Saturday, December 8, 2007

Lute Olson's wife -A GOP committeewoman for a state she doesn't live in? Or is she? Hmmm...

I'm writing today because of something both odd and political that caught my eye in an AP dispatch yesterday about the heretofore unknown reasons for the mysterious leave of absence taken by University of Arizona head basketball coach Lute Olson, now revealed to be a likely
divorce action.

(UA's longtime arch-rival, Arizona State, home of former clutch Dolphin tight end Bruce Hardy, is the law school alma mater of my legal eagle friend, Jamie C. Eisenfeld of Phoenix. Jamie's a proud Penn alum, and is the Secretary of the Penn & Wharton Club of Arizona.
Besides possessing a great sense of humor and wit, and being smarter, cuter and sweeter than about 99.9% of all the women I ever met in D.C. on Capitol Hill and K Street -something I saw
up-close, when we worked together on some crazy projects that tried both our patience and our sense of humor- Jamie's also a bit of a, dare I say it, Renaissance woman.
She's quite knowledgable about many aspects of Africa's myriad longstanding political and economic problems -and possible solutions- having recounted to me many positive and negative first-hand impressions of her trips there, where myth met reality.
Jamie co-wrote an article titled Legal Developments in the United States and Sub-Saharan Africa for The International Lawyer in 2001, and 'walks the walk,' too, being a steadfast
supporter of The International Rescue Committee in the greater Phoenix area.
Former Congressman Ben Gilman's staff made a very big mistake in not hiring her when they had the chance!)

Below, besides the AP story itself, I've listed some other links about this subject which I think are germane to understanding what I noticed in the AP article regarding my political question about Christine Olson, Coach Olson's wife.

On an Arizona PBS station public affairs program in February,
the show's host, José Cárdenas refers to her as a former "committee woman for the republican national committee in Pennsylvania and C.E.O. Of a natural gas drilling company."
Now wouldn't José Cárdenas, sitting next to Christine Olson in a TV studio, have a more accurate account of her past than, well, an AP sportswriter?

In any case, wouldn't Mrs. Olson have corrected him if he had, in fact, mis-represented something about her background?

The entry below was accurate as of this afternoon:
http://www.gop.com/States/StateDetails.aspx?state=PA

Ms. Christine Olson

Present
National Committeewoman, Republican State Committee of Pennsylvania, elected August 21, 1997
President, SW Drilling Company
Secretary/Treasurer, Chi Omega Foundation, 1984-
Board Member, S&T Bank, 1985-
Secretary, Indiana Hospital, 1992-
Director, Independent Oil & Gas Association of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, 1993-
Member, Committee of 200
Member, State System of Higher Education, 1995-
Board Member, The Lockhart Company
Member, National Council of Colonial Williamsburg, 1996-
Board Member, The Andy Warhol Museum
Director, Indiana County Chamber of Commerce, 1996-
--------------------------------------------------------
This somewhat ironic post was still on Coach Olson's website as of today, http://www.coachluteolson.com/christine.html , an article titled "Lute Olson's wife can work the boards too" by Rhonda Bodfield Bloom of the Arizona Daily Star.

According to a very reliable Republican friend of mine who used to be on Sen. John Kyl's staff in Washington, there was once educated 'talk' of Christine Olson possibly running for Congress to succeed Republican Jim Kolbe, who for years represented District 8, which covers southern Arizona, including along the Mexican border.
Frankly, whether it was educated or not, my friend really hoped that the 'talk' was true, because it was felt that Christine Olson would not only be a 'natural' candidate, but also a great representative for the area in D.C.
(This same friend told me about Kolbe's supposed "secret" years before I ever saw any word of it in the Washington media. Not that anyone really cared, one way or the other, frankly.)

In any case, from what I'm told, Christine Olson is supposed to be a very smart and dynamic woman who's a real charmer. And, someone with lots of ambition.

As it happens, that Congressional district flipped in 2006, and is now represented by Democrat Gabrielle Giffords, http://giffords.house.gov/ who just got married to a NASA astronaut last month. http://www.willcoxrangenews.com/articles/2007/11/14/news/features/feature3.txt
Hmmm... if Olson were to run, that would set up a very high-profile campaign next year, oui?

The Olsons were the cover subjects here: Lute and Christine Olson, Leadership On The Court Sets A Philanthropic Example www.philanthropymagazine.com/.../11-2-lute.htm

Not that I'm any kind of relationship genius or anything, but it might very well be that those attractive qualities of Christine's, which initially attracted him to her at one point in time, and which might help attract voters to her now or in the future, might very well be threatening to Lute Olson now in his current circumstances, if she were to run for office, since she would not be able to play the typical coach's wife's role, i.e. supportive and omnipresent.

(In case you don't get the reference to Chicago in the AP story, it's relevant in that the Wildcats had a nationally televised basketball game there earlier this afternoon at The United Center, an exciting come-from-behind overtime victory over Illinois, which'll help Arizona come seeding-time for the NCAA tourney in a few months.

The tourney committee will be hard-pressed to forget that victory!)

Personally, I don't really care about why they're getting divorced, unless it turns out to have something to do with her possibly running for office, and his not wanting to be part of that campaign effort, due to his high-profile position within whatever constitutes the Arizona establishment, where almost nobody is held in higher personal and professional regard.
It's sort of like the way everyone felt towards the late 49ers head coach Bill Walsh.

Judging by the way the national media has always treated him, Olson already seemed like he was part of the sports world's Mount Rushmore.
For Lute Olson, having gotten used to rareified air, it might seem hard to step off the mountaintop just to ask for a vote for his wife.

If I'm right about this story, it'll have legs that won't quit, and Lute Olson will come off quite badly. And old-fashioned.
And not in the way that we like, either.

This topic of someone representing a state that they don't live in got me to wondering.

If anyone who comes across this post is personally aware of anyone currently living elsewhere who represents Florida as a DNC or RNC Committeeperson, or someone living in Florida representing another state, could you please let me know?

Finally, in case you missed it when I first wrote it, if you get a chance before Sunday night's Univision TV GOP debate at the U-M, take a look at what I wrote about one of the "experts" who'll probably write about it, The Miami Herald's Pablo Bachelet, who doesn't seem very
familiar with either the U.S. Constitution or the wonders of Google:
http://southbeachhoosier.blogspot.com/2007/09/us-constitution-still-apllies-in-south.html
____________________________________
http://www.azpbs.org/horizon/transcript06.asp?ID=484http://www.azpbs.org/horizon/transcript06.asp?ID=484

Arizona basketball coach Olson on leave, files for divorce
By ARTHUR H. ROTSTEIN, Associated Press WriterDecember 7, 2007

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- Arizona basketball coach Lute Olson has filed for divorce although his wife says she remains committed to the marriage.
The 73-year-old Hall of Fame coach filed a divorce petition in Pima County Superior Court on Thursday, the same day he announced he would extend his leave from the team through the end of the season.
"The marriage has been irretrievably broken with no reasonable prospect of reconciliation," Lute Olson's lawyer, Leonard Karp, said Friday.
Christine Olson, 50, is the coach's second wife.
Lute Olson and his first wife, Bobbi, were married for 47 years before her 2001 death from ovarian cancer. The couple had five children.

Gordon James, a Phoenix-based spokesman for Christine Olson, issued a statement on her behalf saying she received notice of the divorce filing Thursday night.
Christine Olson was in New York this week for meetings connected to her position as a Republican national committeewoman from Pennsylvania.
The Olsons were to have met in Chicago on Friday night, where the 22nd-ranked Wildcats arrived in advance of Saturday's game against Illinois.
"Our family has been struggling through a difficult and private matter for some months now," Christine Olson's statement said. "It was our hope that during my husband's temporary leave of absence, we would be able to focus on our family and successfully address this matter.
"Unfortunately, it seems that my husband has reached a decision that he is unable to continue our relationship together during this difficult time. While I am personally devastated, I remain committed to my marriage and will continue to support my husband through this difficult time in his life. I have nothing but love and respect for him."
Christine Olson is still living in Tucson and will be remaining in the family home while Lute Olson apparently has moved out, according to James.
He said Christine Olson will be fighting for her marriage and trying to avoid a divorce.
Karp said he didn't know if Lute Olson was in Tucson on Friday.
"His request basically was that people honor his privacy," said Karp, who is authorized to speak on the coach's behalf. "He's taken a lot of time to make this decision. I think he needs the time to resolve these matters. Our hope is that once Christine retains her attorney that we can sit down and amicably resolve things."
___________________
AP - Dec 7, 4:45 pm EST

Olson announced his leave Nov. 4, saying the reasons were personal and not health related. In a statement released by the university Thursday night announcing the leave extension, Olson said he plans to coach the Wildcats for the 2008-09 season.
"There are personal issues within my family that need to be addressed and I must devote my full energy to that," Olson said.
Karp said he didn't believe Olson would rescind his leave in light of the divorce filing.
"I think his statement is his true feelings, that he will be back next year but that he needs this time during this season to resolve his personal problem," Karp said.
Legal records supervisor Ray Rivas in the Superior Court clerk's office said court rules bar public scrutiny of divorce petitions until the filer's spouse has been served or 45 days have passed.
Olson has coached Arizona for 24 seasons and posted a 589-187 record with 23 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances. His Wildcats have won 11 Pac-10 championships, reached the Final Four four times and won the 1997 NCAA title.
Assistant Kevin O'Neill, the interim coach while Olson is gone, said Friday he's doing the best he can to fill in.
"I have great respect and admiration for what our players have done to this point in terms of focusing on basketball only in a very difficult situation -- a situation that, really, there's no blueprint for," O'Neill said.
Senior guard Jawann McClellan said the players want Olson back "100 percent."
"We wanted Coach Olson back more than anything, but first of all, we want him to do well and take care of Coach Olson," McClellan said. "A lot of people don't realize that he's still human."
Bobbi Olson played an active role in her husband's basketball program, joining him on recruiting trips and even cooking pancakes for prospective players when they visited Tucson. Former players revered her for being instrumental in creating a family atmosphere. The university renamed the basketball floor the Lute & Bobbi Olson Court after her death.

In 2003, Lute Olson married Christine Jack Toretti, a prominent, politically active Pennsylvania businesswoman. Toretti, who took Olson's last name after their wedding, remains chief executive of an oil and gas drilling company and sits on several corporate boards. She has three sons from her first marriage.

AP Sports Writer Andrew Seligman in Chicago contributed to this report.
_______________________
Her organization sounds like a pretty good one, esp. for a state that, like FL, has so many
transplants from other places, at least some of whom have that public policy gene. It'd be a good idea down here, too, for both parties.
Anything to get some new blood (and ideas) circulating!

http://www.azpbs.org/horizon/transcript06.asp?ID=484
transcript excerpt from PBS program, Horizon

(Host) José Cárdenas: Tomorrow we continue to celebrate black history month with a profile of another African-American woman who was significant in Arizona’s history. The Dodie London excellence in public service series recently got underway, the program named after the only female past chairman of the Arizona Republican Party recruits women who are interested in participating in public service in some capacity. Its founder Christine Olson is a former committee woman for the republican national committee in Pennsylvania and C.E.O. Of a natural gas drilling company. She joins us now to talk about the program. Ms. Olson welcome to horizon.

Christine Olson: Thank you, Jose.

Jose Cardenas: Now The current status of this program, what is it?

Christine Olson: Well we actually just announced it two weeks ago. And we are now gathering our applicant pool. We’re looking for women all over the state of Arizona, republican women who want to increase their level of activity in public service.

Jose Cardenas: And the principal purpose of the program is increasing activity but in what way? How do you do that?

Christine Olson: Well if you want to run for public office, if you want to position yourself for a board or commission, or you just want to be a great party worker. All we’re asking is that- you know we'll invest in you for a year and we want you to make a commitment to invest in your in your community for the rest of your life at some level.

Jose Cardenas: Who would make the best candidates for this kind of program?

Christine Olson: Oh Jose, it goes from stay-at-home moms to corporate C.E.O’s. What I found in Pennsylvania where I started the program five years ago was that women are -- we're wired a little differently. And I was trying to recruit women to run for political office. They said, oh, well, I don't have a Ph.D. in political science. And you go to a man, if he voted once he feels like he's qualified to run for president. And it’s not a knock on gender, it’s just the reality.

Jose Cardenas: If he thinks if he has an opinion then he wants to share it.

Christine Olson: You’ve got it. So we want to do, is we want to create- give women the tools that they need to feel comfortable in participating in the process. So what we created was a curriculum that goes soup to nuts, everything that you ever wanted to know about being involved in public service, and we do that over a nine month period. The first class will start in October and it will finish in early June. And when we finish the class in early June we want women to feel that they've got every tool that they need to participate in the process, whatever that part of the process is.

Jose Cardenas: And When you're trying to encourage women to get involved, what do you tell them as to why it's important that more women to be involved in politics?

Christine Olson: Well, you know, politics affect every aspect of our life. And I was recruited originally then Governor Ridge to serve on the national committee and I told him I didn't have time. I was a corporate C.E.O. And I had made my second acquisition. I had three kids, 8, 6 and 3, and I was recently divorced. And I said, "I don't have time." and he said, "Christine, I see what you're doing." I had created a retreat for female C.E.O.s from all over the world. He said, "I see what you're doing to support and advance women. If you believe that women should have a voice in the political process and in policy in our country, you can't say no. You have to be involved in this." and he was right. If we want to be represented and the laws that are enacted affect all of us, and we need to have a voice in that, and that's why women need to be a part of the process.

Jose Cardenas: And how do they become a part of your process, the program that you run?

Christine Olson: Well we have a website which is azgopforwomen.org. They can go to that website and download the application, fill out the application and get it into us. And just even go to the website to see whether or not it's something they're interested in. But I'm anxious to find women from all over Arizona who want to take an interest in the political process. It's very important.

Jose Cardenas: And what happens after they've gone through the course and then they decide to run for office?

Christine Olson: Well, we'll support them. Our network will help them move forward. We do not -- we do not go against endorsed candidates. We do not go against incumbents. But once they're through that part of the process, that network comes to them and supports them in every way. I have this straight story of a woman who wanted to run for city council in a town in Pennsylvania. And the good old boys decided, well, we don't want a woman. So when they sent out their mailer they had two republicans and one democrat. This is the county Republican party. And there were three guys. Our network of alums found out about it. 40 of our alums went in and door knocked for this woman for four days before the election. We raised an additional $20,000 for cable media buy. This young lady was the highest vote getter, even higher than the mayor who is very popular. And she is now positioning herself to run for the state house. And it was all because of this network of women who have come together to understand that we need to support each other.

Jose Cardenas: Christine Olson, we've got a little less than a minute left. Your final thoughts on the program and the kind of people who should be involved and why.

Christine Olson: We need people from every walk of life. And the program, it's about training women. But it's about engaging men and women in the process. We need -- we need mentors. We need role models, whether they're female or male. And so anyone that really wants to get involved and help advance women within the republican party, please go to our website and see what it's all about, because it's very important.

Jose Cardenas: Christine Olson, thank you for joining us on Horizon to talk about this important program.

Christine Olson: Thank you, Jose.

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In the Heart of a Great Country, Beats the Soul of Hoosier Nation

In the Heart of a Great Country, Beats the Soul of Hoosier Nation
"In the Heart of a Great Country, Beats the Soul of Hoosier Nation." -South Beach Hoosier, 2007

#IUBB, #bannersix

#IUBB, #bannersix
Assembly Hall, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana; Click photo to see video of Straight No Chaser's version of Back Home Again In Indiana, 2:37
The South Florida I Grew Up In

Excerpts from Joan Didion's Miami, 1987, Simon & Schuster:

In the continuing opera still called, even by Cubans who have now lived the largest part of their lives in this country, el exilo, the exile, meetings at private homes in Miami Beach are seen to have consequences. The actions of individuals are seen to affect events directly. Revolutions and counter-revolutions are framed in the private sector, and the state security apparatus exists exclusively to be enlisted by one or another private player. That this particular political style, indigenous to the Caribbean and to Central America, has now been naturalized in the United States is one reason why, on the flat coastal swamps of South Florida, where the palmettos once blew over the detritus of a dozen failed booms and the hotels were boarded up six months a year, there has evolved since the early New Year's morning in 1959 when Fulgencio Batista flew for the last time out of Havana a settlement of considerable interest, not exactly an American city as American cities have until recently been understood but a tropical capital: long on rumor, short on memory, overbuilt on the chimera of runaway money and referring not to New York or Boston or Los Angeles or Atlanta but to Caracas and Mexico, to Havana and to Bogota and to Paris and Madrid. Of American cities Miami has since 1959 connected only to Washington, which is the peculiarity of both places, and increasingly the warp...

"The general wildness, the eternal labyrinths of waters and marshes, interlocked and apparently neverending; the whole surrounded by interminable swamps... Here I am then in the Floridas, thought I," John James Audobon wrote to the editor of The Monthly American Journal of Geology and Natural Science during the course of an 1831 foray in the territory then still called the Floridas. The place came first, and to touch down there is to begin to understand why at least six administations now have found South Florida so fecund a colony. I never passed through security for a flight to Miami without experiencing a certain weightlessness, the heightened wariness of having left the developed world for a more fluid atmosphere, one in which the native distrust of extreme possibilities that tended to ground the temperate United States in an obeisance to democratic institutions seemed rooted, if at all, only shallowly.

At the gate for such flights the preferred language was already Spanish. Delays were explained by weather in Panama. The very names of the scheduled destinations suggested a world in which many evangelical inclinations had historically been accomodated, many yearnings toward empire indulged...

In this mood Miami seemed not a city at all but a tale, a romance of the tropics, a kind of waking dream in which any possibility could and would be accomodated...
Hallandale Beach Blog
http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/

Hallandale Beach Blog is where I try to inject or otherwise superimpose a degree of accountability, transparency and much-needed insight onto local Broward County government and public policy issues, which I feel is sorely lacking in local media now, despite all the technological advances that have taken place since I grew-up in South Florida in the 1970's. On this blog, I concentrate my energy, enthusiasm, anger, disdain and laser-like attention primarily on the coastal cities of Aventura, Hollywood and Hallandale Beach.

IF you lived in this part of South Florida, you'd ALREADY be in stultifying traffic, be paying higher-than-necessary taxes, and be continually musing about the chronic lack of any real accountability or transparency among not only elected govt. officials, but also of City, County and State employees as well. Collectively, with a few rare exceptions, they couldn't be farther from the sort of strong results-oriented, work-ethic mentality that citizens here deserve and are paying for.

This is particularly true in the town I live in, the City of Hallandale Beach, just north of Aventura and south of Hollywood. There, the Perfect Storm of years of apathy, incompetency and cronyism are all too readily apparent.
Sadly for its residents, Hallandale Beach is where even the easily-solved or entirely predictable quality-of-life problems are left to fester for YEARS on end, because of myopia, lack of common sense and the unsatisfactory management and coordination of resources and personnel.

It's a city with tremendous potential because of its terrific location and weather, yet its citizens have become numb to its outrages and screw-ups after years of the worst kind of chronic mismanagement and lack of foresight. On a daily basis, they wake up and see the same old problems again that have never being adequately resolved by the city in a logical and responsible fashion. Instead the city government either closes their eyes and hopes you'll forget the problem, or kicks them -once again- further down the road.

I used to ask myself, and not at all rhetorically, "Where are all the enterprising young reporters who want to show through their own hard work and enterprise, what REAL investigative reporting can produce?"

Hearing no response, I decided to start a blog that could do some of these things, taking the p.o.v. of a reasonable-but-skeptical person seeing the situation for the first time.
Someone who wanted questions answered in a honest and forthright fashion that citizens have the right to expect.

Hallandale Beach Blog intends to be a catalyst for positive change. http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/

Hallandale Beach's iconic beachball-colored Water Tower, between beach and A1A/South Ocean Drive

Hallandale Beach's iconic beachball-colored Water Tower, between beach and A1A/South Ocean Drive
Hallandale Beach, FL; February 16, 2008 photo by South Beach Hoosier

Hollywood in Cartoons, The New Yorker

Hollywood in Cartoons, The New Yorker
"Gentlemen, I am happy to announce that as of today we are closing down our Washington news bureau and moving the entire operation to L.A."

Hollywood in Cartoons, The New Yorker

Hollywood in Cartoons, The New Yorker
"O.K., so I dig a hole and put the bone in the hole. But what's my motivation for burying it?"

Hollywood in cartoons, 10-21-06 Non-Sequitur by Wiley, www-NON-SEQUITUR.COM

Hollywood in cartoons, 10-21-06 Non-Sequitur by Wiley, www-NON-SEQUITUR.COM
The Magic of Hollywood: A motion has been put forth that we should seek to create rather than imitate. All in favor of killing this silly notion, nod in mindless agreement...

Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins
South Beach Hoosier's first Dolphin game at the Orange Bowl came in Dec. 1970, aged 9, a 45-3 win over Buffalo that propelled them into their first ever playoff appearance.

Sebastian the Ibis, the Spirited Mascot of the University of Miami Hurricanes

Sebastian the Ibis, the Spirited Mascot of the University of Miami Hurricanes
Before going to my first U-M game at the Orange Bowl in 1972, a friend's father often would bring me home an extra 'Canes game program. That's how I came to have the Alabama at U-M game program from Nov. 16, 1968, which was the first nationally-televised college football night game in color. (A 14-6 loss to the Crimson Tide.) After that first ballgame against Tulane, as l often did for Dolphin games if my father wasn't going, I'd get dropped off at the Levitz parking lot near the 836 & I-95 Cloverleaf in NMB, and catch a Dade County Park & Ride bus, going straight to the Orange Bowl. Onboard, I'd get next to the window and listen to WIOD's pre-game show on my Radio Shack transistor radio. A few times, I was just about the only person onboard besides the bus driver, which was alright by me. Once at the Orange Bowl, if I didn't already have a ticket, I'd buy a game program for myself and one or two for friends or teachers before heading to the ticket window, since you usually couldn't find a program vendor once inside. I probaly had a friend or my father with me for just under 40% of the U-M games I ever went to, but you have to remember that the team, though blessed with several talented players, like Chuck Foreman and Burgess Owens, was just so-so to average at best, and the games were usually played on Friday nights, so it wasn't exactly high on everyone's list of things to do. Depending upon the opponent, if I was alone, I'd often have entire areas of the Orange Bowl to myself. (Wish I had photos of that now!) For instance, I had a good portion of the East (open) End Zone to myself against Oklahoma in the mid-70's, when the Boomer Schooner and the Schooner Crew went out on the field after an Oklahoma TD, and the Schooner received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty from the refs, as would happen years later in an Orangle Bowl Classic game. (Against FSU?) I was there for the wins and losses under Pete Elliott, Carl Selmer & Lou Saban, and the huge on-field fight in '73 when under eventual national champion Notre Dame (under Ara Parseghian), they called a time-out with less than a minute to go, and already up 37-0. Their rationale? To score another TD and impress the AP football writers; final score 44-0. Well, they got their wish and beat Alabama 24-23 for the title at the Sugar Bowl. A year later, thanks to my Mom's boss, she and I saw Ara's last game as head coach of the Irish in the Orange Bowl Game from the East End Zone -in front of the Alabama cheerleaders!!!- in an exciting 13-11 Notre Dame win over Alabama and Bear Bryant, a rematch of the '73 national title game. I was also present for the U-M's huge 20-15 win under Pete Elliott against Darrel Royal's Texas Longhorns, the week Sports Illustrated's College Football preview issue came out with Texas on the cover, below. I was also present for lots of wins against schools called College of the Pacific, UNLV and Cal-Poly San Luis Obsispo, which I'd then never heard of before.

Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders, April 28, 2007

Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders, April 28, 2007
Photo by Mario J. Bermudez. April 28, 2007 at Dolphins NFL Draft Party at Dolphin HQ, Davie, FL

Of cheerleaders past and present

Given South Florida's unique version of the melting pot -con salsa- demographics and mindset, these women in the photo above are surely what most South Floridians would consider attractive women. But for this observer, who's spent hours & hours at IU cheerleader tryouts and who has known dozens of cheerleaders -and wannabes- in North Miami Beach, Bloomington, Evanston and Washington, D.C., the whole time I was watching these members of the Dolphins' squad perform, I couldn't help but compare them and their routines to those of some IU friends of mine who ALWAYS showed true Hoosier spirit & enthusiasm. Sitting at my table right near the stage and still later, while watching the long lines of Dolphin fans of all ages waiting to snap photos of themselves with the cheerleaders, I couldn't help but think about those friends who always left me and other Hoosier fans feeling positive & optimistic. Was there anyone I saw in Davie who possessed these valuable intangibles: the dancing precision of IU Red Stepper -and Captain- Gail Amster, my talented and spirited Phi Beta Kappa pal from Deerfield (IL), who always sat next to me in our Telecom. classes as we took turns entertaining the other; the ebullient spirit & energy of two Hoosier cheerleaders -and captains- from Bloomington, Wendy (Mulholland) Moyle & Sara Cox; the hypnotic, Midwestern, girl-next-door sexiness of Hoosier cheerleader Julie Bymaster, from Brownsburg; or, the adorable Southern girl-next-door appeal of former Hoosier Pom squader Jennifer Grimes, of Louisville, always such a clear distraction while sitting underneath the basket? Nope, not that I could see. But then they were VERY tough acts to follow!!! And that's not to mention my talented & spirited friends like Denise Andrews of Portage, Jody Kosanovich of Hammond & Linda Ahlbrand of Chesterton, all of whom were dynamic cheerleaders -and captains- at very large Hoosier high schools that were always in the championship mix, with Denise's team winning the Ind. football championship her senior year when she was captain -just like in a movie. That Denise, Jody & Linda all lived on the same dorm floor, just three stories above me at Briscoe Quad our freshman year, was one of the greatest coincidences -and strokes of luck for me!- that I could've ever hoped for. You could hardly ask for better ambassadors of IU than THESE very smart, sweet and talented women. In a future SBH post, I'll tell the story of one of the greatest Hoosiers I ever met, the aforementioned Wendy Mulholland, the Bloomington-born captain and emotional heart of the great early '80's IU cheerleading squads, and the daughter of Jack Mulholland, IU's former longtime Treasurer. The acorn doesn't fall far from a tree built on a foundation of integrity & community service! (After he retired, Mr. Mulholland was the first executive director of the Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County. I used to joke with Wendy that her dad's name was the one that was permanently affixed to the bottom of my work-study checks for years, while I worked at the Dept. of Political Science's Library, first, at the Student Building in the old part of campus, and then later, after it was refurbished, in magnificent Woodburn Hall, my favorite building on campus.) In that future post, I'll share some reflections on Wendy's great strength of character and personality; my intentions of returning to Bloomington a few weeks before Fall '82 classes started, so I could help Wendy train and work-out to rehab her knee, so she'd feel confident in trying-out for the squad again, following a bad knee injury that'd left her physically-unable to try-out for the squad the previous spring, a big disappointment to those of us who cared about both Wendy and the team; my incredulity at, quite literally, running into Wendy while walking down a sidewalk one afternoon a few years later in Evanston, IL, when we were astonished to discover we were both living there, with me trying to hook on with a Windy City advertising agency, and Wendy then-attending Kellogg (KGSM) at Northwestern, right when the WSJ had named Kellogg the #1 Business School in the country. I'll also share a story about Wendy performing a true act of kindness towards me in 1982, when I was having a real emergency, and she went above-and-beyond what I had any logical reason to expect. Yet, Wendy, along with her very helpful dad, Jack, came through for me when I was in a very bad time crunch. I've never forgotten Wendy's kindness towards me, and her true Hoosier spirit. There's NOTHING I wouldn't do for Wendy Mulholland.

It's All About "The U"

It's All About "The U"
South Beach Hoosier's first U-M football game at the Orange Bowl was in 1972, age 11, against Tulane in the infamous "Fifth Down" game. In order to drum up support and attendance for the U-M at the Orange Bowl, that game had a promotion whereby South Florida kids who were school safety patrols could get in for free IF they wore their sash. I did. Clearly they knew that it was better to let kids in for free, knowing their parents would give them money to buy food and souvenirs, perhaps become a fan and want to return for future games. The ballgame made an interesting impression on The New York Times, resulting in this gem from the "View of Sport" column of Oct, 14, 1990, labeled 'Fifth Down or Not, It's Over When It's Over.' -"In 1972, aided by a fifth-down officiating gift in the last moments of the game, Miami of Florida defeated Tulane, 24-21. The country and the world was a much different place that fall because The New York Times took time and space to editorialize on the subject. ''Is it right for sportsmen, particularly young athletes, to be penalized or deprived of the goals for which they earnestly competed because responsible officials make mistakes? The ideal of true sportsmanship would be better served if Miami forfeited last week's game.' South Beach Hoosier hardly needs to tell you that this was YET another New York Times editoral that was completely ignored!

The issue I took with me the night of U-M's 20-15 upset of #1 Texas at the Orange Bowl

The issue I took with me the night of U-M's 20-15 upset of #1 Texas at the Orange Bowl
College Football, Texas No. 1, Hook 'em Horns, Sept. 10, 1973. Living in North Miami Beach in the '70's, my Sports Illustrated usually showed up in my mailbox on the Thursday or Friday before the Monday cover date. And was read cover-to-cover by Sunday morning.

The Perfect Storm

The Perfect Storm
U-M QB Ken Dorsey, Miami Hurricanes Undefeated National Champions 2001, Jan. 2002

Miami's Romp in the Rose

Miami's Romp in the Rose
Miami running back Clinton Portis, Jan. 7, 2002

Why the University of Miami should drop football

Why the University of Miami should drop football
June 12, 1995

REVENGE!

REVENGE!
Steve McGuire and Miami Overpower No.1 Notre Dame, Dec. 4, 1989

How Sweet It Is!

How Sweet It Is!
Miami Whips Oklahoma For The National Championship, Pictured: Dennis Kelleher, Jan. 11, 1988

My, Oh My, Miami!

My, Oh My, Miami!
Steve Walsh and the Canes Stun FSU, Oct. 12, 1987

Why Is Miami No. 1?

Why Is Miami No. 1?
QB Vinny Testaverde, Nov. 24, 1986

Miracle In Miami

Miracle In Miami
The Hurricanes Storm Past Nebraska, Halfback Keith Griffin, Jan. 9, 1984

Special Issue: College Football

Special Issue: College Football
The Best Passer, George Mira of Miami, Sept. 23, 1963

1984 College & Pro Spectatcular

1984 College & Pro Spectatcular
A Pair Of Aces: U-M QB Bernie Kosar & Miami Dolphin QB Dan Marino, Sept. 5, 1984

Pro Football Hall of Fame Special Issue

Pro Football Hall of Fame Special Issue
Dan Marino, Class of 2005, Aug. 2005

FACES OF THE NFL

FACES OF THE NFL
A Portfolio by Walter Iooss Jr., Ricky Williams, Miami Dolphins, Dec. 9, 2002

Coming Back

Coming Back
Jay Fiedler rallies Miami to a last-second win over Oakland, Oct. 1, 2001

Dan's Last Stand

Dan's Last Stand
At 38 and under siege, Dan Marino refuses to go down without a fight, Dec. 13, 1999

The War Zone

The War Zone
In the NFL's toughest division, the surprising Dolphins are on top, Lamar Smith, Dec. 11, 2000

Down and Dirty

Down and Dirty
Jimmy Johnson's Dolphins Bury The Patriots, Steve Emtman, Sept. 9, 1996

The Sunshine Boys

The Sunshine Boys
Now Playing in Miami: The Dan Marino and Jimmy Johnson Show, May 11, 1996

HOT & NOT

HOT & NOT
Miami loves Pat Riley but wants to give Don Shula the boot, Dec. 11, 1995

NFL PREVIEW 1995

NFL PREVIEW 1995
Which of today's stars are locks for the Hall of Fame? Dan Marino for sure. But who else? To find out, we polled the men who do the voting. Sept. 14, 1995

Sportsman Of The Year

Sportsman Of The Year
Don Shula, Dec. 20, 1993

Dan The Man

Dan The Man
Dan Marino Saves The Day For The Dolphins, Jan. 14, 1991

Dangerous Dan

Dangerous Dan
Dan Marino Passes Miami Into The Super Bowl, Jan. 14, 1985

Super Duper!

Super Duper!
Wide Receiver Mark Duper Of The Undefeated Dolphins, Nov. 19, 1984

Air Raid! Miami Bombs Washington

Air Raid! Miami Bombs Washington
Mark Clayton (burning Darryl Green) Sept. 10, 1984

Rookies On The Rise

Rookies On The Rise
Dan Marino: Miami's Hot Quarterback, Nov. 14, 1983

New Life In The WFL

New Life In The WFL
Warfield, Csonka and Kiick of Memphis, July 28, 1975

Zonk! Miami Massacres Minnesota

Zonk! Miami Massacres Minnesota
Larry Csonka, Jan. 21, 1974

Pro Football, Miami Is Rough And Ready

Pro Football, Miami Is Rough And Ready
Larry Csonka & Bob Griese, Sept. 17, 1973

Miami All The Way

Miami All The Way
Bob Griese, Jan. 22, 1973

It's Miami and Washington

It's Miami and Washington
Mercury Morris Speeds Past The Steelers, Jan. 8, 1973

Kiick and Csonka, Miami's Dynamic Duo

Kiick and Csonka, Miami's Dynamic Duo
Larry Csonka & Jim Kiick, Aug. 7, 1972

Sudden Death at Kansas City

Sudden Death at Kansas City
Miami's Garo Yepremian Ends the Longest Game; (kneeling) placekick holder Karl Noonan, Jan. 3, 1972

New Pro in a New Town

New Pro in a New Town
Miami's Frank Emanuel, Aug. 8, 1966

Old-style "Obie" the Orange Bowl Committee mascot

Old-style "Obie" the Orange Bowl Committee mascot
The iconic image I grew-up with in Miami, before FedEx got into the picture