Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 3/8-3/10/2009

3/8/1969:
Employing a patient ball-control offense throughout, USC knocks off top-ranked crosstown rival UCLA, 46-44, ending several long Bruins winning streaks. UCLA had won 41 straight games over two seasons, including 25 straight this season, and were 51-0 on their four-year-old home court at Pauley Pavilion. As a precursor, UCLA had struggled to beat USC, 61-55, in double overtime just last night at the Sports Arena. Tonight, however, the Trojans execute Coach Bob Boyd's game plan to perfection, and Ernie Powell hits a 15-foot jump shot with six seconds remaining to win it. The defeat won't stop the Bruins for long. They'll proceed to win their third straight national title later this month, beating Purdue in the finals.

Birthdays:
Mendy Rudolph b. 1926
Dick Allen b. 1942
Jim Rice b. 1953
Buck Williams b. 1960
Jason Elam b. 1970

Addressing the shortage of pure point guards in modern-day-college basketball, Mount St. Mary's head coach Milan Brown remarked: "No one wants to set the table anymore; everyone just wants to eat."

Birthdays:
Jackie Jensen b. 1927
Bert Campaneris b. 1942
Phil Housley b. 1964
Benito Santiago b. 1965
Aaron Boone b. 1973

Packers Fact:
When Brett Favre set the NFL mark for career completions in 2006, the record-breaking pass was caught by former college quarterback Carlyle Holiday.

3/10/2004:
Orlando's Tracy McGrady scores 62 points to lead the Magic to a 108-99 victory over the Washington Bullets at the O-rena. McGrady breaks the Orlando club record (53 by Shaquille O'Neal in 1994), records the highest point total in the NBA in a decade (71 by David Robinson in 1994) and becomes only the 17th different player ever to hit for 60 or more points in one game. Already the defending NBA scoring champion, he'll lead the league again this year with an average of 28.0 ppg.

Birthdays:
Ara Parseghian b. 1923
Leroy Ellis b. 1940
Austin Carr b. 1948
Rod Woodson b. 1965
Shannon Miller b. 1977

Packers Fact:
Defensive tackle Justin Harrell was the Packers' top draft pick in 2007. He was 16th overall choice.

BIRDS IN PERIL

As the population of human beings spreads inexorably across the planet, the lives of songbirds become ever more threatened. Deforestation, pesticides, crop fields instead of wilderness, light pollution, and wind turbines are just some of the hazards that songbirds succumb to. Bridget Stutchbury has written a sad and urgent account of the decline of many songbird species, of their importance beyond the beauty of their music, and what should be done to reverse a deteriorating state of affairs.

SILENCE OF THE SONGBIRDS: HOW WE ARE LOSING THE WORLD’S SONGBIRDS AND WHAT WE CAN DO TO SAVE THEM, by Bridget Stutchbury (Walker & Company, 2007)

ANOTHER CONEY ISLAND OF THE MIND

Gangsters Kid Twist and Gyp the Blood; Trick the Dwarf, a Coney Island performer; Esther, Gyp’s sister and a worker at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory—these are a few of the lively characters populating this kaleidoscopic book. Taking place in 1910 New York, it includes pretty much everything but the tenement sink. Bowery low life, Tamany pols, newsboys, and Coney Island’s Little City (home to 300 midgets) are but some of the attractions that overflow this inventive historical concoction. Dreamland is as gaudy and rousing a read as the legendary amusement park it is named for.

DREAMLAND, by Kevin Baker (Harper Perennial, 2006)

RETURN TO MIDDLE-EARTH

Before Frodo and Bilbo there were Túrin and Niënor, subjects of a tragic story from the First Age of Middle-Earth. Christopher Tolkien, son of J.R.R. Tolkien, gathered up the stray bits and pieces of the tale and molded it into a very satisfying work entirely worthy of sharing shelf space with his father’s classic works. The book contains evocative illustrations by Alan Lee, who worked on the Tolkien movies.

THE CHILDREN OF HÚRIN, by J.R.R. Tolkien; edited by Christopher Tolkien, illustrated by Alan Lee (Houghton Mifflin, 2007)

SUNDAY FUNNIES

One day an auto mechanic was working under a car and some brake fluid accidentally dripped into his mouth. “Wow,” he thought, “that stuff tastes good!” He told a friend about his amazing discovery. “It’s really good,” he said. His friend was concerned but didn’t say anything. The next day the mechanic told his friend he’d drunk an entire cup full of the brake fluid. “It’s great stuff!” A few days later he was up to a bottle a day.

“Don’t you know brake fluid is toxic?” said the friend. “You’d better stop drinking it.”

“Hey, no problem,” he said. “I can stop any time.”

NONDAIRY CREAMER IS FLAMMABLE.

A 21-FLUSH SALUTE . . .

TO NEWSMAN DAN RATHER, WHO RETIRED FROM CBS ON THIS DAY IN 2005

Here are some off-the-cuff homespun phrases he uttered on election nights over the years:

• “This race is hotter than a Times Square Rolex.”
• “His lead is as thin as turnip soup.”
• “These returns are running like a squirrel in a cage.”
• “This race is as tight as a too small bathing suit on a too hot car ride back from the beach.”
• “This race is as tight as the rusted lug nuts on a ’fifty-five Ford.”
• “This race is shakier than cafeteria Jell-O.”

MILK CARTONS WERE INVENTED IN SWEDEN.

IT’S A WEIRD, WEIRD WORLD

“After Bill DiPasquale was dismissed from his job at a Boston steakhouse because of a booze problem, he drank himself unconscious. Relatives found him near death and took him to Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was put on life support, but with hope fading, they decided to pull the plug. When the dying man’s ex-boss, Charles Sarkis, heard about it, he barked, ‘You tell him to wake up and get back to work!’ DiPasquale’s friend Ralph Nash delivered the message. Five minutes later, DiPasquale suddenly awoke and uttered, ‘I’ve got to get to work.’ And he began a quick recovery.”

—New York Post

Q: WHAT ARE SHAGGY MANES, INKY CAPS, SULFUR TUFTS, AND PIG’S EARS?
A: MUSHROOMS.

Q: This small island in the Atlantic Ocean claims to have more golf courses per square mile than any other place in the world. The oldest course was established in 1922. What is it?

a) Bermuda b) Dominica c) Grand Cayman d) Puerto Rico
Answer: A, Bermuda.

THE ROMAN RUINS OF EPHESUS

TURKEY

A mile-long marble-paved street grooved by ancient chariot wheels leads past ruins and partially reconstructed Roman buildings in Ephesus, once a thriving port although today it is three miles away from the sea. The Ephesus Museum has a distinguished collection of Roman and Greek artifacts.

TEMPLE OF THE TOOTH

KANDY, SRI LANKA

The lovely Dalada Maligawa, or Temple of the Tooth, holds the sacred tooth of Buddha, which was smuggled into Sri Lanka in A.D. 321. The temple is one of Buddhism’s most revered pilgrimage sites.

On Metaphors, Those That Need Some Construction:

Come build with me a Temple, and not a Tavern, out of the lumber of our lives.

wedding vow (thanks to Rev. David Peterson)

On Wankers, Weel Good:

Official world wankings 1. Tiger Woods (&SA) 16.53, 2. Phil Mickelson (&SA) 10.85, 3. Erole Els (RSA) 7.27, 4> Reteif Foosen (RSA) 7.06

from the sports page of the Dundee, Scotland,Courier

On Actors, Universally Annoying:

Every day is a surprise. LThere are confirmations of an interconnectivity and synchronicity which inspire, titillate, and confirm the inherent comedy of the universe.

actor Billy Zane