Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 7/14-15/2010

7/14/1941:
Brooklyn Dodgers player-manager Leo Durocher inserts himself as a pinch hitter in the last of the ninth inning in a scoreless game with the Cubs. With the bases loaded and only one out, Durocher perfectly executes a suicide squeeze bunt to drive in the winning run. Ducky Medwick breaks for home on the pitch and Chicago hurler Vern Olsen has no play. Brooklyn pitcher Kirby Higbe is rewarded for his efforts, tossing a two-hit shutout, part of a career-high 22-win campaign, which helps the Dodgers win 100 games and capture their first pennant in 21 years.

Birthdays:
Rosey Grier b. 1932
Lee Elder b. 1934
Robin Ventura b. 1967
Erick Dampier b. 1974
Tim Hudson b. 1975

Packers Fact:
Korey Hall, in 2007, was the first rookie to start for the Packers at fullback since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970.

7/15/1990:
Playing the final 36 holes of the U.S. Women's Open on Sunday because of an earlier rainout, defending champion Betsy King makes up 11 strokes over the last 32 holes to overtake faltering Patty Sheehan by one stroke at the Atlanta Athletic Club. King shoots a steady 70-71-141 for the final two rounds, hitting 31 of 36 greens in regulation. Meanwhile, Sheehan stumbles to 75-76-151, mirroring her collapse in last year's Open when she posted a 79 in the final round and allowed King to win that event as well. She'll surmount her final-round travails in U.S. Open play by going on to win this tourney in 1992 and '94.

Birthdays:
Donn Clendenon b. 1935
Alex Karras b. 1935
John Stallworth b. 1952
Barry Melrose b. 1956
Sammy Winder b. 1959

Packers Fact:
Ahman Green already held the Packers' single-season rushing record heading into the 2003 finale against Denver at Lambeau Field. He added the single-game mark, too, by gaining 218 yards on the ground in a 31-3 rout.


http://frankensteinia.blogspot.com/
Friend...Good!
Pierre Fournier, a comic book writer and Frankenstein devotee, explores every aspect of Frankenstein culture at this site including the book in its many editions, the movie and stage versions, characters in the Frankenstein universe, and Frankenstein posters, toys, stamps, and costumes, including one for your dog. With links to other Frankenstein resources on the Web including Thomas Edison's 1910 film.

http://www.doitmyself.org/2003/10/thorax-cake.html
Thorax Cake
This is not a dessert for the squeamish. This site gives you step-by-step instructions for confecting an anatomically correct cake that reproduces the entire thoracic cavity with white chocolate ribs surrounding the heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, and other organs, which are each separate sauce-filled cakes that "bleed" when cut. Really appetizing if you're a fan of C.S.I.

MURDER, AND ROMANCE, MOST VICTORIAN

Was it the gardener? The Gypsy laundress? The (no, really?) butler? In 1886 someone kills Lady Julia Gray’s husband, Sir Edward. Julia joins forces with a private investigator, Nicholas Brisbane, to track down the murderer. Their relationship blossoms as they uncover dark secrets in some unsavory precincts of Victorian London. Kirkus Reviews says, “Smart and stylish: Bring on the sequel.”

SILENT IN THE GRAVE, by Deanna Raybourn (Mira, 2007)

ORIGINS

For those of us who have been following the irascible barrister Horace Rumpole these many years both on television and in print (12 story collections are out now), John Mortimer has at last gratified our curiosity not only about the oft-cited Penge Bungalow murder case that made Rumpole’s reputation, but also about such crucial matters as how he first came to represent his most reliable clients, the Timsons; and how he met and married “She Who Must Be Obeyed,” Hilda Rumpole. If none of this makes sense to you, go find a Rumpole book, any Rumpole book, and get ready to smile.

RUMPOLE AND THE PENGE BUNGALOW MURDERS, by John Mortimer (Viking, 2004)

SPRECHER PUB BROWN ALE

Sprecher Brewing Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin

A delicious and subtly complex pub-style English brown—ironically, not the type of ale you’re likely to encounter in England. Thank you, Sprecher, for this great American session brown. Clean caramel malt emerges without clobbering the palate—the brew is extraordinarily smooth, with a terrific hop balance. The sudsy foam atop is lusciously attractive. With a light body and mild herbal hop character, this beer would refresh in any season.

BEER FACT

Sprecher is also famous for its gourmet sodas: Root Beer, Cream Soda, Orange Dream, Ravin’ Red with cherry, cranberry and ginseng, Ginger Ale with a hint of oak, Puma Kola with real vanilla, Lo Cal Root Beer, and Cherry Cola.

LIEFMANS OUD BRUIN

Liefmans, Oudenaarde, Belgium

A sharp-finishing, less malty version of oud bruin, this brew is very quaffable. One of the tartest of the Flanders brown ales, it’s lightly buttery and fruity in the nose, with plenty of sour malt in the palate. Another unsurprising success from the master brewers at Liefmans—a beer we’re very fortunate to be able to find on North American soil!

STYLE TIP

Flanders red and brown ales were historically brewed as provision beers, developing a bit of sourness as they aged due to naturally occurring bacteria like Lactobacillus and acetobacter. Many are still given a period of aging in oak barrels, but may now undergo a faster souring process via the addition of acidulated malt in the mash, or the encouragement of Lactobacillus (the latter is also known as sour mashing)