2. “‘Dad was a
hard man to know,’ says John S. D. Eisenhower, who just turned 90. ‘But the
balance that Thomas achieves between Eisenhower the public servant and
Eisenhower the man is, in my opinion, as close to the mark as we are likely to
see.’
--From the VANITY FAIR review of Evan Thomas’ new book,
IKE’S BLUFF. I have just begun reading the book, and, so far, it is very engaging.
Thomas’ premise is that Eisenhower used his skill to bluff, as demonstrated all
his life in games such as bridge and poker, to get the United States out of the
Korean War and shield the U. S. from War World III. I will offer a brief review
when I finish the book.
3. I think
that three interesting quotes from the current issue of WORLD MAGAZINE’s are
very telling:
a.
The first is from Rupert Everett, an actor from Great Britain who is well known
for practicing homosexuality—“I can’t think of anything worse than being
brought up by two gay dads.”
b.
The second is offered by Nick Cassavetes, a Hollywood director whose credits
include THE NOTEBOOK, “Love who you want. Isn’t that what we say?” The context
for that quote is a new movie his is directing that includes in its plot line
an incestuous relationship between a brother and sister. I doubt Cassavetes
believes in incest; he is probably trying to provoke buzz for what he knows
will be a controversial movie. Still, the most interesting aspect of Cassavetes’
conversation with the media is this: a major principle undergirding gay
marriage—adults should be able to love who they want—could also be used in an
argument supporting adult incestuous relationship.
c.
The last quote is from the Chief Inspector in North Yorkshire England. He
addressed it to Sarah Catt, who had pled guilty to ingesting poison so as to
cause her child to miscarriage—one week before the due date of the child’s
birth, “What you have done is rob an apparently healthy child, vulnerable and
defenseless, of the life which was about to commence.”
4. How many
songs released in 1962 can you name? My two teen-age daughters can name at
least one: “Moon River.” They learned to enjoy the music of that piece from a
movie called BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S.” The young singer, Andy Williams, wanted
to record that song, but his record company would not let him. They thought
young listeners would not understand some of the lyrics. So Williams changed
companies to Columbia and recorded the song on a concept album of movie themes.
I was shocked to learn that the song was never released as a single, yet it
endures to this day. Fifty years and still playing makes a good song. When I
think of Andy Williams, I think of “Moon River.” RIP Andy Williams.
5. Around ten years ago, ESPN Classics ran a show called LOST
TREASURES. It was produced by NFL FILMS. We did not get the channel, but some
friends of mine did. I took the unusual step of asking them to record a
particular episode. You may wonder why.
I
did so because it featured a retrospective of a program that NFL FILMS produced
way back in 1967. The show was called NFL ACTION.
In
this particular episode, producers had miked the middle linebacker of the
Pittsburgh Steelers (the late Bill Saul) during a game with the Washington
Redskins. You could hear every sound made on a typical NFL play: the grunts,
the snarls, and, yes, the profanity. Meanwhile, the camera followed the middle
linebacker everywhere he went.
On
a normal play, Redskin Quarterback Sonny Jurgenson would clearly and audibly call
offensive signals; Saul would call defensive signals. Jurgenson would hand off
to a running back. Saul would tackle the ball carrier and a pile up would
ensue. Saul’s microphone, underneath the pile, transmitted sounds akin to a
thundering herd of buffalo.
I
will never forget as a grade schooler watching this very episode one Sunday
afternoon on CBS. I was mesmerized. It was during this time that I fell in love
with pro football.
Through
the years, I have regularly watched NFL Films. In the third grade, local boys
in the neighborhood and I would play a game called “Joe Kapp”, named for the
then quarterback of the Minnesota Vikings, whom we admired greatly.
We
would have a wide receiver, a pass defender, and a quarterback, who pretended
to be Joe Kapp. Sometimes, we would run plays in slow motion. Although we
called this game “Joe Kapp”, really what we were doing was trying to act out
what we were seeing on NFL Films.
So
several years ago, when I asked my friends to record the program, I was not
simply asking them to videotape a documentary. I was asking them to hand over
to me a VHS tape that could potentially transport me back to my childhood.
Steve
Sabol, who along with his dad, Ed, was responsible for NFL Films, passed away
last month, a victim of cancer. I never met Steve Sabol, yet I've had a
long-distance friendship with him for almost 50 years.
I
am not alone. Say the words “John Facenda” and any long-time NFL fan will know
I am talking about the voice of NFL Films. Steve Sabol utilized Facenda’s vocal
talents and wrote his scripts.
To
this day, the music of NFL Films motivates me. I still have CDs of the music of
NFL Films dating back to the sixties. My children have even grown to appreciate
it after hearing it for so many years on family trips. Although Steve Sabol did
not write that music, he was the one who inspired it and fit it to film.
How
do you maintain excellence in art, entertainment, and inspiration for fifty
years? Steve Sabol did. Some of Hollywood’s finest directors learned from and
were motivated by NFL Films.
But
I return to my own experiences. It is hard to move and inspire a child. Steve
Sabol somehow did.
Thanks
for everything, Steve.
*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this blog's
title.
