ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- You bet I'm rooting for George Foreman tonight. And so is every American male over 19 or 27 or 31 or whatever age your metabolism changes and suddenly, one morning, after eating the same healthy food you've eaten since you were a boy -- namely, a bowl of Cap'n Crunch, a baloney sandwich, three Mallomars, two burgers and a half-liter of Coke -- you wake up with Bill Murray's body. But not his sense of humor.
I am about to tell you a remarkable story that not only restores my faith in newspapers, newspaper readers and humanity in general, but also makes my dog extremely happy.Here I was in my house Thursday morning. I had just returned from the Iditarod Sled Dog Race in Alaska, a wonderful assignment that, unfortunately, was being cut short so I could get to Florida and write about -- ahem -- spring training baseball."Well, dog," I said to my golden retriever, as I unpacked the long underwear from my suitcase, "too bad I didn't get to see the end of that race."
LA PLAGNE, France -- I rarely go to bobsled races, because I can see the same thing at a bank robbery. Two guys in masks come running out, jump in a vehicle, duck and drive away. Big deal.But I did attend the Olympic bobsled race Sunday, because certain circumstances demanded it, such as national interest, and the fact that if I didn't go to bobsled, I had to go to figure skating, in which the ice dancerswere scheduled to do The Original Mandatory Program, which this year is . . . the polka! I am not making this up. Roll out . . . the barrel!Also, Herschel Walker.
VAL d'ISERE, France -- Being the first skier on the Olympic downhill is like being the first float in a parade: People wave, but they're looking over your shoulder. They're waiting for the good stuff that comes next.
The conventional wisdom in basketball says no game in January can be that important. The Chicago Bulls would like to believe that.Forget the fact that the Bulls were tied for first place coming into the Palace Tuesday night. They were little better than an also-ran to the suddenly streaking Pistons, who have won six straight and sent fans home early with a 100-90 embarrassment of Michael Jordan and company."It was a strange game," said Pistons coach Chuck Daly on a night when his team so dominated that it led the Bulls by as many as 21 points. "They looked a little flat."
He leaves the job the way he entered it, as a gentleman, no harsh words. These traits, of course, are also why Bryan Murray is finished coaching in Detroit. No more Mr. Nice Guys. Suddenly, they say, we need a man with a whip.
* Detroit 22, Chicago 20: Erik Kramer and Joni Mitchell team up for a new duet: "I've looked at life from both benches now . . . "* Kansas City 23, Cleveland 20: If the Browns do win the AFC, couldn't they be promoted to a better color, like The Yellows?
NEWS ITEM: Friday, Aug. 16, was the anniversary of Elvis Presley's death in 1977. Thousands mourned at Graceland, his home. Some, however, believe Presley is alive. . . . "I met Elvis at the supermarket. He was coming down the frozen foods aisle and I was coming up. His black hair was long now and pushed under a baseball cap. He wore oversized sunglasses. But I knew it was him. I have every album, I've seen every movie -- even "Clambake." I knew it was him.
Mitch Albom writes about running an orphanage in impoverished Port-au-Prince, Haiti, his kids, their hardships, laughs and challenges, and the life lessons he’s learned there every day.
