Friday, December 31, 2010

Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 12/31/2010

12/31/1998:
Shaun King passes for two touchdowns and runs for a third as Tulane completes a perfect season (12-0) with a 41-27 victory over Brigham Young in the Liberty Bowl. Its 12-0 record notwithstanding, Tulane's claim to be considered in the national championship equation falls on deaf ears. Accentuating the major conference control of the newly formed Bowl Championship Series, Tulane was not selected for a BCS game and finishes seventh in the final wire-service poll. The nation's only other unbeaten team, Tennessee, will go on to win the national title.

Birthdays:
Hugh McElhenny b. 1928
Don James b. 1932
Rick Aguilera b. 1961
Brent Barry b. 1971
Esteban Loaiza b. 1971

Packers Fact:
On December 31, 1961, the Packers won the first NFL championship game ever played in Green Bay. They routed the New York Giants 37-0.

The End
http://mdesmond.com/index.php?id=endoftheinternet
Last one out, please shut the lights.


CAN YOU SEE ME NOW?
Frank González-Crussi (The Five Senses; On Being Born and Other Difficulties) takes on a vast and vexed subject: the differences—and connections—between seeing and perception. Only humans can see things (or refuse to see them) in so many different ways and for so many different reasons. The author, a pathologist and an elegant, powerful writer, draws intriguing conclusions about various events in history, medicine, and works of literature to show that seeing is in the eye of the beholder.

ON SEEING: THINGS SEEN, UNSEEN, AND OBSCENE, by F. González-Crussi (Overlook, 2006)

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Thursday, December 30, 2010

Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 12/30/2010

12/30/1959:
All-American Oscar Robertson scores an ECAC Holiday Festival record 50 points to lead the top-ranked Cincinnati Bearcats to a 96-83 victory over Iowa in the finals of the Christmas week tournament at Madison Square Garden. On the way to winning his third straight NCAA scoring title, the Big O amasses a tourney record 122 points in three games against St. Bonaventure, St. Joseph's and tonight against Iowa. The Hawkeyes, led by Don Nelson (25 points), race off to an 11-point lead in the first half, but Robertson single-handedly furnishes the Bearcats with a 12-point halftime lead by pouring in 33 points before the intermission, leaving the New York audience awestruck.

Birthdays:
Sandy Koufax b. 1935
Tiger Woods b. 1975
A.J. Pierzynski b. 1976
Kenyon Martin b. 1977
LeBron James b. 1984

Packers Fact:
In the first NFL postseason overtime game since the famous 1958 title game, the Packers beat the Baltimore Colts 13-10 in a Western Conference playoff in 1965.

"Each Sold Separately"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fr2sCLLrHU0
You'd think they'd have worn out the tape for Also sprach Zarathustra by the end of the third commercial. Watch this compilation of the decidedly low-tech commercials Mego made for its Planet of the Apes figures, forts, and accessories to see how little it took to get kids excited about toys in the final years before Star Wars upped the ante for everyone.


CELEBRATING PAUL BOWLES
One of America’s most original and startling writers, whose short fiction was “among the best ever written by an American” according to Gore Vidal, was born on this day 100 years ago. Bowles wrote sensuous and violent tales of people who lose their way, usually in sultry tropical places or in the North African desert, and often regret it. Published the year after his extraordinary novel The Sheltering Sky, these stories are some of Bowles’s best work.

THE DELICATE PREY AND OTHER STORIES, by Paul Bowles (1950; Harper Perennial, 2006)

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Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 12/29/2010

12/29/1979:
There heretofore laughable Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeat the Philadelphia Eagles, 24-17, in an NFC divisional playoff game at Tampa Stadium. In just their fourth season as an expansion team, the Bucs greatly solidified their defense, led by Lee Roy Selmon, and went from losing 26 straight games their first two seasons to 10 wins and a division title this year. Before over 71,000 partisan onlookers today, Ricky Bell leads the Bucs with 142 yards rushing on a playoff record 38 carries. He scores two touchdowns in the first half as Tampa rolls to a 17-0 lead, after which their staunch defense closes the door on QB Ron Jaworski and the Eagles.

Birthdays:
Ray Nitschke b. 1936
Mike Lucci b. 1939
Laffit Pincay Jr. b. 1946
Richie Sexson b. 1974
Laveranues Coles b. 1977

Packers Fact:
The last Packers' defensive back to post more stops than safety Atari Bigby, who had 121 tackles in 2007, was safety Mark Murphy (not the same Mark Murphy who became the Packers' CEO), who had 128 tackles in 1990.

Book Sculptures
http://www.sublackwell.co.uk/portfolio-book-cut-sculpture/
The illustrated books at this site really come to life after artist Su Blackwell uses the book itself to carve illustrations that pop out of the pages. At this site you can see a three-dimensional table set for the Man Tea Party in Alice in Wonderland, Dorothy and her friends making their way through a scary forest in The Wizard of Oz, a paper-chain of dancers from "The Twelve DAncing Princesses," and the text of Peter Pan transformed into a pirate ship.



A TASMANIAN DEVIL OF A TIME
Take a wild romp to volcanic islands inhabitated by wombats and through the cobwebbed hallways of museums. The coauthors of Wild New York team with trippy nature artist Alexis Rockman to search for the incredibly elusive and probably extinct thylacine, the doglike marsupial (in fact, both sexes have a pouch!), also known as the Tasmanian tiger or Tasmanian wolf. This unusual book was named one of the New York Public Library’s 25 Books to Remember from 2005.

CARNIVOROUS NIGHTS: ON THE TRAIL OF THE TASMANIAN TIGER, by Margaret Mittelbach and Michael Crewdson; illustrated by Alexis Rockman (Villard, 2006)

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Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 12/28/2010

12/28/1998:
The Arizona Diamondbacks execute a masterful trade of outfielders with the Detroit Tigers, obtaining 31-year-old Luis Gonzalez in exchange for 23-year-old Karim Garcia. While Garcia will struggle mightily in the American League and be out of baseball by 2004, Gonzalez will become the linchpin of the D'backs offense. In eight seasons with Arizona, he'll hit 224 home runs (57 in 2001) and have five straight years of 100 or more RBIs, including 142 in 2001. He'll also account for 310 doubles during his productive stay in Phoenix and delivery the winning hit in the seventh game of the 2001 World Series against the Yankees.

Birthdays:
Steve Van Buren b. 1920
Terry Sawchuk b. 1929
Ray Knight b. 1952
Ray Bourque b. 1960
James Blake b. 1979

Packers Fact:
The Packers celebrated their 50th anniversary season at Lambeau Field in 2007 by setting a new attendance record (566,443 fans for eight regular-season home dates).


Faces in Places
http://facesinplaces.blogspot.com/
They're not hard to spot once you know what to look for. Let this site be your primer for seeing faces in the most unusual places and things.

INTERNATIONAL MAN OF MYSTERY
Raffles, which was dedicated to Arthur Conan Doyle, was the brainchild of E. W. Hornung (1866–1921), who also wrote Dead Men Tell No Tales, A Thief in the Night, and some war poetry but is hardly remembered today. However, the mysteriously rich Raffles, world traveler and jaded aesthete, jewel thief, safecracker, and master of disguises, and his thickheaded, admiring sidekick Bunny Manders, remain interesting. This is not just Bertie-and-Jeeves silliness. A sophisticated mix of bitters and rue makes Raffles a figure of great pathos at the end of these stories.

RAFFLES: THE AMATEUR CRACKSMAN, by E. W. Hornung (1899; Penguin Classics, 2003)

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Monday, December 27, 2010

Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 12/27/2010

12/27/1979:
After 52 years at the Olympia, the Detroit Red Wings move into their new home, Joe Louis Arena, on the Detroit River. Named after Motown's favorite son, the immortal Brown Bomber of heavyweight fistic fame, the new rink can seat nearly 20,000 for hockey. The St. Louis Blues spoil the party with a 3-2 victory, scoring twice in just over two minutes of the third period on goals by Bernie Federko and Blair Chapman. The honor of scoring the building's first goal goes to Brian Sutter of the Blues, one of six Sutter brothers from Viking, Alberta, who all enjoyed long careers in the NHL.

Birthdays:
Nolan Richardson b. 1941
Andre Tippett b. 1959
Jim Leyritz b. 1963
Deuce McAllister b. 1978
Cole Hamels b. 1983

Packers Fact:
One December 27, 1960; one day after losing the NFL title game to Philadelphia, the Packers were big winners in the NFL draft, choosing a future Hall of Fame defensive back with the final pick of the first round: Cornerback Herb Adderley.


Cream-filled Plots
http://www.tomheroes.com/Comic%20Ads/hostess%20ads/hostess_ads.htm

What better way to advertise your wares in a comic book than incorporating the product into a mini-comic of its own. At this site you can see how the sugar-pushing folks at Hostess enlisted busy superheroes like Aquaman, Captain America, Batman, Thor, and Iron Man to distract dastardly villains, wayward icebergs, and power-hungry monsters with their cupcakes, fruit pies, and Twinkies long enough for the authorities to show up and drag them away.



THE SHADES ARE WITH US
Australian bestseller Janette Turner Hospital (The Last Magician; Charades) invokes the myth of Orpheus in the doomed love of MIT mathematician Leela Moore and the mysterious violinist (and terrorist?) Mishka Bartok. Woven with allusions to music and literature (Mishka is playing “Che farò senza Euridice” in the subway entrance—aka the portal to Hades—when Leela first sees him, and she is instantly in love, with the melody as much as the man), the lush prose is sustained over long diversions into their childhoods and back to their ecstatic but troubled relationship and on to a terrifying quest by Leela. This would make a gripping and gorgeous book to read before the fire.

ORPHEUS LOST, by Janette Turner Hospital (W. W. Norton, 2007)

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Sunday, December 26, 2010

Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 12/26/2010

12/26/1955:
Cleveland Browns quarterback Otto Graham closes out an extraordinary career by leading his team to a 38-14 rout of the Los Angeles Rams for the NFL championship. Graham throws two touchdown passes, one to Dante Lavelli and one to Ray Renfro, and rushes for two TDs of his own. The Browns defense intercepts six passes by Rams QB Norm Van Brocklin, disappointing over 85,000 fans on hand at the Coliseum in Los Angeles.

Birthdays:
Glenn Davis b. 1924
Bill Yeoman b. 1927
Norm Ullman b. 1935
Carlton Fisk b. 1947
Ozzie Smith b. 1954

Packers Fact:
On Christmas Eve in 1983, former Packers star Forrest Gregg was named the ninth head coach in franchise history. Gregg was at the helm from the 1984 through 1987 seasons.


Cell Phone Symphony
http://improveverywhere.com/2006/02/18/cell-phone-symphony/
Dividing his cell phone orchestra into sections based on manufacturer, the fearless leader of this prank had each section choose a common ring tone, put their phones in their bags, and check them at the Strand bookstore in New York City. Then the fun began.



RICHARD THE GREAT
Jonathan Carr takes as his subject one of history’s most influential and controversial figures, Richard Wagner. By necessity, his study must include the pantheon of colorful characters with whom the composer/impresario/arbiter of taste/marriage-breaker-and-broker/musicians’-kingmaker/antivivisectionist/polemicist/self-made-omniscient-being came into contact in his unbelievably busy life, and the reverberations three generations later. Amazing how much mischief and mayhem some people managed to create in the days before television and the Internet.

THE WAGNER CLAN: THE SAGA OF GERMANY’S MOST ILLUSTRIOUS AND INFAMOUS FAMILY, by Jonathan Carr (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2007)

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APCKRFAN's NFL picks 2010: Week 16

Thurs., December 23:
Carolina @ Pittsburgh - PIT

Sat., December 25:
Dallas @ Arizona - DAL

Sun., December 26:
NY Jets @ Chicago - CHI
New England @ Buffalo - NE
Baltimore @ Cleveland - BAL
Washington @ Jacksonville - JAC
Tennessee @ Kansas City - KC
Detroit @ Miami - MIA
San Francisco @ St. Louis - STL
San Diego @ Cincinnati - SD
Houston @ Denver - DEN
Indianapolis @ Oakland - OAK
Seattle @ Tampa Bay - TB
NY Giants @ Green Bay - GB
Minnesota @ Philadelphia - PHI

Mon., December 27:
New Orleans @ Atlanta - ATL

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Sunday, December 19, 2010

APCKRFAN's NFL picks 2010: Week 15

(I picked via Facebook status for Thursday night's game.)

Thursday, December 16:
San Francisco @ San Diego - San Francisco

Sunday, December 19:
Buffalo @ Miami - Miami
Detroit @ Tampa Bay - Tampa Bay
Arizona @ Carolina - Arizona
New Orleans @ Baltimore - Baltimore
Jacksonville @ Indianapolis - Jacksonville
Philadelphia @ NY Giants - Philadelphia
Cleveland @ Cincinnati - Cleveland
Houston @ Tennessee - Houston
Washington @ Dallas - Dallas
Kansas City @ St. Louis - St. Louis (sorry John)
Atlanta @ Seattle - Atlanta
NY Jets @ Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh
Denver @ Oakland - Denver
Green Bay @ New England - New England (sadly)

Monday, December 20:
Chicago @ Minnesota - Chicago

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Sunday, December 12, 2010

APCKRFAN's NFL picks 2010: Week 14

(I did post my pick of the Colts on my Facebook status message on Thursday, was too lazy to do the rest then lol)


Thursday, December 9:

Indianapolis @ Tennessee - IND


Sunday, December 12:

Cleveland @ Buffalo - CLE

Atlanta @ Carolina - ATL

Green Bay @ Detroit - DET

Oakland @ Jacksonville - OAK

Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh - PIT

Tampa Bay @ Washington - TB

St. Louis @ New Orleans - STL

Seattle @ San Francisco - SF

Denver @ Arizona - DEN

New England @ Chicago - NE

Miami @ NY Jets - NYJ

Kansas City @ San Diego - KC (sorry Keith!)

Philadelphia @ Dallas - PHI


Monday, December 13:

Baltimore @ Houston - BAL

NY Giants @ Minnesota - MIN

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Sunday, December 05, 2010

APCKRFAN's NFL picks 2010: Week 13

(Forgot to post these earlier. Whoops.)


Thursday, December 2:

Houston @ Philadelphia - PHI


Sunday, December 5:

New Orleans @ Cincinnati - NO

Chicago @ Detroit - CHI

San Francisco @ Green Bay - GB

Denver @ Kansas City - KC

Cleveland @ Miami - CLE

Buffalo @ Minnesota - MIN

Washington @ NY Giants - NYG

Jacksonville @ Tennessee - TEN

Oakland @ San Diego - SD

St. Louis @ Arizona - STL

Dallas @ Indianapolis - IND

Carolina @ Seattle - SEA

Atlanta @ Tampa Bay - ATL

Pittsburgh @ Baltimore - BAL


Monday, December 6:

NY Jets @ New England - NE

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