WS season one, episode five - Pregnant Pause

Plot - Milton Reese is enjoying a fine season and even attacting the attention of college scouts. As the episode opens we see the closing of a game in which Reese improbably scores four points and gets an assist in literally seconds. Reggie Miller would have been jealous. He is quickly brought back to earth after the game when his girlfriend informs him she is pregnant.
The rest of the episode goes back and forth between the young lovers' predicament and Reeves doing some thinking and investigating. Reeves discovers, perhaps even before the audience does, that Darlene is not actually pregnant. She is the oldest of eight or nine siblings and doesn't want to lose Reese to a scholarship, and concocted the plan to trap him into marrying her.
Thanks to coach Reeves, with a minor assist from Miss Buchanan, the problem was averted.
Observations -
In the pilot Reeves drove a nice convertible Roadster; in this episode he drove a massive Woody.
The principal changed. It was no longer his benign buddy from the pilot but a more intense man who seems more likely to bend to Miss Buchanan but is still somehow Reeves' old friend, although they have little rapport or chemistry.
Teen pregnancy was not a typical topic on tv in 1978, so this was considered a bold episode at the time.

WS season one, episode two - Here's some mud in your eye

Plot - One of the Carver players, Curtis Jackson, has a drinking problem. Reeves is the first one to figure it out and later proves it to the rest of the doubting team. As Reeves seems to be at loose ends all day except for practice time, he has the time to drive around LA to resolve the situation. What does this entail? He visits Jackson's father, who is a preacher, and some honest, heartfelt dialogue is involved. He visits and later dines with a mildly attractive psychologist who eventually helps him break through to Jackson. He somehow is present hours after practice when the other players hatched a successful intervention on Jackson.
Observations
As I watch the show sometimes I envy Reeves, as he must have saves tens of thousands of dollars from playing pro ball, which allows him to coach the game he loves and help troubled youth in the process. It really is noble. Also, he always has a good deal of witty dialogue with others, which obviously doesn't occur that often in the real world.
The dollar was stronger back then. Jackson was in hock to some of the other players; one a dollar, another 60 cents, and another 40 cents. When the players hit up Reeves for $26 in their intervention scheme, it really appears to be a significant amount, even for a former NBA player.
The pace of the show is leisurely, allowing sufficient time for plot and character development.
I don't understand the why the episode is titled as it is.

White Shadow - Season one, episode one - Pilot

Plot - The show starts with Ken Reeves playing basketball for the Chicago Bulls and for the first five minutes we only see action with music in the background. Reeves is injured, rehabs, and then sits on the bench. After one game an old college friend joins him in the empty arena and convinces him to become a high school basketball coach at Carver High in Los Angeles.
The rest of the show consists of cursorily meeting the other characters in the show; school administrators, students that play basketball, and family.
The main plot is how Coach Reeves helps a talented player named Hayward to not quit school despite their initial differences and Hayward's family issues. The team loses their first game but wins the second. As the show closes, Reeves tells the players he has their back and will watch over them, to which Thorpe responds, "like a white shadow". Hence the name of the show.
Observations-
The pilot likely had the biggest budget and highest production value.
The drive-thru at Jack in the Box had a jack in the box.
Everyone is relatively thin.
70s soundtrack music permeates the show.
Reeves roughs up Hayward at one point but dismisses it as no big deal with the assistant principal and the issue is dropped.
Currently the 'elite' media seems to have grown tired of the white savior concept as evidenced by their criticism of Avatar last year. In effect, Reeves plays this role, but it is subtle and seems genuine and wholesome in the show.

Hillary - blah blah

My initial thought on WikiLeaks is that they are doing a public service. If you can get Hillary Clinton to say such obviously hypocritical statements then you must be doing something write. It's very frustrating that the mainstream press just takes her blather verbatim without any context or analysis.
I love America but I do not support most US foreign policy. This is the kind of crap that makes foreigners dislike us.

Rich Rodriguez

Writing about Rich Rodriguez doesn't justify much effort, so I will write in phrases and utterances:
15-21 overall record
lost last two games by a combined 50 points
not a "Michigan Man", which almost makes sense to me now
porous defense
Harbaugh is worth a look and would hire if available.

People are attached to the sports teams. I suppose it fulfills some primal need to identify with an army or whatever. Some consider being a fan a virtue, I liken it to a disease. Why? Because I become physically ill when Michigan loses certain games. One that stands out was the loss to Purdue in 2000, a game they would have won if Lloyd Carr had a killer instinct. I was inconsolable after that game. Of course there have been many highs over the years, but they have been in short supply lately. I see why some people get riled up over particular sports teams. They identify with it so deeply that they feel injured when things go badly, or that something precious has been taken away from them without their consent.

Back to Rich Rodriguez. I'll simply state that I won't be upset if he is fired. If he comes back for another year then I will expect more than seven victories and fewer blowout losses. Anything less will require therapy.

author notes/White Shadow project

The author has been spreading himself too thinly lately and hasn't been able to post anything lately. Travel season is over but now basketball season has started. In keeping with my interest in basketball I will soon be blogging about The White Shadow. I just ordered the 1st season on DVD and will do an episode by episode analysis of the show.
I won't share too much about it now as it will be an act of rediscovery for me.
Hopefully in the next week or so this project will begin in earnest. Just to give you a taste, here is the original intro.

Goodbye Ryno

I'm saddened to see that Ryne Sandberg will not be returning to the Cubs next season. Luckily for me I've never been a Cubs fan as this would really bother me if I were.
Growing up in Michigan I got more exposure to the Cubs than just about all the other teams combined. I used to watch the Cubs games with Harry Caray and Steve Stone announcing and Ryne Sandberg seemed to be the 2nd baseman forever.
What happened? Ryne retired and eventually was voted into the Hall of Fame. Four years ago he took a minor league managerial position and worked his way up to AAA. The Cubs recently used the recycled Dusty Baker and Lou Piniella as managers. Piniella abruptly retired this season. An interim manager was named, and after the season the interim tag was removed.
Needless to say Ryne was disappointed. These types of these happen all the time in corporate America when promotions are given out. One day you can be too young and the next too old. Or be in favor with a boss and then out of favor with a new one. The list goes on. Some seem to have a better go of it.
I guess I identify with this case from growing up with Ryne and then living and seeing these disappointments in Corporate America. I hope he finds a better opportunity, and another team takes him on. It will be strange to see him in another uniform.