Thursday, February 17, 2011

When I was seven years old, there was a TV show that, for some reason I loved. It involved a goofy superhero who was able to fly. He wore some sort of silvery flight jacket/apparatus; I remember this because I would turn my coat inside out to play like I was that guy. I couldn't even remember the name of the show or the superhero. I despaired of ever learning this piece of useless trivia.

Enter the Web, namely YouTube! Turns out that the show was called "Mr. Terrific." It played for just 17 episodes in 1967. Here's the theme song, which I even kind of remember:



There are even some clips on YouTube:



I could even view the unaired pilot for this show.

Sometimes, the Internet is just plain cool.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

I happened to come across this while shirking my duty to pack up. Kenny Chesney, from Luttrell (metro Knoxville), and a big football fan, has made a documentary on Condredge Holloway, to be aired on ESPN on Sunday, February 20, at 8:00 pm ET. Here's an ESPN print story on the documentary. Here's the trailer:



This movie has special significance for me. I started watching Tennessee football in 1970. I first saw Condredge play in the 1972 spring "Orange and White" game. He was so good that the coaches had to put him on the other team after halftime, because whatever side he was on was unstoppable. My parents and I looked at each other and said, "this guy is special."

And, boy, was he. Although diminutive -- he stood 5' 9" on his tippy toes -- Condredge played like a giant during his three years with the varsity (Freshmen were not allowed to play with the varsity in those days). He could run, he could pass, and he could scramble. A lot of the time, Condredge didn't have a lot of help, and ended up making things happen by himself.

We loved his talent, but most of all we loved his heart. An episode much remembered in Holloway lore is the 1974 UCLA game. The Bruins had knocked Condredge out of the game -- I mean, they took him to the locker room. It was 10-10, when he not only returned to the sideline, but immediately -- and without consulting the head coach -- re-entered the game. His courageous play allowed Tennessee to turn a sound defeat into a tie, on the order of "Tennessee Beats UCLA, 17-17." Here's the video:



I figure the documentary is going to make a big deal of the fact that Condredge was the first Black QB in the Southeastern Conference. I can tell you that, from my 12 year old perception, as well as the perception of anyone I talked to about football at the time, his color was of no consequence whatsoever. He was just a great player, and that was all that counted. I'm proud of Vols fans from that era for having such a color blind attitude.
I've been off the radar screen for a while, mostly because it appears that we will be moving out of our office at the end of the month. Maybe that doesn't sound so traumatic, but consider that in the 53 plus year history of this firm, we have moved exactly once, in 1987, from the old Bank of Knoxville Building to the Medical Arts Building. We have been here ever since. Until now.

Stay tuned for our new address and directions to our new office.