October 3, 2012: British TV network ITV airs Exposure: The Other Side of Jimmy. It reveals that Jimmy Savile, one of the most popular British entertainment personalities of all time, was a pedophile -- or a "paedophile," as it would be written in Britain. (They also pronounce it differently: "PEE-do-file," as opposed to the American version, "PEDD-o-file.")
Born on Halloween, October 31, 1926 -- the day Harry Houdini dies -- in Leeds, West Yorkshire, he grew up in the Great Depression, and later claimed that he "was forged in the crucible of want." During World War II, he was a "Bevin Boy," drafted not into military service, but into working on coal mines by the Minister of Labor, Ernest Bevin. A mine explosion left him wearing a steel corset and walking with braces for 3 years.
He became a disc jockey in Manchester, and from 1964 to 1988, he was a presenter on TV network BBC One's Top of the Pops, effectively Britain's version of American Bandstand. Remembering his troubles in both Depression and War, he became one of Britain's greatest charity fundraisers.
He was known for his long blond hair, wild clothes and wild glasses well before Elton John became a star, and an ever-present cigar, like British comedian Tommy Cooper. He was also known for his fandom for his hometown soccer team, or "football club," Leeds United, whose greatest period of fame, the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s, was also when he rose to stardom.
In 1975, Jim'll Fix It premiered on BBC One. It ran for 19 years, and had a format similar to the 1950s U.S. show Queen for a Day, except it involved kids, not housewives, and wasn't nearly as tragic -- or so it was thought at the time. Savile got thousands of letters asking him to "fix it" for kids, some but hardly all ill, to have their dreams come true. Some of the kids, thinking "Jim'll Fix It" was his name, began their letters, "Dear Jim'll."
He received the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1971, and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1990. A personal friend of many prominent Conservative Party figures (unusual for someone from Labour-heavy Leeds, or working in Labour-heavy Manchester), he died on October 29, 2011, just short of his 85th birthday, hailed for his staggering charity work. As far as most people knew, Sir Jimmy Savile was a saint.
Instead, he was a horrible sinner. Within months of his death, the house of cards came crashing down. He was revealed as the world's most infamous pedophile, using his shows and his famed hospital visits to "recruit." The Metropolitan Police (London's police, sometimes incorrectly identified by their address, Scotland Yard) stated that they were pursuing more than 400 lines of inquiry, based on the testimony of 300 potential victims via 14 separate law-enforcement agencies.
He was, in effect, Britain's Dick Clark for his music hosting, and its Danny Thomas for his hospital and charity work. In the end, though, he became its Bill Cosby, a beloved entertainer revealed as a monster. And, unlike Cosby, he escaped punishment for it during his lifetime.
*
October 3, 2012 was a Wednesday. Football was in midweek, and the NBA and NHL seasons were about to start. This was the last day of Major League Baseball's regular season, and these games were played:
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals, 1-0 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. Although the Tigers have already clinched the American League Central Division title, they go all out to win this game. It takes 4 Tiger pitchers -- Mark Scherzer for 4 innings, Drew Smyly for 2/3rds of an inning, Luis Marte for 3 1/3rd for the win, and Luke Putkonen for 1 -- to pitch a 6-hit shutout. The only run of the game comes in the top of the 5th inning, when Austin Jackson doubles home Omar Infante.
The Tigers' Miguel Cabrera clinches the AL Triple Crown, becoming the 1st player to do so since 1967 when Carl Yastrzemski accomplished the feat with Boston -- making him the 1st player to do it in my lifetime. I have a separate entry for this event. He led the circuit with a .330 batting average, 44 home runs and 139 RBIs. Naturally, he was named the AL's Most Valuable Player.
* The greatest moment in Washington Nationals "Racing Presidents" history. After getting off to a slow start in the regular-season finale against Philadelphia, Teddy Roosevelt finally beats George Washington, Abe Lincoln, and Tom Jefferson to the finish line, winning the race for the 1st time since it made its debut at RFK Stadium in 2006.
The victory, the mascot's 1st after 525 losses, is assured when a green furry creature, who bears a striking resemblance to a phony Phillie Phanatic, waylays the other 3 Presidential contenders in right field. The reason the Phake Phanatic was there was that the Nats were playing the Philadelphia Phillies, and beat them, 5-1.
The Nats had already clinched the National League Eastern Division, ending the Phils' 5-year reign at the top. Beset by injuries, they had fallen to 81-81, ending their greatest run ever: 5 seasons, 5 Division titles, 2 Pennants, and the 2008 World Championships.
In 2019, Teddy finally had a season in which he won the most races, 31.
In 2019, Teddy finally had a season in which he won the most races, 31.
* In other dubious baseball action, Texas Rangers center fielder Josh Hamilton's 4th inning-error opens the floodgates that allow the Oakland Athletics to erase a 5-run deficit when they score 6 times, en route to their 12-5 victory at the Oakland Coliseum (then named the O.co Coliseum).
The A's had been 13 games out of 1st place in the AL West on June 30, and 6 games out on August 25. But their hot streak and the Rangers' nosedive leaves the A's as AL Western Division Champions, and puts the Rangers into the new best-2-out-of-3-games AL Wild Card Series.
This comes after the Rangers' pathetic performance in the 2010 World Series and their embarrassing choke job in Game 6 of the 2011 World Series. They do not yet have the choke reputation of, say, the Red Sox, the Cubs, or the Indians — but they should.
* The New York Yankees clinch the AL Eastern Division title, finishing off a tough race against the Baltimore Orioles, and doing so by beating the Auld Enemy, the Boston Red Sox, 14-2 at the new Yankee Stadium. The O's are relegated to the AL Wild Card Series, against the Rangers.
Hiroki Kuroda went 7 innings for the win, while Daisuke Matsuzaka didn't get out of the 3rd inning. Curtis Granderson hit his 42nd and 43rd home runs of the season, while Robinson Canó hit his 32nd and 33rd. Canó had 6 RBIs, Granderson 4. Derek Jeter went 1-for-4.
That one felt pretty good. But it would take the Yankees 7 years to win another Division title -- because, or so it seemed, Brian Cashman's priority wasn't putting the Yankees in the best possible position to advance in the postseason, but rather to sell tickets and stay under the luxury tax threshold.
* Two Cleveland Indians legends each play their last major league game -- but neither does so for the Indians. The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Baltimore Orioles, 4-1 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida,, and Jim Thome goes 0-for-4 as the O's DH.
* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Minnesota Twins, 2-1 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, and Omar Vizquel, at 45 the oldest man ever to play shortstop in the major leagues, and the last remaining MLB player from the 1980s, goes 1-for-3 for the Jays.
* Having already clinched the NL Central Division, the Cincinnati Reds lost to the St. Louis Cardinals, 1-0 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Matt Carpenter provides the only run in the bottom of the 8th, singling home Shane Robinson.
It takes 5 pitchers for the Cards to finish a 3-hit shutout: Shelby Miller allowed 1 hit and 2 walks over 6, and only threw 72 pitches; Sam Freeman allowed a hit and no walks in the 7th, Victor Marté allowed a hit in the 8th and became the winning pitcher, Marc Rzepczynski got the 1st out in the 9th, and Jason Motte got the last 2, neither of them allowing a baserunner.
* The San Francisco Giants had already clinched the NL Western Division, but it probably still bothered them that they lost their regular-season finale to their arch-rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers, 5-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Clayton Kershaw outpitched Ryan Vogelsong.
* The Atlanta Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-0 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. How many Braves pitchers does it take to pitch a 3-hit, no-walk shutout? This may be a record: 8. Ben Sheets pitched the 1st inning, Luis Avilán the 2nd, Julio Teherán the 3rd and the 4th, Randall Delgado the 5th, Cory Gearrin the 6th, Eric O'Flaherty the 7th, Jonny Venters the 8th, and Craig Kimbrel the 9th.
What were the Braves thinking? They had the NL Wild Card Series with the Cardinals coming up, and I guess they didn't want to "waste" a starting pitcher.
* The New York Mets beat the Miami Marlins, 4-2 at Marlins Park (now LoanDepot Park) in Miami.
* The Chicago White Sox beat the Cleveland Indians, 9-0 at Progressive Field in Cleveland. Gavin Floyd goes 7 innings, and 2 relievers help him complete the 5-hit shutout.
* The Chicago Cubs beat the Houston Astros, 5-4 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
* The San Diego Padres beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 7-6 at Miller Park (now American Family Field) in Milwaukee.
* The Colorado Rockies beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 2-1 at Chase Field in Phoenix.
* And the Seattle Mariners beat the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 12-0 at Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park) in Seattle. There were 5 shutouts on the final day of the season, and this was the only one that required as little as 2 pitchers: Blake Beavan allowed 7 hits and a walk over the 1st 8 innings, and Stephen Pryor pitched a perfect 9th.
No comments:
Post a Comment