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"Pinned" Picked for Film Festival
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Sat, 03/06/2010 - 10:37pm
The documentary movie "Pinned," which I wrote about several weeks ago, has been selected for the Cleveland International Film Festival, where it will be shown three times.
This is quite an honor for Mike and Pat Norman, the brothers who produced the 91-minute film about high school wrestling. They began the project four years ago, going behind the scenes for a season with the St. Edward team and a parallel story of a Lakewood High wrestler.
Final Thoughts on Olympics
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Tue, 03/02/2010 - 11:21am
I liked Stephen Colbert's observation about curling. "It looks like housekeeping," he said.
The 108 continuous hours of curling coverage on MSNBC got me so fired up, I went around the house dusting everything.
Do you think that if any country swept through the curling competition unbeaten, it's anthem would have been, "Get out the brooms?"
Seriously, I'm going to start training for the 2014 Winter Games. I'll be in the prime of my curling career. I'll be 75.
Costume Party at the Olympics
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Sat, 02/20/2010 - 10:19pm
Here's why American figure skater Johnny Weir placed no higher than sixth at the Olympics earlier this week.
It was that ridiculous costume. It's my theory that the judges were repulsed by his silly peek-a-boo outfit. Where would you get such a garment? What kind of store would stock such a thing?
Tiger Woods' Humbled in Public Apology; Cavs Shorthanded Without Z
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Sat, 02/20/2010 - 12:03am
Tiger Woods did what he had to do -- and one thing he did not have to do -- in his carefully staged and manipulated mea culpa on ESPN Friday afternoon.
He apologized all over himself about a dozen times for his sexual binge during which time he deposited his seed over all four time zones in North America and possibly all 24 time zones around the world. He turned planet Earth into his personal brothel. It must have been hard for Tiger, standing in front of a national TV camera and saying, for the first time in his life that he was wrong, shameful, selfish and an embarrassment to himself, his family, his friends, his sponsors and the game of golf. It was the most humbling 13 1/2 minutes of his life. In an emotional sense he had to crawl on his belly like a snake. He must have felt like a piece of dung. For a guy like Tiger, it must have been agonizingly difficult. I wonder what was his most compelling motivation to do that, his sponsors or his family. He was a businessman before he was a family man.
Too much TV, Too much LeBron
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Tue, 02/16/2010 - 11:39pm
That's what I was telling my son, John, as we watched the St. Ed vs. St. Ignatius basketball game in Sullivan Gym last Friday. The St. Ed Eagles had a terrible first half. Missing about 10 of 15 free throws was only part of the problem. They also lost the ball with careless no-look passes in the chaos underneath the basket more than once.
"They watch too much television. They see LeBron do that and because he makes it look easy, they think it's easy," I said to John.
Seven Days in May - Must See TV
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Sun, 02/07/2010 - 10:28pm
There's a darn good movie on Turner Classic Movies (TCM) Monday night at 6 p.m. "Seven Days in May" is a favorite of mine because one of the co-authors of the novel, Fletcher Knebel, was a reporter for The Plain Dealer in the 1950's. Rod Serling took his best-selling novel and wrote a thrilling screenplay.
Larkin is Right, Forget Railroad
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Sun, 02/07/2010 - 8:45pm
I've heard complaints about my silence recently, so let me get this off my chest.
Brent Larkin was so right in the Sunday Plain Dealer about the proposed passenger train linking Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati.
I've been stupefied ever since the governor started touting it about a month ago. Strickland truly is out of touch. A sage once said, "You can take the boy out of the country but you can't take the country out of the boy."
Don't miss the documentary 'PINNED'
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Mon, 01/18/2010 - 6:16pm
It will be available for viewing in a few weeks, but I don't want to put it on the back burner of my mind. I might get distracted and neglect to tell you about it later. If you're a fan of high school sports -- especially wrestling -- you'll want to see the 90-minute documentary "Pinned."
It chronicles the St. Edward wrestling team of 2005-06 with an interwoven parallel story about Lakewood High wrestler Matt Curley. It follows the St. Ed wrestlers on each step of the season which culminated in the state championship and a fourth straight state title for St. Ed werstler Lance Palmer.
Will Holmgren Re-wire the Office?
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Fri, 01/15/2010 - 6:14pm
That's what often happens after a change at the top in the NFL. The new guy installs his own bugs -- secret, illegal listening devices in offices and meeting rooms. That's how paranoid the NFL has become. The boss wants to know what the assistant coaches, scouts, etc., are saying when they think nobody is listening.
Waiting for Cribbs to Get Hurt
Submitted by Dan Coughlin on Fri, 01/08/2010 - 12:31am
I don't blame Josh Cribbs for running out of patience with the Browns' foot-dragging. He plays the most dangerous position in sports, with the possible exception of Alpine skiing.
Kick, returners don't last long because they are involved in the most violent collisions in the game -- ball carrier and tackler running head-on at full speed. Only on kick returns do you see this.
The secret to Cribbs' success is his start. He doesn't hesitate as some kick returners do, looking for an opening, cautiously dancing. His first step is straight ahead at full speed. It's a game of chicken. The faint-hearted need not apply.
This is what I think. The Browns expected him to get hurt, which is the reason they misled him, deceived him, lied to him, until that time came. After that, he wouldn't matter. Cart him off and cancel the remaining years of his contract. They had no intention of sweetening his contract. For Pete's sake, they had 18 months to re-work his deal. The organization is insenstive. It is non-caring.
