The Good...The Bad...The Ugly...
No this is not about "American Idol" which has its season debut tonight although that could be a description of what we'll see. It's time for this week's edition of The Good...The Bad...The Ugly...
The Good
New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton wins the "good guy" award for turning around the Saints from a 3-13 team of a year ago to a 10-6 team headed for a playoff showdown with Chicago for the NFC championship on Sunday. In their 40 years of existence, the Saints have never been in a championship game before. Payton helped revitalize a city devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Payton was recently selected as the AP Coach of The Year...
The Bad
This was a tough one. It was between Barry Bonds, T.J. (son of Bud) Harrelson or Mike Tyson. Tyson has plenty of time to win the "bad guy" of the week in the coming weeks and will, we can only hope that T.J. who hindered a murder investigation and has entered rehab, never returns for consideration, which leaves Barry Bonds who apparently was proven to have used amphetamines, which is illegal. By focusing the attention away from himself and defending teammate Mark Sweeney as being the source for him using the banned stuff, wins the "bad guy" of the week award. You can bet Bonds will be back...
The Ugly
This was even harder to pick and was between 2 nasty divorce cases - Giants' defensive end Michael Strahan (who lost half his $15 million salary each year plus child support to his wife Jean) or New Jersey Nets star Jason Kidd accusing his wife Joumana with domestic violence in a case which promises to get real nasty or a third choice, the story featured on "60 Minutes" over the weekend. That third choice wins "the ugly" award of the week. For withholding DNA information about the 3 accused lacrosse players from Duke which would have exonerated them and then removing himself from the case, Mike Nifong wins hands down. Nifong violated four rules of professional conduct and could face disbarment...
Today's video link is a live version of "Lucille" by Little Richard, who recorded the song on January 16th, 1957: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LNZaAJPkbY
Timeline Memories...
"Jump it up": 1896] The 1st 5-player college basketball game is played at Iowa City (IA)...
"Speak Easy": 1920] Prohibition goes into effect in the U.S. (bathtub gin is born)...
Recorded on this date: 1957] "Lucille" - Little Richard...
Released on this date: 1976] "Frampton Comes Alive" LP - Peter Frampton...
"Signed, Sealed, Delivered": 1961] Mickey Mantle signs a $75,000 contract for 1961 with the Yankees, making him the highest paid player in the American League...
"Another opening, another show": 1964] "Hello Dolly!" starring Carol Channing opens at the St. James Theatre on Broadway...
The Final Curtain: 1965] "Outer Limits" bows out on ABC-TV after 2 years...1973] "Bonanza" airs its last episode (it started on September 12, 1959)...
"So sue me": 1970] Curt Flood files a civil lawsuit challenging baseball's reserve clause...
"You're Fired": 1988] CBS-TV fires Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder one day after his racial comment that during slavery, "blacks had been bred to produce stronger offspring"...
"Soopuh": 1972] The Dallas Cowboys win their 1st Super Bowl 24-3 as they dominate the Miami Dolphins in New Orleans...
Divisional Champs: 2005] The Patriots beat the Colts (they play again for the Conference title this Sunday) 20-3 to win the AFC Divisional playoffs)...
Debuted on this date: 1974] "Jaws" by Peter Benchley is published and quickly becomes a best-seller...1976] "A little bit Country, a little bit Rock and Roll" debuts as the "Donny & Marie Show" starts its 3 year run...
"D-I-V-O-R-C-E": 1979] Married in 1975, Cher and Greg Allman are officially divorced...
"Taking the country by storm": 1991] "Operation Desert Storm", designed to drive Iraqi forces out of Kuwait starts...
"Friendly Fire?": 1996] Jamaican authorities fire on Jimmy Buffett's seaplane mistaking it for a drug traffickers plane. Neither Buffett not U2'S Bono are hurt...
Gunned down: 1997] Bill Cosby's only son, Ennis, 27, is shot to death while changing a flat tire on a dark road in Los Angeles...
"Bubbagate": 1998] Federal judges secretly grant Kenneth Starr authority to probe whether Bill Clinton or Vernon Jordan urged Monica Lewinsky to lie about her relationship with the President...
"Guilty as Charged": 2004] Michael Jackson pleads innocent to child molestation charges during a court appearance in Santa Monica (CA). Charges were later re-filed and Jackson was acquitted...
[To ensure accuracy of dates and content, multiple reference sources are used in each timeline]...
Commentary...
Congratulations to the 4 NFL teams (Patriots, Colts, Saints and Bears) who will be playing in the Conference finals of the playoffs on Sunday. The winners of these two games will face each other in Super Bowl XLI on Sunday, February 4th in Miami...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Kate Moss (33), Sade (Adu) (48), Debbie Allen (57), John Carpenter (59), Jim Stafford (63), Barbara Lynn (65), A.J. Foyt (72) and Marilyn Horne (73)...
Timeline Countdown: 5 days until the NFL Conference playoffs, 19 days until Super Bowl XLI and 30 days until 'pitchers and catchers'...
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