Sports Fact and Book Rec of the Day 01/24/2008

1/24/1998:
After tying Vancouver's NBA record 23-game losing streak recorded two seasons ago, the Denver Nuggets end their losing ways, beating the Los Angeles Clippers, 99-81. Ironically, the head coach of the Grizzlies at that time, Brian Winters, is now an assistant coach with Denver. The Nuggets' most recent win before this was also against the Clippers, seven weeks ago. Frankly, not too many fans have been agonizing over the 3-8 Nuggets' plight in the Mile High City, what with the Broncos' march to the Super Bowl. Led by John Elway, Denver will beat Green Bay tomorrow, 31-24, at San Diego for their first-ever NFL championship.

Birthdays:
Giorgio Chinaglia b. 1947
Atlee Hammaker b. 1958
Rob Dibble b. 1964
Mary Lou Retton b. 1968
Tshimanga Biakabutuka b. 1974


1982:
The San Francisco 49ers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals, 26-21, in Super Bowl XVI. The game's Most Valuable Player was quarterback Joe Montana, who won the award three times while leading the 49ers to four championships.

"Montana's true value is as the perfect quarterback for the Bill Walsh system, which relies on his ability to stay cool under fire and dodge the first emissary of the pass rush, and his resourcefulness in picking out the one receiver who will inevitably get free." -Paul Zimmerman, January 25, 1982

FIDDLER’S FANCY

Was it the varnish that made a Strad sound so glorious? The wood accidentally soaked in seawater? We still don’t know. But we do know that the Strad’s sound has yet to be equaled. In this smart and engaging book, Faber follows the careers of five violins and one cello down through the centuries and in the process we are treated to a history of Stradivari’s genius. We can also savor the instrument’s development, how violins are made, and a discussion of the musicians who have owned and played some of the 1,000 instruments Stradivari made, of which 600 remain.

STRADIVARI’S GENIUS: FIVE VIOLINS, ONE CELLO, AND THREE CENTURIES OF ENDURING PERFECTION, by Toby Faber (Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2006)