Tuesday, September 16, 2014

A Little TV History

I thought it would be fun to incorporate a little TV nostalgia when naming the teams today. When I looked at the teams performances, I linked them with TV shows from yesteryear. First, let’s take a quick look back on the early evolution of television in the United States. Here are some important dates in television history.
1928: On September 11, 1928, W2XB (video) and WGY (audio) broadcast American first television drama, a 40 minute one-act melodrama titled "The Queen's Messenger." Because the TV screens were small, only the actor's face or hands were shown. Three cameras were used, two for the actors faces and a third for the actors hands or stage props. The play had only two characters. A female Russian spy and a British Diplomatic Courier. Four actors were used. Two for the character's faces and two for their hands.
 1939: President Franklin Roosevelt's opening of the 1939 New York World's Fair is broadcast live from NBC's experimental station -- W2XBS -- in New York City. In 1939 W2XBS was on the air 4 hours a day (2:30-4:30 and 8:30-10:30pm EST), 5 days a week, Wednesday through Sunday.
 1941: In July, both NBC (WNBT on channel 1) and CBS (WCBW on channel 2) come on the air with a commercial station, in New York City. Both stations still exist. They are now WNBC (Channel 4) and WCBS (Channel 2). Further development is halted by World War II.
 1948: Four television networks, (NBC, CBS, ABC, and DuMont), broadcasting over 128 stations, begin a full prime-time schedule (8 to 11pm, Eastern Time), seven days a week.
In the early days of television news, a reporter covered the birth of Richie Marino and warned that there would be troubling days ahead..... true story.
The Hitting team’s cast of characters: Dampier, T. Smith, Denny, Duff, Giordano, Hite, Simon, Moots, Ayala, Witter and L. Baker. (Welcome back Jerry Witter). This team gets the Lost In Space, TV show, label. They were solid on offense, but on defense it was: “warning, warning, alien approaching”, when a ball was hit to the fielders. There were a few misplayed ground balls and a pop fly that was lost in space, when it fell between two fielders. Although the space team had their share of trouble in the field, they did, however, have a star cruiser, in Chuck Duff. Chuck made a great catch on a ball hit in the center field gap, by Miguel Gonzalez (Sitting team).  Richie Moots, also crossed the sea of space, to haul in a sinking line drive, hit by Jimmy Laffoon, (Sitting team), good catch, Richie. Lost in Space, (1965 – 1968), was a science-fiction television series that followed the adventures of the Robinson family as they try to find their way back to Earth after a disastrous accident.
The Sitting team stared today in the hit TV series, Bonanza. This television western series started as an NBC show, it ran from September 12, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 430 episodes, it ranks as the second longest running western series (behind Gunsmoke), and within the top 10 longest running, live-action American series. The show centers on the Cartwright family, who live in the area of Virginia City, Nevada, bordering Lake Tahoe. The list of characters: Coffman, Laffoon, M. Gonzalez, Finnegen, Butler, Lopez, Marino. Bess, Mohan, Merritt, G. Baker, and Matta.
 The title, "Bonanza", is a term used by miners in regard to a large vein or deposit of silver ore. The Sitting team hit the “mother lode” as they dug deep with their bats. They only had one dry inning, the second inning, in every other shift in the mine they struck silver. “Hoss” Finnegen, was 3/3, with a double and a triple. “Adam Cartwright” Laffoon, had a HR when he hit a sinking liner into the corner in right field, just inside the line. “Pa Cartwright” Butler had a triple that was the key hit in a big 4 run inning in the sixth. “Little Joe” Marino had one of the best defensive plays of the day, when he caught a sinking line drive, hit to right field.
 The Fielding team reminded me of the hit TV series, “Leave It To Beaver”. The series was centered on an all American family, living in Ohio, the Cleavers. There was never any situation that was too earth shattering, that came along for the Cleaver family. Whenever trouble did occur, Ward, (the father), or June, (the mother) would see to it that the proper advice was given and the proper steps were taken, to set the situation right. The series ran from 1957-1963, 234 episodes. The WHSS, Leave It To Beaver team starred: Reagen, Witmer, Toro, Deridder, King, Schappler, S. Hill, Thompson, D. Hill and Barnes. (I will let you, the reader, decide who plays Wally, the Beaver, June, Ward  Eddie Haskell and Lumpy). This team was steady, but never did anything too exciting on offense, or defense, to earn the win. Reminiscent of a scene from the show, depicted in the dialogue below, this team will have to wait for another game, to start over with a clean slate.
"Leave It to Beaver: Substitute Father (#4.39)" (1961)
Wallace 'Wally' Cleaver: [at the bottom of the staircase, calling out to his mother upstairs] Hey, Mom!
June Cleaver: Yes, Wally.
Wallace 'Wally' Cleaver: Could Eddie spend the night here?
June Cleaver: Not while your father's away.
Edward 'Eddie' Haskell: [dejected] Boy. Everybody around here is wise to me. I might just have to move to a new town and start all over.
 Final Score: Lost In Space: 12- Bonanza: 17- Leave It To Beaver: 10
Life is good on the Ponderosa.
Leading Hitters.
  Hitting team:
  •  T. Smith  4/ 4.
  •  Denny  3 / 4.
  •  Giordano 2 / 4, with a triple and a HR.

 Sitting team:
  • Laffoon: 3 / 5 with a HR.
  • Finnegen: 3/3 with a double, triple and a walk.
  • Lopez: 4 /4.
  • Matta 2/3 and a walk.

Fielding team:
  •  Witmer: 3/4 with a HR.
  •  DeRidder: 3/ 4.
  •  King 3/ 4.

  WP: Finnegen in relief  of  Matta  (closed by Lafoon)

submitted by Nick Matta

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