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Posts Tagged ‘Philadelphia’

Ginger Rogers Interview with Cliff Michelmore, 1968

Source:Recording Singer– Hollywood Babydoll and comedian Ginger Rogers, being interviewed by Cliff Michel Moore, in 1968.

Source:The Daily Review  

“In the last post, I mentioned something about a 1968 interview Ginger did with Cliff Michelmore. Lucky for us, it’s available on YouTube and I’ve embedded it below.

It’s quite a fun interview to watch. Ginger was in her late 50’s by then, but she still looked as gorgeous as ever. She spoke very comfortably and confidently about her life and career, and it is just a nice look at how she saw herself. The interview was done at her California house, so perhaps this contributed to how comfortable she felt. Also, she’s quite a storyteller, too. It’s definitely not boring to hear her speak.

Here are some of the highlights that are definitely good reasons to check out the video:

Ginger fixing up an ice cream soda for Michelmore is the most adorable thing you’ll ever see. We know by now she’s crazy about ice cream soda, but in this she also said that she liked it with “lots of chocolates”. Her kid-like personality shines through in this part.

Ginger considered herself a good business woman, but didn’t see money as the most important. She said, “I don’t want material things. I want those things that are needful in life, but not necessarily the most valuable according to dollars and cents.”

Ginger discussed her relationship with Fred Astaire, noting that “we’re very definite about what we like and we dislike”.

Ginger recounted the time she reunited with Astaire during the 1967 Oscar ceremony, where they did a little dance before walking to the podium to announce a winner. This is the part that compels me to say that Ginger is a good storyteller. She looked and sounded so excited to tell Michelmore about every little detail.

Ginger talked about how influential her mother, Lela, was to her and defended that Lela didn’t push her around like a typical “stage mother” does.

Ginger spoke about her love of painting and how she could lose hours and days just to paint.” 

Ginger

Source:The Daily Review– Hollywood Babydoll and Comedian Ginger Rogers, being interviewed by Cliff Michel Moore, in 1968.

From Recording Singer 

I’ve always thought at least since I started becoming pretty familiar with her career, that Ginger Rogers is one of the cutest and funniest actress’s and perhaps women of all-time.

Ginger was so quick-witted and always had perfect comedic timing whether she was off script, like in this interview, or on script. And even when she was on script she was very adept at adding her own humor to lines and scenes.

If you ever see the movie Monkey Business from Howard Hawkes where she plays Cary Grant’s wife in that movie, they were an incredible comedy team in that movie. And I believe a lot of that had to do with them always being on the same page when it came to the wisecracks and physical comedy. She was the cutest woman in that movie that had Marilyn Monroe in it.

I love women who can make me go: ‘Aw! you’re so cute!’ But who can also make me laugh and she was very adept at both. She was an actress who was a hell of a dancer, who could sing, but also give a great comedic performance all in the same role.

Had Marilyn Monroe lived a natural life in years, maybe we’re talking about her the same way we’re talking about Ginger today. Someone who could sing, dance, act, make you laugh, looked great and everything else. That was Ginger Rogers, but she did it for a whole career.

Ginger was always as cute as baby physically, but always had the intelligence and maturity of a great woman. Someone who didn’t need money to be happy, but made a lot of it anyway, because she so good at what she did. And is one of the best entertainers we’ve ever produced.

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NBC Sports_ MLB 1980- World Series Game 7-Kansas City Royals @ Philadelphia Phillies_ Full Game _ The New DemocratSource:NBC Sports– Philadelphia Phillies closer Tug McGraw.

Source:The New Democrat

“Kansas City Royals 1 at Philadelphia Phillies 4, F — With the Phillies just one tantalizing out away from a Championship, Tug McGraw got ahead on Willie Wilson, then struck him out swinging at a 1-2 fastball. McGraw threw his arms up, his teammates jumped all over each other, and the franchise had its first baseball championship.”

From MLB Vault

1980 might have been the best Kansas Royals team that they ever had. They had a very good lineup offensively, good defense, good pitching both starting and in the bullpen, Jim Fry was their manager. Unlike the 85 team that was really just George Brett and Hal McRae offensively. Steve Balboni hit a lot of home runs for them, but drove in under ninety runs, which isn’t much for a guy who hits thirty-six home runs and also hit around 240 and struck out a lot. But the 80 Royals had balance offensively, defensively and in their pitching. But couldn’t even force the Phillies into a game 7.

The 1980 Phillies were just very good everywhere. Not a great lineup with a lot of great players, but very good hitters up and down the lineup. They were very good defensively and had excellent pitching. With Steve Carlton as their ace and Tug McGraw in the bullpen. Not a team with any clear weakness’ and they were just the best team in the National League throughout the 1980 season. And a team that finally put it all together after getting to the NL Playoffs in 76 and 78, but losing both NL Championships to the Los Angeles Dodgers. So 1980 was a year that the Phillies believed they had something to prove and came through.

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Knicks-76ers

Source:The NBA History– The 76ers and Knicks from 1978.

“Dr. J, Henry Bibby, ”Jellybean” Bryant and Doug Collins took the floor against Earl ”The Pearl” and the Knicks.”

From The NBA History

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Philadelphia-New York, is a great rivalry in any sport. Eagles-Giants in the NFL, which is probably the best one. Flyers-Rangers, in the NHL, Phillies-Mets in MLB and yes the 76ers-Knicks in the NBA. Which today is not nearly the rivalry it was twenty-five or thirty years ago. But it was a big deal in the 1960s, 70s and 80s.

But now both franchises, especially in the 76ers case, haven’t been very good for a long time. The 76ers, have only been to the Conference Finals twice since winning their last NBA Finals in 1983. And the Knicks have struggled just to make the Eastern Conference Playoffs for the last ten years or so.

As far as this game, the 76ers were still one of the best teams in the NBA at this point. They lost in the Eastern Conference Finals in 1978 and got to the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 1979.

Dr. J Julius Erving, certainly the best forward in basketball at this point and arguably the best all around player in the NBA as well at this point. Trying to lead the 76ers under head coach Billy Cunningham back to the NBA Finals. This was a bit of a homecoming for The Doctor who played for the Nets on Long Island. And the fact that he now played for the 76ers in this game was on Christmas Day, 1978 and they Sixers won big, made this game much more special.

What is also interesting about this game, is that Bob McAdoo, one of the top power forwards in the NBA in the 1970s was playing for the Knicks in this game. That were a pretty bad team in the late 70s. After leaving Buffalo in like 1976, he ends up playing for like three teams in four years. Here’s one of the best players in the NBA at this point getting shipped around from bad team to bad team in the late 70s. Before finally finding a home where he could finish his career with in Los Angeles with the Lakers in 1982.

There was a lot of talent on both teams in this game, especially for the 76ers, but they were clearly the better team.

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Source:Classic Phillies TV– with the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies from 1981.

“October 1981 – Cubs vs Phillies”

Source:Classic Phillies TV

1981 was an interesting season for Major League Baseball to say the least. It was a strike shorten season and the genius’ at MLB decided to do a minor league play. Which was to have the division leaders of the first and second halves of the season be the playoff teams of each league. Instead of the division winners being the teams with the best overall records in each league for the entire season.

Because of the 1981 MLB playoff format, the Cincinnati Reds even though they had the best overall record in the NL West in 1981, didn’t win that division. Because the Los Angeles Dodgers had a better record in the second half of the season.

1981 was the first four game playoff series in MLB because of the strike shortened season. The Cubs were the Cubs in 1981, finishing in last place. They parked themselves there early on that season and never left. The Phillies were again very good and trying to defend their 1980 World Series Championship.

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Elvin Hayes - 1978 ECF Gm 1 - (28pts 18reb 6blk 4stl) vs_ 76ersSource:CBS Sports– Bullets backup center Mitch Kupchak.

“Elvin Hayes – 1978 ECF Gm 1 – (28pts 18reb 6blk 4stl) vs. 76ers”

From Basketball Composition

This was back when the Bullets and 76ers were pretty good rivals. Because both teams were always in contention for the Eastern Conference championship and NBA Finals. But this rivalry was all but gone by the late 1980s when the Bullets became perennial losers.

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Bullets Score 18 Consecutive, Come Back and Win (1986 Playoffs)

Source:Lamar Matic– the Wizards and 76ers from 1986.

“One of the greatest NBA comebacks ever. The Washington Bullets are down by 17 with 4 minutes left and seems like have lost the first playoffs game of 1986. However, veteran Dan Roundfield scoring on one end and Charles Barkley with Julius Erving choking on the other lets the Bullets get back in the game and win it with an impossible game winning three by Dudley Bradley. 1986 NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs Round 1 Game 1.”

From Lamar Matic

Definitely one of the most surprising comeback victories of all-time and perhaps the best comeback in Bullets playoff history.

You come back from eighteen points with four minutes left in the game especially in a playoff game, you are getting a lot of breaks with the team with the lead falling asleep and thinking they’ve already won the game. Which is what the 76ers did, as well as the Bullets never giving up and coming up with a lot of great plays. Especially on defense, but scoring every time they had the ball.

When you have a big lead like this, all you really have to do is work the clock, don’t turn the ball over and hit your foul shots. You do all of those things and even if the other team scores every time they have the ball, they won’t have enough time to come all the way back. The 76ers failed to even do these basic fundamental things late in this game.

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Source:CBS Sports– interviewing Wizards center Moses Malone in 1987.
“Interview with Moses Malone mid-season after trade to Washington Bullets.”

“Interview with Moses Malone mid-season after trade to Washington Bullets.”

From NBA Trades

The worst move that Harald Katz ever made running the Philadelphia 76ers (and there might be a David Letterman top 10 list of bad moves that he made running the 76ers) was trading Moses Malone to the Wizards. They were called the Washington Bullets back then, but trading Moses and not getting anything in return with Jeff Ruland who had a bad leg before that trade told 76ers fans and perhaps the rest of the NBA that the 76ers were not only no longer NBA Finals contenders, but they weren’t interested in being contenders. Especially with 1987 being Julius Erving’s last season.

A healthy Moses Malone with the 76ers in 87 and finishing his career there with Charles Barkley and you add a small forward to come after Dr. J and the 76ers would have remained not just a playoff team in the late 1980s and 1990s, but they would have remained a contender for the NBA Finals.

The 76ers after trading Moses have never been the same since. They were a solid playoff team in 1989, 1990 and 1991, but the fell back and missed the playoffs in 92 and then make another trade with Charles Barkley and were essentially a last place team for the rest of the 1990s.

And after two great seasons personally that Moses had for the Wizards in 87 and 88, the Wizards make a bad move themselves by not resigning Moses who was 33 at that point and probably had another 3-5 good years left in him. But that’s on Abe Pollin who at least in the 1980s was only interested in making the NBA Playoffs and putting enough people in the seats at the Capital Centre to make a profit for his team.

The Wizards keep Moses to go along with Jeff Malone and a young and very talented, but undisciplined player in John Williams, Bernard King would have still been there and Wizards would have at least remained a consistent playoff team in the 1990s.

I’ve never figured out how come Moses played for six NBA teams. I mean he is one of the top 4-5 NBA centers of all-time. Maybe only Wilt Chamberlain was a better rebounding center than Moses. Arguably the best center of the 1980s. Certainly in the Eastern Conference and you could argue about Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, or Moses for the NBA as a whole. And yet the team he played the most games with was the Houston Rockets which was for six seasons. Even though he’s known as the great low-post player both offensively and defensively and the great rebounder and for bringing another NBA championship to the 76ers.

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Source:NFL Network– Eagles TE Keith Jackson talking about Buddy Ryan’s Gang Green defense.

“Buddy Ryan and the greatest defense of all-time”

From NFL Network

If I had to take one defense of all-time as far as dominating an entire season including the postseason and Super Bowl, I would take the 85 Chicago Bears with their 46 defense. That Bears team doesn’t win the Super Bowl without Mike Ditka. A big reason why Buddy Ryan didn’t win a Super Bowl or even a playoff game in Philadelphia or Phoenix, because he wasn’t as good of a head coach as Iron Mike.

Buddy could get his teams to the playoffs and even win a division, but he was a defensive oriented head coach, who didn’t have much respect for offenses, even his own. Mike Ditka was a complete head coach, who was offensive minded, but understood both sides of the ball very well. And knew he also had a to have a good defense to win championships.

But I believe Buddy Ryan’s Eagles were better on defense during a longer stretch. From 1988-91 and 91 was the Eagles first season without Buddy, the Eagles might of had the best defenses ever. Buddy might of of had more talent on defense in Philadelphia, then in Chicago. And he certainly had better teams on offense, even though he never had that one running back he could count on to lead their running game.

One of the reasons why Buddy wasn’t successful in turning the Eagles into a Super Bowl contender was that he never really even had a good running game. (Outside of QB Randall Cunningham) A good passing game with good receivers like Fred Barnett, Calvin Williams, Keith Jackson, Keith Byers out of the backfield. When Randall Cunningham was on, he was about as good as any QB in the game.

Imagine how good those Eagle teams of the late 1980s and early 1990s would have been had Mike Ditka been their head coach and not Buddy Ryan. Ditka would’ve given the Eagles a running game and known how to work with Randall. And then you have either Jeff Fisher or even Buddy running the defense. The Eagles probably would’ve probably already have their first Super Bowl championship already. (Sorry, Eagle fans)

Buddy I believe had better defenses in Philadelphia if you look at their secondary and then you have Reggie White on one side on the d-line, and Jerome Brown in the middle, who were both almost un-blockable. And then Clyde Simmons on the other side of Reggie. And the Eagles had more talent on offense, but Buddy wasn’t a good enough head coach as far as both sides of the ball to take the Eagles to the promise land.

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Jim McCusker (2008) 1960 Philadelphia Eagles Champs

Source:NFL Films– Tommy McDonald: WR for the 1960 NFL Champion Philadelphia Eagles.

“On Feb. 3, 2008, the community showed highlights from the 1960 Philadelphia Eagles v. Green Bay Packers N.F.L. Championship game at Jim McCusker’s Pub. Here he comments on the Eagles win. Jim was the starting left tackle for the Eagles and earned a championship ring. Jim is a native/resident of Jamestown N.Y. Jim is a member of the Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame.”

From NFL Films 

“The team that wins the Western Conference title will have to face the Philadelphia Eagles, and that will not be the easy assignment it may at first appear to be. While few winning teams in professional football have looked more inept than the Eagles when running the ball, few have been able to offset their weaknesses so well. The reasons are two: the Eagles have an impressive coterie of pass receivers and they have Norman Van Brocklin, one of the two or three best quarterbacks in all football.”

DUTCH IS THE DIFFERENCE

Source:Sports Illustrated– Philadelphia Eagles QB Norm Van Brocklin.

From Sports Illustrated

1960 was an interesting NFL season for several reasons. You had a different NFL champion for the first time since 1958, because the Philadelphia Eagles won the championship in 1960 dethroning the Baltimore Colts who won the championship in 58 and 59. The great Giants-Eagles rivalry went to a new level as Eagles LB Chuck Bednarik closed line which was legal back then, but he closed line New York Giants star RB/WR Frank Gifford. Knocked him out cold which cost Gifford an entire season. The Chicago Cardinals moved to St. Louis and I’m sure people in Chicago helped the Cardinals pack. Because they were an awful team and Chicago is Bears country anyway.

But perhaps the most interesting part of the 1960 NFL season were the Eagles. A blue-collar team with a great quarterback in Norm Van Brocklin and a great head coach in Buck Shaw. And the team they played in the NFL Championship the Green Bay Packers who hadn’t been an NFL contender since the early 1950s. And 1960 was Packers head coach Vince Lombardi’s first shot at the championship. And last playoff game he would ever lose. Interesting matchup because the Eagles were a pure passing team without much of a running game. And the Packers were a power running team that could also throw the ball when they needed to. But didn’t throw the ball very often.

The Eagles in 1960 were sort of like the Miami Dolphins of the mid and late 1980s. With a much better defense, but they moved the ball through the air primarily and would run when the defense was completely focused on taking away the pass. Similar to the New England Patriots of the last ten years or so. Where the Packers were a run, run, run team that would beat you up on the ground and up the middle. And could get to outside with their power sweep. And hit big passes in running situations and when you were expecting the run. Which made for a great championship matchup especially since both team were also good on defense.

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Source:CBS Sports– Rolly Massimimo cutting down a string for the Wildcats.

“Watch this complete national championship game from 1985, when one of the original Cinderella stories, Villanova, marched its way to the championship game against heavy favorite Georgetown. Villanova pulled off the upset with a 66-64 victory in the first year of the 64-team NCAA tournament format.”

From March Madness 

“The ball was deep in the end-zone seats, punched there in desperation by a Georgetown player to stop the clock. Georgetown? Desperate? Yes. Then it was on the floor, scrambled for, and finally smothered—bam, splot—as if a runaway caboose had left the tracks somewhere in the Kentucky night and crashed through the walls of Rupp Arena. A train on a basketball court? Yes again. Because it was Dwayne (D-Train) McClain who fell on the ball as time ran out on Georgetown’s try for a second straight NCAA championship, and McClain who cradled it in his arms and refused to let go until he was absolutely positive his Villanova Wildcats’ 66-64 victory wasn’t a dream.

These were just the ultimate improbabilities in a fantasy of a basketball game Monday night that manifested all that is spectacular in sport, while at the same time recalling nothing more than the simple lyrics of the late Harry Chapin…

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“Ed Pinckney Powers Villanova Past Georgetown April 8, 1985 X 31324 credit: Carl Skalak – assign”

Source:Sports Illustrated– Ed Pinckney and the Villanova Wildcats defeating the Hoyas in 1985.

From Sports Illustrated

The one basketball game that John Thompson would probably like to have back. The Georgetown Hoyas wee poised to win back-to-back national championships in 1985 having what clearly looked like the best team in the tournament, with the best player in center Patrick Ewing. Who I at least believe without the leg injuries from the early and mid 1990s I think we’re talking about the best two-way center of his generation. Who was a dominant offensive and defensive force. With his great size, strength and athletic ability. Who accomplished so much in his career with bad knees and never being able to play with another great player. And in many seasons being the only All Star on his team with the New York Knicks.

I’m a Georgetown Hoyas fan even though I’m not as big of a fan as I was when I was growing up and watched a lot of both NBA and college basketball back then. And even though the Hoyas lost this game this season still brings up great memories for me. Because it was a time when the Big East Conference was not only relevant, but it ruled college basketball. It had the same importance as the SEC has for football today.

You win the Big East back in the 1980s, or at least do very well and you’re probably a national title contender. Very similar with the ACC of the 1990s and 2000s. The Big East had the Hoyas, but they also had the Villanova Wildcats, but the St. Johns Redman, Syracuse Orangeman and later the Connecticut Huskies and Providence Friars. All very good and top-level basketball programs.

The Big East Conference was like the SEC for college football, what the ACC is fo college basketball today, what the NFC East has traditionally been for the NFL. That one division or conference where if you do well there, you’re having a very good season. You’ve accomplished something very important, because it means you’ve beaten a lot of good teams.

It also means that everybody you play in that division or conference will be gunning for you to take you down. Especially if they’re not having a good season. It was a conference again similar to the NFC East where you don’t have a rival, but you have several arch-rivals and it’s just a matter of which of those arch-rivals hates you the most in a sports sense.

I’m not taking anything away from the Villanova Wildcats here. They played a great game and beat a great team that had two of the best players in college basketball in 1985 on them in Pat Ewing and David Wyngate. Who both went on to have good NBA careers. Patrick of course being one of the top 5-10 centers of all-time. And the Wildcats are not just still the lowest seed to win the national championship, but they also beat the best team in college basketball that year. And had they played each other for the championship ten times, the Wildcats might not have won another game.

But what I’m saying here is that the Big East was so great back then having three teams in the 85 Final Four alone, that you had to very good just to get where the Wildcats got that season. In position to win the national championship.

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