Sports Fact and Book Rec of the Day 12/17/2007

12/17/1967:
The Los Angeles Rams rout Baltimore, 34-10, to win the NFL Coastal Division title, hand the Colts their only loss of the year and knock them out of the playoff picture. The two clubs finish tied atop the Coastal Division at 11-1-2, but since they played a 24-24 tie in their first meeting, the Rams prevail on a total-points-between-the-teams tiebreaker basis. Roman Gabriel completes 18 of 22 passes for 257 yards and three TDs to lead L.A., but Johnny Unitas of the Colts isn't so fortunate-he's sacked seven times by the Rams defensive line, known as the Fearsome Foursome.

Birthdays:
Ray Jablonski b. 1926
Leo Cardenas b. 1938
Bobby Ojeda b. 1957
Vincent Damphousse b. 1967
Takeo Spikes b. 1976


“Siena was going back to Hollywood if it killed her.”

It’s a first line that heralds the start of a book after Jackie Collins’s own heart. When we first meet our heroine, Siena McMahon, she is attempting to be thrown out of her English convent boarding school and make it back to Hollywood, where her family is legendary and where she will become a star. No wry, tender chick lit, this. Adored is a big, brassy saga that sweeps from Europe to America, becoming more glamorous and scandalous with every page. A fun, undemanding escape.

ADORED, by Tilly Bagshawe (Warner, 2005)