Will American Pharoah bring America together during trying times? The Triple Crown, perhaps the most difficult achievement in all of sports

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In 1973 the world was in turmoil and America was just finishing one of the most challenging decades in the history of our nation.  There were student riots, anti-Vietnam war riots, Civil Rights riots, assassinations of major public figures, and we were ending ten years of war in Asia leaving over 57,000 dead.

Towns were in flames as wave after wave of social issues pummeled America, shaking it to the very foundation.  Then there was the Cold war, Bay of Pigs, Cuban missile crisis, and even Watergate break in.  Our institutions were under assault by the very citizens of our country.

In 1973 it had been twenty-five years since a horse had won horse racing's coveted Triple Crown, the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.  We were barely out of the second World War when Citation won in 1948.

There have only been 11 Triple Crown Champions since 1875.  The longest drought without a champion since the first Triple Crown in 1919 is the current 37 years.  Second longest was the 25 years before Secretariat became champion in the most remarkable series of races in thoroughbred history.  As I have outlined, it came when the nation was in need of a new hero and in need of hope. To this day Secretariat holds the record for fastest in all three races.

Triple Crown Champions 

1919    Sir Barton

1930    Gallant Fox

1935    Omaha

1937    War Admiral

1941    Whirlaway

1943    Count Fleet

1946    Assault

1948    Citation

1973    Secretariat

1977    Seattle Slew

1978    Affirmed

Once again we are coming off a rather tough decade of wars, political animosity,strained relations with most of our allies, threats from terrorists that have already killed thousands of Americans, a fractured economy, financial collapse, corruption, political constipation, and about all the things needed to result in a Triple Crown winner at last.

Saturday we might get to watch history being made when American Pharaoh attempts to win the magical Triple Crown in the Belmont Stakes, the longest race the horse has ever run. Many get the chance but few have captured the brass ring and walked away with the Triple Crown.

Following is a very good article analyzing the prospects in the race.

The Horse I'll Bet to Upset American Pharoah

By David Papadopoulos

Pharoah on this day.

The math looks like this: Belmont Park officials forecast Pharoah will go off at odds of 3-5 while Materiality will be 6-1. Those prices spit out implied win probabilities -- after factoring in the track’s cut -- of 53 percent and 12 percent, respectively. In my own fair odds estimate, those numbers would look something more like 43 percent for Pharoah and 22 percent for Materiality.

Combined, that’s a 20-percentage point gap between market prices and my true-value calculations. For any gambler worth his salt, that’s a huge green light to go ahead and bet the undervalued horse.

So I will.

Here’s a breakdown of the full Belmont field. Runners are listed by post position. Odds are the racetrack’s estimate of how the public will bet.

-No. 1 Mubtaahij (10-1) -- I was underwhelmed by his effort in the Kentucky Derby. He made the same basic mechanical mistakes that he had in his previous races, and his daily workouts at Belmont since then have gotten mediocre reviews. If he were 20-1, maybe I’d dabble, but not at this price.

-No. 2 Tale of Verve (15-1) -- This colt’s trainer, Dallas Stewart, is cut from the same cloth as the men in charge of numbers 4 and 7 (Nick Zito and Dale Romans): Dreamers who ambitiously place their horses in America’s biggest races. All three have pulled off shocking upsets over the years but have more often seen their charges go down in lopsided defeats. Tale of Verve is a classic case. He finished second behind Pharoah -- albeit a distant-second -- at odds of 28-1 in the Preakness Stakes. Could he duplicate that effort on Saturday? Maybe, but I wouldn’t bet on it.

-No. 3 Madefromlucky (12-1) -- This horse has the right running style for the Belmont’s marathon 1 1/2-mile distance: He’s a one-paced sort who has no real burst of speed but just keeps grinding away. I can’t knock anyone for taking a shot on him at this kind of a price.

-No. 4 Frammento (30-1) -- He was in over his head in the Kentucky Derby and he is again here. For those looking for reasons to bet him, though, note that Zito has spoiled two Triple Crown bids in the past 11 years, knocking off Smarty Jones in 2004 and Big Brown four years later. Both times, his horses paid over 30-1.

-No. 5 American Pharoah (3-5) -- The big horse. He has all the tools. Questions are, especially for those inclined to back him at such prohibitive odds: Will he handle Belmont’s deep sandy surface (There’s something about the way he spun his wheels a bit over a very dry track on Derby day that suggests he might not)? Will the wear and tear of four races in eight weeks catch up to him late in the stretch? Will his jockey Victor Espinoza keep him out of trouble? If the answers to those questions are yes-no-yes, then the Triple Crown drought will end late Saturday afternoon.

-No. 6 Frosted (5-1) -- A very talented, well-bred colt that ran big in the Derby to get up for fourth place despite getting caught wide on the turns. And by all accounts, he’s been training great here in New York. Dangerous horse.

-No. 7 Keen Ice (20-1) -- He stumbled into some traffic in the Derby that slowed him down a bit, and that’ll lure some bettors to him in the Belmont. I won’t be one of them.

-No. 8 Materiality (6-1) -- He’s fast, he’s rested and he’s much more seasoned now after getting bounced around early in the Derby (he surged by 11 horses in the stretch that day to finish sixth). Now some touts spotted flaws in his final major workout last week, but they’re nitpicking. To my eye, it looked good. And when I asked his trainer Todd Pletcher what he made of the chatter, he was unmoved: “I wouldn’t listen to any of that.” This is where I’m putting my money.

(David Papadopoulos, managing editor for the Americas editing hub at Bloomberg News, has been following thoroughbred racing for more than two decades and was runner-up in 2008 Eclipse Award voting for feature writing on the sport.)

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The Battle for Akron by the Boys from Akron - Stephen Curry versus LeBron James - the NBA Championship

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National news is captivated by the NBA Championship series that began last night between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers. Golden State is led by the Most Valuable Player in the NBA this year, Stephen Curry.  Cleveland is led by returning superstar LeBron James, four time MVP and winner of two NBA Championships.

However, there is more intrigue to this game.  You see, the City of Akron, Ohio, a small city of less than 200,000 people and 39 miles from Cleveland and Lake Erie, is the rubber and tire capitol of the world.  Well the reigning king of the NBA, LeBron, is about to be unseated by the future king Stephen Curry.

Did I mention both were born in Akron.  Indeed,  when Stephen Curry was born in 1988, LeBron was already four years old and entertaining people with with dribbling and shooting exhibitions.  You should read his story, as he and his mother had to overcome some difficult times before he could lay claim to being the King of the NBA.

Curry had a much different ride to the top.  After being born in Akron, he followed his father to Charlotte, North Carolina, then Toronto, then back to Charlotte.  His father was a basketball star for Virginia Tech, then played in the NBA for 16 seasons on five different teams.  His mother had been a volleyball star for Virginia Tech.

The encouragement and opportunity to pursue his love for the hoops came from his parents.  That was fine with young Stephen.  It was a well rounded life and education for him.  Then came time to go to college and show the nation his skills,  The problem was, he was a shrimp physically, and no matter how good he was on the court, college scouts did not think he could survive.  Thus the future king of the NBA could not get a single scholarship offer for college from  a major basketball powerhouse.

In spite of his boyish looks he went to Davidson College and led them to the final eight in the NCAA national tournament.  He was drafted by Golden State and became an immediate super star in his 2009-2010 rookie season. In 2010 and 2014 he was part of the USA National team that won the Gold Medal both times.

Now Curry is playing for the NBA Championship, the highest pinnacle you can achieve in sports, even if you are a shrimp, and darn if he still does not look boyish.

For comparison, at 6' 3" Curry weighs in at 190 pounds, most likely wet, and with a weight belt.  LeBron, on the other hand, towers over him at 6' 8" and weighs about 250 pounds. Side by side it is like a VW Bug facing off with a Mack Truck.
   

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Stephen married his former college sweetheart, Ayesha Alexander, on July 30, 2011 in Charlotte. The couple had their first child, daughter Riley, on July 19, 2012.

Ironically, it is Riley, at two years young, who often upstages her famous father during television interviews.

Seems I remember another very young girl who used to disrupt her understanding and famous father under the glare of media spotlights.  I believe her name was Caroline.

Here is a series of Riley photos demonstrating how Riley can control the future NBA King.

Curry is absolutely the perfect role model for any kid who desires to be perfect.  Last night he proved he belonged in that championship game when his team won the first game 108-100, in overtime.

It may be a long series but the battle for bragging rights in Akron is going to provide some of the best basketball in a long time, and Americans need a break from the nonsense, confusion, and apathy that is sapping our spirit and wounding our pride.

My advice, give yourself a break and watch the clash of titans, it beats watching the Evening Blues, or is that News.

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Spirits in the Sky - Marilyn Monroe - A Tribute and a Challenge - Happy Birthday MM

Marilyn Monroe born Norma Jeane Mortenson

June 1, 1926 – August 5, 1962

Candle in the Wind

Goodbye Norma Jean
Though I never knew you at all
You had the grace to hold yourself
While those around you crawled
They crawled out of the woodwork
And they whispered into your brain
They set you on the treadmill
And they made you change your name

chorus:

And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind
Never knowing who to cling to
When the rain set in
And I would have liked to have known you
But I was just a kid
Your candle burned out long before
Your legend ever did

Loneliness was tough
The toughest role you ever played
Hollywood created a superstar
And pain was the price you paid
Even when you died
Oh the press still hounded you
All the papers had to say
Was that Marilyn was found in the nude

(repeat chorus)

Goodbye Norma Jean
Though I never knew you at all
You had the grace to hold yourself
While those around you crawled
Goodbye Norma Jean
From the young man in the 22nd row
Who sees you as something more than sexual
More than just our Marilyn Monroe

(repeat chorus)

Music: Elton John

Lyrics: Bernie Taupin

Piano & Vocals: Elton John

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Who done it?  You Solve the Mysterious murder of Marilyn Monroe

You help solve the mystery of who killed the most famous Hollywood icon of the 20th Century.  When the world awakened on August 5, 1962, the most celebrated actress in Hollywood, Marilyn Monroe, was found dead in her home in California at the young age of 36.

It was the end of a tumultuous and meteoric rise from rags to riches for America's sweetheart and Hollywood icon whose name crossed paths with the rich, the powerful, the revered and the most sinister characters in the world.

The medical examiner quickly concluded she died of an overdose of prescription medicine but forensic evidence was insufficient to declare it a suicide so her death was labeled as "probable suicide".

The mishandling of the crime scene, the manipulation of evidence, the inconsistency or her actions prior to the death and the onslaught of media hype pushing the suicide theory by powerful forces triggered a firestorm of suspicion and doubt.

But a series of national and international events the next 15 months would bury her story in the avalanche of media coverage of the Cold War with the Soviets, the Kennedy administration war with the La Casa Nostra, the evolving Vietnam war and the Kennedy assassination.

  

For the past 52 years the American public has been brainwashed with stories of the addictions and depression of film legend Marilyn Monroe that led to her death by suicide.  She has been pictured as an insecure and fragile girl whose mother was sent to an insane asylum as Marilyn was bounced from foster home to foster home to orphanage.

In fact according to Marilyn she was sent to ten total places, foster homes and the orphanage, before she married a merchant marine when she turned 16 to avoid being sent back to the orphanage.  Because of her shuffling between homes she attended 6 different elementary schools in seven years.

But the vast majority of her experiences were good, she got along well with other children and often created games for her friends to play.  It was during this period she developed her desire to be a star and began to create the persona she believed she needed to be successful.

Her first marriage lasted about 4 years, 1942-1946, although her husband was  away during most of World War II.  She was working in an armament factory toward the end of the war when she was discovered at an assembly line by a photographer searching for the next pin up queen for the soldiers.

By 1946 Norma Jean first began using the name Marilyn Monroe when her popularity as a pin up queen got the notice of movie studios.  Marilyn had already begun singing and dancing lessons and had developed exceptional fitness and diet routines on her own, routines that would result in her being known as the most beautiful woman in the world.

At first it was her voice that got recognized although she did not get along with the movie tyrant Darryl Zanuck, head of 20th Century Fox, her studio most of her short career.  Many of her early film roles were uncredited, even when performing songs, a way the studio could avoid paying performance fees to actors.

Marilyn seemed to know what was expected of Hollywood stars in the golden age of film and she gave the studio what it wanted.  She quickly grew from a $125.00 a week extra to singing and then acting roles as she became more popular but as did most studios at the time, she was treated as a commodity.

In 1952 and 1953 her film roles pushed her to the top of the list in popularity but her studio handlers still insisted she play the dumb blond in comedies and though her films made more money than those of Elizabeth Taylor, Monroe was paid $100,000 per film compared to Taylor at $1 million per film.

Our next installment will review the actions the supposedly dumb blond pulled that turned the movie industry upside down and eventually would force the studios to give her challenging dramatic roles like she wanted along with a salary equal to Elizabeth Taylor.

While she would be known as Marilyn Monroe from the late 1940's on she did not have her name legally changed from Norma Jean Mortensen to Marilyn Monroe until 1956.

As for the mystery of her death, by 1953 she was already acquainted with several people on the list of suspects or collaborators whose connections to others on the list in the immediate future would result in her becoming a serious threat to their careers and would endanger her life.

Probable Suspects, Collaborators and Contributors

Frank Costello, Joseph Kennedy partner & New York mobster

Sam Giancana, Chicago, Miami & Los Angeles mob boss

Joseph Kennedy, patriarch of Kennedy family

John F. Kennedy, former president

Robert Kennedy, former attorney general

Peter Lawford, Kennedy in law

Arthur Miller, former husband to Marilyn

Santo Trafficante, Jr., Florida mob boss

Ralph Greenson, Marilyn psychiatrist

Eunice Murray, Marilyn housekeeper

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