Deaths in July 2022-- Part 8: Abe, Sirico, Sorvino, Trimble, Dow, Nichols and Russell

SHINZO ABE, 67

**  Japan's longest-serving prime mnister, he was also perhaps the most polarizing complex politician in recent Japanese history.  Died July8.

TONY SIRICO, 79

**  He played mobster Paulie Walnuts in "The Sopranos" and brought his tough-guy swagger to films including "Goodfellas."  Died July 8.

PAUL SORVINO, 83

**  An imposing actor who specialized in playing crooks and cops like Paulie Cicero in Goodfellas" and NYPD Sgt. Phil Cerreta on "Law and Order."  Died July 25.

DAVID TRIMBLE, 77

A former Northern Ireland first minister who won the Nobel Peace Prize for playing a key role in helping end Northern Ireland's decades of violence.  Died July 25.

TONY DOW, 77

**  As Wally Cleaver on the sitcom "Leave It to Beaver," he helped create the popular and lasting image of the American teenager of the 1950s and '60s.  Died July 27.

I still like to watch those reruns.  And, then there was good old Eddie Haskell.

NICHELLE NICHOLS, 89

**  She broke barriers for black women in Hollywood as communiations officer Lt. Uhura on the original "Star Trek" TV series.  Diedd July 30.

Huge "Star Trek" fan.  I remember when I was a freshman at NIU and my roommate had a little 13-inch black and white TV and every day after dinner, about ten guys would crowd in the room to watch reruns of the show.

BILL RUSSELL, 88

**  NBA great who anchored a Boston Celtics dynasty that won 11 championships in 13 years-- the last two as the first black head coach in any major U.S. sport -- and marched for civil rights with Martin Luther King Jr.  Died July 31.

So, the movie "Goodfellas" lost three people within three months last summer.  And, then there was that other Sonny guy in "The Godfather" who died.  Not a good year to be a movie actor who played a mobster.

Deaths in May 2022-- Part 6: Mineta, Gilley, Lanier, Akleh and Liotta

NORMAN MINETA, 90

**  He broke racial barriers for Asian Americans serving in high profile government posts who ordered commercial flights grounded after the 9/11 terror attacks as the Federal Transportation Secretary.  Died May 3.

MICKEY GILLEY, 86

**  Country singer whose namesake Texas honky-tonk inspired the 1980 film "Urban Cowboy" and a nationwide wave of Western-themed night spots.  Died May 7.  No Bull!!

What great music.  But, I never got on one of those mechanical bulls.  My back is still okay.

BOB LANIER, 73

**  The left-habded big man who muscled up beside the likes of Kareen Abdul-Jabbar as one of the NBA's top players of the seventies.  Died May 10.

SHIREEN ABU AKLEH, 51

**  A correspondent who became a household name synonymous with with Al Jazeera's coverage of life under occupation during her more than two decades reporting in the Palestinian territories.  Died May 11.

RAY LIOTTA, 67

**  Actor best-known for playing mobster Henry Hill in "Goodfellas" and baseball player "Shoeless " Joe Jackson in "Field of Dreams."  Died May 26.

"Do I Amuse You?"  

Deaths: William 'Bill' Schulz, Member of IHSA 1952 State Basketball Champs-- Part 2

By the 1951-1952 basketball season, Bill Schulz stood at 6-foot-10 and played center for the Alden-Hebron Green Giants.  That school had just 98 students and just five players on its basketball team.

That year, the team went 35-1 and won the 1952 IHSA Basketball Tournament by beating Quincy in overtime 64-59, with Bill as the leading scorer.

Alden-Hebron is the smallest school ever to win the IHSA (Illinois High School Association) Tournament in the old one-class system where all schools are in the same class regardless of size.

In 2017, Bill was inducted into the Illinois Coaches Association Player Hall of Fame.  Today, the Hebron water tower is painted to look like a basketball in honor of the 1952's team accomplishments.

(Today, Quincy, Illinois, has a population of 40,000 and Hebron 1,200.)

Some More 2020 Deaths in August and September: Trump, Thompson, Rigg, Hibbert, Brown and Sayers

AUGUST

ROBERT TRUMP, 72

President Donald Trump's younger brother.  Died August 15.

JOHN THOMPSON, 78

Hall of Famer who became the first black coach to lead a team, Georgetown, to the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.  Died August 30.

*****************************

SEPTEMBER

DIANA RIGG, 82

British actress whose career stretched from the 1960s spy series  "The Avengers" to the fantasy juggernaut "Game of Thrones."  Died September 10.

TOOTS HIBBERT, 77

One of reggae's founders and most beloved stars.  Died September 11.

TIMOTHY RAY BROWN, 54

He made history as "the Berlin patient," the first known person to be cured of the HIV infection.  Died September 29.

GALE SAYERS, 77

Running back who entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame and whose fame extended beyond the field for decades thanks to a friendship he had with a dying Chicago Bears teammate.  Died September 23.

Some More 2020 Deaths-- Part 1: Stern, Larsen and Peart

From the December 27, 2020, Chicago Tribune "World mourns losses in year of virus" by Bernard McGhee, AP.

I have already listed a lot of people who died last year in the last several posts from 2020.  These are additional ones.  Any music people in the list will have a more detailed mention in my Down Da Road I Go blog under Music Deaths.

This has the deaths listed by month.

JANUARY

DAVID STERN-  77

The basketball-loving lawyer who ran the NBA for 30 years as the longest-serving commissioner.  Jan. 1.

DON LARSEN, 90

Threw a perfect game in 1956 with the New York Yankees for the only no-hitter/perfect game in World Series history.  Jan. 1.

NEIL PEART, 67

Renowned drummer for the Canadian band Rush.  Jan. 7

We Remember People We Lost in 2020-- Part 2: Bryant, Connery, Preston, De Havilland and Trebeck

KOBE BRYANT, 41

Eighteen-time NBA All-Star.  Won five NBA Championships.  Died January 26.

SEAN CONNERY, 90

Probably the most famous and beloved Agent 007s.  Played James Bond 7 times.  Also "The Untouchables," ""Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" and "The Hunt for Red October."  Died October 31.

KELLY PRESTON, 57

Actress.  "Jerry Maguire."  Husband was John Travolta.  Died July 12.

OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND, 104

The last living lead of 1939's "Gone With the Wind."  Played Scarlett O'Hara's sister-in-law.  Nominated for five Academy Awards during her50-year career.  Died July 26.

ALEX TREBECK, 80

Longtime host of "Jeopardy."  Began hosting it in 1984.  Died November 8.

High School Basketball 100 Years Ago

From the March 28, 2018, MidWeek   "Looking Back."

1918, 100 Years Ago

"Saturday night the Waterman basketball team came down and played the Rollo team."

I didn't know that high schools had teams playing the sport 100 years ago.

--CootBBall

Wofford College During World War I and the Great Depression

Back in December, little Wofford College beat the reigning National Basketball Champion University of North Carolina in one HUGE upset.  I just wish I had watched it.

But, during World War I it had a Student Army Training Corps and has had a ROTC unit ever since.  Many Wofford alumni and students served during the war.

During the Great Depression many students joined ROTC to help cover expenses.  Many later served in World War II.

--Cooter

NIU's Basketball Hall-of-Famer Jerry Zielinski

Last week, I wrote about the death of one of Northern Illinois' greatest basketball coaches, Tom Jorgensen, in 2013.

One of his best-players, and my own personal favorite from when I attended that school was Jerry Zielinski.  games back then were played at Evans Field House, a glorified high school gymnasium (before the state-of-the-art Convocation Center was built).  And, the games were exciting, much of it due to Zielinski's accurate long-range shots.

He'd get the ball way outside and the crowd would start yelling, "Zee, Zee, Zee!!"  I sure did that a lot of yelling.  he was Mr. Excitement.

He averaged 19.2 points a game and notched 1,402 career points in the era before the three-point shot was instituted.  Imagine how many more he would have had

The "Zee" was on that great NIU 1971-1972 team that went 21-4 and beat national power house Indiana which wa sranked #5 at the time.  His career high was against SIU with 46 points.

"Zee" played his high school basketball at Putnam County High School in Granville, Illinois.

"Zee" Shoots, He Scores!!!"  --DaCootZee

Death of Former NIU Basketball Coach Tom Jorgenson in 2013-- Part 1

From the November 29, 2013, DeKalb Daily Chronicle "Former NIU basketball coach Jorgenson passes away."

NIU Hall of Fame men's basketball coach Tom Jorgenson who put Northern Illinois on the national college basketball map with a Top Twenty ranking died November 29.

Known as "Jorgy," he was the first to have NIU post a 20-victory season with a 21-4 season 1971-1972 and was coach with the school's first-ever victory over a Big Ten team, Indiana, in the same season..  Same season, Northern was ranked #20 at one point.  A member of his 1969 team, Jim Smith, was NIU's first NBA draft pick.

Other honors for "Jorgy" was a first Division 1 college basketball championship for the 71-72 team in the Midwestern Conference and its first college All-American, Jim Bradley that same season.

More to Come.

Death of Former NIU Basketball Coach Tom Jorgenson in 2013-- Part 1

From the November 29, 2013, DeKalb Daily Chronicle "Former NIU basketball coach Jorgenson passes away."

NIU Hall of Fame men's basketball coach Tom Jorgenson who put Northern Illinois on the national college basketball map with a Top Twenty ranking died November 29.

Known as "Jorgy," he was the first to have NIU post a 20-victory season with a 21-4 season 1971-1972 and was coach with the school's first-ever victory over a Big Ten team, Indiana, in the same season..  Same season, Northern was ranked #20 at one point.  A member of his 1969 team, Jim Smith, was NIU's first NBA draft pick.

Other honors for "Jorgy" was a first Division 1 college basketball championship for the 71-72 team in the Midwestern Conference and its first college All-American, Jim Bradley that same season.

More to Come.

Sports Stars Lost in 2015-- Part 5: A Malone, Berra and a Lemon

MOSES MALONE--  Died September 13 at age 60.  The 6-foot-ten Malone jumped straight from high school to the pros and became a three-time MVP and all-time leader in offensive rebounds.  Said opposing coach Stan Albeck:  "Thou shalt not drive the lane against Moses."

YOGI BERRA--  Died September 22 at age 90.  Won three MVP awards and a record 10 World series with the New York Yankees.  he was beloved for his Yogi-isms such as "Always go to other people's funerals.  Otherwise, they won't come to yours."

MICHAEL WRIGHT--  Died November 10 at age 35.  Played as a freshman on the Farragut team that included Kevin Garnett and Ronnie Fields.  Played professionally overseas 2001 to 2015 after starring at Arizona.

MEADOWLARK LEMON--  Died Dec.December 27 at age 83.  "The Clown Prince" of the Harlem Globetrotters.  The man Wilt Chamberlain called "the most sensational, awesoe, incredible basketball player I've ever seen.

That Was One Really Funny and Talented Guy!!!m

Ten Things About Cheaters-- Part 1: Spanish Basketball and America's Youth

From the April 12, 2015, Chicago Tribune "10 things you might not know about Cheaters" by Mark Jacob and Stephan Benzkofer, masters of discovery, diggers of books.

Tax time is sometimes cheating time in America.  Recently, Atlanta educators were convicted of test-rigging and then there was the U.S. Little League title thing.

Here are some other cheats:

1.  The SPANISH BASKETBALL  team in the 2000 Paralympics won the gold by fielding a team of supposedly mentally handicapped players.  They outscored opponents by an average of 36 points a game, but only two of its 12 players actually were mentally handicapped.

2.  YOUNG PEOPLE  are conflicted by cheating  A recent study showed that 99% of 23,000 respondents agreed that it was important to have good character.  93% were satisfied with their own character.  But more than half admitted to cheating on a test and nearly 3/4 said they had copied homework.

And get this, nearly 1/3 said they weren't completely honest about responding to the survey.

What?  Who Me?  --Cooter

March Madness Began in Illinois-- Part 3

The motto "March Madness" remained largely a Midwest regional thing for dour decades until CBS broadcaster Brent Musburger, a former Chicago newspaper reporter began referring to the NCAA's  basketball tournament.  The term caught on.

But, in 1996, the IHSA sued to stop the NCAA corporate sponsor GTE from distributing a video game bearing the March madness title.

Later that year, the IHSA and NCAA hammered out a joint venture called the March Madness Athletic Association, which now holds all trademark rights to the term.

They go on the prowl when all those brackets start going viral.

So, Give me That M.M. Bracket.  --Cooter

March Madness Began in Illinois-- Part 2

In the 1940s, "March Madness" became the state's nickname for its basketball tournament.  This would include when the team from little Hebron, Illinois, won the championship in 1951.  In 1977, the IHSA made it official, licensing the phrase to companies like Pepsi and Wilson Sporting Goods.  Other states could use it for a $10 fee.

Henry V. Porter, who started his career as teacher and coach at Athens High School in central Illinois, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1960 and died in 1975.

This week, the IHSA announced that it had discovered in Porter's personal collection thee earliest video of the IHSA boys basketball tournament, including action from the 1932-1936 state finals.

How It Came to Mean College Next.  --Cooter

March Madness Began in Illinois-- Part 1

From the March 15, 2015, Chicago Tribune "Chicago Sports Flashback: Phrase's popularity truly poetic justice" by Tim Bannon.

Tim Bannon seems to get any history sports articles in the Tribune.  he also did the recent one on Cubs and Sox Spring Training in French Lick, Indiana.

"For more than 40 years, 'March Madness' was confined to Illinois.  The state's high school basketball tournament started in 1908 (Peoria Rock Island 48-29 for the title) and continued for three decades without a catchphrase.

"Then in 1939, Henry V. Porter, an Illinois High School Association (IHSA) official, wrote an article for the IHSA magazine.  It was titled 'March Madness.'

"'A little March madness may complement and contribute to sanity and help keep society on an even keel,' he wrote.

"Three years later, he punctuated his poem with a poem, 'Basketball Ides of March,' which included these lines: 'The Madness of March is running.  The winged feet fl, the ball sails high.  And field goal hunters are gunning.'"

So. That's the Guy.  Sorry NCAA.  --Cooter

Friday the 13th News of Note-- Part 5: Unlucky Day for "Joey the Clown" Lombardo

MAY 13, 1994:  The Bulls' Scottie Pippen sits out the final 1.8 seconds of a playoff game against the New York Knicks with the score tied because he is miffed that coach Phil Jackson has drawn up a play giving the last shot to Toni Kukoc.

The Bulls win when Kukoc hits the shot.

JANUARY 13, 2006:  FBU agents arrest "Joey the Clown" Lombardo in Elmwood Park.  The mob boss, on the lam for nine months, is apprehended after suffering from an abscessed tooth and going to his dentist, who turns out to be an FBI tipster.  What a world when you can't even trust your dentist.  Wondering if he got that tooth taken care of?

Sorry 'Bout That Scottie.  --DaCoot

Original Basketball Rules Net $4.3 million

From the December 11th Chicago Tribune.

That sure is a lot of money for two typed pieces of paper, but you could call it the birth certificate of basketball.

The document's 13 rules were written 119 years ago by James Naismith as a winter sport for YMCA boys to cover the time between football and baseball. It was sold at auction for $4.3 million by Sotheby's for the Naismith International Basketball Foundation. The proceeds will benefit the organization which promotes sportsmanship and provides services to underprivileged children around the world.

David and Suzanne Booth purchased it and hope to give it to the University of Kansas where he is an alumnus. Naismith penned the 13 rules on December 21, 1891 for the YMCA training school in Springfield, Massachusetts.

He gave the list to his secretary who typed it up on two pages which Naismith then pinned up on the bulletin board outside the gym.

In 1898, he moved to Lawrence, Kansas and became the first basketball coach at the University of Kansas. He remained in that position for nine years before performing other academic duties and athletic director.

Naismith died in 1939, three years after his sport became an official sport at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin.

So, It Comes Home. --Cooter