Tag: Scott Morrison

The Book Shelf: Part 1 of 3

Having stepped away from writing on this site a few weeks ago, I hadn’t decided whether to post the annual Book Shelf feature here. As I finished reading books, I have been writing thumbnails, out of habit more than anything, I suppose. But I wasn’t sure what I would do with them.

However, the Book Shelf is back by popular demand. Well, I received one email asking for it and I know of at least one other person who has been hoping for its appearance.

So here it is . . .

As usual, it will appear in three parts over three days, and the last part will include my top 10 reads of 2023.

Note that I have been cleaning out bookshelves over the past months, so there are some books on this list that have been around for a while and then some.

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All the Sinners Bleed: A Novel — Oh my, S.A. Crosby can write! This time he has conjured a story centred on Titus Crown, a former FBI agent with a skeleton in his closet, who now is the first Black sheriff in the history of a small Virginia city. And now he finds himself chasing a serial killer. This one is bloody, but, oh my, Crosby can write. A taste: “The myth of Main Street in the South has always been a chaste puritanical fantasy. The reality is found on back roads and dirt lanes under a sky gone black. In the back seat of a rust-mottled Buick and the beds of ramshackle trucks.”

The Amateurs: The Story of Four Young Men and Their Quest for an Olympic Gold Medal — Rowing is an interesting sport if only because there isn’t a career lined with gold at the end of the day. But you can’t question the dedication of the athletes involved. In this book published in 1985, author David Halberstam writes about that and a whole lot more as he follows four Americans chasing 1984 Olympic gold. They are friends and they are competitors, which leads to some complicated relationships and an interesting read.

The Appeal — This book by the prolific John Grisham was published in 2008; I have no idea how I hadn’t already read it. Anyway, it was his 21st published book. It begins with a lawsuit involving a company being sued for having contaminated a small community’s drinking water. The jury rules in favour of the plaintiff and Grisham proceeds to put the American judicial and electoral systems on spits and roasts them.

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead — John Coglin is with the NYPD and he’s one of the good guys. And then, through no fault of his own, it all goes wrong. Author Michael Ledwidge has given us a gritty read with all kinds of great characters, lots of twists and turns, and a crescendo that leads to a great ending. Highly recommend if you’re into this kind of fiction.

Black & White & Never Right: A Hockey Referee — I stumbled on this book while cleaning up some book shelves early in the year, so it was a re-read. Author Vern Buffey was one of the NHL’s top referees back in the day, before leaving to set up the WHA’s officiating department. This isn’t a long book but it’s full of anecdotes  involving lots of NHL names from the six-team era. He also writes about how the NHL office applied heat and discipline to its on-ice officials, at least it did back then.

Brave Face: Wild Tales of Hockey Goaltenders in the Era Before Masks — This is an entertaining read loaded with terrific anecdotes, great quotes and a whole lot of names from hockey’s past. Yes, it’s mostly about goaltenders — from the well-known like Jacques Plante, Terry Sawchuk and Glenn Hall to lesser-knowns like Gaye Cooley, Russ Gillow and Bob Perreault — and their love-hate relationship with masks. Truth be told, it’s the stories involving the lesser-knowns that are the highlights here. There’s also some neat stuff on retired NHL defenceman Craig Ludwig, a shot blocker extraordinaire, his famous shin pads and his aversion to new equipment. Oh, and don’t let the fierce looking cover scare you away. (Disclaimer: Author Rob Vanstone was part of the sports department during my stint as sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post back in the day.)

City of Dreams — This is the second book in author Don Winslow’s trilogy that chronicles the life and times of Danny Ryan, a Rhode Island gangster who is trying to become an ex-gangster — if that is even possible — somewhere in California or Las Vegas. This is a great writer spinning a terrific yarn with all kinds of characters and plot twists. The first book in the trilogy is City on Fire; the third will be City in Ruins.

Desert Star — Author Michael Connelly brings back Harry Bosch and Renée Ballard for another go-round, this time working a couple of cold murder cases. Ballard has returned to the LAPD and now is in charge of the cold-case unit; Bosch, retired from the LAPD, is working for her on a voluntary basis. . . . If you like the Bosch books, this one won’t disappoint. And there’s a twist at the end that may jar you.

Different Seasons — Is there a writer among us today with an imagination and the writing ability of Stephen King? For starters, his imagination is out of bounds. Seriously. In this book, the prolific King gives us four novellas, tales, as he puts it, “that were too long to be short and too short to be really long.” What they also are is really good and, yes, bordering on the macabre. And they will get inside you and twist your guts. Yes, they will.

Draft Day: How Hockey Teams Pick Winners or Get Left Behind — Doug MacLean, who has worn a lot of NHL hats, from president to general manager and coach and beyond, writes openly about the NHL draft and he does it from all angles, providing readers with all kinds of information and anecdotes. He does it with the help of former Toronto Sun hockey writer Scott Morrison; the two worked together at Sportsnet not that long ago.

Evolve or Die: Hard Won Lessons from A Hockey Life — Author John Shannon has had a whole lot to do with the way we view hockey on television today. As a long-time producer with Hockey Night in Canada, he shaped a whole lot about the telecasts — remember the Hot Stove? — and was one of the main planners when HNIC switched from one Saturday night game to the doubleheader format in play today. His employment history also includes Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment and the NHL, not to mention various American-based networks. This is his story, including the hirings and firings he endured along the way. There is a whole lot of interesting stuff between the covers, but it really could have used a few more anecdotes involving his relationships with NHL players, coaches, general managers and executives.

Finest Hour. Winston S. Churchill 1939-1941 — Author Martin Gilbert examines in microscopic detail the world of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill during the first years of the Second World War. It seems that anyone who had anything to do with government kept a diary back then, and Gilbert’s meticulous research allows for a tremendous book. Churchill also was the Minister of Defence at the time, and Gilbert really details how much effort he put into obtaining military help from the U.S. Remember that the Americans didn’t enter the Second World War until the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, which occurs in the final pages of this book.

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(FIRST OF THREE PARTS)

The Bookshelf: Part 2 of 3

Bookshelf

For each of the past few years, I have compiled a list of books I have read over the previous 12 months, and posted thumbnails here. With any luck, you may find an idea or two to help you get through your Christmas shopping. . . . Part 1 appeared here yesterday, and here is Part 2 of 3 . . .

Kill Me, Darling — Every once in a while it doesn’t hurt to check out some really legitimate pulp fiction. That’s what we have here in this book by Max Allan Collins and Mickey Spillane. The former has been completing unfinished works left by Spillane, who died in 2006. This one is based mostly in Miami, circa 1954, and it’s good Mike Hammer stuff with all the dialogue, the grit, the colour and the bodies.

The Last Folk Hero: The Life and Myth of Bo Jackson — It is entirely up to the reader to decide what kind of a hero Bo Jackson was, because there certainly are some scarecrows in his closet. And, yes, author Jeff Pearlman touches on a whole lot of them here. This is a truly in-depth look at Jackson’s rise from ill-tempered high schooler to two-sport star, Nike poster boy and beyond. And every turn of a page seems to provide the reader with even more interesting information. Bo, by the way, was not especially popular in his own locker rooms, and Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis really didn’t have much use for him. Seriously!

The Late Show: Letterman, Leno, & the Network Battle for the Night — This book, written by Bill Carter, then a media reporter for The New York Times, was published in 1995. I have no idea why it took me so long to get to it. What a book! It tells in detail the story of perhaps the biggest gaffe in TV talk-show history — how NBC-TV lost David Letterman to CBS. I never will get the image out of my head of Jay Leno in what was basically a closet at NBC headquarters listening via phone to a meeting of the braintrust at which his future was being decided. Just a great, great read, even all these years later.

Like a Rolling Stone: A Memoir — Jann Wenner, co-founder of the magazine Rolling Stone, lets it all hang out in a memoir that has to have set a record for name-dropping. After all, Wenner, often with family members, hung out with Mick and the Stones, Bono, John and Yoko, Paul McCartney, Michael Douglas, Bob Dylan and on and on, and he isn’t shy about it. While all of the hanging out and, yes, the drugs were happening, Rolling Stone grew from a rock-and-roll magazine into one that wasn’t afraid to tackle all kinds of issues, from AIDS to climate change to politics. Wenner writes in a rat-a-tat style, jumping from topic to topic in a matter of 300 or 400 words. That makes this an easy read, but there are times when that topic cries out for more words. Still, the man has led an interesting life, especially when you consider that he left Jane, his wife of almost 30 years, because he is gay.

The Marching Season — The assassin known as October almost got Michael Osbourne the first time around and now he’s back for more. But who hired October and turned him loose? Daniel Silva, the author of the more than 20 books featuring Gabriel Allon, has another readable spy novel right here.

1972: The Series That Changed Hockey Forever — Call it what you want, but the hockey series between Canada and Russia that occurred in September 1972 won’t ever be replicated. Veteran hockey writer Scott Morrison take us through the whole thing, from training camp to the homecoming following Game 8 in Moscow and an exhibition game in Prague. With full co-operation from many of the participants, there is lots here to digest. The one thing that stands out, though, is how much everyone involved with the Canadian team thought this series was going to be a walk in the park.

Not Dark Yet — Another in author Peter Robinson’s books that follow the career of Inspector Alan Banks, this one involves murders and a woman — suspect or not? — who was kidnapped by sex-trafficers as she, then 17, was leaving an orphanage to start her new life. Lots of twists and turns in this one. Not Dark Yet was published in 2021 and was the latest entry in the 28-book series.

Off The Record — Peter Mansbridge was in your living room for years as the anchor on CBC-TV’s The National. This is his story and it’s produced like a newscast in that it’s one story after another, some of them 10 or 12 paragraphs in length, others three or four pages. It all is quite entertaining, at least in part because Mansbridge was witness to so much recent history and the people who made it.

The Order — The Pope is dead. Was it a heart attack? Was it murder? Daniel Silva does it again with another enthralling novel featuring Israeli super agent Gabriel Allon. This is No. 20 in the series that follows Allon’s adventures. I don’t think you can go wrong with any of them.

Over My Dead Body — This is the fourth book by author Jeffrey Archer that follows the life and career of Detective Chief Inspector William Warwick, who continues to try and bring down Miles Faulkner, a millionaire art collector who may or may not still be alive. Archer spun off these books from his seven-book series The Clifton Chronicles. They’re all quick reads and good fun.

Pack Saddles to Tete Jaune Cache — Published in 1962, James G. MacGregor’s book is a real gem. It was written after numerous conversations with James Shand-Harvey, who arrived in Edmonton from Scotland in August 1905 and went on to explore all parts of Alberta from there to Grande Prairie and Jasper. He was there when the surveyors were doing the ground work for the railroads. An absolutely amazing man who was known throughout the area as Shand, he was hunting and trapping and leading tourists onto Mount Robson and a whole lot more. If you have driven or been in the area from Edmonton to Jasper and can find a copy of this book, don’t miss it.

Pleasant Good Evening — A Memoir: My 30 Wild and Turbulent Years of Sportstalk — For the better part of 30 years, Dan Russell ruled the late night airwaves in B.C. While doing so, he kept a diary, program logs and audio tapes. He puts all of that and more to great use in this book, which chronicles his life and career on and off the airwaves. Yes, there is plenty in here on Brian Burke and the Vancouver Canucks, too. No, Russell doesn’t pull any punches. (Disclaimer: I was involved in the editing process with this book.)

Portrait of an Unknown Woman — This is No. 22 in author Daniel Silva’s series documenting the life and times of Gabriel Allon. Once a master Israeli spy, Allon now is retired and trying to focus on his other love — restoring classic paintings. All of that leads him into the world of art forgeries and the result is another masterful work by Silva. This is just an awesome read. Loved it.

The Queen’s Gambit — This book by Walter Tevis was published in 1983. It got new life in 2020 when Netflix used it as the basis for a seven-part miniseries of the same name that was most watchable. The book follows the life of Beth Harmon, who grew up in an orphanage. It is there in the basement that she discovered a janitor playing chess and a prodigy was born. Her road to the top wasn’t at all smooth, though, thanks to tranquilizers, booze and Russian chess players.

Part 2 of 3

Scattershooting on a Sunday night while remembering “Henderson has scored for Canada” . . .

Scattershooting2

We purchased our first colour television set in August 1972. Yes, it was because the eight-game Summit Series — Canada vs. Soviet Union — was to begin on Sept. 2 in Montreal.

At the time, we had been married for about two months and I was a year into my TVsports journalism career that began at the Brandon Sun.

If memory serves, the price tag on the TV set — it was a beauty, a 19-inch RCA XL100— at Eaton’s in downtown Brandon was $499, which we didn’t have in our bank account. So I went to the Royal Bank for a little financial help.

At the time, I spent a lot of time covering the Manitoba Senior Baseball League and one of the players with the Brandon Cloverleafs worked at the Royal Bank. So . . . he turned me down.

But the CIBC, with whom my parents had banked for years in Lynn Lake, came to the rescue, which is how I (we?) came to enjoy the Summit Series in glorious colour. Not just colour . . . 100 per cent solid state AccuColor!

And what a glorious time it was.

We are going to hear a lot about the Summit Series over the next while, this being the 50th anniversary of what I would suggest is the greatest and most meaningful event in Canada’s sporting history.

What other event brought an entire country to a screeching halt on a number of days? What other event brought an entire country to a fever pitch after first leaving it in a horrid depressive state? What other event dominated the country’s conversation for that long a period of time?

Without going into great detail, Team Canada won the last three games to win the series, 4-3-1. Yes, the “1” was a tie.

Incredibly, Paul Henderson scored the winning goal in each of those three games, the winner in Game 8 coming with 34 seconds remaining in the third period.

If you were watching, Foster Hewitt’s play is etched forever in your memory:

“Cournoyer has it on that wing. Here’s a shot. Henderson made a wild stab for it and fell. Here’s another shot. Right in front, they score! Henderson has scored for Canada!”

(Let us pause for a short rant . . .

After all that, Henderson somehow isn’t in the Hockey Hall of Fame. And, yes, he was a pretty fair NHL/WHA player. He put up 477 points, 236 of them goals, in 707 regular-season NHL games. Throw in five seasons in the WHA and he totalled 760 points, including 376 goals, in 1,067 games. He’s a member of the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame — individually and with Team Canada — and the IIHF Hall of Fame.

But, somehow, he’s not in the Hockey Hall of Fame, and that’s amazing! It’s also a damn shame.)

Anyway . . .

Unfortunately, some of the joy in reliving the series is dampened because Russian despot Vladimir Putin continues to make war on Ukraine. That will prevent surviving players from the Soviet team from being involved in any Summit Series-related events.

I have read two of the books that have been published with the 50th anniversary in mind.

Scott Morrison’s contribution — 1972: The Series That Changed Hockey Forever — tells a terrific story, from before training camp through the exhibition game that Team Canada, while on its way home from Moscow, played in what was then Czechoslovakia. That happened to be Canadian C Stan Mikita’s homeland and he was greeted as a conquering hero.

I also would highly recommend Ice War Diplomat: Hockey Meets Cold War Politics at the 1972 Summit Series. Author Gary J. Smith was in the Canadian diplomatic service. He could speak Russian and was stationed at the Canadian embassy in Russia. The story he tells could only be related by someone who was heavily involved behind the scenes and he does a masterful job.

I haven’t yet read Ken Dryden’s new book — The Series — but I definitely have it on my list. It’s only 200 pages in length, but you can bet that Dryden, one of three goaltenders on Team Canada, will tell things his way.

Also available: The Greatest Comeback: How Team Canada Fought Back, Took the Summit Series and Reinvented Hockey, by John U. Bacon; and Montreal to Moscow — 1972 Summit Series: Cartoons & Anecdotes, by Terry Mosher (aka Aislin, the Montreal Gazette’s superb editorial cartoonist).

On top of that, a four-part documentary — Summit 1972 — will begin on CBC-TV on Sept. 14. The series will air on four consecutive Wednesdays. I will be watching and, yes, I will set the PVR and watch it again, and likely again.

“Henderson has scored for Canada!”

Dylan

The Seattle Thunderbirds tweeted on Wednesday that their “training camp is closed to the public,” except for the Future Thunderbirds and Blue-White Seattlegames on Sept 4. On Friday, however, the Thunderbirds reversed field, tweeting that “training camp begins Aug. 31 and starting Thursday (Sept. 1) it is open to the public.” . . . Meanwhile, Sarah Brusig of ilovekent.net reported that Dan Hearst, a citizen of Kent, appeared at the City Council meeting of Aug. 16. Why was he there? According to Brusig, “he asked Council to stop funding the Seattle Thunderbirds because they don’t reference Kent in their branding. ‘They need to understand that they owe the citizens of Kent,’ Hearst said.” . . . Hmm. . . . Might be time to start referring to them as the Seattle Thunderbirds of Kent.

From Bill James Online (@billjamesonline), in response to a question posed by former MLBer-turned-broadcaster Kevin Youkilis: “You asked in a recent broadcast how many balls go through BECAUSE of the shift, vs. those lost to the shift.  According to the Bill James Handbook 2022, in 2021 there were 4,802 hits taken away by the shift, but 3,946 balls that went through BECAUSE of the shift. . . . Ratio is 11 to 9. For every 11 hits taken away by the shift, 9 balls beat the shift by hitting through the vacated area.”

Headline at The Beaverton (@TheBeaverton) — Trump to represent self in case against United States; has already stiffed self out of legal fees.

Joe Posnanski, a terrific baseball writer, with a note about his friend Len Dawson, the former NFL quarterback who died on Wednesday at the age of 87: “For much of (his time with the Chiefs), he was also a sports broadcaster in Kansas City. On Dec. 25, 1971, the Kansas City Chiefs lost a soul-crushing, double-overtime playoff game to the Miami Dolphins — it remains the longest game in NFL history. Dawson was the Chiefs’ quarterback in that game. And when it ended, he put on a suit and did the sports report for KMBC television in Kansas City. ‘One of the toughest things I’ve ever done,’ he said. ‘But I didn’t stutter.’ ”

Brain

Headline at The Onion (@TheOnion) — Durand and Kyrie Agree To Be Teammates So Long as They’re Never in Same Room Together.

There was an intriguing report on Friday about a trade in the QMJHL that will qmjhlnewhave F Justin Robidas, 19, the captain of the Val-d’Or Foreurs, move to the Quebec Remparts for a package that will include G Mathys Fernandez, 17, and a number of draft picks. The intriguing part is that, as Mikael Lalancette of Le Soleil reported, the transaction will “be announced during the holiday season.” That would be “holiday” as in Christmas. . . . Yes, because it’s the Q. . . . BTW, Robidas’ father, Stéphane, is a former NHLer who now is an assistant coach with the Montreal Canadiens.

Spiderjpg

Jack Finarelli (aka The Sports Curmudgeon) tells me that he first heard of a Lisfranc injury “about 20 years ago when Philadelphia Eagles RB Duce Staley suffered the injury and had to have surgery on his foot.” It turns out that Staley’s 2000 season came to an early end because of the injury to his right foot. He underwent surgery and had two pins inserted. Staley returned to play six more seasons — three with the Eagles and three with the Pittsburgh Steelers. In 2002, he rushed 269 times for 1,029 yards. . . . QB Nathan Rourke of the B.C. Lions underwent surgery to repair the Lisfranc injury to his right foot on Friday. The Lions later tweeted that “surgery went well.” Of course, when’s the last time an athlete had surgery and the team informed fans that it didn’t go well?

The CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers obviously are onto something here . . . It works just like a coat check. You turn your bike over to a valet and you are given a number in return. At game’s end, you hand over the number and your bike is brought to you . . .

Dentist

THINKING OUT LOUD — The Baltimore Ravens beat the visiting Washington Commanders, 17-15, on Saturday night. From the department of meaningless statistics: Baltimore has won 23 straight exhibition games. . . . ICYMI, Nebraska and Northwestern opened the U.S. college football season at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland, on Saturday. The highlight may have occurred when Internet issues prevented fans from paying for concession items with credit cards or even cash. As a result, many products, including beer, were given away. “Fans ended up able to get as much beer as they could carry,” CBS reported, “. . . all at no cost to them.” Can you see that happening in an American or Canadian sporting facility? . . . Has a Canadian business or organization ever read the room worse than Bell Media with its decision to dump anchor Lisa LaFlamme? Well, other than Hockey Canada, that is. . . . Just wondering who in the Alberta tourism industry had the idea to allow someone with a limited wardrobe and who seems to struggle with one language to welcome home Canada’s deputy prime minister and minister of finance, who is fluent in five languages and a Rhodes Scholar? And the video hits the Internet and you aren’t even on the hook for advertising costs. Smooth move!

THE COACHING GAME:

Former WHLers Morgan Klimchuk and Ralph Jarratt have joined the Victoria Royals as assistant coaches. . . . Last season, Klimchuk was an assistant coach with the the U15 prep team at the Edge School in Calgary. Klimchuk, 27, played four WHL seasons, starting with the Regina Pats (2010-15) and finished with the Brandon Wheat Kings (2014-15). . . . Jarratt, 24, spent five seasons (2014-19) with the Royals. . . . Ed Fowler, the Royals’ director of player personnel since 2019, is retiring. As a result, J.F. Best, who had been associate coach and assistant general manager, is the club’s new director of player personnel and player development. Best joined the Royals as an assistant coach in 2017. Fowler had been there since 2013, and had worked as a scout and senior regional scout. . . . There is a news release right here that details the Royals’ hockey operations staff.

Texas

If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

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Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

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Or, for more information, visit right here.

Freud