Classic New York sportswriter and syndicated columnist Jimmy Cannon used to write a potpourri piece under the headline, “Nobody asked me, but…. ” His observations were sharp and often visionary. For instance he wrote in 1968, nobody asked me, but “all football has to do is play its games, and the baseball owners will chase […]
sports
Posted inArts & Entertainment
A spark in the dark
During the summer, I read a newspaper reporter’s opinion that Bills quarterback Drew Bledsoe was actually going to be better because he couldn’t be any worse than last year. That’s like saying he’s going to be better because my Magic 8 Ball told me so. Clearly, in the harmless world of sports, that kind of […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Of anger and chocolate milk
Some sports fans are disgusted when players fight, but they really ought to appreciate its significance. When Montreal’s Nevio Pizzolitto punched Rochester’s Lenin Steenkamp in the face as they headed to the locker room during the Rhinos’ 2-0 win on August 27, it indicated passion. I don’t care whether Pizzolitto cheap-shotted Steenkamp, or Steenkamp provoked […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Dealing with drivel
When he was interviewed by Jerome Holtzman for No Cheering in the Press Box in 1973, former Chicago Tribune sportswriter Ed Prell said, “The sportswriters today depend too much on quotes from the dressing rooms. They’ve become nothing more than messenger boys.” Thirty-one years later, they’re still messenger boys. Unfortunately, that’s what sports journalism […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Sports are beneath you
Stereotypical City Newspaper readers don’t open the paper to read about sports. They sit in coffeehouses debating the world’s injustices while ignoring the NBA or Stanley Cup Finals, even the NFL training camps that get started next month. They might not even know what sports I’m talking about. But I don’t blame them. I often […]
