CONFESSIONS OF A TRIVIA CHAMP

THE SCENE WAS a restaurant in Chicago last fall, where key executives of a Dallas-based company were winding down with a late dinner. With them was their company’s new public relations counsel. Me.

“You remember the coach at Tennesse a few years ago,” the top-ranking official in the group was saying. “Bill …”

“Yeah,” a regional sales manager answered.

“Bill …” repeated the first man. “The guy who got fired. The coach before Johnny Majors. Bill …”

“Battle,” I interjected, between bites of fettucine Alfredo. “Bill Battle.” My sudden response froze the entire dinner party.

“Sure, Bill Battle,” the first man said, adding: “How’d you know that? Go to Tennessee, or an SEC school?”

I gave him my best aw-shucks, just-luckyguess expression. Got to be careful here, I thought, well aware of where the conversation would lead otherwise.

Then the company’s PR guy, the only person at the table I’d known before that day, blurted out my terrible truth.

“Don’t you know?” asked Richard, “Russ is the sports trivia champion of Dallas.”

“The what?” someone asked.

“The sports trivia champion of Dallas.

He won the KRLD contest last summer and now he’s on the radio. He can tell you all that bloody business about who did what in what year in what game,” Richard said.

“That right?” the top man asked.

“Yep,” I said, in my best Gary Cooper voice.

“That’s terrific.”

“Yep.”

“You know, I listened to that tournament, but I guess I never associated your name before.”

“Hmmm.”

“Do you remember what question won it for you?” he asked.

“Sure do. The question was: On the old Dallas Texans, what position did Cotton Davidson play, and what two positions did E.J. Holub play? The answers are quarterback, and center and linebacker.”

Not surprisingly, the next hour – through the dessert, coffee, and a new round of wine – was spent on sports trivia. All the three-piece suit guys had a hankering for the battle of wits, it seemed.

After a while, I excused myself and went downstairs to the john. Another member of the group, Len, had the same urge, and as we freshened up, he offered to buy me a drink at the bar.

“You know, you’re pretty good,” he finally said, after he’d ordered an amaretto and I’d opted for the same. “How is it you’re able to come up with all that stuff?”

“Nothing special,” I shrugged. “I’ve just been reading the sports pages every day since I was five, and I probably read it a little closer than the average guy. Make that a lot closer.

“You know something, Russ, I’m pretty good at TV trivia,” Len allowed, as we waited for another round. “Tell you what, why don’t you try me on a few?”

So I put Len through the TV trivia compulsories. We said howdy doody to Clarabell, Princess Summerfallwinter-spring, and Phinneas T. Bluster. Then we took a happy trail past Bullet, Trigger, Nelliebelle, and Pat Buttram.

Len was on a roll. He tossed in some movie trivia, and then did a flawless Clint Eastwood imitation that’s bound to be the hit of his neighborhood in Cleveland.

But a few minutes later, Len tipped his hand. In so doing, he brought up the thankless aspect of being a “trivia champ.”

“I’ve got a sports trivia question for you,” he said, the glint of his eyes belying the nonchalance of his voice. “Who caught the fly ball for the final out in Warren Spahn’s 300th career victory?”

So there it was at last, the challenge laid out again, this time at a Chicago bar. Every time you’re touted as a trivia expert, someone has to come gunning for you, has to test the fastest gun. At least Len had been more subtle than most.

(Let’s see, I thought. Warren Spahn. Milwaukee Braves. Outfielders. Aaron, Bruton, Pafko. Wes Covington. When did Spahn get 300? 1961? 1962? Gosh, who was playing in the outfield with Hank Aaron then? His brother Tommie?)

i squirmed, and Len enjoyed it. Then he taunted, “An Italian.” He took a sip of his drink and smiled a none-too-sweet smile.

With that one lapse of overconfidence, Len was headed for Boot Hill. I waited until he could scarcely conceal his delight, then made my play:

“Gino Cimoli,” I said.

“Damn,” was his faint reply.

As the fastest gun must always do, I’d blown another one away.

Let’s face it, there can be only one trivia champ and it’s me. You can never be as good as I am. But there’s hope for mere mortals like you. Just memorize a few of these all-time trivia facts and you can make others think you’re a trivia champ, too.

TRIVIA FACTS AND FIGURES



SERVICE WITH A SMILE. Tennis immortal Bill Tilden had something to smile about: a cannonball service, clocked at a record 163.6 mph in 1931.



YOUTH MUST BE SERVED. Former Texas Rangers slugger Jeff Burroughs was baseball’s youngest MVP, having won the American League award at the age of 23.



IT DON’T MEAN A THING IF YOU AIN’T GOT THAT SWING (Part I). Three Dallas residents, Lee Trevino (4), Bruce Cramp-ton (2), and Don January (1) combined to win seven Vardon Trophies for the lowest stroke average on the PGA Tour during the Seventies. What non-Dallasite won the other three? Elementary, Watson.



IT DON’T MEAN A THING (Part II). Dallas resident Kathy Whitworth won the LPGA Player-of-the-Year award seven of eight times between 1966 and 1973. The winner in 1970 was yet another Dallasite, Sandra Haynie.



STILL EASY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. Bobo Holloman of the St. Louis Browns claimed his place in baseball lore by pitching a no-hitter in his first major league game. The final out in that game was made by the Texas Rangers’ current general manager, Eddie Robinson.



WHAT’S IN A NAME? Each of baseball’s DiMaggio brothers, Joe, Dom, and Vince, had the middle name of Paul.



DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO. Former Dodger manager Walter Alston had a career batting average of .000. He grounded out in his only official at bat.

RATHER SWITCH THAN RIGHT (OR LEFT). The Los Angeles Dodgers fielded a mid-Sixties lineup with four switch hitting infielders: Wes Parker (1B), Jim Lefebvre (2B), Maury Wills (SS), and Jim “Junior” Gilliam (3B).



ALL-MONOGRAM BACKFIELD. In the 1950s, the 49ers had four starters known by initials: Quarterback Y.A. Tittle, halfback J.D. Smith, fullback C.R. Roberts, and flanker R.C. Owens.



WHO SAYS NO ONE IS PERFECT? In counterpoint to Alston, John Paciorek of the Houston Astros had a career batting average of 1.000. He went 3 for 3 in his only major league game.



SELF-APPOINTED SPORTS TRIVIA ANSWER. Steve Patterson, center for the UCLA championship teams of 1970 and 1971, once observed that he was the answer to the trivia question “Who played center at UCLA after Lew Alcin-dor and before Bill Walton?”



A SIGN OF THINGS TO COME. In his first carry in the NFL, Houston Oiler Earl Campbell raced 73 yards for a touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons.



THE ANTHONY NEWLEY “ONCE IN A LIFETIME A MAN HAS HIS MOMENT’’ A WARD. Baltimore Colts rookie placekicker Jim O’Brien booted a field goal to beat the Dallas Cowboys 16-13 in Super Bowl V. Two years later, O’Brien was out of football.

FAT CHANCE. First baseman Frank Chance (190 pounds) was the heaviest of the famed double play combination, as shortstop Joe Tinker weighed 175 pounds and second baseman Johnny Evers tipped the scales at 135. For the record, the third baseman on that team was Harry Steinfeldt.

AND THE ANSWER IS NOT UT. Southern Methodist University is the only SWC school to have sent three people to the NFL Hall of Fame: Raymond Berry, Forrest Gregg, and Lamar Hunt.



THROUGH A LENS, DARKLY. Arnold Palmer, preparing to tee off in the 1962 U.S. Open playoff, quipped: “I’d rather play anyone than that big, happy dude.” The dude, Jack Nicklaus, won 71-74.

SWEET LITTLE SIXTEEN. Tracy Austin in 1979, and the late Maureen Connolly of Dallas in 1951 won the U.S. Open Tennis championship at the tender age of 16.



FEET OF CIAY (Part I). Muhammad Ali was knocked off his feet three times during his career: by Sonny Banks, Henry Cooper, and Joe Frazier. Ali also was sent to the canvas in the Chuck Wepner fight (!), but ring historians rule it a slip.



FEET OF CLAY (Part II). Muhammad Ali was stopped only twice. Kent Green turned the trick in 1958 AAU competition. The only other man to stop Cassius? Extraordinary, Holmes.



HEADS YOU WIN, TAILS I LOSE. Dallas Texans captain Abner Haynes managed to miscall the option in 1962 AFL title game’s sudden death coin flip, his goof giving the Houston Oilers both the ball and a strong tail wind. Somehow, the Texans survived and won 20-17 on a Tom Brooker field goal in the second extra period.



WELL, SOMEBODY HAD TO DO IT. New York Yankee Bob Watson, then with the Houston Astros, had the distinction of scoring baseball’s one millionth run in 1975. If anyone cares, Wes Fesler scored the first run in 1876.

THE DR. JOHN AND THE NIGHT-TRIPPERS “I WAS IN THE RIGHT PLACE, BUT IT MUST HAVE BEEN THE WRONG TIME’’ A WARD (Part I). Cesar Geronimo of the Cincinnati Reds was the 3000th strikeout victim of both Bob Gibson and Nolan Ryan.



THE DR. JOHN AND THE NIGHT TRIPPERS A WARD (Part II). Harvey Kuenn, the American League batting champion in 1959, made the final out in two of Sandy Koufax’s four no-hitters.



THE WORLD’S WORST TRIVIA QUESTION. Who’s the only man to catch a touchdown pass from Y.A. Tittle and hit a home run off Sandy Koufax? Popular answer: Alvin Dark. Real answer: No one.



CREAM SLOWLY RISES TO THE TOP. Jersey Joe Walcott, born Arnold Cream, was the oldest man ever to win the world heavyweight championship at 37.



A MOST HAPPY FELLA. Happy Feller, who kicked the winning point in Texas’ 15-14 win over Arkansas in the 1969 Great Shootout, has the real given name of James.



HOWS THAT AGAIN? The PGA member with the most unusual name is the cross-handed South African swinger Sewsunker Sewgolum.



TRIPLE CROSS. Baseball’s three leading home run kings – Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, and Willie Mays – began their careers batting cross-handed.

A WOMAN FOR ALL SEASONS. Organist Gladys Gooding is the answer to the sports trivia brain teaser: Who played for the New York Rangers (hockey), the New York Giants (baseball), and the New York Knicks (basketball) in the same season?

HE DIDN’T WILT. Pro basketball is a 48-minute game, right? Well, during the 1961-62 season, Wilt Chamberlain averaged 48.5 minutes per game. Think about it.



THE LONG GOOD-BYE. Champion Jack Dempsey was knocked outside the ropes for over 30 seconds before returning to the ring to KO Luis Firpo, the “Wild Bull of the Pampas,” in 1923.



GENTLEMEN, THIS IS A FOOTBALL. Dallas Cowboys Cornell Green, Preston Pearson, Pete Gent, and Percy Howard (basketball), and Wade Manning (baseball) were stars in sports other than football during their college days.



THE LAWRENCE WELK “A ONE, AND A TWO, AND A THREE” AWARD. Big Eight teams Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Colorado finished 1-2-3 in the national polls for the 1971 season.



HIRED TO BE FIRED, HUH? Cornelius MacGillicuddy, better known as Connie Mack, was manager of the Philadelphia Athletics for more than 50 years. (Of course, he didn’t have to worry much about pleasing the owner – himself.)



TO THE VICTOR … Although Victor McLaglen failed to wrest the heavyweight crown from Jack Johnson in their 1914 title fight, big Victor’s day in the sun came 21 years later when he won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Informer.



HOW’S THAT FOR OPENERS? Cleveland Indian Bob Feller and New York Giant Red Ames pitched the two opening day no-hitters in baseball history.

CASE FOR THE DEFENSE (Part I). Minnesota Vikings tackle Alan Page was the only defensive player ever to win the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award.



CASE FOR THE DEFENSE (Part II). Dallas Cowboys linebacker Chuck Howley and Miami Dolphins safety Jake Scott are the only two defenders to be named Super Bowl MVP.



A COKES AND A SMILE. Dallas native Curtis Cokes won the world welterweight title by beating France’s Jean Josselin in 1966.



GEORGE STEINBRENNER NEVER MET JIMMIE DYKES. So George dumped Dick Howser for failing to win the pennant last year? Jimmie Dykes managed 2960 major league games, the equivalent of 18 seasons, without bringing in a pennant winner.



WHAT LOOKS GOOD ON PAPER … To replace veteran greats Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung, Green Bay coach Vince Lombardi signed the “Gold Dust Twins,” Ail-Americans Jim Grabowski of Illinois and Donnie Anderson of Texas Tech. While Anderson enjoyed a modicum of NFL success, Grabowski was a b-u-s-t.



THE Y’s HAVE IT. Two quarterbacks with the initials Y.A.T. have played in Yankee Stadium. The easy one to guess is Y.A. Tittle of the New York Giants; the more obscure is Young Arnold Tucker, who played for the powerhouse Army teams in the mid-Forties.

HATCHET MAN. Don Otten, playing for Tri-Cities, somehow managed to commit eight personal fouls in a NBA game against Sheboygan, 1949.

NO ONE EVER SAID HE LACKED CHUTZPAH. Pete Rose hit his one and only career grand slam off his current manager, Dallas Green, then a Phillies hurler.

TALK ABOUT A POWER SHORTAGE. Hoyt Wilhelm hit a home run in his first major-league game but the knuckleball-ing reliever was unable to repeat the feat in his next 1069 games. Wilhelm’s 1070 appearances are the record for a major league pitcher.



CHEAP SHOT. The worst crack of the Seventies was CBS announcer Alex Hawkins’ proclamation during a Dallas Cowboys telecast that Roger Staubach “runs like a sissy.”



TENNIS, ANYONE? In the 1977 Anaheim (Calif.) Junior Championships, two 11-year-old girls played one point that lasted 51 minutes. (Did one of them say afterward she was waiting for a short ball to come in behind?)



QUALITY NOT QUANTITY. The most homers that Frank “Home Run” Baker walloped in a season was 12. Baker earned his nickname because he managed the unheard of feat of hitting two consecutive home runs off Christy Math-ewson in the 1912 World Series.



SPECIAL K’s. Tom Seaver chalked up an incredible 10 consecutive strikeouts while pitching for the New York Mets. Seaver, Steve Carlton, and Nolan Ryan have the major league record with 19 strikeouts in a nine-inning game.



MONSTERS OF MASH. The front four of the Minnesota Vikings Purple People Eaters consisted of Carl Eller, Alan Page, Gary Larson, and Jim Marshall.

FAVORITE QUESTIONS



NORM HITZGES, radio-TV sports personality: Q. In the year Roger Maris hit 61 home runs, how many times was he walked intentionally? A. None. (Norm: You know how power hitters are often “pitched around?” Well, no one wanted to walk Maris, because then they had to face Mickey Mantle.)



BERT ROSE, vice president, Texas Stadium Corporation: Q. Name the first NFL player to rush for over 1000 yards in a season. A. Beattie Feathers, Chicago Bears, 1934.



BRAD SHAM, radio-TV sports personality: Q. Only once in the past 25 years has the same team produced back-to-back Rookies-of-the-Year at the same position. Name the team, the players, and the position. A. For the San Francisco Giants, Orlando Cepeda and Willie Mc-Covey won the NL award in 1958 and 1959. Each played first base.

BARRY KERRANE, commercial developer and runner-up in Dallas sports trivia championship: Q. Name the only man who won the Rookie-of-the-Year, the Cy Young Award, and the Most Valuable Player award (not in the same year). A. Don Newcombe of the Brooklyn Dodgers, who came up in 1949 and had his banner season in 1956.



GIL BRANDT, vice president – player development, Dallas Cowboys: Q. Name the professional teams these star basketball players originally signed with: K.C. Jones, John Havlicek, and Lou Hudson. A. Los Angeles Rams (Jones), Cleveland Browns (Havlicek), and Dallas Cowboys (Hudson).



STEVE PERKINS, editor, Dallas Cowboys Weekly: Q. Name the person who played in the Rose Bowl, the Super Bowl, and on an NCAA champion basketball team. A. Joe Kapp. (Steve: Kapp played in the 1959 Rose Bowl with California, and also played on the Golden Bears ’59 basketball team, which beat Jerry West and West Virginia in the NCAA finals. Kapp quarterbacked the Minnesota Vikings against Kansas City in Super Bowl IV.)

TEST YOUR

SPORTS TRIVIA I.Q.

Think this trivia stuff is a snap? Try this list of questions. If you can answer five correctly, you’re pretty good. Seven correctly, you’re damn good. Get nine right without consulting a reference book and you can have my car.



1. When was the last time the American League won the All-Star Game and who was pitching for the AL? For the National League?



2. What college holds the NCAA record for consecutive gridiron victories? When did it start and when did it end?



3. Who was the first NCAA player to rush for more than a thousand yards in three consecutive seasons?



4. Who holds the record for the most individual Olympic medals in one year? How many medals did that person win and when?



5. What’s the NBA record for points scored by one player in a single game? Who holds it? Who holds the season average record for points per game? What is it?



6. In 1974, UCLA’s incredible 88-gamebasketball winning streak came to anend. Who scored the winning points forwhat team to end the streak?



7. How many Heisman Trophy winnershas the Southwest Conference had?Okay, smart guy, name them.



8. Who were the original members ofthe Dallas Doomsday Defense front four?



9. Who holds the major league recordfor getting hit by a pitch the most timesin a single season?



10. What was the last title fight inwhich two college graduates squared offin the professional boxing ring?



ANSWERS: 1. The American League won in 1971 with Vida Blue on the mound. Dock Ellis of Pittsburgh took the loss. 2. Oklahoma, under Bud Wilkinson, started a 47-game winning streak after a loss to Notre Dame in 1953. The streak ended with a 7-0 loss to Notre Dame in 1957. 3. Got ya. It’s not Tony Dorssett who was the to rush for over a thousand yards in four seasons. The three-season feat was first accomplished by Chris Gilbert of the University of Texas. 4. Got you again. Not Mark Spitz for his seven-medal performance in the 1972 Olympic Games. Alexandre Ditiatin of the USSR won eight in 1980. 5. This is too easy. Wilt Chamberlain holds both records, scoring 100 points in a single game and setting a season average record of 50.4 points per game. 6. Notre Dame’s Dwight Clay hit a jump shot in the final seconds of an Irish comeback effort to defeat the Bruins 71-70. 7. Four. Davey O’Brien of TCU (1939), SMU’s Doak Walker (1948), A&M’s John David Crow (1957). and the Earl of Campbell for UT (1977). 8. George Andrie, Bob Lilly, Jim Colvin, and Larry Stephens. 9. Ron Hunt of the Montreal Expos, who was beaned an amazing 50 times in 1973. 10. The Carlos Palomino-Armando Muniz welterweight title bout in 1976.