1998 Play-by-Play
January
January 1st, Deadnecks and Truck Savage scored their second and fourth New Year's Day hit respectively, this time an ace on tennis great Helen Wills Moody... Jan. 4th, L. Smith, Necromancers, Perry Mason, Snakeyes, The Banshee and Winterkill scored four each on singer John Gary and took the lead. Same day, Iron Maiden and Mac scored two points on Mae Questel, the voice of Betty Boop and Olive Oyl... (January 9th, Rig R. Mortis scored a WILD CARD SOLO on Dr. Emanual Revici, who evaded popular mention until 1999. A pioneer in chemotherapy decades before anyone else knew what it was, Revici was so far ahead of his collegues that they branded him a quack and stripped him of his license to practice, in spite of the fact that his patients kept getting better. By the time the U.S. establishment caught up to him and restored his license, he was 100. His death at 101 was reported to us in 1999, and Rig R. Mortis got career credit.)... Jan. 11th, The Merry Little Breezes, The Moorebids and Uncle Milton, scored three points on conductor Klaus Tennstedt... Jan. 15th, 17 gamesters led by L. Smith tallied four on blues harmonica giant Junior Wells. Suddenly, the 1982 Gran Prix winner was in the lead at 8 & 2, followed closely by The Merry Little Breezes aka "The Queen of Hits" at 7 & 2. Both were followed by twenty (20) gamesters in a massive tie for third place at 4 & 1... Jan. 16th, Dinner with Jack Klugman scored a solo two on actor Emil Sitka, and moved into third place... Jan. 19th, 47 gamesters in blue suede shoes led by L. Smith played a final tribute to rockabilly pioneer Carl Perkins. Smith moved to 12 & 3, holding the lead, with the Merry Little Breezes close behind at 11 & 3, and Dinner with Jack Klugman at 10 & 3, all making Silver Bobcat noises as they average a hit per week. And locked in battle at 8 & 2 in a giant tie for third were 13 musically attuned gamesters... Jan. 21st, 31 gamesters formed the final gallery for golfer Larry Gilbert, but L. Smith missed the putt and handed the lead to The Merry Little Breezes who rose to 16 & 4, followed closely by Dinner with Jack Klugman at 15 & 4, both poised for a stunning World Record Silver Bobcat, IF they can score before Jan. 26th.... Jan. 22nd, Pontius led 23 Hawaii 5-0 fans in a three-point hit on Jack Lord. The hit moved him to 16 & 4, into a tie with the Merry Little Breezes and ready to pounce on the Silver Bobcat. Jan. 24th, Eternal Dirt Napper, Johnny B. Dead, the Moorebids, Razor and The Sick Puppies scored six each on attorney Jay Monahan, a legal analyst for NBC, CNBC and MSNBC... Jan. 28th, Toe Tag scored a Wild Card Solo on John Morton-Finney, last of the Buffalo Soldiers, oldest practicing attorney in the U.S. (at 108), a teacher for 47 years, honored by Pres. George Bush as "our most seasoned scholar," holder of 11 bachelor's degrees, five law degrees and fluent in six languages. In 1994, he noted, "When you stop learning, that's about the end of you."... Jan. 29th, Razor took the lead at 20 & 4 by Wild Carding Joe Alioto, former mayor of S.F. and leading anti-trust lawyer. Scoring two were Aimee Thanatogenos, Dinner with Jack Klugman, The Merry Little Breezes, Ms. O'Ree, Nostradahmer and Pontius.
Picking up hit #5 for the 1998 Silver Bobcat were Dinner with Jack Klugman, the Merry Little Breezes and Pontius.
February '98
February 2nd, M. Hamilton and Humorbid scored two each on Broadway producer Roger Stevens, founder of the Lincoln Center... Feb. 6th, 44 gamesters led by Razor -- and 14 of the top 15 -- scored five on Carl Wilson, a founder and lead guitarist of the Beach Boys. The numbers went up, but the Top Ten standings remained virtually the same except for the sudden disappearance of Dr. Tom(b)... Feb. 7th, Death's Doorstep and Truck Savage curled up with a three-point mystery written by Lawrence Sanders, author of "The Anderson Tapes" and 37 more... Feb. 8th, The National Health and the Virtual Sexton scored two each on Conservative politician Enoch Powell... Same day, Clean Underwear and Deadnecks tallied one each on Iceland's 1955 Nobel laureate for literature, Halldor Laxness... Feb. 10th, Dinner with Jack Klugman sat up and rolled over for one point on Buddy the Wonder Dog, star of "Air Bud," a hit which lifted them into the lead for the Perriman Pennant at seven hits and a point which lifted them into a tie for second place at 23 with The Merry Little Breezes and Pontius. Also scoring one point on Buddy: Dr. Tom(b) and rookie Stonesdoug... Feb. 11th, Yule Iggy sprang from Club Nula with a tasty six-point solo on celebrity chef Patrick Clark... Feb. 13th, Nostradahmer scored a solo five on sci-fi/fantasy author Jo Clayton and vaulted into a tie for first place with Razor at 25 points... Feb. 15th, Pontius soloed on archeologist Calvin "Indiana" Jones for five points and took the lead at 28 & 7... Feb. 17th, Death Wish Two hit the first solo of his career on German author Ernst Jünger for one point... Feb. 18th, Death Wish Two just missed a Daily Double as one of 39 who scored three on baseball announcer Harry Caray... Feb. 19th, Death Wish Two could not hang on for three-in-a-row as he was absent from the 10 lists scoring two on Grandpa Jones. Roadkill and Yo! Rick! just missed a Caray/Jones Daily Double. Leading the way on the Jones hit was Dinner with Jack Klugman, moving to 25 & 8, in second place with Razor and Nostradahmer, and now the pace-setter in the Perriman Pennant race with eight hits... Feb. 22nd, Lives in Jeopardy led six in scoring two on Sen. & Gov. Abraham Ribicoff, and used the two points to knock Frozen Stiff and Ghostwriter out of the Top Ten. The other five gamesters all used the points to exit Club Nula.... Feb. 23rd, Body Parts soloed for two on N.E. Patriots owner Billy Sullivan... Feb. 24th, D. Perriman Jr. became the first player to hit nine (9) Wild Cards in a career as he joined Bambi in Wild Carding the King of the One-Liners, Henny Youngman. This was the fourth year in a row that Perriman has hit his Wild Card, positioning him for '99 to tie the record of five straight held by SLY ('78 - '82), who incidently has three straight coming into '98, as do 14 others. Leading those who scored one on Youngman was Boneyard Dog, who used the ace to move from 21 to 22... Same day, Deadnecks and Humorbid scored one each on Nobel laureate economist Theodore Schultz... Feb. 28th, oft-thwarted soloist Humorbid was back, this time with the Necro Wafers, scoring one point on baritone Todd Duncan who created the role of Porgy in Gershwin's "Porgy and Bess." Same day, Yule Iggy's "Death Comes for the Archbishop" list scored a red-robed solo trey on Cardinal Antonio Quarracino, archbishop of Buenos Aires, Iggy's second solo of 1998.
March '98
March 2nd, six led by the great, great Morbo Chucks scored one on historian Henry Steele Commager... Mar. 3rd, The ACME Undertakers, The Penguin and The Sick Puppies scored two on Fred Friendly, former CBS News president and producer. The deuce put the ACME lads into the Top Ten and dropped the floor out from under Lives in Jeopardy... Mar. 7th, Eleanor Shuman, one of the last survivors of the Titanic, not quite two years old when the ship went down in 1912, died. On the shore, Frozen Stiff (how appropriate) and Necro Wafers scored two each. For last year's Gran Prix champ, Mr. Frostie, it meant his arrival in the Top Ten at 20 points... Mar. 8th, Doom Patrol, Professor Plum, Second Line and Styx & Stones scored five on James McDougal, the Arkansas businessman who was President Clinton's partner in the failed Whitewater development. Same day, Death's Doorstep, the Moorebids and D. Perriman Jr. tallied six each on singer Laurie Beechman, Grizabella in "Cats" who also recorded four albums on her own. The points vaulted Perriman into the Top Ten at 23, just five off the leader. Also the same day, Coffin Counter and Men of Steel scored two each on Disneyland designer and Emmy winner Marvin Davis... March 10th, 10 scored two on actor Lloyd Bridges... March 10th, Humorbid snapped a one-point solo on photographer Ilse Bing, hit #7 for this gamester who is making Perriman Pennant noises... March 12th, rookie starlet Aimée Thanatogenos, The Dada Sisters (how perfect) and style dynamo Yule Iggy went wild on artist Beatrice Wood, the "Mama of Dada." Ten more gamesters were there for the ace... March 13th, Sweeney Todd jetted out of Club Nula with a two-point solo (#13 of his career) on the first man to build a jet engine used in flight, Hans von Ohain... March 16th, Dr. Benjamin Spock dispensed his last advice, a one-pointer to a nursery of gamesters led by the Merry Little Breezes moving to 24 & 7. Tying Dinner with Jack Klugman for the Perriman Pennant lead was red hot Humorbid at 8 hits, and re-entering the Top Ten, Lives in Jeopardy at 20 points... March 25th, Nostradahmer led eight gamesters in a five-point score on Rep. Steve Schiff, and the points put him into the lead at 30 & 7. Moving up to 25 were Frozen Stiff and the ACME Undertakers; also moving into the Top Ten at 23 were Ghostwriter and (drum roll) the Sick Puppies... Same day, Of Corpse soloed for two on philanthropist and socialite Betsey Cushing Roosevelt Whitney, who mastered the art of marrying well... Mar. 27th, Binky Brown, Cedar Coffins and Of Corpse tallied two each on Kennedy family friend and library curator Dave Powers... Mar. 31st, The Sick Puppies said "Nay" to those who thought they had rolled over in 1998 as they led seven in scoring three on Rep. Bella Abzug. The hit moved them into sole possession of third, just four points off the lead.
April '98
April 2nd, Tomb Essence and Worm Feast scored seven on Rob Pilatus, disgraced lip-syncher of Milli Vanilli ill-fame, dead of a drug overdose... Apr. 6th, D. Perriman Jr. led 18 country fans in a five-point tribute to Tammy Wynette. The points sent Perriman into a tie for second with Pontius... Apr. 10th, Pontius roared back into the lead at 33 as Mary F. Hulman, the Grande Dame of the Indy 500, intoned, "Gentlemen, start your engines." Also weaving through traffic, Frozen Stiff moving into a tie for second at 30 with Nostradahmer. Both Wild Carded Hulman, as did Game legend C. Stanley.
THE STREAK: Apr. 15th, a wary band led by Pontius tallied three each on Pol Pot, checking to see if he indeed departed. Pontius moved to 36 & 9. It was a massive stampede up the Top Ten, and in Club Nula too, highlighted by the career debut of rookie Black Rose, young sibling of Game co-founder Binky Brown... Same day, Motel Styx and Shovellin Off high-kicked and yee-hawed with three each on country singer Rose Maddox... Apr. 16th, 13 gamesters scored on the world's oldest woman, Marie-Louise Meilleur. Persephone and Yo! Rick! went Wild for five. This was Yo! Rick!'s fourth straight year with a Wild Card, and Persephone seems to have found a sure method -- last year she scored her Wild Card on the world's oldest woman. This theme works! For Dinner with Jack Klugman, it was hit #10 as they re-took the lead in the Perriman Pennant race and moved into a tie with the Sick Puppies at 29. And for Lives in Jeopardy, it was their ticket into the Top Ten... Apr. 17th, 17 gamesters bade farewell to Linda Eastman McCartney, photographer, musician and wife of Beatle Paul McCartney. Making a power move were the ACME Undertakers in hot pursuit at 35, the Sick Puppies to 34, and Razor rising to 33. Thundering out of Club Nula: La Petite Morte and We Killed McKinley. And stepping into the history books: Deadnecks with a hit on each of three consecutive days... Apr. 18th, a landslide of 32 voters for former Gov. & Sen. Terry Sanford swept Nostradahmer, going Wild, into a tie for the lead at 38 points with Pontius who scored two, and The Sick Puppies moved to 36. Also scoring their Wild Cards were Club Dead (who used the five points to squeak into the Top Ten at 26), Death Wish Two, and Parbuckle & Spade leaving Club Nula. For Dinner with Jack Klugman, it was hit #11 as they held the Perriman Pennant lead... Apr. 19th, the fifth straight day with one or more hits, Stenchman soloed for three on Gardner Dickinson, a founder of the PGA Senior Tour... Apr. 19th, same day, Lives in Jeopardy moved into a tie for eighth place leading a group of 10 on Mexican essayist, editor and Nobel laureate Octavio Paz. Deadnecks hit their 4th in 5 days. And what a horse race for the Perriman Pennant, with four gamesters at 10 hits -- ACME Undertakers, Humorbid, Lives in Jeopardy, Pontius -- just one off Dinner with Jack Klugman at 11... Apr. 20th, Wilde & Shaw soloed for two on Archbishop Trevor Huddleston, foe of apartheid, the 8th hit in six days... Apr. 21st, Flatliners soloed for two on TV host Peter Lind Hayes -- and so The Streak came to a close, the longest spell of continuous action in Game history.
Apr. 23rd, a big one, confessed Martin Luther King assassin James Earl Ray on 125 lists (11 short of Mother Teresa's record), 122 for three points and three Wild Cards for five points: Balrog's Banquet (his first), Freddy's Fallen Heroes (his first) and The 7th Street Irregulars. In the Top Ten, every single gamester was there... Apr. 25th, ACME Undertakers tied the Sick Puppies for third place at 39 points and Dinner with Jack Klugman for the Perriman Pennant lead at 12 hits with an ace on Christian Mortensen, 115, believed to be the world's oldest man. Also scoring one, the Fire Ants, moving to 4 & 4, one ace away from an incredibly low QPA... Same day, Cassandra Bob and Tim Ormortis scored two each on American photographer and novelist Wright Morris... Apr. 29th, P. & E. Hepner soloed for five on L.A. Rams offensive lineman Charlie Cowan.
May '98
May 1st, C. Stanley led a group of five in scoring on Eldridge Cleaver, author of "Soul on Ice." Also scoring: Dr. Doux, Sir Stiff, Teen Angel, Uncle Milton... Same day, Alibi, Cassandra Bob, M. Hamilton and the Gamesters of Triskelion scored one point each on Otto Bettmann of the famed Bettmann Archive... May 3rd, SLY soloed for one on American painter Loren MacIver whose dreamlike abstracts fulfilled her wish to "make something permanent out of the transitory."... May 7th, Frozen Stiff rabbit-punched the leaders with his five-pointer on country singer Eddie Rabbitt and made the tie for first a three-way at 41 points with Nostradahmer and Pontius. Also moving up, Club Dead and the Merry Little Breezes going to 34 points, and Terminally Inconvenienced entering the Top Ten at 32 points. Missing the hit and dropping out of sight, Lives in Jeopardy and D. Perriman Jr. ... May 8th, Lives in Jeopardy came storming right back into the Top Ten at 32 with an ace on Sen. Jennings Randolph and tied the Perriman Pennant leaders with hit #12. And whoa, jump back, Fire Ants also had the ace and moved to 5 & 5 with a 1.00 QPA... May 9th, Dead Ernest and Nanny's Dream Team scored two each on singer and actress Alice Faye, queen of the 20th Century Fox lot during the 30's and 40's... May 10th, Nostradahmer, the Depopulators and Schrodinger's Cat scored four each on Dominican politician Jose Francisco Pena Gomez. The hit lifted Nostradahmer into sole possession of the lead at 45... Same day, Helena Handbasket, the Gamesters of Triskelion and Iron Maiden scored two each on Theremin virtuosa Clara Rockmore. For Helena Handbasket, it was a beautiful bookend with her 1993 solo on Leon Theremin, inventor of the instrument.
On May 14th, Depopulators scored four hits in one day: singer Frank Sinatra for two points, Everglades crusader Marjorie Stoneman Douglas (their Wild Card for five points), cartoonist and tennis coach Karolj Seles for four, and a five-point solo on basketball legend Earl "The Goat" Manigault. Douglas was the team's first-ever Wild Card, Manigault their first-ever solo. Four hits in one day amounts to six Daily Doubles. They scored 16 points in one day, the World's Record.
Fourteen (14) gamesters tallied the Sinatra/Douglas Daily Double, the greatest number of Daily Doublers in Game history. The ACME Undertakers doubled on Seles and Sinatra. Sinatra bumped Mother Teresa with his new Top Pop hits record, 157. George Burns' record 60 Wild Cards was unthreatened by Sinatra's 28. However, Sinatra missed displacing Mao Tse Tung as Top Pop Percentage leader by just .04%, i.e. 85.32% to Mao's 85.36%. Gentlynowtaps, scoreless since their debut in 1997, scored on Sinatra, their first hit ever. Nostradahmer, with one hit on Sinatra, held grimly to the lead at 47. The ACME Undertakers, with their six-point Daily Double, moved into second at 45. The Depopulators moved into a tie for third at 44 with Pontius, who, with a three-point Daily Double, eased one point away from Frozen Stiff (43) who only had one hit. The Sick Puppies, with only one hit, dropped to sixth place at 41, and the Merry Little Breezes (37) with two hits joined Club Dead (36) and Dinner with Jack Klugman (36) in pushing hitless Razor (36) to the edge, while Lives in Jeopardy (35) scored two hits but were shoved out of the Top Ten yet again!
May 19th, Balrog's Banquet soloed for three on jazz pianist Dorothy Donegan... May 20th, Body Parts soloed on Yellow Pages billionaire John Berry for three. Same day, The Penguin soloed on Oscar winning cinematographer Linwood Dunn for one... May 22nd, Danse Macabre and Terminally Inconveninced scored three on actor/producer John Derek. Same day, the ACME Undertakers led 13 in scoring four on famed DJ Robert W. Morgan and took the lead in both the Gran Prix and Perriman Pennant races at 49 & 15, with Pontius cruising into second place at 48 & 14... May 25th, Pushing Up Prozac soloed for seven (!) on tennis pro Todd Witsken, a doubles specialist who upset Jimmy Conners in the '86 U.S. Open... May 28th, Canada Dry Bones soloed for six (!) on actor/comic Phil Hartman. The hit popped Bones out of Club Nula and into history as one of the few gamesters ever to score on a perfectly healthy, non-political murder victim. Shades of Gianni Versace... Same day, Humorbid soloed for one on legendary investor Philip Carret... May 29th, 57 gamesters led by the ACME Undertakers, who widened their lead in both hits and points, scored on Barry Goldwater. Fifty-six settled for two, but Perry Mason went Wild for five in a nice tactical move. In the Top Ten, Depopulators and Frozen Stiff moved up, and the lobster bib-wearers of Dinner with Jack Klugman returned, bumping out Terminally Inconvenienced.
June '98
June 2nd, Gomez, Humorbid, Lives in Jeopardy and Sir Stiff scored one each on actress Dorothy Stickney, who co-wrote and starred in Broadway's longest running non-musical, "Life with Father"... June 4th, the ACME Undertakers, really stretching out, led 10 in scoring 1 on the dean of American sportswriters, Shirley Povich. The point and hit moved them to 52 & 17, just three hits off the Sick Puppies' record, and IT'S ONLY JUNE! Also rising by one, the red hot Depopulators!... June 5th, SLY showed why she's one of the Game's legendary greats with her two-point solo on former L.A. Mayor Sam Yorty, one of the nation's most colorful, self-promoting politicians... June 8th, Dr. Doornail, Montressor and Yo! Rick! picked up a fat five on General Sani Abacha, iron-fisted Nigerian strongman who dismembered a democracy, oppressed 115,000,000 people, and jailed or murdered all who dared to oppose or rival him, leaving no successor or framework for succession. Surrounded by bodyguards and armed to the teeth, Abacha died of a heart attack. Truly a hit to be enjoyed on many levels... June 9th, SLY was back with another solo, this one on American painter Lois Mailou Jones, showing why SLY is widely known as the Game's Queen of Arts... June 11th, Alibi and Yo! Rick! scored one each on British writer and novelist Catherine Cookson... June 12th, Hanuman soloed for three on the Hug Doctor, Leo Buscaglia. It was Hanuman's first ever career solo... June 17th, Humorbid and Sir Stiff tallied one each on Cardinal John Carberry... June 21st, Dinner with Jack Klugman led eight in scoring two on former Dodger exec Al Campanis... June 22nd, Hanuman soloed again (!) for two points on actress Maureen O'Sullivan... June 24th, Rig R. Mortis soloed for one point on gadfly Paul O'Dwyer... June 28th, Nostradahmer blasted back into first place at 54 points as he led seven gap-toothed bruisers in a punishing seven-pointer on NFL lineman Glenn Montgomery. Pancaked back into second place were the ACME Undertakers; also spiking the opposition in the Top Ten was Dinner with Jack Klugman, rumbling into a tie for 4th at 47 points.
July '98
July 2nd, Nostradahmer and Silver Tapps scored six towering points on the World's Tallest Man, Mohammad Alam Channa (7' 7"). The hit put lift's in Nostra's loafers as he rose to 60 points, eight ahead of the ACME Undertakers. Same day, Aimee Thanatogenos, Helena Handbasket, Iron Maiden and Our American Cousin scored one each on Kay Thompson, author of the Eloise books... July 5th, Hanuman was back for his third solo since June 12th, this one a deuce on NFL Hall of Fame QB Sid Luckman! A bold bid for Class List!... July 6th, 61 sang "Happy Trails" with the ACME Undertakers taking the high parts as they notched hit #18 (wow!), rose to within six of Nostradahmer and led the way with two points on Roy Rogers. Also in cowboy togs were Dinner with Jack Klugman rising to third at 49 & 17, the Merry Little Breezes up to 43 & 14, Terminally Inconvenienced back in the Top Ten at 41, Women with Spurs (how perfect!) and out of Club Nula: rookie Martin G. Fender with his all-guitarist list. And for one very special gamester, this was the crowning moment of a career-long quest: Binky Brown has carried Roy Rogers every year he's played since 1970, and today, those silver sixers are his to wear... July 7th, a Nigerian two-fer! You remember Nigerian strongman Sani Abacha's sudden five-point departure on June 8th, observed by Dr. Doornail, Montressor and Yo! Rick! Well, many thought that Abacha's passing would bode well for opposition leader and would-be president Moshood Abiola, who Abacha had jailed in 1994 after Abiola unforgiveably won a presidential election. But when Abiola was allowed to meet with U.S. representatives for the first time since his imprisonment, he died of a heart attack. Picking up four points on the other end of this Nigerian two-fer were Ghostwriter and La Petite Morte... July 8th, the Sick Puppies led four in scoring four on former Pepsico CEO Wayne Calloway. The hit moved the Pups past Pontius into a tie for third with Dinner with Jack Klugman. Also scoring: Humorbid, coming in under the radar at 29 points but with 16 hits (!), Terminally Inconvenienced passing the Merry Little Breezes on their way to a seventh place tie with Frozen Stiff, and the great, great Morbo Chucks, revving up for their inevitable run at the leaders... July 10th, Nostradahmer led 16 in scoring four on NFL star Elijah Pitts. When the cloud of dust settled, the Top Five, including the newly arrived Terminally Inconvenienced, all called the play, and Razor awoke to move to #9 and send Club Dead into oblivion, with the Merry Little Breezes hanging on in the ten spot by a thread... July 12th, Styx & Stones soloed on singer and songwriter ("The Battle of New Orleans") Jimmy Driftwood for one point, their first solo since 1995, and the third of their career... Same day, the death on March 10th of Irwin ""Sonny" Bloch was reported in the New York Times. Sonny had used his radio show to bilk elderly listeners out of millions of dollars, so it's no wonder his family tried to keep a low profile. For our purposes, Nostradahmer moved to 68 points and led 20 other gamesters in scoring four. The Sick Puppies moved into third at 57, Pontius into fifth at 52, Razor into seventh at 48 and the Merry Little Breezes into eighth at 47. Now hanging by a thread: Frozen Stiff at 45. And the announcement revealed that Humorbid (now at 33 & 17!) had scored a Daily Double on March 10th with his twin picks of photographer Ilse Bing and Bloch... July 21st, the ACME Undertakers led 27 in scoring one on actor Robert Young and tied the Sick Puppies' record of 20 hits in one season, with five months yet to go. Although still nine points out of first, the ACME lads are destined for a place in the history books. Also moving up in the Top Ten, the Merry Little Breezes, tying Razor in 7th place. And rising at 18 hits, Humorbid. Going wild for five were Cala Vera and U 2 Brutus... Ring that bell! July 22nd, Pine Boxer soloed for one on Don Dunphy, the voice of boxing. In a career of more than 50 years, Dunphy broadcast over 2,000 fights and more than 200 title bouts, including 50 for the heavyweight championship. The solo was the first ever for Pine Boxer... July 23rd, Dr. Doornail soloed for five on Mark Hampton, the interior decorator whose relaxed traditionalism was embraced by America's stylish elite, making him a celebrated symbol of gracious living for decades. What an achingly stylish hit... July 27th, Dinner with Jack Klugman, Terminally Inconvenienced, Frozen Stiff and Winterkill scored four each on former major leaguer Bill Tuttle, who bravely spent his last five years trying to warn other major leaguers about the consequences of chewing tobacco... July 30th, Persephone rose to 30 points as she led 14 in scoring two on Buffalo Bob Smith of TV's pioneering Howdy Dowdy Show. Also scoring, Women with Spurs on their second Man in Fringe (the first being Roy Rogers), and Leroy Estmort qualifying for a QPA while the trees are still fully in leaf.
August '98
August 5th, Teen Angel soloed for two on Bulgarian Soviet Bloc strongman Tudor Zhivkov. It was the third solo of her career and her first in five years... Same day, Tim Ormortis soloed for two on guitarist Eldon Shamblin, who played with Bob Wills, said to be the greatest rhythm guitarist in the world. The hit doubled his score, but more importantly enhanced his already outrageous reputation for style and erudition... Aug. 6th, Boneyard Dog, Chapter E, Hanuman and Pushing Up Prozac tallied two each on Hall of Fame announcer Jack Brickhouse, forerunner of Harry Carey in the Cubs' booth... Same day, Johnny B. Dead soloed for four on Delbert Ward, award-winning documentary star ("Brother's Keeper") and alleged mercy killer. The hit moved him to 45 points and the #11 spot, just on the edge of Top Ten stardom... Aug. 7th, Fire Ants soloed for one point (protecting that 1.0 QPA) on the founder of the nation's largest home furnishings store, Rose Blumkin, who sold carpet past the age of 100 by whipping around her store in a golf cart... Aug. 11th, Humorbid and Tim Ormortis played a swanky one-point jazz duet on Benny Waters. How old was Benny? Old enough to have taught clarinet to a member of Duke Ellington's 1920's band... Aug. 13th, Fire Ants, Humorbid and Tim Ormortis got together for an ace on author Julian Green. It was hit #20 for Humorbid, tying him with the ACME Undertakers for the Perriman Pennant lead... August 16th, a day of solo brilliance: The Dada Sisters soloed for one point on Dorothy West, Harlem Renaissance author. It was career solo #7 for Team Dada. Same day, Leroy Estmort soloed for three points on Pulitzer Prize winning sports writer Jim Murray. It was career solo #1 for Leroy, a long-awaited and richly deserved sign of style. Same day, The Great Beyond tallied a solo two on comic actor Phil Leeds; it was the sixth solo of the Great One's distinguished career... Aug. 22nd, the second place ACME Undertakers led 13 in scoring two on Hall of Fame thoroughbred trainer Woody Stephens. Also going to the whip in the Top Ten: Dinner with Jack Klugman, Terminally Inconveninced and the Depopulators. This was hit #21 for the lads of ACME, a new world's single-season record... Aug. 24th, Death Wish Two led nine gamesters in scoring two on actor E. G. Marshall... Aug. 25th, D. Perriman Jr. led 14 in scoring one on Supreme Court Judge Lewis Powell.
September '98
September 2nd, Death's Doorstep soloed on author Allen Drury on his 80th birthday. What timing, missing a three-point solo by hours, and having to settle for two... Sept. 6th, Boneyard Dog led 12 samurai in scoring two on Japanese film director Akira Kurosawa... Sept. 10th, Mexican drug lord Rafael Munoz Talavera was found shot to death in the backseat of his armored Jeep Cherokee. 2 Dead Crew and Uncle Milton, both of whom have made calls on assassinations in the past, were there for the six-point pick-up... Sept. 13th, Tomb Essence wild-carded George Wallace for five, and Nostradahmer (moving to 71 points) led 81 more gamesters in scoring three on the legendary politician. In the Perriman Pennant race, the ACME Undertakers rose to 22 hits.. Sept. 14, Alibi and Fade to Black scored one each on former Chinese president Yang Shangkun... Sept. 14th, the death of legendary New Orleans bluesman Johnny Adams, the "Tan Canary," brought four points to Death Warmed Over, the Depopulators and the King of Pain... Sept. 17th, the ACME Undertakers, setting a new Perriman Pennant record (23) with every hit, went WILD on the oldest Major League Baseball player, Chet "Red" Hoff, 107, and drew to within two points of Nostradahmer at 69. Also going wild, Dr. Tom(b) and Lives in Jeopardy. And moving up one in the Top Ten was Pontius, leaving Frozen Stiff behind and tying the Depopulators at 53. Mr. Bastard and Legion of Doom rounded out the scoring... Sept. 19th, the Virtual Sexton hit the second solo of his career, this one a deuce on British actress Patricia Hayes. Same day, Bury Pranksters and Our American Cousin tallied one point each and laid their QPA's on the grave of Civil War widow Daisy Anderson, one of the last of her kind... Sept. 29th, 13 gamesters led by Professor Plum voted for former L.A. Mayor Tom Bradley, the first African American to be elected mayor of a major U.S. city, and collected two points in patronage.
October '98
October 2nd, singing cowboy and Los Angeles Angels owner Gene Autry died and the ACME Undertakers rose to within one point of the leading Nostradahmer with hit #24 as they led 70 gamesters in a spirited rendition of "Back in the Saddle Again." There were so many good stories with this hit: the King of Pain, having the season of his career, went Wild and stood tall in the stirrups; Gentlynowtaps who have had just one hit in their career until now, doubled that total and it was a Wild Card to boot; Women with Spurs yodeled "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?" as they bookended their Roy Rogers hit; Martin Fender hit on his second cowboy guitarist; Silver Bobcat World Record holder Dr. Doux finally qualified for his '98 QPA; Fire Ants continued their march into history with 10 hits, 10 points and a 1.0 QPA; Johnny B. Dead moved up one point and pushed Razor out of the Top Ten; and Dinner with Jack Klugman played Sham to the ACME's Secretariat as they continued to break the Sick Puppies' old hits record while eating dust behind the new record holder... Oct. 3rd, rookie Anna Rexic soloed for three on actor Roddy McDowall, a very stylish pick on an actor who had appeared in 130 films... Oct. 3rd, Sweeney Todd soloed for three on Olivier Gendebien, hero of the Belgian resistance and Formula One great who won the 1961 Le Mans race with Phil Hill and who held the record for consecutive victories at Sebring (1959, '60 and '61)... Oct. 10th, the ACME Undertakers scored hit #25, an ace on Clark Clifford, and tied Nostradahmer in first place at 71 points. Thirty-nine more gamesters joined the ACME juggernaut, including Pontius and Frozen Stiff rising in the Top Ten... Oct. 11th, Mac soloed for two on actor Richard Denning who played the governor on "Hawaii Five-O" for 12 years... Oct. 14th, the Dada Sisters and Teen Angel danced a zesty two-point duet on Frankie Yankovic, the King of the Polka. Same day, Death's Doorstep soloed on Cleveland Amory, author and animal rights activist, for two points... Oct. 16th, The Sick Puppies moved into third with a powerful five-point solo blast on Newsweek editor Maynard Parker, the 29th solo of their career... Oct. 22nd, the Flatliners, Truck Savage and Willie's Will scored two each on thriller author Eric Ambler... Oct. 24th, SLY hit her fourth solo of the year (!), for one point, on sex education advocate Mary Calderone.
November '98
November 3rd, The Great Beyond scored a solo two on the creator of Batman, Bob Kane... Nov. 8th, the Merry Little Breezes soloed for one point on author Rumer Godden, and inched upward in the Top Ten, from 9th to 9th... Nov. 11th, P. & E. Hepner hit a booming drive down the fairway for six points on LPGA official and golf rules maven Suzanne Jackson. The solo moved them to 48 points, on the very edge of the Top Ten in a tie with Razor for 11th place. Same day, 9-Jack-9 soloed for two on film critic Nagaharu Yodogawa, who hosted the Sunday Night Western Film on Japanese television, closing each evening's showing with his trademark, "Sayonara, sayonara... sayonara."... Nov. 13th, Men of Steel and Mortis the Cat put one in from three-point land as they double-teamed former NY Knicks coach Red Holzman... Nov. 15th, the Sick Puppies showed why they are always the team to beat as they led 15 in scoring five on black activist Kwame Ture; the hit lifted them into third place at 70, just one point behind the becalmed leaders at 71. Stumbling into the Top Ten, Ghostwriter at 49, just good enough for a tie for 10th place with Johnny B. Dead... Nov. 15th, Humorbid hit a solo ace on producer and author Jean Dalrymple, his 21st hit of the year, making him the third in 1998 to break the Pup's old 20-hit mark... Nov. 17th, the ACME Undertakers returned to sole possession of the lead at 72 points as they led 10 gamesters with an ace on Weeb Ewbank, who coached the Colts and Jets to NFL titles. Also moving up in the Top Ten, Depopulators. And going Wild for five: Mullen's Revenge, with the sixth Wild Card of her career. Same day, Dante Inferno scored the first solo of her career, a trey on actress Esther Rolle of TV's "Maude" and "Good Times." Same day, Passing Fancy soloed for three on actor Dick O'Neill, whose nearly half-century in entertainment included roles ranging from Santa Claus on "Fresh Prince of Bel Air'' to Detective Chris Cagney's father on "Cagney & Lacey.''... Nov. 19th, 40 Whacks soloed for three on ex-Teamster leader William J. McCarthy... Nov. 22nd, The Sick Puppies came scampering back to the lead at 73 points -- by one razor-thin point -- with a tactically devastating and tastefully stylish three-point solo on restauranteur and actor Nicky Blair, who played Elvis' sidekick Shorty in "Viva Las Vegas" and delivered the pivotal line in the Rat Pack classic "Ocean's 11."
December '98
December 1st, Mac hit a WILD CARD SOLO on cinematographer Freddie Young for five focused points... Dec. 5th, M. Hamilton, SLY and Sweeney Todd scored one each on former Rep. and Sen. Albert Gore, Sr.... Dec. 6th, Clean Underwear scored the first solo of his career, a five-pointer on soap opera star Michael Zaslow... Dec. 9th, nine led by Boneyard Dog and Chapter E accepted crisp two-point love taps from boxer Archie Moore who knocked out 141 opponents in his extraordinary career. Same day, Frozen Stiff soloed for one on D. Tennant Bryan, founder of Media General. The hit inched him upward to 54 points, into a three-way tie with the Depopulators and Pontius for sixth... Dec. 10th, Fire Ants soloed for one on Wang Ganchang, head of China's A-bomb program... Dec. 12th, Bambi soloed suddenly for four points as Florida Governor Lawton Chiles dropped dead of a heart attack at the governor's mansion. What style! Same day, 16 gamesters led by the Sick Puppies and the ACME Undertakers scored three on Arizona Congressman Morris Udall. The Pups clung to a one-point lead over the ACME Undertakers who scored hit #27 in the most extraordinary Perriman Pennant run in Game history. Just over the horizon, Dr. Tom(b) and Professor Plum crept to within 2 points of the Top Ten at 47. Also hitting safely, the recently moved Mr. Goodvibes, showing he can swat from either the right or the left coast... Dec. 13th, British film and TV entrepreneur, Muppet Show producer and 1926 World Charleston Champion Lord Lew Grade died. Leading four in scoring one, in a game of inches, was Pontius, moving up to sole possession of sixth at 55 points. Also scoring: Fire Ants (clinging to that perfect 1.00 QPA at 13 & 13), Iron Maiden and the Gamesters of Triskelion... Dec. 14th, Ms. O'Ree and Our American Cousin scored three on film and TV actor Norman Fell... Dec. 16th, La Petite Morte soloed for three on William Gaddis, author of "The Recognitions."... Dec. 17th, Nostradahmer showed he wasn't ready to give up, soloing for two on Irish taboo-breaker Dr. Paddy Leahy. The points lifted him to 73, just two points behind the second-place ACME Undertakers and just three behind the leading Sick Puppies... Dec. 19th, four treasure hunters found Mel Fisher, whose discovery of the wreck of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha, with its estimated $400 million in gold and silver bars, coins and emeralds, made him a legend in Key West and around the world. Blasting to the surface with three points were Breathless, Clean Underwear, Pushing Up Prozac and Uncle Milton... Dec. 22nd, Demento Morte and U 2 Brutus scored two each on TV talk show pioneer Virginia Graham... Dec. 23rd, Willie's Will hit a WILD CARD SOLO on actor David Manners, handsome leading man in the classics "Dracula" and "The Mummy"... Dec. 25th, El Chileno soloed for six on Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Mike McAlary... Dec. 30th, Humorbid hit solo #4 and hit #22 with an ace on sculptor Walker Hancock. And so the scoring ended.
Final Top Ten (11)
Sick Puppies 76 & 20 ACME Undertakers 75 & 27 Nostradahmer 73 & 18 Dinner with Jack Klugman 63 & 22 Terminally Inconvenienced 58 & 17 Pontius 55 & 18 Depopulators 54 & 17 Frozen Stiff 54 & 16 Merry Little Breezes 52 & 18 Ghostwriter 49 & 11 Johnny B. Dead 49 & 13The Gran Prix - The Sick Puppies (76)
It was the solo on actor Nicky Blair that pulled the Sick Puppies up by the ears and into the lead to stay. In spite of having 27 hits, the ACME Undertakers could not top the perennial powers.
The Perriman Pennant - ACME Undertakers (27)
Whoa! Rarely is a record shattered so convincingly. Just two years after the Sick Puppies broke the 20-barrier, the ACME Undertakers put together a list with 27 hits, a new mark that stands as an Everest for all who follow. Granted, there was a tail wind in 1998, with Dinner with Jack Klugman, Humorbid and the Sick Puppies also scoring 20 or more.
Rookie of the Year - The New York Jets
At 35 & 11, the New York Jets dominated the freshman class. Watch for their sophomore list under their new name, El Duce's Revenge.
Doc's Diploma for Class List - Depopulators
In 1998, the Depopulators did something no one else had ever managed -- they stroked four hits in one day, including their Wild Card, a solo, and two more pops for good measure. It was the Game's first Grand Slam for a grand total of 16 points in one day, another Game record, and six (6) Daily Doubles. Both SLY and Humorbid, with four solos each, showed a lot of style in 1998, but for this honor there was no touching the lusty Depops.
The Silver Bobcat - Dinner with Jack Klugman, Merry Little Breezes, Pontius
For Dinner with Jack Klugman and the Merry Little Breezes it was a first-ever Silver Bobcat, but for Pontius, it was #6 and a return to his glory days. All three scored on bluesman Junior Wells, Carl "Blue Suede Shoes" Perkins and golfer Larry Gilbert. But each came to the brink of Bobcat-hood by a different path: the Merry Little Breezes via conductor Klaus Tennstedt (1/11); Dinner with Jack Klugman with a solo on actor Emil Sitka (1/16); Pontius as part of the Island crime spree that took out Hawaii Five-O's Jack Lord (1/21). Their mutual fifth-card clincher, former S. F. mayor and attorney Joe Alioto, came on January 29th.
Reaper Ribbon for High QPA - Ghostwriter (4.45)
Razor trailed by a mere .09 in this race, but it was Dr. Doornail at 20 & 4 who was just one 5-point hit away from stealing the Reaper Ribbon. However, Ghostwriter, who had run several four-pointers to pump up his hits total, still managed to hold together enough of a QPA to win his 8th High QPA crown.
Clete's Cup for Low QPA - Fire Ants (1.00)
She finally did it, driving the record so low that it can only be tied, never broken. Fire Ants scored just 13 points on 13 hits, and now goes into retirement with the World's Record in both Low QPA and the greatest number of Clete's Cups (10).
The Buffalo Cup - Beelzbubba, Col. Mustard, Harris Tweed
What an august gathering! Rookie Beelzbubba found out this is tougher than it looks, while veterans Col. Mustard and Harris Tweed (with her all-royalty list) placed style over frequency and paid the price.
Hit of the Year - Canada Dry Bones on Phil Hartman
Canadian-born Phil Hartman had it all -- fame from his roles on "Saturday Night Live" and "NewsRadio," loads o' dough, a pretty wife, two kids and a big house in Encino. But his wife was plagued by demons, and after an argument with Hartman she went drinking, returned at 2 a.m., and shot Hartman in the head as he slept. For making the call on a healthy, famous, and sudden pick, Canada Dry Bones, who lists only those born north of the US border, entered the pantheon of Game greats.
Let's look at the Top Ten for 1998.
Take me on to 1999.
Take me back to Play-by-Play.