Wednesday, July 30, 2008

that's (my) life

Sunday, July 27, 2008

1908

The early days of Major League Baseball. Only the 5th year that the pennant winners from the American League and National League played each other in a 7 game World Series. Pitchers still dominated…with starters routinely starting every third game…and very rarely leaving with a no decision. Chicago White Sox pitcher Ed Walsh won 40 games in 1908…while his NL counterpart Christy Mathewson of the New York Giants, won 37. Today…if a pitcher wins 20 he’s considered top flight…and 30 wins is virtually impossible. Hitters in 1908 hit for some of the lowest batting averages of all time…yet two all-time great led their leagues with very impressive averages (Ty Cobb DET .324, Honus Wagner PIT .354). The Home Run had not yet become a regular occurrence…with the HR leaders in the AL and NL totaling only 7 and 12 respectively…a far cry from 50-60 HR’s Babe Ruth would achieve in the 20’s.


Mathewson strikes out another...

1908 was also witness to two of the tightest, closest pennant races ever. With only .5 of a game separating the Champion from 2nd place in the AL...and 3 teams within 1 game of the NL Title.

The game was very different…men in suit and tie (with bowler hat replacing baseball cap) filled wooden stands…many players often had to work other jobs in the winter to make ends meet…teams had names like like the 'Superbas' & 'Doves'...and the Yankees weren't even the Yankees yet (they were the Highlanders...and they sucked!) and yet, the game was probably remarkably the same to the one that’s played today. Goes to show that as much as things change…

American League Standings

Detroit Tigers 90-63 (--)
Cleveland Naps 90-64 (0.5)
Chicago White Sox 88-64 (1.5)
St. Louis Browns 83-69 (6.5)
Boston Red Sox 75-79 (15.5)
Philadelphia Athletics 68-85 (22)
Washington Senators 67-85 (22.5)
New York Highlands 51-103 (39.5)


National League Standings

Chicago Cubs 99-55 (--)
New York Giants 98-56 (1)
Pittsburgh Pirates 98-56 (1)
Philadelphia Phillies 83-71 (16)
Cincinnati Reds 73-81 (26)
Boston Doves 63-91 (36)
Brooklyn Superbas 53-101 (46)
St. Louis Cardinals 49-105 (50)

World Series
Chicago Cubs def Detroit Tigers 4-1 in their best of 7 series.


Ty Cobb slides into 3rd

*info/stats courtesy Wikipedia

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

The Dark Knight

"Y'see, madness, as you know, is like gravity. All it takes is a little...push."


*****

What a movie. I will say that there were a couple of times in the first 30 minutes where I thought all the talk and all the hype had taken its toll…I was enjoying myself, but I was being ‘critical’ too…finding mistakes or ‘ho-hum’ spots…but after I managed to shake it off…and as the film REALLY got going…I actually caught myself wide eyed and literally sitting on the edge of my seat (twice)…I was so into the movie. I must have looked like a 5 year old. It was awesome!

As for Heath Ledger’s Joker…amazing. Anyone who knows anything about comics or superheroes knows that The Joker (not Venom…not Magneto…not some big space tyrant or monster) is THE ultimate villain…and the twisted ying to Batman’s tortured yang. And Heath Ledger totally nailed it. I had my doubts when I heard he was going to play him...and that's after watching Batman Begins and being totally blown away by how good that was. Between the comic books, Jack Nicholson and the Animated Series (which is very good...and still stands up) The Joker has been 'nailed' a few times. But Ledger made him darker, and scarier and smarter than he’s ever been…and that’s the Joker. He’s a madman who’s ‘playing’ with the world…because he can…and because its fun.

Its all a big, sick, fucking joke to him. Who can’t relate to that?

And that's where Batman, and a guy like Gordon (superbly played by Gary Oldman) come in to play. There is a line…and it has to be enforced. The scene with the passenger ferries…that was a classic ‘comic book style’ villainous scheme…but it also turned into a pretty amazing morality play and just added to the complexity and depth of the story. Just great stuff from top to bottom…and I really thought the Harvey Dent story arch was really well done and didn't feel like simply tacking on another story element for the sake of it. No were punches were pulled in this movie, yet the movie’s violence was filmed in such a way that it was jolting but never felt like overkill.

I mean, wasn't that a great fucking trick!?

I’ve also heard some ‘slight’ complaints about the camera work during the fight sequences being too ‘crazy’ or ‘fast’…and that’s a valid point…but I think it really worked in this film because Batman’s world is the night…the shadows…and at night, it would be just a blur, or at least, that’s probably how it would seem to some lackey with an AK 47 standing guard during a bank heist in Gotham.

Was The Dark Knight a perfect movie? Almost...but as far as I’m concerned, it came close enough. I personally want to thank director/writer Christopher Nolan for not only saving Batman (on the screen)…but for giving us such a kick ass movie as well. And to Christian Bale for letting Ledger steal what really is his movie. As for Heath Ledger…as terrible as his loss was…if you’re going to go out…man, what an exit. My buddy J mentioned Brandon Lee and his performance in The Crow as a very close example of a role taking on another meaning after an actors death…but in this case, Ledger's talent, the performance and the end result are simply on another level.

Its Awesome Awesome Awesome…go see it now!!

Like right now.


Monday, July 14, 2008

couch surfing