Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 2/20/2009

2/20/1960:
The Auburn Tigers defeat the Kentucky Wildcats for the first time ever at home inside their cozy bandbox gymnasium, the Sports Arena. With four seconds left, Jimmy Fibbe of Auburn (oddly enough, a native of Lexington, Kentucky) steps to the line for two free throws with Auburn down one. He nails both foul shots and John Helmlinger blocks Kentucky's last-gasp shot at the buzzer, ensuring a landmark 61-60 Auburn victory. Auburn's undersized lineup, nicknamed "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," leads the nation in field goal percentage (52.1) and free throw percentage (77.2), wins its first SEC championship and finishes 19-3.

Birthdays:
Roger Penske b. 1937
Phil Esposito b. 1942
Charles Barkley b. 1963
Livan Hernandez b. 1975
Stephon Murbury b. 1977

Packers Fact:
Cornerback Jarrett Bush got the 2007 season off to a good start for the Packers when he caused a fumble that teammate Tracy White recovered in the end zone for a touchdown during a 16-13 victory over the Eagles on Kickoff Weekend in 2007. Bush's big hit came on a punt return just 1:50 into the game.

PEPSI AND CIVIL RIGHTS

In 1946, Pepsi, in its never-ending competition with Coke, hired 12 African Americans to sell their cola to the “Negro market.” What seemed a simple business decision turned out to be a complete change in the way American corporations viewed African Americans. They were given respect as consumers, as a niche market, and as businessmen. The men of Pepsi’s black business team became role models, opening the way for black businessmen and -women who would follow. It may not have the dramatic dazzle of Jackie Robinson’s breaking of the color barrier in baseball, but it’s a story worth telling and well worth reading.

THE REAL PEPSI CHALLENGE: THE INSPIRATIONAL STORY OF BREAKING THE COLOR BARRIER IN AMERICAN BUSINESS, by Stephanie Capparell (Free Press, 2007)

On Maybe the Consul Should Have Just Said No:

CHINA POLICE ENTERED CONSUL "WITH CONSENT"

headline in the Japan Times

JUST PLANE WEIRD

Shortly after a Mongolian Airlines passenger flight landed in Ulan Bator in 2006, four men jumped out of their seats and loudly announced that the plane was being hijacked. “These hooligans went up to the pilots’ cabin and tied up the pilots and threatened four passengers and kept them in the plane,” a passenger later recounted. “They even hit one woman and knocked her down.” The standoff lasted about an hour, until all of the passengers and crew were freed. Only later did airline officials find out that the “hijacking” was actually a secret training exercise conducted by the Mongolian central intelligence agency. The agency argued that announcing it in advance would have ruined the test.

KISSING CAN CAUSE WRINKLES.

LOS PUEBLOS BLANCOS

ANDALUSIA, SPAIN

Arrayed along a popular scenic drive, Los Pueblos Blancos (the White Villages) are arrayed in a countryside of olive groves and steep hills. The Moors built castles high on the cliffs, and the towns grew up around them.