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Dennis Donovan

Dennis Donovan's Journal
Dennis Donovan's Journal
May 12, 2018

Did you ever wonder who "The Agony of Defeat" guy was at the beginning of Wide World of Sports?



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinko_Bogataj

Vinko Bogataj (Slovenian: /ˈʋiːŋko bɔɡaˈtaj/; born 1948) is a Slovenian former ski jumper. Footage of him crashing featured on ABC's Wide World of Sports representing the Agony of Defeat.

Agony of Defeat jump
Bogataj competed as a Yugoslav entrant at the ski flying event in Oberstdorf, West Germany (now Germany) on 7 March 1970. A light snow had begun falling at the start of the competition, and by the time Bogataj was ready for his third jump on the Heini Klopfer hill, the snow had become quite heavy. Midway down the inrun for his jump, Bogataj realised that the conditions had made the ramp too fast. He attempted to lower his center of gravity and stop his jump, but instead lost his balance completely and rocketed out of control off the end of the inrun, tumbling and flipping wildly, and crashing through a light retaining fence near a crowd of spectators before coming to a halt. Bogataj suffered a mild concussion and a broken ankle.

A film crew from Wide World of Sports was recording the event in which Bogataj crashed. The show featured an opening narration by host Jim McKay over a montage of sports clips, and co-ordinating producer Dennis Lewin inserted the footage of the crash to coincide with the words "...and the agony of defeat." Throughout the show's long history, various images were used for the other parts of the narration, including for "the thrill of victory...", which directly preceded the above phrase and was often accompanied by images of the celebrating team at the most recent Super Bowl or World Cup, but after that point, the "agony of defeat" was always illustrated by Bogataj's failed jump. Later on, other clips were added to the "agony of defeat", but Bogataj's crash was always featured and always the first played.

The melodrama of the narration—which became a catchphrase in the US—transformed the uncredited ski jumper into an American icon of bad luck and misfortune. Meanwhile, having retired to his quiet, private life in Slovenia, Bogataj was unaware of his celebrity, and so was surprised to be asked to attend the 20th anniversary celebration for Wide World of Sports in 1981. He received the loudest ovation of any athlete introduced at the gala, and attendees such as Muhammad Ali asked him for his autograph.

Later life
Bogataj returned to ski jumping in 1971 but never duplicated the success he had before the crash and retired from the sport competitively, save for occasional senior competitions thereafter. During his career, his best career finish was 57th in the individual normal hill competition in Bischofshofen in 1969 during that year's Four Hills Tournament.

Bogataj became a ski instructor, coaching the 1991 World Champion Slovenian ski jumper Franci Petek. He supplements his income by painting and has also worked as a forklift operator at a factory, Veriga Lesce. His paintings have won awards and been exhibited in both Europe and the U.S. He also enjoys wood carving.

Bogataj resides in his hometown of Lesce, Slovenia. He is married and has two daughters.


Every weekend, that was a cringe-worthy thing to see...
May 11, 2018

Swim Until You Can't See Land; Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit Dead at 36

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-44079462

Body confirmed as missing Frightened Rabbit singer

A body found at a marina on the banks of the Firth of Forth has been confirmed as missing Frightened Rabbit singer Scott Hutchison.

The discovery was made at Port Edgar, between the Forth Road Bridge and Queensferry Crossing, at about 20:30 on Thursday.

Mr Hutchison, 36, went missing in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

His family said there had been recent concerns about his mental health, and they were "devastated" by his death.

Mr Hutchison had spoken openly about his battle with depression over the years, with elder brother Neil saying he had done so "in an attempt to help other people with similar conditions".

</snip>


My favorite song of the last decade. Your battle is over, Scott...

May 10, 2018

51 Year Ago Today: NASA's M2-F2 accident. Iconic footage that gave rise to Steve Austin



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_M2-F2#Operational_history

Before powered flights were undertaken, a series of glide flights were conducted. On May 10, 1967, the sixteenth and last glide flight ended in disaster as the vehicle slammed into the lake bed on landing. With test pilot Bruce Peterson at the controls, the M2-F2 suffered a pilot induced oscillation (PIO) as it neared the lake bed. At the core of this problem was the fact that the wings of the M2-F2 (essentially the body of the aircraft) produced considerably less roll authority than most aircraft. This resulted in less force available to the pilot to control the aircraft in roll. As a consequence, when Peterson attempted to perform roll maneuvers the response of the vehicle was substantially less than expected, thus lending to a "soft" feel for this control which often leads to PIO in the roll axis.[citation needed] The vehicle rolled from side to side in flight as he tried to bring it under control. Peterson recovered, but then observed a rescue helicopter that seemed to pose a collision threat. Distracted, Peterson drifted in a crosswind to an unmarked area of the lake bed where it was very difficult to judge the height over the ground because of a lack of guidance (the markers provided on the lake bed runway).

Peterson fired the landing rockets to provide additional lift, but he hit the lake bed before the landing gear was fully down and locked. The M2-F2 rolled over six times, coming to rest upside down. Pulled from the vehicle by Jay King and Joseph Huxman, Peterson was rushed to the base hospital, transferred to the March Air Force Base Hospital and then the UCLA Hospital. He recovered but lost vision in his right eye due to a staphylococcal infection.

Portions of M2-F2 footage including Peterson's spectacular crash landing were used for the 1973 television series The Six Million Dollar Man[2] though some shots during the opening credits of the series showed the later HL-10 model, during release from its carrier plane, a modified B-52.



Steve Austin, Astronaut. A man barely alive...
April 30, 2018

Tweet from Cindy McCain; they had a visitor...

https://twitter.com/cindymccain/status/991022715485151233

Cindy McCain

@cindymccain
Enjoyed a wonderful visit from @JoeBiden yesterday. Such good family friends. Enjoyed catching up!

2:33 PM - Apr 30, 2018


April 27, 2018

Former Democratic VT Gov. Philip Hoff Dies At 93

http://digital.vpr.net/post/former-democratic-gov-philip-hoff-dies-93#stream/0

Former Vermont Gov. Philip Hoff has died at age 93.

News of Hoff's death was announced Friday morning in the Vermont House of Representatives by Burlington Rep. Johannah Donovan.

Hoff was first elected governor in 1962, becoming the first Democratic governor since the 1850s. A charismatic politician in the style of John F. Kennedy, Hoff’s election signaled a sea change in Vermont politics where Republicans dominated political life.

A liberal, Hoff split with then-President Lyndon Johnson over the Vietnam War, and later campaigned around the country for Robert Kennedy's presidential campaign.

Hoff returned to politics in the 1980s, serving three terms in the Vermont Senate.

</snip>


April 24, 2018

Bob Dorough, Schoolhouse Rock! Performer and Writer, Dies at 94

https://www.thewrap.com/bob-dorough-schoolhouse-rock-dies/



Bob Dorough, the jazz musician who was instrumental in the 1970s educational cartoon series “Schoolhouse Rock!” died Monday in Mt. Bethel, Pennsylvania, a spokesperson for Dorough told TheWrap. He was 94.

During his run with “Schoolhouse Rock!” Dorough wrote and performed iconic numbers including “My Hero, Zero” and “Three Is a Magic Number.”

Dorough, born in Arkansas and raised in Texas, took to music early,joining his high school’s band and serving three years in a special services army band unit.

</snip>




April 19, 2018

25 Years Ago Today; Branch Davidian compound in Waco, TX erupts in flames

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waco_siege



Casualties
4 ATF agents killed, 16 wounded.
6 killed on February 28.
76 killed on April 19.
Total: 82 killed

The Waco siege was the siege of a compound belonging to the Branch Davidians, carried out by American federal and Te Branch Davidians, was led by David Koresh and was headquartered at Mount Carmel Center ranch in the community of Axtell, Texas, 13 miles (21 kilometers) east-northeast of Waco. Suspecting the group of stockpiling illegal weapons, the ATF obtained a search warrant for the compound and arrest warrants for Koresh and a select few of the group's members.

The incident began when the ATF attempted to raid the ranch. An intense gun battle erupted, resulting in the deaths of four government agents and six Branch Davidians. Upon the ATF's failure to raid the compound, a siege lasting 51 days was initiated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Eventually, the FBI launched an assault and initiated a tear gas attack in an attempt to force the Branch Davidians out of the ranch. During the attack, a fire engulfed Mount Carmel Center. In total, 76 people died, including David Koresh.

Much dispute remains as to the actual events of the siege. A particular controversy ensued over the origin of the fire; an internal Justice Department investigation concluded in 2000 that sect members had started the fire. The events near Waco, and the siege at Ruby Ridge less than twelve months earlier, were both cited as the primary motivations behind the Oklahoma City bombing that took place exactly two years later.

</snip>
April 17, 2018

Harry Anderson's Geek Trick (GRAPHIC WARNING)



I saw him do this on SNL in the early 80's and it was stunning!!!
April 16, 2018

Happy Birthday, Acid. 75 yrs ago today, Albert Hofmann discovers LSD.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Hofmann#Discovery_of_LSD

Discovery of LSD

Hofmann became an employee of the pharmaceutical-chemical department of Sandoz Laboratories (now a subsidiary of Novartis), located in Basel as a co-worker with professor Arthur Stoll, founder and director of the pharmaceutical department. He began studying the medicinal plant squill and the fungus ergot as part of a program to purify and synthesize active constituents for use as pharmaceuticals. His main contribution was to elucidate the chemical structure of the common nucleus of the Scilla glycosides (an active principal of Mediterranean Squill). While researching lysergic acid derivatives, Hofmann first synthesized LSD on 16 November 1938. The main intention of the synthesis was to obtain a respiratory and circulatory stimulant (an analeptic) with no effects on the uterus in analogy to nikethamide (which is also a diethylamide) by introducing this functional group to lysergic acid. It was set aside for five years, until 16 April 1943, when Hofmann decided to reexamine it. While re-synthesizing LSD, he accidentally touched his hand to his mouth, nose or possibly eye, ingesting a small amount and discovered its powerful effects. He described what he felt as being:

... affected by a remarkable restlessness, combined with a slight dizziness. At home I lay down and sank into a not unpleasant intoxicated[-]like condition, characterized by an extremely stimulated imagination. In a dreamlike state, with eyes closed (I found the daylight to be unpleasantly glaring), I perceived an uninterrupted stream of fantastic pictures, extraordinary shapes with intense, kaleidoscopic play of colors. After some two hours this condition faded away.


Three days later, on 19 April 1943, Hofmann intentionally ingested 250 micrograms of LSD. This day is now known as "Bicycle Day", because he began to feel the effects of the drug as he rode home on a bike. This was the first intentional LSD trip.

Hofmann continued to take small doses of LSD throughout much of his life, and always hoped to find a use for it. In his memoir, he emphasized it as a "sacred drug": "I see the true importance of LSD in the possibility of providing material aid to meditation aimed at the mystical experience of a deeper, comprehensive reality."


Pretty trippy!
April 14, 2018

Speaking of war, The Great War. 1914 - 1917



War is perpetual... Bugger.

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