You recall I wrote about my experience with Nicky Barnes in my pre-review of American Gangster. In that movie, Cuba Gooding Jr. portrayed him as a minor part. First, I never really heard of the main character Frank Lucas, but I think in real life he was the minor character during that time. In the latest Issue of the magazine Entertainment, on page 61 there is an article called Crime Time, that basically tells the story in brief like I told you about Nicky Barnes. As a result of this film, a documentary about Nicky Barnes was produced by Damon Dash and directed by Marc Levin that traces Barnes’ astonishing rise from junkie to godfather. If and when you are able to see this documentary you will see who was the real American Gangster. In this article it states that Nicky turned into ratting out his friends and now is in the Witness Protection Program. The name of this documentary is Mr. Untouchable.   

I don’t know if reaching an older age makes us aware of little happenings that annoy us. When you try to open a flip-flop can of soda that is not a major brand, don’t you find it more difficult to open with your fingers? The first thing I was taught in kindergarten was to always keep to the right. Why is it that when walking in the crowded streets and in the casinos if you’re on the right somebody will try to squeeze by you on your right? I’m a big sports fan, but think about this. Thousands of people go to ballparks and stadiums all over the world, and millions watch on TV, so why do all this people cheer the players? What are these players basically doing, they are at work. Now think how many people come and watch you at work? A football game is played in 60 minutes. But it takes 2-3 hours to watch. A play averages about 5 seconds and with all the down time between each play, it could take 2 minutes or more. A baseball, basketball, soccer or hockey game doesn’t take that long. Even then after a football game we read all about it for a week. How much can you take, I know it annoys me.

Do you have the same problem I have in opening a plastic wrap around a product you bought? Let’s say you have a cold cereal and you want to open the plastic, isn’t it a toughie, especially if you have arthritis in your fingers.

Recently I’ve been reading about a heavyweight boxer named Mike Hunter in the RJ and at the end of the story and also some others are telephone and e-mail address’ to contact the writer. This is a fairytale. They never return a message, at least not to me at any time. With regard to Mike Hunter the writer of the article mentions that his father Mike “ The Bounty Hunter” Hunter was also a heavyweight fighter. I was a trainer or as we called it then his “nanny” as I was always by his side. I made sure he ate properly, did his workouts, and kept out of trouble. For his first eight fights he was undefeated and then he won his first title as champion of California. He went to Japan as a sparring fighter for Mike Tyson. I lost contact with him at this point in time. He went on to fight all the contenders and won. He never really got a shot at the title. Many years later a heavyweight championship fight was being held here in Las Vegas where Mike was in retirement and living. One of the fighter’s drops out at the last minute and Mike was called in to fill in. Being out of shape Mike still excepted the shot. It turned out to be probably the worst fight anyone was to watch. The results, Mike won and was champ of one of the “alphabet” organizations. I e-mailed the writer from the RJ to see or talk to Mike Jr. as I have many pictures of his father with Mohammed Ali, his manager actor James Caan at the time I was with Mike and the original contract he signed with Caan. Well that shows us the thoughts of many people about the RJ and it’s unknowledgeable staff that doesn’t know how to research a story.

Billy Joel the singer has been in the news recently and that brings to mind an early incident with him. Back some 30 years or so I was living in Bethpage, Long Island and I was a member of the Hicksville L.I. athletic club. We would meet and hang out at the Shady Maple restaurant, bar, and picnic grounds. We had many a clam bait time there and the owner was also a member of our club. The restaurant was an old country style run by the owner’s wife. When you ordered you went up to an open window in a door and when it was ready she called out for the pickup. In this place was a piano and many times a young fellow would just come in and play it. Sometimes we even chased him out. But, yes this was Billy Joel who lived at that time in the neighborhood.

This brings me to another situation with our Hicksville AC. We played in a few softball leagues and the same for basketball. We also sponsored a little league team. One day in the early 60’s at a meeting we had a discussion on how to raise money for the kids. I suggested we go to Yankee Stadium and speak to some one in management (I think if his name was Bob Fischel) about reserving a block of tickets and presenting an award to Long Islands most valuable player Whitey Ford. We would have little league players with us and present the award on the field and the kids would get autographs from all the Yankees. Well, I made signs and posted them all over town and the areas around Hicksville. I wrote to many of the business’ also offering to the people a reserved ticket, a bus ride all for a slight profit for our organization. Well, what we thought would be that we would need maybe a half dozen buses became about 15. The big disappointment was that we didn’t figure on the heavy traffic and the buses arrived too late to make the on field presentation, (the scoreboard acknowledged that we were going to make the presentation) but the kids and I with other members went into the back of the dugout under the stand after the game to make the presentation. Here were all the players and the kids and all of us were thrilled. The trophy we gave Whitey Ford was about 4 feet high. Many times after that when Whitey was asked what trophy he liked the best, he says ours.  On the top of the trophy was a figure of a right-handed pitcher and Whitey was a left-handed pitcher. In those days they didn’t have left handed figures. The next year we did the same trip without a presentation and we filled over 30 buses. This program of ours started the Yankees and other teams to offer ticket packages to the public.    

Do many of you like matzo balls? Well here’s something to try. When you are preparing your matzo ball for putting it in the soup or hot water, wrap the matzo solution around perhaps a small meatball or whatever you might think of and then place it into the water/soup. Then if you want to go a step farther, when the matzo ball is expanded you have a choice, either leave it like it is or try to deep-fry them. They’re great this way.

Any questions, comments, or information be free to contact me.