Sports Fact and Book Rec of the Day 12/27/2007

12/27/2000:
Returning to the National Hockey League after three and a half years, Mario Lemieux adds to his lustrous legacy before an adoring crowd at the Igloo in Pittsburgh. He assists on a goal by Jaromir Jagr only 33 seconds into the game, adds another assist and a goal of his own later as he leads the Penguins past Toronto, 5-0. After ostensibly leaving hockey for good in 1997 after a series of medical problems (Hodgkin's disease, a bad back, fatigue), Lemieux was elected to the Hall of Fame and then headed an ownership group to buy the Pittsburgh franchise. Now he steps out of the boardroom to help resuscitate them on the ice and at the gate.

Birthdays:
Nolan Richardson b. 1941
Roy White b. 1943
Andre Tippett b. 1959
Jim Leyritz b. 1963
Deuce McAllister b. 1978

One of the finest and most incisive portraits of a chef ever written,” says Anthony Bourdain (Kitchen Confidential) of this story of Bernard Loiseau. Loiseau was a legend in France—rich, acclaimed, adored. So why did he take his own life? Journalist Chelminski uncovers the intense lifestyle of a three-star chef.

THE PERFECTIONIST: LIFE AND DEATH IN HAUTE CUISINE, by Rudolph Chelminski (Gotham, 2005)