Sunday Scores and More

My friend and former Mahalo.com co-worker Jon Moncrief has decided to start a radio show on the Sports Journey broadcast network.

Guess who he asked to be his co-host?

If one has visited this site before they'll note that besides movie reviews and posting trailers, I'm also an opinionated and passionate sports fan. I've always been a big follower of athletics, especially of the local teams and boxing. But since I've worked the past several years covering sports news, as well as doing extensive sports research for Mahalo.com and I have spent the majority of my life in media and theater performance, this feels like a logical next step.

The title of the show is Sunday Scores and More and our premiere episode streams at 10AM Eastern, 7AM Pacific on June 14, 2009 at http://www.sportsjourney.com/ on the Sports Journey network. Each show is archived for download so if one misses it live they can still catch it at their own convenience. The show will air at the same time every Sunday.

The host and creator of the show is Jon Moncrief. He has been in the sports industry for most of his life. He is currently a writer covering the Los Angeles Kings for Examiner.com. He has also written for publications such as That's Life Magazine, The Bergen Record, The Florida Times-Union, AllSports.com, and New Jersey Blitz Magazine. He was lead writer for 4CHOSEN The Documentary, which won Best Documentary Film at the 2008 Garden State Film Festival. Jonathan also was lead writer for North Jersey Sports Showcase in 2004.

Since he's a big East Coast guy, he has asked me to provide some West Coast flavor and perspective to the show. Besides listening to us blab, Crief (short for Moncrief) has lined up an impressive line-up of guests and personalities from the sports world.

So please visit Sports Journey.com and check out the show. Should be lots of fun.

The Boyfriend Experience

My friends over at Totally Sketch have created a parody trailer of the film The Girlfriend Experience starring porn star Sasha Grey and directed by Steven Soderbergh.

The clip is funny without seeing the original trailer. But for proper perspective first watch the trailer for The Girlfriend Experience.



Here's the well made parody trailer directed by the talented Michael Gallagher and starring my friend Lon Harris.



Hilarious.

Totally Sketch comes out with funny original videos every Thursday. Check out the official site at http://www.totallysketch.com/.

Sad day for Baseball

Baseball earned another black eye with the news today that Manny Ramirez has been suspended for 50 games for violation of the Major League Baseball drug policy.



Very sad news, especially for die hard fans like me.

Manny Ramirez Suspended for Illegal drugs

Manny Ramirez was suspended by Major League Baseball today for 50 games.

After the announcement of his suspension was made, Ramirez released a statement, he explained, "Recently, I saw a physician for a personal health issue. He gave me a medication, not a steroid, which he thought was OK to give me,unfortunately, the medication was banned under our drug policy. Under the policy that mistake is now my responsibility. I have been advised not to say anything more for now. I do want to say one other thing; I've taken and passed about 15 drug tests over the past five seasons."

Now...I believe...and reports have confirmed that "the personal health issue" Ramirez is referring to is for sexual potency. The kind of performance enhancing that Major League Baseball could care less about.

So the culprit is supposedly... a fertility drug?

Ramirez will reportedly lose about $8 million dollars for his missed time with the Dodgers.

Wow.

Now I'm not a doctor, so I don't know what positive effects a sex drug will have on a Major League Baseball player's swing, but this seems a little excessive. Doesn't it?

He lost $8 million in salary because he needed help to get it up? He's too good to use Viagra?




Reportedly, the drug in question, hCG, is also used to help an athlete restore testosterone after a steroids cycle use, to restart the bodies' natural testosterone.

Now THAT'S interesting and more than suspicious.

I know the situation says otherwise, I'm not naive or stupid but I still find it hard to believe...that a guy in Manny Ramirez's current situation would use a drug like this to cheat at baseball, especially at this point in his career. It's not like Manny was in a contract year. He JUST landed his big contract. It makes no sense for Manny to use performance enhancers now. Andruw Jones landed a big contract from the Dodgers and sucked ass last year. He's still getting his money. They don't take away money from you when you suck ass. They just get angry at you and try to get rid of you.

I know he's not the sharpest knife in the drawer but man....

It makes more sense to me that Manny needed help to get it up in the sack, not on the baseball diamond.

I'm not a famous multi-millionaire so I wouldn't know, but I assume that when you are, attractive women tend to throw themselves at you in new and creative ways. He's been a multi-millionaire for way over a decade now....that's a lot of women being creative trying to get his attention.

Something tells me he needs a little more than whispering sweet nothings in his ear to get his juices going.




Ramirez was reportedly devastated by the news, he stated "I want to apologize to Mr. McCourt, Mrs. McCourt, Mr. Torre, my teammates, the Dodger organization, and to the Dodger fans. LA is a special place to me and I know everybody is disappointed. So am I. I'm sorry about this whole situation."

I think the Dodgers will be fine without him. The ironic thing is that Manny usually takes about 50 games off during the season with a fake injury anyways. So losing him for a short while, this early won't hurt too much and the Dodgers, who play in the horrible National League West aren't in any danger of missing the post season because of this.

The damage done by this news will be on Manny Ramirez's legacy. History is not kind towards reported cheaters. No matter if he meant to cheat or not.

Ramirez will return from his suspension to the Dodgers on July 3, 2009.

I imagine he'll be in bed "working out" during this free time...getting his money's worth I hope.

Pacquiao Defeats Hatton

Awesome display of boxing superiority by Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao.

Manny Pacquiao destroys Ricky Hatton

Wow.

That's all I could say after watching another lopsided victory by Manny Pacquiao.

I honestly didn't have a good feeling going into this bout. Manny proved me wrong...again.

Logic dictates that a man fighting at 140 pounds for his entire career would have a marked advantage over a fighter who is fighting at that weight for only his third time.

Manny surprised me again with a brutal second round knockout. He knocked down Hatton twice in the first round in a fierce display of boxing superiority.



The key to the fight was not only Pacquiao's punching power, but also an excellent game plan by legendary trainer Freddie Roach.

Roach stated, "Ricky is wide open for the right. He always cocks his fist back before he throws it. He fights the same way over and over. I've studied every tape I could get for two months. I know him like I know my own fighter."

Pacquiao noted, "He punches his hands before he throws a punch. He's a sucker for a right hook. I knew he'd be looking for my left. It was nothing personal. I was just doing my job."

He sure did, that knockout will be on highlight reels for years to come.



As for the extremely likable Ricky Hatton, after a few tense moments when he didn't move after being knocked out, Hatton went straight to the hospital with little comment to the media.

Hatton later stated, "It was a hard loss, but I'm okay. I really didn't see the punch coming but it was a great shot. I know I'll be okay."

Hatton's father confirmed his son's good health after the brutal knockout. Ray Hatton stated, "He's perfectly all right. They've checked him out. He's had all the tests and everything. He's not got a mark on him."



As for the motor mouth trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr., he was left virtually speechless. Mayweather flapped his gums these past several months during the promotion of the bout, with silly, insulting poems and made a habit of constantly belittling trainer Freddie Roach, calling him "Freddie the Roach Coach".

Mayweather stated,"I really felt Ricky would get him. I don't want to go into it more than that."

Ha.

The day after the fight, Mayweather called for Hatton to retire. In typical Mayweather style he included a backhanded insult of Pacquiao.

Mayweather stated, "I would suggest he retire. At the end of the day, it's his decision. He tried twice. He failed twice. He lost to my son and to lose to someone below that, it's time to leave the ring. He made a good profit. Sometimes you have to go when your prime is still there."

Witnessing the event were celebrities such as Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Jay-Z and P Diddy.

They watched a systematic, shocking destruction of a proud, talented and honorable fighter in Ricky Hatton and the cementing of a legend in Manny Pacquiao.

With the victory, Pacquiao becomes only the second boxer in history to win six titles in six different weight classes. Oscar De La Hoya, who Pacquiao previously defeated, is the only other boxer to accomplish the feat.

The Passing of Nick Adenhart

After watching last night's frustrating loss to the A's, I went to bed with the comfort that today would be a new day. I looked forward to the chance for the Angels to turn the page on a bad ending to a good game. Little did I know that before I would wake up this morning, a tragedy would unfold that would profoundly effect this season and many more seasons to come for the Angels and their fans.

The day started normally for me. I drove to work listening to Colin Cowherd on ESPN. The recap played every ten minutes of how the Angels blew the lead, despite six strong innings from the young pitcher Nick Adenhart. When I arrived at work, I clocked in and started my work day. Before I was even completely settled in at work, I was already daydreaming about coming home to my family and watching the Angels game on the big screen tonight.

I was briefly chatting on AIM with my wife, when she informed me of the tragic collision. The news was being reported on TV.

At the young age of 22, Nick Adenhart had passed away, the victim of a senseless traffic collision. Two others were also killed, while one was in critical condition. The culprit, a man who made the poor decision to attempt to drive home under the influence of alcohol and with his license suspended. He ran a red light with his mini-van, striking the coupe Adenhart and three friends were traveling in.





Reports trickled out about how the man was humble, well liked and respectful to people he came in contact with. He overcame adversity in his career by recovering from tommy john surgery and worked hard to try and bounce back from a disappointing debut last year in the majors.

Last night's game was seen by many as a turning point professionally for him. It was a coming out party for a pitcher who was once seen as a prospect and was now a legitimate major leaguer. His father had even flown out from Maryland to watch the best game of his son's Major League career.

I have never met Nick Adenhart or even watched him play in person at the stadium. But I have to admit that this news has affected me more than I ever expected. It has affected me as a fan of the Angels, as a father, and as a fellow human being.

My deepest condolences go out to the family, teammates and fans of this obviously well-liked and talented young man.

One more Angel in heaven.

A right hander who had amazing potential and reportedly great heart.

The Face of Shakespeare?

Apparently this is the face of William Shakespeare.




The portrait is dated around 1610, which would mean it was done about six years before his death. It was unveiled today to the press. It is believed to be the only painting of Shakespeare made during his lifetime. The image also reportedly sheds some more light on who the Bard actually was. According to experts, the image contradicts previous notions that he was a struggling artist. Reportedly the garment that Mr. Shakespeare is wearing in the portrait is the clothing of someone of upper class, not working class. The intricate lace on the collar supposedly being the main clue of his wealth.

Also Shakespeare has previously been seen in portraits as balding. Such as this famous drawing which was made AFTER his death.



Maybe people remembered him wrong? Jealousy maybe?

Who knew? Turns out Shakespeare did resemble Joseph Fiennes after all.



Which should make the ladies happy.

Here's the full pic.



Handsome devil. Don't you think?

Albert Pujols is not happy about A-Rod

Albert Pujols expressed disappointment in Alex Rodriguez for taking steroids.

I just hope that people don't say things that will come back to haunt them. Not that I think Pujols used steroids....but let's just say it wouldn't surprise me horribly if he did.

I think the best thing to do right now is to not say anything. There are too many variables. People could potentially test positive when they BELIEVED they didn't take anything. They could also get a false positive result or anything could happen.

Best just to shut up and just play ball.

Transformers 2 Trailer

Want more Transformers?

How about bigger robots, more explosions, louder bangs and some scary stuff...

Scary for 13 year olds I mean.

Miami Heat acquire Jermaine O'Neal

Great trade for the Heat who acquire Jermaine O'Neal, while cutting payroll. Dwyane Wade now has a big man running mate. They could be a dangerous team next year, if not this year.

Antonio Margarito Suspended

Before getting his butt whipped by Shane Mosley at the Staples Center on Saturday January 24th, news was revealed that the hand wrap for Antonio Margarito was found to have a plaster type substance on it.

Plaster.

You know...like concrete.

Margarito was, of course, forced to rewrap his hands before his fight against Mosley.

As a result of the discovery Antonio Margarito and his trainer have been temporarily suspended from boxing until further investigation.




I can honestly think of nothing more despicable than using a foreign substance on a hand wrap during a bout.

In boxing, an unspoken and obvious understanding exists that if a fighter is going to punch their opponent in the face and the body using all their force and might, a price will have to be paid to their own body as well.

After his bout with Oscar De La Hoya for example, Manny Pacquiao's hands were so sore and swollen that he was unable to sign autographs for fans. Instead, he took pictures with all of them. To demonstrate that he wasn't just lazy or ungrateful for the support of his fans after his fight.

The fact that Margarito possibly cheated before his bout with Mosley, draws into suspicion all the victories he's had in his past, notably his vicious knockouts of Kermit Cintron and Miguel Cotto.

In his fight against Cotto, a plaster doctored hand wrap would explain much.

Cotto was criticized for running from Margarito throughout that entire 11 round bout. Cotto a brawler by nature was in the unusual position of leaning on the ropes and running from Margarito who stalked him relentlessly.

After getting hit repeatedly, Cotto's only recourse was to look for sanctuary from Margarito's vicious heavy punches against the ropes.

Could it be that Cotto was running from a guy with concrete in his gloves?

When Mosley stood up to Margarito in their bout together and insisted on fighting in the center of the ring, Margarito honestly looked mediocre and outclassed.

He failed to hurt Mosley at all.

This was the same Sugar Shane Mosley who lost a brutal, close, action-filled bout to Miguel Cotto.

I'm not condemning or judging Margarito, that is, until the truth is revealed.

But given the circumstances, it would explain alot if Margarito indeed used illegal hand wraps in his fight against Cotto.

Who in their right mind would want to stand in the middle of the ring with a guy with concrete hands?

Goodbye Ricardo Montalban

Very sad news today.

Mexican actor Ricardo Montalban has passed away.

As I think back on his works, I can't help but feel nostalgic and grateful for his impressive career.

As a kid, I remember his elegant portrayal of Mr. Roarke on my favorite television show Fantasy Island. Back then I had no concept of good or bad acting, I just knew that the guy was great. One week he was likable, other weeks he was scary, mysterious and at times even hilarious.

Man, Mr. Roarke with his white suit...



Later when I was older, I delighted in seeing him seek revenge and become the ultimate nemesis to Captain Kirk in Star Trek: Wrath of Khan.



When I was in high school and too cool for my own good, I remember laughing my ass off watching him play it straight in the ridiculously funny Naked Gun.



In college, I set out to watch every movie starring Marlon Brando and I stumbled onto the film Sayonara, which featured Montalban as, of all people, a Japanese character named Nakamura.



Then recently, I've marveled at how Montalban has come full circle in my life, by entertaining my children in the Spy Kids films.



Thank you very much for the memories Mr. Montalban, you will not be forgotten.

Ricardo Montalban

November 25, 1920 - January 14, 2009.