Paper Lion (film)
''Paper Lion'' is a 1968 Sports film, sports comedy film starring Alan Alda as writer George Plimpton, based on Plimpton's 1966 Paper Lion, nonfiction book of the same name depicting his tryout with the Detroit Lions of the National Football League. The film premiered in Detroit on October 2, 1968, and was released nationwide the week of October 14, 1968. Plot George Plimpton, a writer for ''Sports Illustrated'', has been indulging in a variety of Walter Mitty-like whims and stunts, trying his hand at being a professional athlete (such as briefly pitching in an exhibition game against Major League Baseball All-Star Game, All-Star baseball players or boxing a round with Sugar Ray Robinson), then writing about the experience. During a game of touch football, his editor gets an idea that Plimpton should try going to a professional football team's training camp as a player. A number of teams say no, but the Detroit Lions agree. Plimpton attempts at first to disguise the fact that ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Stuart Millar
Stuart Millar (born 16 May 1965), is a Scottish former football player and manager who is club ambassador at Airdrieonians. Career Millar was born in Bellshill. He began his playing career with his home town club Airdrieonians, where he scored on his full debut at 17 years of age. He then joined Dundee, where he failed to make the breakthrough to the first team. He moved onto First Division club Montrose. He then signed for Clyde, becoming Craig Brown's last signing as Clyde manager. He enjoyed the best spell of his career with Clyde, playing over 100 times for the club in four years. He then moved on to play for Alloa Athletic and Dumbarton. Stuart also had a successful spell playing in Cyprus with 1st Division club Evagoras Paphos. Whilst he was there the Cypriot club qualified for the UEFA Cup. Following successful spells in junior football management with Carluke Rovers and Cumbernauld United, where they won four promotions, he became assistant manager at Stranraer, u ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Variety (magazine)
''Variety'' is an American media company owned by Penske Media Corporation. The company was founded by Sime Silverman in New York City in 1905 as a weekly newspaper reporting on theater and vaudeville. In 1933 it added ''Daily Variety'', based in Los Angeles, to cover the motion-picture industry. ''Variety.com'' features entertainment news, reviews, box office results, cover stories, videos, photo galleries and features, plus a credits database, production charts and calendar, with archive content dating back to 1905. History Foundation ''Variety'' has been published since December 16, 1905, when it was launched by Sime Silverman as a weekly periodical covering theater and vaudeville with its headquarters in New York City. Silverman had been fired by ''The Morning Telegraph'' in 1905 for panning an act which had taken out an advert for $50. As a result, he decided to start his own publication "that ouldnot be influenced by advertising." With a loan of $1,500 from his father- ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lem Barney
Lemuel Joseph Barney (September 8, 1945) is a former American football player. A native of Gulfport, Mississippi, he played college football at Jackson State from 1964 to 1966. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL) and played for the Lions as a cornerback, return specialist, and punter from 1967 to 1977. He was selected as the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1967, played in seven Pro Bowls, and was selected as a first-team All-NFL player in 1968 and 1969. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992. He has also been inducted into the Detroit Lions Hall of Fame, the Jackson State Sports Hall of Fame, the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame, and the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. Early years Barney was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, in 1945. He attended the 33rd Avenue High School in Gulfport. He played at the quarterback position for his high school football team. Football career Jackson State Barney attended Jackson State U ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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George Wilson (American Football Coach)
George William Wilson, Sr. (February 3, 1914 – November 23, 1978) was a professional football end and later a coach for the National Football League (NFL)'s Detroit Lions and the American Football League (AFL)'s Miami Dolphins. Wilson attended and played football at Northwestern University. He went undrafted in 1937, before being signed by the Chicago Bears. Wilson played for ten seasons with the Bears, compiling overall record of 111 pass receptions, 1,342 receiving yards, and fifteen touchdowns. He was a member of the Bears during their five appearances in the National Football League Championship Game from 1940–1943 and 1946. Additionally, he was selected for the NFL All-Star Game from 1940–1942. He also played one season of professional basketball for the Chicago Bruins in 1939–40. Wilson won seven championships combined as a player and coach. His coaching career began with the Bears in 1947, when he became an assistant coach to George Halas. After just two ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Frank Gifford
Francis Newton Gifford (August 16, 1930 – August 9, 2015) was an American football player, actor, and television sports commentator. After a 12-year playing career as a halfback and flanker for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL), he was a play-by-play announcer and commentator for 27 years on ABC's ''Monday Night Football''. Gifford won the NFL Most Valuable Player Award from United Press International in 1956, the same season his team won the NFL Championship. During his career, he participated in five league championship games and was named to eight Pro Bowls. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977. After retiring as a player Gifford was an Emmy Award-winning sportscaster, known for his work on ABC's ''Monday Night Football'', '' Wide World of Sports'', and the Olympics. He was married to television host Kathie Lee Gifford from 1986 until his death. Early life Gifford was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of L ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It is the third-oldest franchise in the NFL, dating back to 1919, and is the only Nonprofit organization, non-profit, Community ownership, community-owned Major professional sports teams of the United States and Canada, major league professional sports team based in the United States. Home games have been played at Lambeau Field since 1957. They have the most wins of any NFL franchise. The Packers are the last of the "small town teams" which were common in the NFL during the league's early days of the 1920s and 1930s. Founded in 1919 by Curly Lambeau, Earl "Curly" Lambeau and George Whitney Calhoun, the franchise traces its lineage to other semi-professional teams in Green Bay dating back to 1896. Between 1919 and 1920, the Packers competed a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sugar Ray Robinson
Walker Smith Jr. (May 3, 1921 – April 12, 1989), better known as Sugar Ray Robinson, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1940 to 1965. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. He is often regarded as the greatest boxer of all time, Pound for pound, pound-for-pound. Robinson was a dominant amateur, but his exact amateur record is not known. It is usually listed as 85–0 with 69 knockouts, 40 in the first round. However it has been reported he lost to Billy Graham (American boxer), Billy Graham and Patsy Pesca as a teenager under his given name, Walker Smith Jr. He turned professional in 1940 at the age of 19 and by 1951 had a professional record of 129–1–2 with 85 knockouts. From 1943 to 1951 Robinson went on a 91-fight Winning streak (sports)#Professional, unbeaten streak, the third-longest in professional boxing history. Robinson held the world welterweight title from 1946 to 1951, and won the world middleweight title in the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual professional baseball game sanctioned by Major League Baseball (MLB) and contested between the all-stars from the American League (AL) and National League (NL). Starting fielders are selected by fans, pitchers are selected by managers, and reserves are selected by players and managers. The game is usually played on the second or third Tuesday in July, and is meant to mark the symbolic halfway point of the MLB season (though not the mathematical halfway point, which, for most seasons, falls within the previous calendar week). Both leagues share an ''All-Star break'', with no regular-season games scheduled from the day before through two days after the All-Star Game, with the exception of a single Thursday night game starting in the 2018 season. Some additional events and festivities associated with the game take place each year close to and during this break in the regular season. No ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Walter Mitty
Walter Jackson Mitty is a fictional character in James Thurber's first short story "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", first published in ''The New Yorker'' on March 18, 1939, and in book form in '' My World—and Welcome to It'' in 1942. Thurber loosely based the character, a daydreamer, on himself. It was made into a film in 1947 starring Danny Kaye, with a remake in 2013 directed by, and starring Ben Stiller. Character and plot Mitty is a meek, mild man with a vivid fantasy life. In a few dozen paragraphs, he imagines himself a wartime pilot, an emergency-room surgeon, and a devil-may-care killer. Although the story has humorous elements, there is a darker and more significant message underlying the text, leading to a more tragic interpretation of the Mitty character. Even in his heroic daydreams, Mitty does not triumph, several fantasies being interrupted before the final one sees Mitty dying bravely in front of a firing squad. In the brief snatches of reality that punctua ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sports Illustrated
''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twice. It is also known for its annual swimsuit issue, which has been published since 1964, and has spawned other complementary media works and products. Owned until 2018 by Time Inc., it was sold to Authentic Brands Group (ABG) following the sale of Time Inc. to Meredith Corporation. The Arena Group (formerly theMaven, Inc.) was subsequently awarded a 10-year license to operate the ''Sports Illustrated''-branded editorial operations, while ABG licenses the brand for other non-editorial ventures and products. History Establishment There were two magazines named ''Sports Illustrated'' before the current magazine was launched on August 9, 1954. In 1936, Stuart Scheftel created ''Sports Illustrated'' with a target market of sportsmen. He publis ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 census, making it the 27th-most populous city in the United States. The metropolitan area, known as Metro Detroit, is home to 4.3 million people, making it the second-largest in the Midwest after the Chicago metropolitan area, and the 14th-largest in the United States. Regarded as a major cultural center, Detroit is known for its contributions to music, art, architecture and design, in addition to its historical automotive background. ''Time'' named Detroit as one of the fifty World's Greatest Places of 2022 to explore. Detroit is a major port on the Detroit River, one of the four major straits that connect the Great Lakes system to the Saint Lawrence Seaway. The City of Detroit anchors the second-largest regional economy in t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and the highest professional level of American football in the world. Each NFL season begins with a three-week preseason in August, followed by the 18-week regular season which runs from early September to early January, with each team playing 17 games and having one bye week In sport, a bye is the preferential status of a player or team that is automatically advanced to the next round of a tournament, without having to play an opponent in an early round. In knockout (elimination) tournaments they can be granted eit .... Following the conclusion of the regular season, seven teams from each conference (four division winners and three wild card teams) advance to the p ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |