 of 200 laps to win his second Indy 500, but what a horrifying crash on the last lap as Mike Conway went flying into the fence, just barely missing going in head first, and then landing on his side, rather than upside down. Back in the 60s, he’s dead even as it played out. But the safety features in these cars today are amazing. Danica Patrick finished sixth but was never really a factor.
[Car owner Chip Ganassi became the first to win both the Daytona 500 and Indy in the same year.]
—Kurt Busch won the Coca-Cola 600 as NASCAR slides in popularity. SI’s Selena Roberts had a good point this week. It just hasn’t been the same since NASCAR eliminated tracks like Rockingham and North Wilkesboro (the two venues I went to a total of four times) in favor of stale western locations that may make more money but also contribute to the sport rapidly losing its roots.
–So it’s Lakers vs. Celtics in the NBA, Phoenix and Orlando going down, and regarding L.A., as Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News put it, “It was because of Kobe, who makes the kind of shots now, game after playoff game, that Michael Jordan made and LeBron James does not.” Boston has 17 NBA titles, the Lakers 15.
*Incredibly, Phil Jackson is now 47-0 in playoff series when his team wins Game 1, something to keep in the back of your mind as the finals get underway.
–In the Stanley Cup Finals, Chicago took the first game over Philly, 6-5.
*The NHL also announced that this coming New Year’s Day, the now annual outdoor classic will feature Pittsburgh and Washington at the Steelers’ Heinz Field, thus pitting Sidney Crosby against Alex Ovechkin. Very cool. There is also talk of a second outdoor game next season, possibly Feb. 20 in Calgary between the Flames and Canadiens.
Just weeks after Dallas Braden’s perfect game, the Phillies’ Roy Halladay fired one, making it 20 in baseball history.
But the bigger story this weekend, except for Phils fans and the Halladay family, was Los Angeles Angels slugger Kendry Morales breaking his leg while celebrating his game-winning grand slam on Saturday. He is out at least two months, if not the season, which puts the final touch, already, on the Angels’ season. Teammate Torii Hunter summed it up, “This is bad.”
Morales was approaching the mob at home plate, flung his helmet to the side, and then leaped …but he slipped on the plate and landed on his turned ankle, all 225 pounds of him. It leaves you shaking your head, because at the same time everyone has wondered when there would be an accident like this during the rowdy walk-off celebrations.
Meanwhile, Mets fans have their own frustrations. First they won five straight against the Yankees and Phillies, including an historic 3-game sweep of Philadelphia where the Mets pitching staff became just the third in baseball history to shutout a first place team, 27 innings worth. It was also the first time the Mets had swept a 3-game series in such a fashion since 1969.
But then the Mets travel to Milwaukee to face the struggling Brewers and lose 2 of 3.
Separately, on behalf of all baseball fans, I’d like to thank the Cleveland Indians organization for staying with Chief Wahoo. I don’t have any Native American readers so it’s no skin off my nose that it remains the most politically incorrect mascot in the history of sports.
–Florida International’s Garrett Wittels extended his hitting streak to 54 straight and now has a chance to keep it going in the NCAA tournament. Robin Ventura holds the Division I record of 58 straight games set in 1987.
–Big goings on in college basketball. The NCAA is looking into the case of former Kentucky player Eric Bledsoe, who is a possible lottery selection in the upcoming NBA draft. It seems that two years ago, Bledsoe didn’t have the minimum grades to get a Division I scholarship so he changed schools and, presto! He was a Wildcat.
As Pete Thamel and Thayer Evans of the New York Times reported, “Bledsoe’s academic makeover and the extra benefits he apparently received could be another blow to Kentucky Coach John Calipari, who led teams at Massachusetts and Memphis that had their records and Final Four appearances expunged after rules violations were found under his watch.”
Bledsoe’s high school coach at Parker in Birmingham allegedly paid Bledsoe’s rent for a house he moved into with his mother. Bledsoe then led Parker to the Alabama Class 5A title game.
“A copy of Bledsoe’s high school transcript from his first three years reveals that it would have taken an improbable academic makeover – a jump from about a 1.9 grade point average in core courses to just under a 2.5 during his senior year – for Bledsoe to…qualify for a scholarship.”
“A college coach who recruited Bledsoe said that (Maurice) Ford, (the Parker High coach), explicitly told his coaching staff that he needed a specific amount of money to let Bledsoe sign with that university.”
The thing is, Eric Bledsoe’s story was potentially a good one. He did not in any way have a stable life, often living with friends or relatives, while his mother held menial jobs. And his high school closed after his junior year so he had to find a new place to play just as the scouts had discovered him.
But then while his teammates were mostly transferring to another local public school, Bledsoe’s mother said Eric was going to California. Then he ended up at Parker High School. Birmingham and state athletic officials were suspicious and weren’t going to let him play based on their transfer rule, but he was cleared nonetheless.
Meanwhile, as word of Bledsoe’s play spread, college coaches tried to get hold of his transcript but Maurice Ford wouldn’t give it up.
For his part, Ford brags about his players and academics, but a teacher at Parker said the coach never cared about academics. To be continued…
Then we have the story of the UConn men’s basketball program, which the NCAA accused of eight major infractions, with investigators citing hundreds of improper calls and texts from UConn staff to recruits. Among the accusations:
“Members of the men’s basketball staff exchanged at least 160 impermissible telephone calls and at least 191 impermissible text messages with recruits.”
Assistants Beau Archibald and Patrick Sellers both misled investigators by providing false information.
“In 2007 and 2008 members of the men’s basketball staff provided 26 impermissible complimentary admissions or discretionary tickets to high school basketball coaches…”
“The university, between 2005 and 2009 failed to adequately monitor the conduct and administration of the men’s basketball program.”
The allegations are a result of a 15-month investigation into the recruiting of former player Nate Miles, who was expelled from UConn in October 2008 without ever playing a game. Miles was charged with violating a restraining order in a case involving a woman who claimed he assaulted her. In other words, Miles was bad news.
UConn will be appearing before the NCAA on Oct. 15 to respond. Should the school’s own investigation validate the charges, then UConn has to impose penalties on itself.
“One thing we learned long ago about UConn: The state university doesn’t care much what people think of its ethical or academic standards, as long as the men’s basketball team wins games and produces giant revenue streams.
“This month, in particular, we have been witness to the Huskies’ disinterest in sporting principles. At the same time that the NCAA was completing its investigation and readying final charges for recruiting violations against Jim Calhoun’s tainted program, the school rushed to rehire the guy for $13 million over five years out of a state budget hammered by deficits.
“Then Friday, athletic director Jeffrey Hathaway announced the resignation of two scapegoats, assistant coach Patrick Sellers and director of basketball operations Beau Archibald, who will take the fall for Calhoun.
“Calhoun’s graduation rate historically hovers below the disgraceful 30% mark – and, no, not all his players go straight to the NBA. Then the NCAA this week charged, among eight allegations, that Calhoun himself had failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance.
“Not surprisingly, Calhoun issued a mea culpa that was more about mea than culpa.
“ ‘It’s not exactly anywhere near the high point of my career,’ Calhoun said. ‘As a matter of fact it’s certainly one of the lowest points any time you’re accused of doing something. It’s a very serious matter. Conversely, I’m not defeated. I don’t get defeated by things.’”
–And then there is this “Superstar Summit” that NBA free agents LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Joe Johnson are holding to talk about their collective status.
Knicks president Donnie Walsh, who promises to be active in the LeBron sweepstakes, as well as for the others, said, “I didn’t take it that (Wade) was recruiting all these guys, just that they were gonna check with each other to see what each other were thinking, so that, let’s say, six of them aren’t going to the same team.”
The NBA said that any meeting of the superstars did not violate tampering guidelines, but as Phil W. commented to me, “Why isn’t this collusion? It is when owners get together.” Good point, Phil. Home version of Bar Chat the Game headed your way, whenever we get around to making it.
Your editor believes this whole deal is absurd, and yet another reason to despise the NBA, the most overpaid group of individuals in the history of mankind…and generally the biggest bunch of jerks and a-holes. I mean how many of the guys that you see on television would you like to have a beer with? Maybe one a team? Personally, assuming I could get Tim Duncan to open up a little, he’s a good guy. David Robinson would have been a great one to sit down with because the man should be freakin’ president of the United States, for crying out loud. [You know, I’m going to have to restart my efforts on this front. Match up David Robinson vs. George W. Bush or Barack Obama. It’s not even close! Dammit…I want one more good president before I die!]
—Duke plays upstart Notre Dame for the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse title on Monday (3:30 pm. ET, ESPN). Duke nipped Virginia 14-13, while the unseeded Fighting Irish defeated Cornell 12-7.
“In what appears to be an all-time professional record, Canadian Tour pro Jamie Kureluk shot 25 for nine holes on Tuesday at the RBC Insurance Alberta Open. His back-nine scorecard at the Carnmoney Golf Club near Calgary showed seven birdies and two eagles, or 11 under par. With a round of 61, he won the tournament, which ended early on account of snow. Corey Pavin holds the PGA Tour record of 26 for nine holes, but that was on a par-34 nine at the 2006 U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee.”
—Phil Mickelson missed the cut at the Colonial this weekend. Zach Johnson picked up his 7th Tour title.
–At the Senior PGA Tour Championship, on what looked like an awesome course outside Denver, Tom Lehman bested Fred Couples and David Frost in sudden death. Frost’s wines, by the way, are supposed to be the equal of Greg Norman’s.
–Dave Anderson of the New York Times on Tiger Woods, and his return to golf this week at the Memorial following his neck injury; Tiger saying he’s fine after physical therapy, anti-inflammatory medication and other stuff, as he stated on his Web site.
“Is (Tiger) in denial regarding the origin of his neck injury? Woods insists that what he described as an inflamed neck facet joint has ‘zero’ connection to his early-morning crash last November into a fire hydrant and a tree….
“Just asking, but how can he be so sure there is no connection?
“After his withdrawal from the Players Championship, Woods said the neck pain began two weeks before the Masters, once he had resumed practicing after a five-month absence from the tour to sort out his personal life….
“But isn’t it possible that his ‘ramped-up’ practice swings aggravated whatever damage his neck had sustained in the crash?
“And isn’t it possible that he insisted there was ‘zero’ connection to the crash to stem speculation that there was a connection?….
“Whatever this week and the future hold, one respected New York orthopedist said he thought Woods’ inflamed neck joint had its origin in the crash….
“At the Memorial, his neck will be under surveillance as never before.”
—Wake Forest has a rich golf heritage…Arnold Palmer, Curtis Strange, Lanny Wadkins, Jay Haas, and Scott Hoch being among the major players who went on to PGA Tour success. But the program has fallen on hard times and it is pathetic that the Deacs didn’t qualify for the NCAA Championship, seeing as 30 schools do. It’s why some of us pull big time for recent alum Bill Haas to carry the torch when few others (with the possible exception of Webb Simpson) seem capable of doing so these days.
–We note the passing of actor Dennis Hopper, who died at the age of 74 of prostate cancer. He is to be buried in Taos, New Mexico, the site of which I imagine will draw a bit of attention.
Born in Dodge City, Kansas, 1936, Hopper’s true start was in “Rebel Without a Cause,” 1955, in which he met James Dean, “the greatest actor I ever saw. I never saw anyone that could even touch him,” as Hopper told Larry King in 2005.
But after an uneven stretch, Hopper did “Easy Rider,” which followed on the heels of films such as “Bonnie and Clyde” and “The Graduate,” which were the start of the Baby Boomer generation’s influence on Hollywood.
Of course Hopper is also known for his wild booze and drug-filled days. But it’s the films, including my own favorite, the crazed photographer in “Apocalypse Now,” that will long be remembered.
“For more than 50 years, Dennis Hopper brought an extra edge to every role because some little unspoken something told us that maybe he really was as nuts as the guy he was playing….
“(James) Dean and the young Marlon Brando created the restless-young-man template to which restless young men still aspire today, and in many ways Hopper was the young man who carried that torch through the years, after Dean died and Brando got simply strange.
“To the extent the movie rebels of the early 1950s had a philosophy, it was summarized when Brando’s character in ‘The Wild One’ was asked what he was rebelling against and he replied, ‘Whatcha got?’
“Hopper spent much of his movie career tacitly addressing both questions. From his motorcycle drug-runner in ‘Easy Rider’ to his bizarre and scary psycho in ‘Blue Velvet’ up through the drug-addled music man he played recently in ‘Crash,’ almost every one of his roles asked, ‘Whatcha got?’
“Nor did he get an answer, which after a while became the answer. In a world where so much is so screwed up, Hopper’s characters seem to be suggesting, someone has to say no, things are not all right.”
“When he wrote and produced (it), he saw something all the big boys in Hollywood could not. ‘Easy Rider’ earned $40 million on a $380,000 budget, launched Jack Nicholson, spawned a boatload of cheap independent flicks and was one of the few mass entertainment productions of the late 1960s that seemed to understand the restlessness it was tapping into.”
“Somewhere in my strange career, someone has liked something.”
–In a recent poll of sports fans by USA TODAY, most are tired of the steroids issue, as am I, but I just want to make sure that if any of the big stars were juicing that it comes out so everyone can then make their own judgment on where that person falls in the history of their particular sport.
So now, with the Floyd Landis allegations, Lance Armstrong is once again under the microscope, only this time, as numerous reports have put it the last few days, Armstrong won’t be able to merely deflect the charges. Some big guns, including Jeff Novitzky, top cop of the BALCO case, are going after him.
It turns out, as reported by the Daily News, that Landis is “talking and talking – and talking – to Novitzky, ‘daily, several times a day.’”
And in a feature piece in the current Sports Illustrated by Austin Murphy and Selena Roberts, they say Armstrong is very much the focus of Novitzky. Plus, “Recently Landis sent a text message to a friend with this prediction about Lance. ‘Big Tex is going to jail.’”
The complicating factor for Armstrong is that Landis’ charges are from the time the two were riding for the U.S. Postal Service, which “provided a reported $8 million to $10 million a year to cover the costs of its cycling team.”
Landis also mentions Armstrong’s former wife, Kristin, as having knowledge of one facet or another of the issues being investigated, so will she talk?
Lance Armstrong was part owner of the team. Did he pressure his teammates, like Landis, to take controlled substances?
Americans might be tired of the steroid issue, but if Lance Armstrong did indeed use PEDs, he needs to be nailed once and for all.
–Couldn’t give a darn about the death of child star Gary Coleman at the age of 42, seeing as I didn’t once see Diff’rent Strokes. In fact, I never heard the catchphrase “Whatchoo talkin’ ‘bout, Willis?” But there’s no doubt he was a presence during his 8-year run on television, and he reportedly earned $64,000 per week at his peak.
Coleman’s death, though, comes as his sidekick on the show, brother Willis, aka actor Todd Bridges, has just written a book titled “From Diff’rent Strokes to the Mean Streets to the Life I Always Wanted.”
“You may be wondering: Why, exactly, in such a magazine as this, is there a review about the life and times of former child actor Todd Bridges, who played older brother Willis Jackson to the adorable Arnold (Gary Coleman) in the late 1970s/early ‘80s sitcom Diff’rent Strokes? The answer can be found on page 104:
“ ‘When I was sixteen, I got to be a guest on the sixth season of Circus of the Stars…So I got to appear with the hot young stars of the day, like my good friend Scott Baio, and one of the most beautiful girls at the time, Brooke Shields.
“ ‘My event was trapeze, and that was the best, because I got to work with a bunch of sexy women in leotards…Well, we were shooting one day, and I looked over and Brooke Shields was on the trampoline…So I rolled up on her, and I tried to be all smooth.
[Bridges’ Diff’rent Strokes costar Dana Plato] was on Circus of the Stars that season, too, and she came up right then and pulled me aside.
“ ‘My friend wants you to go to my house with us,’ she said.
“ ‘Can’t you see I’m talking to Brooke?’ I said. ‘I’m trying to get her number.’
“ ‘But my friend wants you to go to my house with us,’ she said again.
“ ‘Obviously I wasn’t getting her meaning, so she broke it down for me.
“ ‘My friend wants to have sex with you and me at the same time,’ she said.
[Dana Plato died of a drug overdose in 1999. Bridges has had all manner of drug issues himself, but he’s trying to get his life together these days. The book review itself is positive.]
“Canadian climber Luc Benoit had worked his way about 15,000 feet up Mount McKinley’s steep and treacherous West Rib on a gorgeous Wednesday evening when he drove his ice ax into some mixed rock and ice to hoist himself along.
“Benoit, who was climbing alone, fell backward and tumbled an estimated 1,000 feet down the face before a narrow, flat section stopped him. Though shaken and bruised, with an especially sore shoulder, Benoit was a lucky man.
“ ‘I’m surprised,’ Denali mountaineering ranger Kevin Wright said on Friday. ‘Several people familiar with the route told me, ‘How can you possibly fall that far and not go all the way to the bottom to your death?’ You have to hit everything perfectly.’
“Not only was Benoit, 40, alive, he was healthy enough to descend another 1,000 feet to a safer area to spend the night in minus-5 degree temperatures. While he lost much of his gear, Benoit still had his sleeping bag and his stove. Early the next morning, he radioed the Denali mountaineering rangers.”
The helicopter pilots did heroic work in getting him off.
–I didn’t have a chance the last time to note the passing of Art Linkletter, 97. Born Gordon Arthur Kelly in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, he went on to become a great American success story, even though as critics described his television career, “There is nothing greatly impressive, one way or the other, about his appearance, mannerisms, or his small talk.”
It was on the show “House Party,” which ran on television from 1952 to 1969, where he became best known. This was a combination straight talk show with a little “Let’s Make a Deal” type fare. The highlight was when he would interview children between the ages of 5 and 10, which caused many an embarrassing moment, such as when a little girl said her mother would go to PTA meetings to get drunk.
Another, as described in Linkletter’s New York Times obituary, was:
“After one boy revealed that his father was a policeman who arrested lots of burglars, Mr. Linkletter asked if his mother ever worried about the risks. ‘Naw, she thinks it’s great,’ he answered. ‘He brings home rings and bracelets and jewelry almost every week.’”
–Guys, some of you have missed my point on Super Bowl 2014. I said way back that I love watching bad weather football as much as the next guy, but it’s not about this, or that some great football games were played in bad weather. I’m well aware of the Ice Bowl, for example (it’s my first major sports memory as a kid), but back in those days fans probably paid $5 for their ticket!
The point is that you are asking people today to shell out the following:
$1,000 minimum for a seat [in almost all cases]
$1,000 for airfare…fares will be jacked for this one
$2,400 for four nights lodging…$1,800 three nights
$500 for food
$250 for transportation, minimum
Well guess what? The NFL is already acknowledging that the game could be postponed! But not exactly for the reasons you might think.
“NFL senior VP of special events Frank Supovitz told the New York Post that a giant snowstorm that lands on game day could prevent the league and its partners from providing the highest level of security that the government demands for the Super Bowl.
“Supovitz told the paper that the NFL must establish a ‘hard perimeter’ around the Super Bowl to satisfy requirements for a Level I national security event. If many inches – or feet – of snow fall on game day, it would be difficult to complete the necessary snow removal in the vicinity of the stadium.
“So the league has considered the possibility of a delay or postponement, Supovitz told the Post.”
By the way, the official Bar Chat weather bureau has issued a Winter Storm Watch for that day. A Winter Storm Watch simply means that conditions are favorable for a significant snow event. Stay tuned to your favorite Internet provider and this site for updates.
–So you know how I mentioned that both Matt Lauer and a woman Alexis Houston vehemently denied they were having an affair…and how I said Alexis seemed pretty hot? Can I scrub that remark?
Why? you might ask. I’ll tell you why. From the New York Post:
“Alexis Houston – the singer who held a press conference last week to announce she never had sex with ‘Today’ show host Matt Lauer – had some interesting yesterdays. She used to be a man who called himself Wellington Houston.
“Whitney Houston sued Wellington (whose original name was Stuart) in 1996 because he was claiming to be her cousin. Whitney alleged that Wellington used the false relationship to defraud an elderly New York doctor of $100,000 using credit cards and forged checks, the AP reported at the time.”
But Wellington had sex-change surgery three years ago. Goodness gracious. Just when you think you know someone….
1. Tapas in Barcelona
2. Pasta in Naples
3. Doner Kebab in Istanbul
4. Steamed Dumplings in Shanghai
5. Feijoada in Rio de Janeiro…don’t know this one. “Dark and spicy stew built upon a foundation of black beans and pork.”
6. Gumbo in New Orleans
7. Couscous in Casablanca
8. Nasi Goreng in Penang, Malaysia…fried rice with chicken or seafood…I can get that around the corner from my place.
9. Curry in Mumbai…now with this one I can understand why some say there is only one place to get real curry
10. Hot dog in New York City
*Shu and I would have to put pulled pork barbecue on this list somewhere. Carolina ‘cue, that is. Preferably at a NASCAR race under a broiling sun with frosty cans of domestic. [72 degrees and partly cloudy is asking for too much.] I hold the record for pulled pork sandwiches at North Wilkesboro, which will never be broken it seems.
—Southampton beach was named No. 1 in the country, according to the 20th annual survey conducted by Florida International University’s Laboratory for Coastal Research. No. 2 is Siesta Beach in Sarasota. No. 3, Coronado Beach, Calif., No. 4 Cape Hatteras, N.C., No. 5, Main Beach in East Hampton, L.I., No. 6 Kahanamoku Beach, Waikiki, Honolulu, No. 7 Coast Guard Beach in Cape Cod, Mass., No. 8 Beachwalker Park in Kiawah Island, S.C., No. 9 Hamoa Beach in Maui, and No. 10 Cape Florida State Park in Key Biscayne, Fla.
–Vienna was voted “World’s Most Livable City” for a second straight year by Mercer, a London-based investment services company. The annual survey looks at 221 cities, taking into account political, social and economic climate; as well as medical care, education, public transportation, etc. Vienna is followed by Zurich and Geneva.
Of all the major cities I’ve been to, Vienna is my favorite as well, and I could easily live there, though I’ve been to some of the suburbs and they can get a little creepy (a Nazi element, you understand, that is more easily covered over in Vienna proper).
The top U.S. city was Honolulu at No. 31, followed by San Francisco (No. 33) and Boston (No. 37). Beirut was No. 172.
The following material is rated ‘M’ for mature audiences only. Children under 13 need to immediately turn off the computer, iPad, whatever, and go outside and play for 10 minutes.
–In New York, a financial advisor by the name of Kenneth Starr was arrested the other day for taking celebrities’ money and using it for his own gains. But it’s his wife that has captured the attention of the media, a former stripper for Scores by the name of Diane Passage.
“(If) Kenneth Starr thought he was the one in control as Diane Passage danced for him at Scores, he was hallucinating.
“ ‘These girls come in with a plan,’ says former Scores owner Eliot Osher. ‘The smart ones have a plan. And that plan is to meet a rich guy and get out.’
“Osher…describes a world where some of the richest men in New York are rendered weak by young women with nothing but their bodies, and the power to seduce.
“ ‘These Masters of the Universe come in, and they think they are the sharks,’ Osher says.
“ ‘But the girls know exactly what they’re doing. And like most dancers in her category, she knows how to talk to these guys. They troll for the big money, sitting by the Presidents’ Club, looking for the high-end customer, a sugar daddy.’
“These are not the $20 dancers out of the fictional Bada Bing of ‘The Sopranos.’
“ ‘The girl may have great boobs and a great ass, but her greatest asset is that she knows how to talk to these men.’
“They make them feel comfortable. They assuage their insecurities. They somehow convince them they are attractive, interesting, funny. That they are loved not for their money or power, but for who they really are.
“ ‘These CEOs are easy prey for a beautiful Scores girl,’ Osher says. ‘They become hypnotized, and follow them around like lost puppy dogs.’”
Huh. Guess my problem was I was hanging out in the Double AA Club rather than the Presidents’ Club….
Mr. Osher, by the way, who worked at Scores for 15 years, said, “We had one guy who spent $2 million a year in the club.”
Here’s one, guys. “Touch her 50 times. If you pass by her 50 times today, touch her 50 times. On her shoulder. On her knee. And her forearm; it’s brimming with pleasurable C-tactile nerve fibers.”
Ye olde C-tactile nerve fibers. I’m thinking that my Dunkin’ Donuts girl might call the cops if I keep going downstairs to touch her shoulder so I need to pass on this one. Plus I’d have to get 50 cups of coffee and that’s a little much.
Here’s another one. “Women said they enjoy compliments about their,” err, err, gotta move to the next one. Sorry.
“Note changes to her appearance.” [I’m the world’s worst at this one, sports fans.]
GND: “With a six-pack of Corona and a puppy. Don’t have those? No problem – the beach is the easiest place to find an interested woman. Just set up a game of bocce or volleyball, or start building a serious sand castle. Then watch for sunbathing babes and invite any who peek at you over their shades.”
OK, guys. You can thank me later.
University of Michigan researchers discovered that Atlanta residents have the highest rate of sex satisfaction (73%), with residents having sex 88 times a year. Lowest? Boston. But then residents of Houston have sex an average of 101 times a year! So if you call a work associate in Houston and their assistant says he or she is unavailable, you could probably draw a certain conclusion.
–After 18 years backing up Jay Leno, bandleader Kevin Eubanks said farewell on Friday. “I don’t think we’ve ever had an argument,” said Leno.
–Sue P. was the first reader to report in that “Sex and the City 2” sucked. In fact I have seen few movies so universally panned, ever…with the New York Post saying only 9% of critics had given the flick a thumbs-up review. Actually, Jennifer Aniston’s “The Bounty Hunter” came in with 8%.
Top 3 songs for the week 5/25/68: #1 “Tighten Up” (Archie Bell & The Drells) #2 “Mrs. Robinson” (Simon and Garfunkel) #2 “A Beautiful Morning” (The Rascals)…and…#4 “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly” (Hugo Montenegro…Clint, my man! And the baddest dude around, Lee Van Cleef! Gotta watch this again soon) #5 “Honey” (Bobby Goldsboro) #6 “Cowboys To Girls” (The Intruders…great tune) #7 “The Unicorn” (The Irish Rovers) #8 “Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing” (Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell) #9 “Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day” (Stevie Wonder) #10 “Do You Know The Way to San Jose” (Dionne Warwick…now that’s a great week in music)
Baseball Quiz Answer: As of a few days ago, the top ten, active, in hits are…
1. Derek Jeter 2807
2. Ken Griffey Jr. 2781
3. Ivan Rodriguez 2751
4. Omar Vizquel 2713
5. A-Roid 2581
6. Manny Ramirez 2522
7. Garret Anderson 2513
8. Johnny Damon 2471 [this surprised me]
9. Chipper Jones 2438
10. Vlad Guerrero 2312
11. Edgar Renteria 2213
12. Todd Helton 2173
13. Miguel Tejada 2163
14. Bobby Abreu 2162
15. Jim Thome 2158
Next Bar Chat…Monday, June 7. [Worked Memorial Day weekend, you understand]
