Memories of the Lethbridge YMCA

The old Lethbridge YMCA on Stafford Drive across from the library. We spent a lot of Friday nights there in 1986 and 1987.
Source: Photo CJOC News (Pat Siedlecki)
https://www.mylethbridgenow.com/131/lethbridge-city-council-votes-to-demolish-former-ymca-building/
(May be subject to copyright)

What started out as a night out became a Friday night fixture. For almost two years, the Lethbridge YMCA was not only a place to go for a few hours, but became an institution.

A couple weeks ago I saw something that I knew had happened, but still made my heart a bit sad. The Lethbridge YMCA, located downtown across the street from the Lethbridge Public Library, was torn down a few months ago. Now, for the first time, I saw the empty lot that once was occupied by the YMCA.

It brought back a lot of memories, that all started in the spring of 1986, with a game of racquetball.

Racquet time
For awhile me and my new friend Randy heard about some of his friends playing racquetball at the YMCA in Lethbridge. Friday night was teen night, where we could have access to essentially the entire facility for one dollar. That sounded pretty interesting to us.

I had just started working at the greenhouse and Randy had just bought his first car, which he just loved. He agreed to pick me up from work, which was on the way from his place to Lethbridge. I used to wear overalls to work, over my school clothes, so when he picked me up, he didn’t want me sitting with those coveralls on his new seats. So he spread papers on the passenger seat. I totally understood that though.

When we got to the “Y”, we realized something. In our zeal to go to the “Y”, we both forgot gym clothes. We knew we could get racquets and balls at the “Y” but we never thought past that. Still, we solved that problem. The “Y” did have a pair of shorts that sort of fit me, and Randy had no problem playing in his jeans.

I will never forget when we walked in. There were huge windows that showed this massive gym below. I was hooked immediately.

We really didn’t know the rules, but we kind of did, and had a great time.

Getting racquets
We went a couple more times, as more of our friends like Chris and Dave started to come too. Eventually, Randy and I decided it was time to buy our own racquets.

We had heard the Woolco sports department was top quality, so we went there. The interesting thing was the salesman who sold us the racquets was Steven Gergely, one of the sons of the family I worked for who owned the greenhouse. The racquets were cheap too, like $20, but right what we were looking for.

The next Friday, when we got to the “Y”, Randy showed me what he had done to his racquet. He had found some letters and put his name on the racquet. H also pointed to something on the shaft – the number one. He was telling me, tongue in cheek, that he was the best. We both laughed.

Focus power
One of Randy’s closest friends before we met was named Larry. One night, he came to the “Y” and it was a night to remember.

Larry and Randy played me and Chris in doubles racquetball. They totally hammed it up, which was kind of funny.

They got this idea to “focus power” when they hit the ball, just like Mr. Miyagi told Daniel in “The Karate Kid”. So before every serve they said, “Focus power”. After each point they won, they would face each other, tap racquets and bow.

It got kind of old, because there was more of that than racquetball. The more frustrating part was it was pretty effective, and they gave us all we could handle.

It was your average teenage boy fun.

Clang
One night, Randy and I went down to the courts and there was this big metal thing up against the front wall. We played a bit, but that metal thing made a heck of a clang when the ball hit it.

Then Randy said, “Maybe it’s for squash.”

We went into this equipment room that had all sorts of stuff. That was where we got the first racquetball racquets we used. We found a couple squash racquets and a squash ball. Once we hit the ball around, it began to make sense. A squash ball was a lot softer, unlike a racquet ball which was hard and bounced all over the place. The squash ball just kind of died when it hit the wall, so you had to hit it way harder than a racquet ball. I could see how people said squash was a good workout.

The metal thing made sense now too. You had to hit the ball above it, so it would bounce off the wall. If you hit the ball low on the wall, it would die and you could score on every serve. So that metal thing ensured there would be rallies. Ingenious.

Parting thoughts
Racquetball was fun, but in the end it was just an entré into the Lethbridge YMCA. Pretty soon we were checking out the other parts of the “Y. More of our friends and classmates began to show up too. Some tried out the weight room, others the pool and showers.

Me, I felt the pull of something else – the basketball court.

But that is another story for another day on the blog.

Dee Wallace Stone: Remembering the mom from E.T. and more

 

Dee Wallace Stone with E.T.: The Extraterrestrial. Wallace Stone played the mother of Elliott,
the boy who found E.T. and helped him get home. It is the role for which she is most famous.
Source: Photo courtesy of Dee Wallace Stone
https://medium.com/intergenerational-inspiration/intergenerational-inspiration-q-a-with-dee-wallace-hollywood-actress-9ba56bd62440
(May be subject to copyright)

A few months ago when I was binge-watching “911”, there was someone familiar playing Evan and Maddie’s mom. It took a couple minutes, and a quick check of the Internet Movie Data Base, for me to confirm it was Dee Wallace Stone.

Older now, she still conjured up memories of another mother she played almost 40 years ago – Elliott’s mother on “ET: The Extraterrestrial”.

That would be Dee Wallace Stone’s most famous role, but not the only thing she did in the 1980s.

Outer space again
The other major role I saw Dee Wallace Stone in was "The Sky’s No Limit” in 1984, where she played an astronaut training to go into outer space. My outstanding memory was the aspiring astronauts all talking about how competitive the space program was then, a few minutes later, one of them jumping the line and, to the surprise of the others, being in the simulator. I think that was Dee Wallace Stone. Her co-stars for that movie were Sharon Gless and Anne Archer, so it may have been one of them too.

Prolific in movies and TV
Throughout the 1980s, Dee Wallace Stone continued to appear in movies, such as “Cujo” in 1983; “Secret Admirer” in 1985; and “Critters” in 1986.

She also guest starred in a lot of the TV dramas of the day including, “Simon and Simon”; “The Twilight Zone”; and “Hotel”.

Together We Stand
Dee Wallace Stone even tried her hand at network TV starring opposite Elliott Gould in a comedy called “Together We Stand” in 1986-1987. I saw it when I was in Grade 12, and it really wasn’t that good, the reason why it only lasted 19 episodes. It was about a married couple who raise three adopted and one biological child of different ethnicities.

My outstanding memory is that one of the children was played by Ke Huy Quan, who had recently played the boy Short Round opposite Harrison Ford in “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom”. In one episode, one of the jokes centred on how his character Sam, could not say Arnold Schwarzenegger’s last name, instead saying “Schwarzanooogie”. The day after that episode, I was sitting in Social 30 and my friend Shawn, who sat in front of me, turned around and said, “Schwarzanooogie”. He had obviously seen “Together We Stand” the night before as well.

Part way through its run, Elliott Gould was dropped and the show was re-named “Nothing is Easy”.

Parting thoughts
Dee Wallace Stone’s most famous role was one of her very first. She will be etched in movie history as Elliott’s mother in “E.T.: The Extraterrestrial”. Yet she continued to act all through the 1980s, 1990s and beyond.

It is a tribute to her longevity that she is still working almost 40 years after that iconic, award-winning role, and still turning in solid performances.

Gregory Harrison: Remembering Gonzo, Trapper John and more

Gregory Harrison's most memorable role in the 1980s
was his seven years as Dr. G. Alonzo "Gonzo" Gates
on the CBS drama "Trapper John, M.D."
Here he is at left with Pernell Roberts who played Trapper John.
Source: https://www.amazon.com/
Erthstore-Trapper-Pernell-Roberts-Harrison/dp/B07WD947ZY
(May be subject to copyright)

When I was binge-watching “911” a few months ago, I spotted someone I recognized instantly when he was playing Evan and Maddie’s dad. Although he was a little older and a little greyer, he still looked like Gonzo from “Trapper John, M.D.”

That was a breakout role for Gregory Harrison on the drama that aired Sunday nights on Channel 7 of the peasant vision dial, and it started a career that continues to this day.

Super sequel sort-of
“Trapper John, M.D.” was one of the most unique sequels in television history. It followed the exploits of “Trapper John” McIntyre 30 years after he was introduced to us as a field army hospital surgeon in the comedy “M*A*S*H”. On that show, he was the king of practical jokes with his friend Benjamin “Hawkeye” Pierce. It was their way of coping with all the horror that surrounded them during the Korean Conflict. After three seasons of “M*A*S*H”, “Trapper John” was rotated home, never to be seen and rarely referred to again.

Until the fall of 1979 that is, when “Trapper John, M.D.” premiered on CBS, and Channel 7 on the peasant vision dial. The opening scene pans across black and white photos of a M*A*S*H unit in Korea, including an operating room, then tilts down to a middle-aged man, obviously a doctor, sleeping on a couch. Suddenly, a nurse bursts in announcing casualties are coming. We discover the doctor is Trapper John. He arouses groggily, calling for Hawkeye and Radar. The nurse, who we soon discover served with Trapper John in Korea, said he is no longer in Korea, he’s in San Francisco.

It gets really interesting soon after. This young man arrives at the hospital and wanders into the emergency room. There he discovers a man who cannot breathe, with no one seemingly caring, so he attends to the patient, saving his life with an emergency tracheotomy. Fresh off that, Trapper John grabs him to assist in surgery.

Only after surgery, does it dawn on Trapper John that he does not know the name of this new surgeon, nor if he actually works at the hospital. Well, the young surgeon introduces himself as G. Alonzo Gates, but you can call him Gonzo. And no, he doesn’t work at the hospital. In fact, he was there applying for a job.

Trapper John is quite concerned he could lose his licence, get sued and the hospital could get in trouble because Gonzo was not on staff.

However, he gets Gonzo to apply for a job, and discovers that Gonzo had also worked at a M*A*S*H unit in Vietnam.

When Trapper John goes to talk to him, a nurse tells him Gonzo is on the Titanic. It is a motorhome Gonzo won in a craps game that he lives in, parked in the hospital parking lot.

He tracks Gonzo down, having a drink on the roof of the Titanic where he discovers Gonzo did not choose this particular hospital by accident. It turns out Trapper John, and his buddy Hawkeye, are legendary in M*A*S*H units. Gonzo sought out Trapper John to work with him.

Trapper John soon discovers, in all his worry over policy, procedure, and administration, he is not the crusading, idealistic surgeon he once was. Gonzo reminds him of a younger version of himself, and one of the nurses points out the same thing to him.

In the pilot, Gonzo alludes to his age being about 28, which was about how old Gregory Harrison was when he debuted as Gonzo.

He would go on to play that role for six season, and more than 142 episodes portraying a doctor who started young and idealistic who became an older, more mature surgeon who still did anything for his patients.

Before Gonzo
My first exposure to Gregory Harrison was in a role he played for barely a season, but left a big impression on me. It was as Logan 5 in the television series “Logan’s Run”, based on the science fiction movie of the same name.

Logan's run is set in the future, when nuclear war forces humanity to create domed cities to survive. Since, there is limited space inside the City of the Domes, a whole religion evolves around the idea people can only live until they are 30. At that time, they enter Cathedral for Carousel, which is essentially a death ritual. However, there are those who do not want to die, and seek to escape. They are called Runners. In response, the City has an army of soldiers called Sandmen who hunt Runners and preserve order. Logan 5 is a Sandman who meets Jessica 6. She convinces him to run with her, to escape the City of the Domes and see what is outside. Francis 7, Logan’s best friend and fellow Sandman, is dispatched to hunt down Logan and Jessica. The TV series chronicles the adventures of Logan and Jessica as they explore the outside world while trying to elude Francis.

I really liked “Logan’s Run” and even pretended to be a Sandman, using this pocket knife as my gun or blaster.

A few years ago, I bought “Logan’s Run” on DVD and watched about half of it. I still enjoyed it especially Gregory Harrison’s portrayal of Logan.

Ironically, Gregory Harrison also had a guest spot on an episode of – “M*A*S*H”, and it was in 1976 when Trapper John was still at the 4077th M*A*S*H.

Beyond Gonzo
Gregory Harrison left “Trapper John, M.D.” part way through the final season in 1986. He had already done some other work, like TV movies such as “For Women Only” and later “Oceans of Fire.”

He would appear in the spoof “Fresno” in 1986. It was on CBC and I recall staring to watch it but somehow lost interest and never finished watching it. It was a send-up of prime time soap operas such as “Dallas” and “Falcon Crest”. It repeated in the fall of 1987 because I recall catching a few minutes of it when I was living in res at the University of Alberta in Edmonton.

Harrison closed out the decade by appearing as the bad guy in the final season of “Falcon Crest” in 1989-1990. By then, I had stopped watching “Falcon Crest” regularly. However, I was home from university in the summer of 1990 and CFAC Channel 7 was playing a marathon of episodes of “Falcon Crest” one Sunday morning. I caught a bunch of those episodes. That’s when I saw that Kristian Alfonso, formerly Hope on “Days Of Our Lives”, was also on the show. I recall Channel 7 doing that before. It was like they had paid for a show then never got around to airing it so they aired a bunch of episodes on a Sunday in kind of a marathon. They did the same thing with the last season of “Happy Days”, where they burned off all the episodes in one day.

Gregory Harrison continued on through the 1980s and beyond, working through to the present day at the age of 71.

Parting thoughts
In today’s day and age where dozens upon dozens of shows have been re-booted, re-imagined, or resumed after going off the air years ago, “Trapper John, M.D.” would not be unique today.

Yet in its time it certainly was.

However, beyond the novelty of the show, one of the things that made it stand out was the performance of Gregory Harrison. He was essentially a newcomer to network TV. He injected the youth, energy and exuberance needed to play a brash, young, idealistic doctor. It is hard to believe that in the opening episode, when Gonzo refers to his age being 29, Gregory Harrison is actually the same age.

It was a role that made his career, and was his most recognized role of the decade. Yet, Gregory Harrison would keep on working to this day, making the transition from young, handsome, and a bit rebellious to a distinguished, older gentleman.

He went from playing the son to the father. It is kind of ironic that Evan Buckley, whose father Gregory Harrison portrays, is young, brash, and a bit rebellious, just like Gonzo Gates was in his day.

That says a lot about how far Gregory Harrison’s career had come.

Gord Kluzak: What could have been

Gord Kluzak was one of the best defenceman

in junior hockey in 1982, and was taken first overall

by the Boston Bruins in the NHL Entry Draft.

A promising career was cut short by injury though.

Source: https://bleacherreport.com/
articles/409085-nhl-awards-who-stole-the-show-in-1990
(May be subject to copyright)

He had so much potential, and could have been one of the greatest defenceman in the history of the Boston Bruins. Taken first overall, Gord Kluzak was hobbled by injury and would play just 299 NHL games, leaving people wondering what could have been?

This past season Gary Galley was doing a Boston Bruins playoff game. A former Bruin himself, he listed off the greatest defencemen in Boston’s history – Eddie Shore; Bobby Orr; Raymond Bourque; and – Gord Kluzak.

As someone who played with him, Galley said Gord Kluzak would have been up there too, had injury not shortened his career.

World Junior sensation
Gord Kluzak first caught my attention, and the attention of the world, in the 1981 World Junior Championship. It was the first time Canada was sending a representative drawn from teams across North America, after it proved fruitless sending the defending Canadian junior champions.

Kluzak had been playing for the Billings Bighorns of the Western Hockey League, and proved to be a standout on the international stage. Not only did he help Canada to the nation’s first ever World Junior gold medal, but he was named the tournament’s top defenceman.

The future looked bright for Kluzak.

Draft sensation
The consensus number one pick in the ensuing NHL Entry Draft was Brian Bellows of the Kitchener Rangers. Kluzak was rated a top pick as well.

The Boston Bruins held the number one pick and the Minnesota North Stars chose second. They really wanted Bellows, and Boston was content taking Kluzak. However, to cement the deal, Minnesota General Manager Lou Nanne sent Brad Palmer and Dave Donnelly to the Bruins in exchange for the Bruins not selecting Bellows first overall.

What I remember most about Palmer was that, in the playoffs the previous year against the Calgary Flames, Palmer’s slap shot was so hard it broke the net.

Now, he would be joining Bruins along with their number one pick overall, Gord Kluzak.

Good start
Kluzak would play 70 games in his rookie season of 1982-1983, where he recorded one goal and six assists, and another goal and four assists in the playoffs. He followed that up in 1983-1984 playing 80 games, scoring 10 goals and adding 27 assists for 37 points.

Injury bug
Kluzak had torn ligaments in his left knee in Billings, missing half of the 1981-1982 season and all of the playoffs. The injury bug returned on Oct. 7, 1984, when Kluzak sustained the same knee injury, forcing him to miss the entire 1984-1985 season and the playoffs.

He was back for the 1985-1986 season, playing in 70 games, scoring eight goals and 31 assists for 39 points, adding another goal and an assist in three playoff games.

Then tragedy struck again. Kluzak re-injured the knee in September of 1986 and missed the entire 1986-1987 season.

Return to glory
He was back in the line-up for the 1987-1988 season, which turned out to be the best year of his career. He would play in 66 games, scoring six goals and adding 31 assists for 37 points.

However it was the 1988 playoffs where Kluzak truly excelled. Along with Raymond Bourque, Michael Thelven, and Don Sweeney, Kluzak was part of a Bruin defensive corps that stymied opponents and led Boston to their first playoff victory over the Montreal Canadiens in 40 years. They followed that up with a seven-game victory over New Jersey in the Wales Conference Final, advancing to the Stanley Cup Final where they ran into a superior Edmonton Oiler team. Kluzak appeared in 23 playoff games, scoring four goals and adding eight assists.

The end
He would only play 13 more games in the NHL, suffering perpetual knee injuries and undergoing 11 surgeries. He appeared in three games in 1988-1989 recording one assist. He played in eight games in 1989-1990, notching two more assists.

For his efforts to try and play through injuries, he was awarded the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy in the 1989-1990 season.

His final season was 1990-1991, when he played in two games and had no points. His final game was on Nov. 5, 1990 against the New York Rangers. He had had enough. He announced his retirement a week later on Nov. 12, after playing just 299 NHL games. He was just 27 years of age.

Parting thoughts
Gord Kluzak was one of the best defenceman in junior hockey in 1981-1982. Not only did he excel in the Western Hockey League but helped lead Canada to its first ever World Junior gold medal. For his efforts he was named the best defenceman in the world.

The Boston Bruins invested enough faith in him to take him first overall in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft. Things looked promising, then Kluzak could just not catch a break.

What impressed me was the indomitable spirit he possessed. He kept trying to come back, injury after injury, surgery after surgery. He showed the same tenacity trying to come back from injury that he showed grinding it out in ice arenas across North America. He caught the attention of the entire hockey world, receiving the Masterton Trophy for the courage he showed battling injury.

To me, that is the mark he left behind. He never gave up until his body finally told him he had to.

Had he not suffered such catastrophic injury he would have been a stalwart on the Bruin blue line. Instead, I cannot help but wonder, with that courage and determination, what could have been?

Remembering The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman

The cover of "TV Guide" in 1987 advertising

"The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman".

Source: https://bionic.fandom.com/wiki/
Return_of_the_Six_Million_Dollar_Man_and_the_Bionic_Woman?file=
Tvguidecanada.jpg
(May be subject to copyright)

Sometimes things are about timing. When I was in Grade 12, in the spring of 1987, the front cover of TV Guide advertised something I vowed I could not miss – “The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman”.

Like most boys growing up in the mid to late ‘70s, I looked forward every Sunday night to Steve Austin’s latest adventure on “The Six Million Dollar Man”. Later on, I also waited eagerly for Saturday night’s latest instalment of “The Bionic Woman”.

When, they unceremoniously went off the air, I felt sad and a bit empty.

Now, the story was continuing and I couldn’t wait.

Then I got invited to a house party for the same Sunday night the reunion movie was airing.

Sometimes it’s all about timing.

Pre-party
Back in the 1970s, when people heard the name Steve Austin, the “Six Million Dollar Man” came to mind, not the professional wrestler opening his cans of whoop ass and growling, “Because Stone Cold said so” and “That’s the bottom line”.

For me, “The Six Million Dollar Man” became so much more interesting when Steve Austin re-connected with his high school sweetheart Jaime Sommers. She was a professional tennis player who suffered a catastrophic parachuting accident. Facing certain death with two crushed legs, a crushed left arm and damaged hearing, Steve pleaded with his benefactors at the mysterious OSI to give her the same second chance he got. He begged Dr. Rudy Wells to give Jaime bionic implants.

Against his better judgement, Rudy obliged, giving Jaime the same bionic legs and arm Steve had, as well as a bionic ear. He feared, as he had with Steve, that Jaime’s body may not accept the bionics. There was a real danger her body could reject them, as it would a transplanted liver or kidney.

Everything seemed to go as planned though, as Jaime recovered and trained to the point she could go on her first mission. When she did, tragedy struck. In the pouring rain, her body rejected her bionics, driving her insane resulting in her screaming, clutching her head and destroying a phone booth.

She was sent back to Rudy Wells’ lab where she died on the operating table.

I will never forget the final scene of that episode. As Steve reflects back on his memories with Jaime, Lee Majors is actually singing a tribute to her.

As young as I was, it still moved me – and I hadn’t discovered girls yet.

In the first episode of “The Six Million Dollar Man” the next season, Steve is severely injured and in recovery. His bionic eye is enhanced and, when he is testing it out, he sees the improbable – a woman that looks like Jaime. But that is impossible. Or is it? Turns out, Dr. Michael Marchetti used his experimental cryogenics to save Jaime. There was one serious side effect though – Jaime suffered amnesia. One of the things she did not remember was her relationship with Steve. Worse, trying to remember caused her severe pain. Seeing Steve reminded her of something, but caused more pain. Realizing he was the cause, Steve kissed Jaime goodbye.

That two-parter served as the spin-off for “The Bionic Woman”.

Although I continued to watch “The Six Million Dollar Man”, which became more and more cartoon-like and, quite frankly, ridiculous, I religiously watched “The Bionic Woman”. I never missed an episode when it was on like a Wednesday or Thursday night and on Saturday nights after my bath.

There were some memorable episodes of “The Bionic Woman”. Some were cross-over events with Steve Austin such as their battles with Bigfoot and the Fembots. Others included one where Jaime was replaced by an identical double, which won Lindsay Wagner an Emmy award.

After three years of “The Bionic Woman” and five seasons of “The Six Million Dollar Man”, both shows were cancelled in 1978.

To be continued?
In the 1980s, I started seeing various reunion movies begin to appear on TV. There was “The Return of The Beverly Hillbillies” in 1981, “The Return of the Man from U*N*C*L*E: The Fifteen Years Later Affair” in 1983, and “I Dream of Jeannie…Fifteen Years Later” in 1985. There were others but these three came to mind.

I began to wonder what else would be remade then, one day, I saw that fateful cover of “TV Guide”.

A reunion movie called “The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman” was airing that upcoming Sunday night.

House party
By the spring of 1987, I was in Grade 12, and high school life was grand. My best friend and I had a pretty healthy social calendar, and were hanging out with more and different people. We were even getting invited to the occasional house party.

My best friend even asked a girl out and, not only did she say yes, he went on a reasonably successful date with her.

Coinciding with that, one of her best friends was having a house party. Oddly, that friend stopped me in the hall at school the Friday before and invited me. When I went to tell my best friend, he smiled and said he too had been invited.

I had my licence and could get the car when we needed. It sounded like a great time. We were stoked.

Then we both realized something – it was Sunday night, the same time as “The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman”.

Joy turned to horror.

Then I thought, as only a high school boy could, to ask if the girls wanted to watch the movie at their place.

You know what the answer was?

“Yes, absolutely, that’s what we were planning to do. We were going to tell you…”

If I was not in love before that, I think I was then.

Sunday night at the movies
By the time we got there, the girls had been partying awhile. No booze or anything like that, but they had a big meal and were on dessert when we got there. If memory serves, it was someone’s birthday.

Anyway, I was all business, fixated on seeing the movie. I was so psyched to see if Steve and Jaime would finally get together.

That was still a couple hours away so we hung out, played games, talked, and ate chips and dip.

Some of the girls, including the one my best friend had had a date with, were talking about the great time they had with a guy named “T.J.” They kept laughing and joking and talking about “T.J.” I began to think is this girl my best friend was interested in, dating this “T.J.”?

Before anything more happened, the movie started.

It was a great reunion movie, but did not have the answers I wanted. That’s because it was obvious they were setting up another movie and, as it turned out, another one after that.

Oh, as for “T.J.”, that was resolved early the following week.

My best friend stopped me between classes one day, and filled me in on what he learned from the girls.

There was no “T.J.”. He had been made up, not so much to make my best friend jealous, but to see how interested he was.

The drama that can only happen in high school.

Parting thoughts
My best friend never did go out with that girl again, and we pretty much never gave her a second thought after that.

As for “The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman”, it was a good movie that I recently located online. I avoided reading any synopsis on it or even a brief summary, because I would like to watch it again. Perhaps I will write a review after I watch it.

Until then, I do know that Steve did not get back together with Jaime until 1994, seven years after the initial reunion movie.

It was in the last of the reunion movies, alternately called “Bionic Breakdown” and “Bionic Ever After?”.

In the end, Steve Austin finally does marry Jaime Austin, and they live happily ever after.

Denver Broncos: Super Bowl struggles in the ‘80s

John Elway was the quarterback for the Denver Broncos for

all three Super Bowls they appeared in, and lost, in the 1980s.

Source: https://www.profootballhof.com/
players/john-elway/stats/
(May be subject to copyright)

It is still one of the funniest sports cartoons I have ever seen. Charlie Brown is going to kick a football and Lucy Van Pelt is about to pull it away as she always does. Except in this case, Charlie Brown is wearing a shirt that says “Denver Broncos” and the ball has “Super Bowl” written on it.

Nothing could better describe what happened to the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl in the 1980s better than that cartoon.

They were one of the most successful teams of the decade, but every time they made it to the Super Bowl, which was three times in four years, they could not win the championship. Worse, they lost by some of the widest margins in Super Bowl history.

Such is the legacy of the Denver Broncos in 1980s.

Prelude to a championship
The Denver Broncos had been a pretty good team in the AFC since their run to the Super Bowl in 1977. They became an instant contender in the conference when, through a trade with the Baltimore Colts in 1983, they acquired John Elway. He would become their franchise quarterback for the better part of 16 years.

Elway’s first season was 1983, when the Broncos went 9-7, finished third in the AFC West and qualified for the AFC Wildcard Game. However, they lost to the Seattle Seahawks by a score of 31-7.

In 1984, they finished 13-3, their best record in franchise history, and won the AFC West. However, they were upset by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Divisional Game.

The next season, 1985, they finished 11-5, good enough for second in the AFC West. However, in an incredibly strong AFC that year, they did not make the playoffs.

Still expectations were large going into the 1986 season.

Over one hump
The Broncos finally lived up to the expectations that had been placed on them. A year earlier, many observers had picked them to go to the Super Bowl, yet they didn’t even make the playoffs.

Things changed in 1986.

Denver once again finished 11-5, but this time that was good enough for first place in the AFC West. Awaiting them in the AFC Divisional Game was the New England Patriots, the defending AFC Champions. The Broncos prevailed by a score of 22-17 and were off to their first AFC Championship Game since 1977.

They would face the Cleveland Browns in one of the most memorable games of the decade. The Browns led by seven points with about five minutes left, and pinned the Broncos inside their own two-yard line. Elway trotted out and led Denver straight down the field, tying the game with 39 seconds left on a pass to Mark Jackson. The Broncos then got the ball in overtime, after forcing Cleveland to punt, and drove 60 yards for Rich Karlis’ game-winning field goal.

That game-tying sequence became forever known simply as “The Drive”. I knew it was destined to succeed when, on one play, the centre snapped the ball early while a receiver was in motion. The ball skipped off the receiver but Elway managed to corral the ball and continue the drive.

The Broncos were heading to their first Super Bowl since 1977, and looking for their first championship.

Giant defeat

Standing in the way were the New York Giants who had a stingy defence led by Lawrence Taylor, and an offence led by Phil Simms. After Denver led 10-9 at the half, the Broncos fell apart in the second half. The Giants scored 30 points in the final 40 minutes. In response, the Broncos could only muster 10, as New York won their first Super Bowl by a score of 39-20.

New York quarterback Phil Simms turned in one of the best performances in Super Bowl history. He went 22 of 25, for 268 yards and three touchdowns. That included throwing the ball away once intentionally. He also carried the ball three times for 25 yards, on his way to being named most valuable player of the Super Bowl.

This time, I knew New York was destined to win, by two plays the Giants made for touchdowns. In one play, after tight end Mark Bavaro scored, he dropped to one knee in the end zone and made the sign of the cross. Only later did I learn that, not only was he a Catholic like me, but he attended my beloved Notre Dame. In the other play, Simms threw a pass to Bavaro. The ball went through his hands, but receiver Phil McConkey was right behind the big tight end in the end zone. He dove, catching the ball on the deflection for the touchdown.

The Giants were destined to win.

That 39-20 beating would be the closest Denver came to winning a Super Bowl in the ‘80s, and they would have more chances.

Capital offence
The following season, 1987, was plagued by a players’ strike that involved replacement players and shortening the season by one game. The Broncos still prevailed in the AFC West, finishing first with a 10-4-1 record and a date in the AFC Divisional Game. They would the Houston Oilers, who had defeated Seattle in the AFC Wildcard Game.

The Broncos beat Houston 34-10, punching their ticket to their second straight AFC Championship Game where they would face – the Cleveland Browns.

Hungry for redemption after coming so close the year before, the Browns went toe to toe with Denver. Late in the game, trailing 38-31, Cleveland drove deep into Bronco territory and were poised to score the tying touchdown. Then, runningback Earnest Byner, fighting to score the tying touchdown, had the ball ripped loose and the Broncos recovered the ensuing fumble. They ran three plays then conceded a safety, making the score 38-33. They did not want to punt the ball out of their own end zone and give Cleveland good field position. Instead, the Browns got the ball back, but ran out of time, sending the Broncos back to the Super Bowl. That play became an another instant classic, dubbed “The Fumble” for all eternity.

Awaiting the Broncos in the Super Bowl was the Washington football club, denizens of the United States capital and champions of the NFC. I missed the first part of the game, but found out in line at the cafeteria that Denver led early on a long pass-and-run touchdown from Elway to Ricky Nattiel. I got in front of the TV in time to see Rich Karlis tack on a field goal, and give the Broncos a 10-0 lead after one quarter.

Then, one of the most improbable quarters in Super Bowl history unfolded. Starting with an 80-yard touchdown bomb from Doug Williams to Ricky Sanders, Washington reeled off a Super Bowl record 35 straight points in the second quarter to give the club a 35-10 halftime lead. After a scoreless third quarter, Washington tacked on one more touchdown in the fourth quarter to make the final score 42-10.

The Broncos suffered an even bigger blowout in 1987 then they had in 1986. It was certain they would be seeking some sort of redemption.

Blowout
It did not come in 1988, when Denver fell to 8-8, finishing second in the AFC West and out of the playoffs.

So the 1989 season was not even as much about redemption in the Super Bowl, as just returning to respectability. They did just that, going 11-5, finishing first in the AFC West for a date with the surprising Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Divisional Game. The Broncos would outlast Pittsburgh by a score of 24-23 to advance to their third AFC Championship Game in four years.

Looming on the horizon was none other then their old foe – the Cleveland Browns. With memories of “The Drive” and “The Fumble” abounding, this game was not as close as its two predecessors. The Broncos took control early and cruised to a 37-21 victory and a third Super Bowl appearance in four years.

The task would be even bigger this time around. San Francisco was the defending Super Bowl champion and they had mowed through the NFC, with a 14-2 record. They faced no real resistance in the NFC playoffs either, and were gunning for a second straight Super Bowl, and fourth in nine years.

Meanwhile Denver was looking to put the ghosts of the two previous Super Bowls to resist.

It did not happen.

If at all possible, the Broncos were blown out even worse than the 42-10 debacle two years earlier. After San Francisco scored on their opening possession, Denver responded with a field goal to cut the 49er lead to 7-3. That was okay, right? San Francisco scored another touchdown but missed the point after, to lead 13-3 after the first quarter. Then things fell apart – again – for the Broncos. The 49ers would go on to score two touchdowns in each of the four quarters, while Denver responded with a touchdown in the third quarter to make the final score 55-10.

It was the worst margin of defeat in Super Bowl history and the most points scored in one Super Bowl by one team. San Francisco also became the only team in Super Bowl history to score two touchdowns in each of the four quarters of a game. It capped off the decade with a third one-sided loss by the Denver Broncos in three years.

Parting thoughts
The odd thing about the Denver Broncos' struggles in the Super Bowl in the 1980s, was that it was eclipsed by an even bigger spell of frustration. The next season and the three seasons after that, the Buffalo Bills went to and lost four straight Super Bowls. Except for the 1990 Super Bowl where the Bills could have won on a last-play field goal, they were blown out by large margins too.

It continued a streak of NFC dominance that would run until the 1997 season.

That season, a much older, wiser and determined John Elway led his Denver Broncos to an upset victory in the Super Bowl over the defending champion Green Bay Packers. For good measure, the Broncos repeated as Super Bowl champions the following season with a convincing win over Atlanta.

The Broncos finally had their Super Bowl redemption.

Coach Tom Landry: Up and down with the Dallas Cowboys in the ‘80s

Tom Landry was the first coach of the Dallas Cowboys

and took the team to five playoff appearances

in the 1980s, including three straight

NFC Championship Games to start the decade.

Source: https://wrtla.org/legacy-giving/
(May be subject to copyright)

He lived through some of the most historic times in National Football League history, from the merger that created the modern NFL to five Super Bowl appearances.

At the dawn of the 1980s, it looked as if Coach Tom Landry and his Dallas Cowboys would continue on building that legacy, but as the decade ended so did the coach’s time with the team.

I recently read Tom Landry’s autobiography and it was very telling not only of the game and the teams he coached, but of the man himself.

Dawn of the decade
It looked very much like business as usual for the Dallas Cowboys as the calendar flipped to 1980. Although their star quarterback Roger Staubach, who had taken them to Super Bowl glory had retired, venerable back-up Danny White stepped in without missing a beat.

NFC Championship Game – Act 1

The Cowboys had finished tied with the Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East Division title in the 1980 season. However, they lost a tiebreaker and had to take the long way to the NFC Championship Game. The Cowboys defeated the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Wildcard Game then upset the top-seeded Atlanta Falcons to advance to the NFC Championship to face the upstart Eagles. Philadelphia had been a perennial doormat, but found new life under head coach Dick Vermeil and quarterback Ron Jaworski, and were threatening to go to their first Super Bowl in franchise history.

The game was held in the cold of Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, and the Eagles used home-field advantage to defeat the Cowboys by a score of 20-7.

NFC Championship Game – Act 2

However, the Cowboys were back in the NFC Championship Game in 1981. It would turn out to hinge on one of the most famous and memorable plays in football history.

Dallas went 12-4 to win the NFC East Division. They defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional Playoff to face the upstart San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. This was where legends were born. The teams went back and forth until Dallas led 27-21 late in the game. San Francisco quarterback Joe Montana took over and drove the ball down the field. In what looked like an innocuous play, he was flushed out of the pocket and running to his right. To avoid a loss, he just seemingly threw the ball away. Then receiver Dwight Clark leaped high in the air and caught the ball, landing with both feet in bounds for the winning touchdown. It has become one of the game’s iconic moments and really began San Francisco’s run as one of the best teams of the century. They went on to defeat Cincinnati to win their first of four Super Bowls in the 1980s.

NFC Championship Game – Act 3

Still, the Cowboys were not done yet, advancing to their third straight NFC Championship Game in 1982. This time they were in a dogfight with their NFC East rivals from Washington. However, there were no divisional rivalries per se that year. A player strike shortened the NFL schedule from 16 games to nine games, forcing a realignment of the playoffs. Instead of divisional champions and wildcard teams qualifying for the playoffs, in 1982 the top eight teams in each conference made the playoffs in a self-styled Super Bowl tournament. First place would play eighth place, second would play seventh and so on.

The Cowboys finished second in the NFC behind Washington who went 8-1. That gave them a first-round game against Tampa Bay for the second year in a row. They beat Tampa Bay, advancing to the semi-final where they defeated Green Bay to move on to the NFC Championship Game against Washington. But, for the third straight season, the Cowboys could just not make it past the NFC Championsgip Game, falling 31-17 to Washington, who would go on to defeat Miami to win the Super Bowl.

It would be the last time the Cowboys would get that far in the playoffs under Tom Landry.

Slow descent
The Cowboys broke the record for most consecutive playoff appearances at nine in the 1983 season. They finished second to Washington in the NFC East, and played the Los Angeles Rams in the Wildcard Game, losing to the Rams.

That streak would be broken in 1984 when the Cowboys missed the playoffs for the first time in 10 years. They went 9-7 and finished fourth on the NFC East.

Dallas was back in the playoffs in 1985, finishing 10-6 and first in the NFC East. That put the Cowboys in the NFC Divisional Game which they lost to the Rams by a 20-0 score. It was the last time Dallas would make the playoffs under Tom Landry.

In 1986, the Cowboys went 7-9 finishing third in the NFC East, followed by a 7-8 record and second in the NFC East in the strike-shortened 1987 season.

It all came to an end in 1988. The Cowboys fell to 3-13, missing the playoffs for the third straight season. It was the worst record in the NFL. It was also the worst record in franchise history since they went winless in 1960. That year, however, the team was an expansion franchise.

Winds of change
Tom Landry had been the first and only coach in Cowboys’ history. He served under Tex Schramm, who had been general manager from the start, and Clint Murchison, who was the owner and founder of the Dallas Cowboys.

They forged a winning relationship that took them to five Super Bowls, and two championships. The key to success was that Murchison left Schramm to be general manager and Schramm left Landry to be coach.

Things began to change in 1984 when Murchison got sick and sold the Cowboys to Bum Bright. He left things pretty much status quo, until he sold the team to Jerry Jones in 1989.

Change was coming.

End of an era
Rumours started almost immediately that Jones was going to make some changes. It didn't matter who was with the Cowboys when he bought them, nor for how long.

The rumours ramped up he was going to name Jimmy Johnson the new coach of the Cowboys. Johnson was Jones' old college friend and was currently the head coach of the University of Miami Hurricanes. 

Landry was never kept in the loop, and began preparing for the next season, just as he had the previous 28 seasons. He had hired new coaches and scheduled team meetings.

Rumours intensified. Pretty soon Schramm was let go, and Tom Landry went out the door right along with him.

It was the end of an era.

By the book
Landry’s autobiography reveals a lot of interesting behind-the-scene information. The book starts with his imminent departure from the Cowboys and just how little Jerry Jones kept him informed of his plans.

It then traces Landry’s rise from player to coach. He was the defensive coordinator of a powerhouse New York Giants coaching staff that included Vince Lombardi as offensive coordinator. When Dallas was granted an NFL expansion franchise for the 1960 season, Landry would be named the team’s inaugural coach.

Meanwhile, Lombardi would go to Green Bay to coach the Packers and, once the Cowboys got rolling, the two franchises, and their coaches, would become intense rivals for the NFL Championship.

That rivalry was obviously very important to Landry, because he spends a lot more time describing all those losses to the Packers than some of his Super Bowl victories. In fact, he spends a lot of time talking about Dallas’ playoff futility leading up to their win over Miami in Super Bowl VI. Later on, he spends just one page on the Cowboys’ Super Bowl win over Denver at the end of the 1977 season.

The book also talks about various relationships with players. Most notably for me was the relationship with Roger Staubach, who was one of the first players I ever really liked a lot. The book chronicles how Staubach was drafted out the Naval Academy and had to fulfill military service before joining the Cowboys. Then he went through a quarterback controversy with Craig Morton and ultimately prevailed, in time to lead Dallas to their first Super Bowl win, over Miami. One of the interesting aspects of their relationship was the disagreement they had over play calling. Landry insisted on calling the offensive plays while Staubach constantly agitated to call his own plays.

Landry also discusses his dislike for the Cowboys being called America’s team, the relationship he had with all-star runningback Tony Dorsett and more.

The book concludes with his ouster by Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson, and how much protest came not only from Dallas, but from all of Texas and the entire country.

I got the sense that gave Landry a bit of closure. It showed him how much all his efforts as the first, and to that point only, coach of the Dallas Cowboys was really appreciated.

Parting thoughts
Some times what is not written in an autobiography is just as telling as what is. Looking back, I am still struck by how humble he was about his victories and, consequently, did not go into much detail on them. Yet he spent a great deal of time on his setbacks and failures, but also how the Cowboys ultimately overcame them.

Although he does not whine or complain, I definitely could sense the hurt Tom Landry felt at the way Jerry Jones replaced him. It is true that Landry began as an innovator but, as things tend to happen, over time he fell behind the times. Football was not the same game in 1988 as it was in 1960.

It probably was time for Landry to move on from coaching the Cowboys. Yet, it could have been handled with much more class and respect, so the coach could leave with his dignity, and his head held high.

Still, he was one of the greats.

He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990, and passed away in 2000 at the age of 75.

The last phase of his success was in the 1980s, where he went to three straight NFC Championship Games and made the playoffs five out of the 10 seasons of the decade.

Most teams would die for that type of success.

For Tom Landry, it was just par for the course.

Herschel Walker: Turning pro

Herschel Walker played for the New Jersey Generals

of the United States Football League,

where he set a single-season professional football

rushing record for most yards in a season.

Source: https://fs64sports.blogspot.com/
2010/02/1983-herschel-walker-signs-with-usfl.html
(May be subject to copyright)

It was seismic shock in the annals of professional football.

After completing a record-breaking junior season capped off by a Heisman Trophy, Georgia runningback Herschel Walker was poised to have a massive senior year. However, he decided to turn pro.

The thing was, the NFL did not allow underclassmen into the draft.

That meant, Walker would forego the NFL. Instead, he give instant credibility to an upstart league – the United States Football League.

That was how Herschel Walker turned pro.

What’s next?
Herschel Walker dominated college football for three years. Barring injury, he would likely have cemented his legacy as the greatest college player ever. Instead, he decided to turn pro.

Interestingly, there had already been one attempt to chisel Walker out of college football and turn pro. The Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League, had a new and aggressive owner named Nelson Skalbania. He tried to lure Walker to Canada after his freshman season, but Walker refused. (Skalbania would go on to sign several NFL players, including star quarterback Vince Ferragamo of the Los Angeles Rams, and college standout David Overstreet from the Oklahmoma Sooners. In turn, the CFL adopted a rule similar to the one in the NFL barring underclassmen from turning pro).

The United States Football League, who would play football in the spring, were set to start their first season in 1983. Signing the reigning Heisman Trophy winner would give them instant credibility.

In addition to money, the United States Football League offered another incentive – Walker could sign wherever he wanted. Because he was looking at securing some endorsement deals, he wanted to go to a team based in the New York area.

After much hype, Herschel Walker made his decision. He was on his way to New Jersey to play for the Generals in the inaugural season of the United States Football League.

Record breaking
Just like in college, Walker would play three years in the USFL. However in this case, instead of Walker leaving the team, the team and the league left Herschel Walker. After three seasons, the USFL folded.

In those three years, playing in an 18-game schedule, Herschel Walker rushed for more than 5,000 yards, and had more than 7,000 yards from scrimmage. He also set the single-season professional rushing record in 1985 with 2,411 yards. (Eric Dickerson holds the NFL record with 2,105 yards, in 16 games, and Mike Pringle holds the CFL record of 2,065 yards in 18 games).

In 1983, Walker rushed for 1,812 yards on 412 carries with a long of 80 yards and 17 touchdowns to lead the league in rushing. He also caught 53 passes for 489 yards, one touchdown and a long of 65 yards. The Generals finished with a 6-12 record, finishing third in the Atlantic Division and out of the playoffs. Walker was also named the USFL Outstanding Runningback, and to the USFL All-League team and the Sporting News USFL All-Star team.

The following year, 1984, Walker rushed for 1,339 yards on 293 carries with a long of 69 yards and 16 touchdowns, to finish third in the league in rushing. He also caught 40 passes for 528 yards, with a long of 50 yards and five touchdowns. The Generals went 14-4 finishing second in the Atlantic Division and making the playoffs as a wildcard team, but losing to Philadelphia in the Divisional Playoff.

In 1985, as mentioned earlier, he set a record by rushing for 2,411 yards on 438 carries with a long of 88 yards and 21 touchdowns to again lead the league, and the world, in rushing. He also caught 37 passes for 467 yards with a long of 68 yards and one touchdown. The Generals went 11-7 finishing second in the Eastern Conference but losing to Baltimore, which was the same Philadelphia team they lost to the previous season, in the quarter-final game. Walker was the USFL most valuable player and the Sporting News USFL player of the year. He was also named to the USFL All-League team and the Sporting News USFL All-Star team.

Parting thoughts
Recently, it was announced the United States Football League was re-launching, in the wake of talk of the XFL striking a partnership with the CFL. It has been a long time since the USFL took the field, 35 years to be exact, and the latest incarnation will have a tough row to hoe after leagues, such as the AAF and XFL, could not even complete a season.

The one thing that would help immeasurably to give it instant credibility would be to land a star, as the USFL did back in 1983.

However, the stars may not align again because there is no college star of the stature of Herschel Walker.

Besides, there will never be another Herschel Walker.