Classic American West Coast Boxing

[Randyman]

Theres been so much good writing on this thread, so i thought id give it a go
and share a story of my own.

Remembering My Friend Øystein

When i was 16 or 17 i used to work at a italian resturant(wich I later bought and bankrupted bigtime)
A couple of times a week this retired old sailor would stop by and order 1/2 cup of coffee
and a alcohol free beer . He would sit there for hours and joke and tell tales,Always with a smile on his face.
We became fast friends. I enjoyed the stories he would tell from his sailor days, and i guess he just
needed an audience.

After he retired he had begun to hand make canoos , But by the time i met him his health condition
did not allow him to work much on his canoos(he was allready dying). So I told him id help out when i had some free time
and he started to teach me how to make canoos.

While working on the canoos he opened up and told me about his family . He had three daughters
But the last time he had heard from them was when they cheated him out of his last money.
His grandchildren he had barely seen and understandably it hurt him bad. Somehow he always
kept high spirits though even when he was dancing around the workshop to Frank Sinatra(whom he loved)
I could see the hurt in his eyes.

When i turned 18 i got drafted in the army and went of to serve my conscription and i lost touch with him.
One time when i was home on leave i met him in the resturant i used to work. I sat down ordered a beer and we started talking.
We came to talk about his health condition wich had deterioated much since the last time i saw him and continued
over to religion (Øystein had a very deep belief in God)
By that time i had a few to many beers and started discussing with him and we didnt see eye to eye on that subject in other words we had an arguement.
I could see I hurt him ,but we made a truce and i walked out and went back to the army the next morning.
That was the last time i saw him. I came home a couple of months later and got the word that he had passed.

Now I take the buss past his house from time to time and it gets me thinking of this poor man
and i wonder where he is buried, I never knew his last name or anyone that did.
Now his house is repainted and a new family has moved in .

He taught me alot of lessons on life, through our conversations and through his passing R.I.P

Panz, you knew all you needed to know about your friend Oystein. Sounds like it was a good friendship while it lasted. I've met and worked with some older guys and didn't know too much other what I learned from them while working with them. With some I didn't even know their real names. They're all gone now but like you, I keep them close.

Thanks for sharing that story. It says a lot about you as well.

Randy

[Randyman]

in other words he makes the A hole list.

Wasn't Chuck Connors a ballplayer before he became an actor?

Randy

Chuck Connors was a good all-around athlete. He played for the Boston Celtics in the old Basketball Association of America right after the war. Only one season as I recall. In baseball, he played for numerous minor league teams, and, in the majors played briefly for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs. He was also drafted by the Chicago Bears but never played. He was playing baseball with the minor league LA Angels when he entered the motion picture industry.

Thanks, Tom, I thought I had heard that about Connors. That's the first I've heard about him being a basketball player.

As Lucas McCain, the Rifleman, he was one of my favorite TV western actor.

Thanks

Randy

[Expug]

Chuck Connors.
For some reason my father always thought this intro was hilarious.
Hes always singing the damn song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKmJPnAGUJk

[Rick Farris]

Theres been so much good writing on this thread, so i thought id give it a go
and share a story of my own.

Remembering My Friend Øystein

When i was 16 or 17 i used to work at a italian resturant(wich I later bought and bankrupted bigtime)
A couple of times a week this retired old sailor would stop by and order 1/2 cup of coffee
and a alcohol free beer . He would sit there for hours and joke and tell tales,Always with a smile on his face.
We became fast friends. I enjoyed the stories he would tell from his sailor days, and i guess he just
needed an audience.

After he retired he had begun to hand make canoos , But by the time i met him his health condition
did not allow him to work much on his canoos(he was allready dying). So I told him id help out when i had some free time
and he started to teach me how to make canoos.

While working on the canoos he opened up and told me about his family . He had three daughters
But the last time he had heard from them was when they cheated him out of his last money.
His grandchildren he had barely seen and understandably it hurt him bad. Somehow he always
kept high spirits though even when he was dancing around the workshop to Frank Sinatra(whom he loved)
I could see the hurt in his eyes.

When i turned 18 i got drafted in the army and went of to serve my conscription and i lost touch with him.
One time when i was home on leave i met him in the resturant i used to work. I sat down ordered a beer and we started talking.
We came to talk about his health condition wich had deterioated much since the last time i saw him and continued
over to religion (Øystein had a very deep belief in God)
By that time i had a few to many beers and started discussing with him and we didnt see eye to eye on that subject in other words we had an arguement.
I could see I hurt him ,but we made a truce and i walked out and went back to the army the next morning.
That was the last time i saw him. I came home a couple of months later and got the word that he had passed.

Now I take the buss past his house from time to time and it gets me thinking of this poor man
and i wonder where he is buried, I never knew his last name or anyone that did.
Now his house is repainted and a new family has moved in .

He taught me alot of lessons on life, through our conversations and through his passing R.I.P

Your story brought to mind a similar charactor from my life. Thanks for sharing it.

[Rick Farris]

Chuck Connors.
For some reason my father always thought this intro was hilarious.
Hes always singing the damn song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKmJPnAGUJk

I remember this very well. "What do you do when your branded?" Chuck knows.

[Rick Farris]

Back in 1965 . . .

Thursday was fight night at L.A.'s Olympic Auditorium back in the mid-60's.
In early 1965, KTLA Ch-5 began to televise weekly boxing from the 18th & Grand arena.
Almost immediatly, "Boxing from the Olympic", became the highest rated sports broadcast in Southern Cal.

My first visit to the Olympic had taken place the previous year, when flyweight champ, Hiroyuki Ebihara defended his title against Mexico's "Alacran" Torres. That one ended in a riot, and it was nearly a year before my dad would take me back to see a fight live. When he did, I would see the Olympic on a thursday night for the first time. This time, two TV cameras were perched on a platform hanging right below the balcony. Above the cameras on the edge of the balcony, were ten 2,000 watt spotlights, providing front fill light for the cameras. The ring was bathed in a blanket of white light beaming down from a cluster incandescent light fixtures directly above the ring.

The aura of the Olympic ring came to life when accented by the TV lights. The powder blue canvas would glow in the light, something very surreal. I was hooked the moment I stepped into the Olympic that night. At ringside, calling the action for the TV audience were matchmaker Mickey Davies and a young sportscaster named Dick Enberg. I felt at home there, I felt I belonged, I felt the presence of the spirits of greatness that had once boxed and wrestled there. I wanted to spend a lot of time there, and I would, as both a fan and a fighter.

My dad took a buddy and I to the fights that night. We had tickets about a dozen rows back from the ring, good seats, great view.
The main event that night was a barn burner. State featherweight champ, Danny Valdez, fought a ten round war with Pete Gonzalez of Portland. Valdez had beaten Gonzalez in a twelve round state title defense the previous year. This time he would lose a ten rounder in a very close fight.

After the fights, my dad took us across the street to what was then a drive-in restaurant, "The Olympic Cafe".
We were seated at a booth, waiting to order when we see the two main event fighters enter the restaurant together. They walk over to the counter and sit down together. I could see that Valdez cheek was swollen, and was holding one of the Reyes boxing gloves he'd worn that night. I watched the waitress take the boxer's orders, and then saw her smile as the fighter's joked with her. When she walked away, the smiles left their faces, you could see they were tired, and rightfully so. As Gonzalez spoke to Valdez, the state champ pressed his soggy boxing glove up to his swollen face, as if it were an ice bag.

I remember I was surprised that the boxers were friendly, I learned that boxers don't need to hate one another in order to take care of business in the ring. They were professionals. Less than an hour earlier, they were trading knockout blows, now they were good buddies talking over hamburgers.

I never forgot what I saw that night, both in the ring and at the restaurant. I learned something.
Last year, Frank Baltazar introduced me to Danny Valdez. I told him what I remembered about that night.
Danny smiled, and we had a nice conversation. He had challeneged Davey Moore for the featherweight title.
After boxing, he worked for our local ABC network as a lighting tech.
Ironically, I followed my boxing days by working as a lighting tech.

This coming saturday I'll have a chance to see Danny Valdez again. Danny is an East L.A. guy, from Maravilla.
He had a great career in the ring, and a great one with ABC. A true Classic American West Coast boxer.


-Rick Farris

[kikibalt]

Thanks for that great story, Rick.

[Randyman]

Back in 1965 . . .

Thursday was fight night at L.A.'s Olympic Auditorium back in the mid-60's.
In early 1965, KTLA Ch-5 began to televise weekly boxing from the 18th & Grand arena.
Almost immediatly, "Boxing from the Olympic", became the highest rated sports broadcast in Southern Cal.

My first visit to the Olympic had taken place the previous year, when flyweight champ, Hiroyuki Ebihara defended his title against Mexico's "Alacran" Torres. That one ended in a riot, and it was nearly a year before my dad would take me back to see a fight live. When he did, I would see the Olympic on a thursday night for the first time. This time, two TV cameras were perched on a platform hanging right below the balcony. Above the cameras on the edge of the balcony, were ten 2,000 watt spotlights, providing front fill light for the cameras. The ring was bathed in a blanket of white light beaming down from a cluster incandescent light fixtures directly above the ring.

The aura of the Olympic ring came to life when accented by the TV lights. The powder blue canvas would glow in the light, something very surreal. I was hooked the moment I stepped into the Olympic that night. At ringside, calling the action for the TV audience were matchmaker Mickey Davies and a young sportscaster named Dick Enberg. I felt at home there, I felt I belonged, I felt the presence of the spirits of greatness that had once boxed and wrestled there. I wanted to spend a lot of time there, and I would, as both a fan and a fighter.

My dad took a buddy and I to the fights that night. We had tickets about a dozen rows back from the ring, good seats, great view.
The main event that night was a barn burner. State featherweight champ, Danny Valdez, fought a ten round war with Pete Gonzalez of Portland. Valdez had beaten Gonzalez in a twelve round state title defense the previous year. This time he would lose a ten rounder in a very close fight.

After the fights, my dad took us across the street to what was then a drive-in restaurant, "The Olympic Cafe".
We were seated at a booth, waiting to order when we see the two main event fighters enter the restaurant together. They walk over to the counter and sit down together. I could see that Valdez cheek was swollen, and was holding one of the Reyes boxing gloves he'd worn that night. I watched the waitress take the boxer's orders, and then saw her smile as the fighter's joked with her. When she walked away, the smiles left their faces, you could see they were tired, and rightfully so. As Gonzalez spoke to Valdez, the state champ pressed his soggy boxing glove up to his swollen face, as if it were an ice bag.

I remember I was surprised that the boxers were friendly, I learned that boxers don't need to hate one another in order to take care of business in the ring. They were professionals. Less than an hour earlier, they were trading knockout blows, now they were good buddies talking over hamburgers.

I never forgot what I saw that night, both in the ring and at the restaurant. I learned something.
Last year, Frank Baltazar introduced me to Danny Valdez. I told him what I remembered about that night.
Danny smiled, and we had a nice conversation. He had challeneged Davey Moore for the featherweight title.
After boxing, he worked for our local ABC network as a lighting tech.
Ironically, I followed my boxing days by working as a lighting tech.

This coming saturday I'll have a chance to see Danny Valdez again. Danny is an East L.A. guy, from Maravilla.
He had a great career in the ring, and a great one with ABC. A true Classic American West Coast boxer.


-Rick Farris

Nice Rick, I took the liberty of posting it on my blog.

Randy

[CNorkusJr]

Back in 1965 . . .



I remember I was surprised that the boxers were friendly, I learned that boxers don't need to hate one another in order to take care of business in the ring. They were professionals. Less than an hour earlier, they were trading knockout blows, now they were good buddies talking over hamburgers.

I never forgot what I saw that night, both in the ring and at the restaurant. I learned something.



-Rick Farris

Great Story, Rick. So True, So True My whole life growing up next to my father, he would introduce me to opponents after opponents, and other great fighters like Billy Graham with Kid Gavilan. All you saw was sportsmanship and respect. Now I know that in some cases, hard feelings linger, but a true sportsman overcomes it and takes Pride in what he and others accomplished in the Ring.

I asked my father once, I was 13 or 14 years old at the time, did he ever feel bad about not getting a shot at the title ? He thought about it for 10 seconds and said "no". He said to me that the most important thing for a boxer, or at least him was to "never stink out the joint, Always give it your best shot". Initially I was a little confused on that answer, but I learned later on and I look at his videos now and I can see what he meant. I think that is why he had much fan mail and friends through the years after his career ended.

Truely a great story Rick, about two young fighters who learned that early on their career. Probably with help from their managers and trainers bringing them up right and all.

[bennie]

Chuck was hilarious in Support your local Gunfighter. "Where are you headed for?"

"Purgatory."

[Expug]

Back in 1965 . . .

Thursday was fight night at L.A.'s Olympic Auditorium back in the mid-60's.
In early 1965, KTLA Ch-5 began to televise weekly boxing from the 18th & Grand arena.
Almost immediatly, "Boxing from the Olympic", became the highest rated sports broadcast in Southern Cal.

My first visit to the Olympic had taken place the previous year, when flyweight champ, Hiroyuki Ebihara defended his title against Mexico's "Alacran" Torres. That one ended in a riot, and it was nearly a year before my dad would take me back to see a fight live. When he did, I would see the Olympic on a thursday night for the first time. This time, two TV cameras were perched on a platform hanging right below the balcony. Above the cameras on the edge of the balcony, were ten 2,000 watt spotlights, providing front fill light for the cameras. The ring was bathed in a blanket of white light beaming down from a cluster incandescent light fixtures directly above the ring.

The aura of the Olympic ring came to life when accented by the TV lights. The powder blue canvas would glow in the light, something very surreal. I was hooked the moment I stepped into the Olympic that night. At ringside, calling the action for the TV audience were matchmaker Mickey Davies and a young sportscaster named Dick Enberg. I felt at home there, I felt I belonged, I felt the presence of the spirits of greatness that had once boxed and wrestled there. I wanted to spend a lot of time there, and I would, as both a fan and a fighter.

My dad took a buddy and I to the fights that night. We had tickets about a dozen rows back from the ring, good seats, great view.
The main event that night was a barn burner. State featherweight champ, Danny Valdez, fought a ten round war with Pete Gonzalez of Portland. Valdez had beaten Gonzalez in a twelve round state title defense the previous year. This time he would lose a ten rounder in a very close fight.

After the fights, my dad took us across the street to what was then a drive-in restaurant, "The Olympic Cafe".
We were seated at a booth, waiting to order when we see the two main event fighters enter the restaurant together. They walk over to the counter and sit down together. I could see that Valdez cheek was swollen, and was holding one of the Reyes boxing gloves he'd worn that night. I watched the waitress take the boxer's orders, and then saw her smile as the fighter's joked with her. When she walked away, the smiles left their faces, you could see they were tired, and rightfully so. As Gonzalez spoke to Valdez, the state champ pressed his soggy boxing glove up to his swollen face, as if it were an ice bag.

I remember I was surprised that the boxers were friendly, I learned that boxers don't need to hate one another in order to take care of business in the ring. They were professionals. Less than an hour earlier, they were trading knockout blows, now they were good buddies talking over hamburgers.

I never forgot what I saw that night, both in the ring and at the restaurant. I learned something.
Last year, Frank Baltazar introduced me to Danny Valdez. I told him what I remembered about that night.
Danny smiled, and we had a nice conversation. He had challeneged Davey Moore for the featherweight title.
After boxing, he worked for our local ABC network as a lighting tech.
Ironically, I followed my boxing days by working as a lighting tech.

This coming saturday I'll have a chance to see Danny Valdez again. Danny is an East L.A. guy, from Maravilla.
He had a great career in the ring, and a great one with ABC. A true Classic American West Coast boxer.


-Rick Farris

Nice Rick, I took the liberty of posting it on my blog.

Randy

Great story Rick.
Those memories will stay forever.
Its amazing how after a few brief moments around a great boxing venue such as The Olympic or an early brush with the class,pride,and dignity of a true professional fighter,the impression can be literally life changing. It can shape our future.
My son plays basketball for his grade school team.The team plays once a season against St.Andrews.
St Andrews gym is where the Chicago Golden Gloves are held every year.Its an old weathered place but loaded with the history of so many great fights and fighters.I boxed there many times.
When I go there,the first thing I notice is the smell of boxing.You guys know what I mean.It stirs up great great memories.I sit there watching the game in silence.My mind back in the seventies.

[kikibalt]

Back in 1965 . . .

Thursday was fight night at L.A.'s Olympic Auditorium back in the mid-60's.
In early 1965, KTLA Ch-5 began to televise weekly boxing from the 18th & Grand arena.
Almost immediatly, "Boxing from the Olympic", became the highest rated sports broadcast in Southern Cal.

My first visit to the Olympic had taken place the previous year, when flyweight champ, Hiroyuki Ebihara defended his title against Mexico's "Alacran" Torres. That one ended in a riot, and it was nearly a year before my dad would take me back to see a fight live. When he did, I would see the Olympic on a thursday night for the first time. This time, two TV cameras were perched on a platform hanging right below the balcony. Above the cameras on the edge of the balcony, were ten 2,000 watt spotlights, providing front fill light for the cameras. The ring was bathed in a blanket of white light beaming down from a cluster incandescent light fixtures directly above the ring.

The aura of the Olympic ring came to life when accented by the TV lights. The powder blue canvas would glow in the light, something very surreal. I was hooked the moment I stepped into the Olympic that night. At ringside, calling the action for the TV audience were matchmaker Mickey Davies and a young sportscaster named Dick Enberg. I felt at home there, I felt I belonged, I felt the presence of the spirits of greatness that had once boxed and wrestled there. I wanted to spend a lot of time there, and I would, as both a fan and a fighter.

My dad took a buddy and I to the fights that night. We had tickets about a dozen rows back from the ring, good seats, great view.
The main event that night was a barn burner. State featherweight champ, Danny Valdez, fought a ten round war with Pete Gonzalez of Portland. Valdez had beaten Gonzalez in a twelve round state title defense the previous year. This time he would lose a ten rounder in a very close fight.

After the fights, my dad took us across the street to what was then a drive-in restaurant, "The Olympic Cafe".
We were seated at a booth, waiting to order when we see the two main event fighters enter the restaurant together. They walk over to the counter and sit down together. I could see that Valdez cheek was swollen, and was holding one of the Reyes boxing gloves he'd worn that night. I watched the waitress take the boxer's orders, and then saw her smile as the fighter's joked with her. When she walked away, the smiles left their faces, you could see they were tired, and rightfully so. As Gonzalez spoke to Valdez, the state champ pressed his soggy boxing glove up to his swollen face, as if it were an ice bag.

I remember I was surprised that the boxers were friendly, I learned that boxers don't need to hate one another in order to take care of business in the ring. They were professionals. Less than an hour earlier, they were trading knockout blows, now they were good buddies talking over hamburgers.

I never forgot what I saw that night, both in the ring and at the restaurant. I learned something.
Last year, Frank Baltazar introduced me to Danny Valdez. I told him what I remembered about that night.
Danny smiled, and we had a nice conversation. He had challeneged Davey Moore for the featherweight title.
After boxing, he worked for our local ABC network as a lighting tech.
Ironically, I followed my boxing days by working as a lighting tech.

This coming saturday I'll have a chance to see Danny Valdez again. Danny is an East L.A. guy, from Maravilla.
He had a great career in the ring, and a great one with ABC. A true Classic American West Coast boxer.


-Rick Farris

Nice Rick, I took the liberty of posting it on my blog.

Randy

Ditto!

[raylawpc]

Wasn't Chuck Connors a ballplayer before he became an actor?

Randy

Chuck Connors was a good all-around athlete. He played for the Boston Celtics in the old Basketball Association of America right after the war. Only one season as I recall. In baseball, he played for numerous minor league teams, and, in the majors played briefly for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs. He was also drafted by the Chicago Bears but never played. He was playing baseball with the minor league LA Angels when he entered the motion picture industry.

Thanks, Tom, I thought I had heard that about Connors. That's the first I've heard about him being a basketball player.

As Lucas McCain, the Rifleman, he was one of my favorite TV western actor.

Thanks

Randy

Hi Randy:

I looked in my Boston Celtics Encyclopedia last night and learned that Kevin (Chuck) Connors actually played two season for the Celtics in the old BAA. He also played basketball for Rochester in the old NBL. Although he never graduated, he played for Seton Hall in college. The encyclopedia lists his playing height at 6' 7". For the Celtics, he was a bench player and averaged 4.2 points per game in 60+ games. They did not keep track of rebounds in those days but he had 50+ assists.

It was one of my favorite shows, too. Remember his rifle with the unique circular lever? I remember getting a toy "Rifleman" rifle for Christmas one year. Wow, I thought I had died and gone to Heaven that year. Another show I liked was "The Rebel" with Nick Adams. Remember that one?

Are you coming to the CBHOF banquet?

[raylawpc]

Back in 1965 . . .

Thursday was fight night at L.A.'s Olympic Auditorium back in the mid-60's.
In early 1965, KTLA Ch-5 began to televise weekly boxing from the 18th & Grand arena.
Almost immediatly, "Boxing from the Olympic", became the highest rated sports broadcast in Southern Cal.

My first visit to the Olympic had taken place the previous year, when flyweight champ, Hiroyuki Ebihara defended his title against Mexico's "Alacran" Torres. That one ended in a riot, and it was nearly a year before my dad would take me back to see a fight live. When he did, I would see the Olympic on a thursday night for the first time. This time, two TV cameras were perched on a platform hanging right below the balcony. Above the cameras on the edge of the balcony, were ten 2,000 watt spotlights, providing front fill light for the cameras. The ring was bathed in a blanket of white light beaming down from a cluster incandescent light fixtures directly above the ring.

The aura of the Olympic ring came to life when accented by the TV lights. The powder blue canvas would glow in the light, something very surreal. I was hooked the moment I stepped into the Olympic that night. At ringside, calling the action for the TV audience were matchmaker Mickey Davies and a young sportscaster named Dick Enberg. I felt at home there, I felt I belonged, I felt the presence of the spirits of greatness that had once boxed and wrestled there. I wanted to spend a lot of time there, and I would, as both a fan and a fighter.

My dad took a buddy and I to the fights that night. We had tickets about a dozen rows back from the ring, good seats, great view.
The main event that night was a barn burner. State featherweight champ, Danny Valdez, fought a ten round war with Pete Gonzalez of Portland. Valdez had beaten Gonzalez in a twelve round state title defense the previous year. This time he would lose a ten rounder in a very close fight.

After the fights, my dad took us across the street to what was then a drive-in restaurant, "The Olympic Cafe".
We were seated at a booth, waiting to order when we see the two main event fighters enter the restaurant together. They walk over to the counter and sit down together. I could see that Valdez cheek was swollen, and was holding one of the Reyes boxing gloves he'd worn that night. I watched the waitress take the boxer's orders, and then saw her smile as the fighter's joked with her. When she walked away, the smiles left their faces, you could see they were tired, and rightfully so. As Gonzalez spoke to Valdez, the state champ pressed his soggy boxing glove up to his swollen face, as if it were an ice bag.

I remember I was surprised that the boxers were friendly, I learned that boxers don't need to hate one another in order to take care of business in the ring. They were professionals. Less than an hour earlier, they were trading knockout blows, now they were good buddies talking over hamburgers.

I never forgot what I saw that night, both in the ring and at the restaurant. I learned something.
Last year, Frank Baltazar introduced me to Danny Valdez. I told him what I remembered about that night.
Danny smiled, and we had a nice conversation. He had challeneged Davey Moore for the featherweight title.
After boxing, he worked for our local ABC network as a lighting tech.
Ironically, I followed my boxing days by working as a lighting tech.

This coming saturday I'll have a chance to see Danny Valdez again. Danny is an East L.A. guy, from Maravilla.
He had a great career in the ring, and a great one with ABC. A true Classic American West Coast boxer.


-Rick Farris

Good story. It brought back memories of times in Oklahoma City. For a brief period, O'Grady promoted fights at the Red Carpet Inn in SW OKC. Being a hotel, it also had a restaurant and a night club. It wasn't unusual after the fights to see a lot of the fighters, trainers, etc. either sitting in the restaurant getting some chow, or partying at the nightclub - hitting on girls instead of on each other! As a young single guy in those days, I was generally at the night club.

[kikibalt]

Chuck Connors was a good all-around athlete. He played for the Boston Celtics in the old Basketball Association of America right after the war. Only one season as I recall. In baseball, he played for numerous minor league teams, and, in the majors played briefly for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs. He was also drafted by the Chicago Bears but never played. He was playing baseball with the minor league LA Angels when he entered the motion picture industry.

Thanks, Tom, I thought I had heard that about Connors. That's the first I've heard about him being a basketball player.

As Lucas McCain, the Rifleman, he was one of my favorite TV western actor.

Thanks

Randy

Hi Randy:

I looked in my Boston Celtics Encyclopedia last night and learned that Kevin (Chuck) Connors actually played two season for the Celtics in the old BAA. He also played basketball for Rochester in the old NBL. Although he never graduated, he played for Seton Hall in college. The encyclopedia lists his playing height at 6' 7". For the Celtics, he was a bench player and averaged 4.2 points per game in 60+ games. They did not keep track of rebounds in those days but he had 50+ assists.

It was one of my favorite shows, too. Remember his rifle with the unique circular lever? I remember getting a toy "Rifleman" rifle for Christmas one year. Wow, I thought I had died and gone to Heaven that year. Another show I liked was "The Rebel" with Nick Adams. Remember that one?

Are you coming to the CBHOF banquet?

Morning Tom, Nick Adams was a regular at the Olympic during the "The Rebel" years, you could aways find him at the concession stand, the one above the dressing rooms, having a hot dog and a beer.

Randy and his friend Ed Hernandez will be sitting at your table...

[raylawpc]

GREAT! I've wanted to meet Randy for a long time.

[Randyman]

Chuck Connors was a good all-around athlete. He played for the Boston Celtics in the old Basketball Association of America right after the war. Only one season as I recall. In baseball, he played for numerous minor league teams, and, in the majors played briefly for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs. He was also drafted by the Chicago Bears but never played. He was playing baseball with the minor league LA Angels when he entered the motion picture industry.

Thanks, Tom, I thought I had heard that about Connors. That's the first I've heard about him being a basketball player.

As Lucas McCain, the Rifleman, he was one of my favorite TV western actor.

Thanks

Randy

Hi Randy:

I looked in my Boston Celtics Encyclopedia last night and learned that Kevin (Chuck) Connors actually played two season for the Celtics in the old BAA. He also played basketball for Rochester in the old NBL. Although he never graduated, he played for Seton Hall in college. The encyclopedia lists his playing height at 6' 7". For the Celtics, he was a bench player and averaged 4.2 points per game in 60+ games. They did not keep track of rebounds in those days but he had 50+ assists.

It was one of my favorite shows, too. Remember his rifle with the unique circular lever? I remember getting a toy "Rifleman" rifle for Christmas one year. Wow, I thought I had died and gone to Heaven that year. Another show I liked was "The Rebel" with Nick Adams. Remember that one?

Are you coming to the CBHOF banquet?

Tom, thanks for the info. I had a toy "Rifleman" rifle as well. I also had a "Roy Rogers" gun and holster set. I remember the "Rebel", it was one of the many westerns that were on back then that my father and I used to watch together. Those were good times.

Yes, I'll be there, in fact, I'll be sitting at your table. I'm looking forward to meeting you in person.

Randy

[Randyman]

GREAT! I've wanted to meet Randy for a long time.

Likewise Tom!

[Randyman]

Good News, Bad News, Sad News...

The day after his wife disappeared in a kayaking accident, an Anchorage man answered his door to find two grim-faced Alaska State Troopers.

"We're sorry Mr. Wilkens, but we have some information about your wife," said one trooper.

"Tell me! Did you find her?!" Wilkens shouted.

The troopers looked at each other. One said, "We have some bad news, some good news, and some really great news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Fearing the worst, an ashen Mr. Wilkens said, "Give me the bad news first."

The trooper said, "I'm sorry to tell you, sir, but this morning we found your wife's body in Kachemak Bay ."

"Oh my God!" exclaimed Wilkens. Swallowing hard, he asked, "What's the good news?"

The trooper continued, "When we pulled her up, she had 12 twenty-five pound king crabs and 6 good-size Dungeness crabs clinging to her."

Stunned, Mr. Wilkens demanded, "If that's the good news, what's the great news?"

The trooper said, "We're going to pull her up again tomorrow."

[kikibalt]

Good News, Bad News, Sad News...

The day after his wife disappeared in a kayaking accident, an Anchorage man answered his door to find two grim-faced Alaska State Troopers.

"We're sorry Mr. Wilkens, but we have some information about your wife," said one trooper.

"Tell me! Did you find her?!" Wilkens shouted.

The troopers looked at each other. One said, "We have some bad news, some good news, and some really great news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Fearing the worst, an ashen Mr. Wilkens said, "Give me the bad news first."

The trooper said, "I'm sorry to tell you, sir, but this morning we found your wife's body in Kachemak Bay ."

"Oh my God!" exclaimed Wilkens. Swallowing hard, he asked, "What's the good news?"

The trooper continued, "When we pulled her up, she had 12 twenty-five pound king crabs and 6 good-size Dungeness crabs clinging to her."

Stunned, Mr. Wilkens demanded, "If that's the good news, what's the great news?"

The trooper said, "We're going to pull her up again tomorrow."

[raylawpc]

The Magician and the Parrot

A magician was working on a cruise ship in the Caribbean. The audience would be different each week, so the magician allowed himself to do the same tricks over and over again.

There was only one problem: The captain's parrot saw the shows each week and began to understand how the magician did every trick. Once he understood he started shouting in the middle of the show:

"Look, it's not the same hat"

"Look, he is hiding the flowers under the table"

"Hey, why are all the cards the Ace of Spades ?"

The magician was furious but couldn't do anything; it was, after all, the captain's parrot.

One day the ship had an accident and sank. The magician found himself on a piece of wood in the middle of the ocean with the parrot, of course.

They stared at each other with hate, but did not utter a word. This went on for a day and another and another.

After a week the parrot said: "OK, I give up. Where's the boat?"

[kikibalt]

The Magician and the Parrot

A magician was working on a cruise ship in the Caribbean. The audience would be different each week, so the magician allowed himself to do the same tricks over and over again.

There was only one problem: The captain's parrot saw the shows each week and began to understand how the magician did every trick. Once he understood he started shouting in the middle of the show:

"Look, it's not the same hat"

"Look, he is hiding the flowers under the table"

"Hey, why are all the cards the Ace of Spades ?"

The magician was furious but couldn't do anything; it was, after all, the captain's parrot.

One day the ship had an accident and sank. The magician found himself on a piece of wood in the middle of the ocean with the parrot, of course.

They stared at each other with hate, but did not utter a word. This went on for a day and another and another.

After a week the parrot said: "OK, I give up. Where's the boat?"

[kikibalt]

That last post of Tom reminded me of these two songs, hope you guys enjoy them

Standed In The Jungle

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dx37MyryrnE

The Flying Saucer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oxx8WZZD0Q

[bennie]

France have just been dumped out of the world cup by South Africa. England need to win tomorrow to get to the last 16.

[Rick Farris]

Lucia Rijker . . .

Tom, Don Fraser said he'd put my table beside yours.
Besides family, and a few close friends, Lucia Rijker will be at my table.
I look forward to meeting you.