All biography – Alí, one of the tennis players in my new novel “Water Music,” notes – is selective history. And all history is selective truth.
The accomplishments of those we love shine brighter than the achievements of those we don’t. Yet there is a common, middle ground in which we can assess those we dislike, or at least there should be.
So I’ve come not to bury but to praise Roger Federer, subject of a glowing cover profile in October Town & Country and, in analyzing him, to understand something of myself.
The subtitle of the article by Ed Caesar is “The Romantic Comedy Life of the World’s Greatest Tennis Player.” (Really, Ed? Greater than Rafael Nadal, who dethroned him? Or Novak Djokovic, who beat both to become No. 1?) Understand that Town & Country is a luxury magazine. Luxury magazines are in the business of selling luxury. The interview took place “in the high-ceilinged Directoire drawing room of Moët & Chandon, for whom (Federer) works as a brand ambassador.” Enough said.
The picture that emerges...
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Read MoreThe NFL domestic abuse narrative took a twist Saturday as that other “football” game – soccer – got into the act.
Or didn’t. Hope Solo – goalie for the U.S. national women’s team – extended her shutout record to 73 even as she’s facing charges of punching her sister and 17-year-old nephew at a late-night, alcohol-fueled party, leaving them with head and face injuries. (Ironically, she was involved in an incident in which her husband, former football player Jerramy Stevens, allegedly assaulted her. A judge dismissed the case on the grounds of insufficient evidence.)
This as Roger Goodell...
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Read MoreFootball took a holiday from its troubles Sept. 18 as members of the New York Giants’ most recent Super Bowl-winning teams hit the runway at Bloomingdale’s White Plains to support New York Pet Rescue.
Former wide receiver Amani Toomer, former punter Jeff Feagles and former guard Chris Snee walked some four-legged models – or rather the “models” walked them, perhaps giving credence to W.C. Field’s line that you should never work with kids or dogs.
Or maybe you should. At one point, Andy – one of the two-legged models – paused (or should that be pawsed?) to let a woman in the audience pet the dog he was carrying. Then he kissed the hand that had caressed the animal. Lovely.
The event underscored that it takes all kinds to make this world. Football players generally are not as lithe of physique as models. Nor do they slip easily into ready-to-wear or hold a pose the way models do. They’re built for and are used to moving.
But the Giants trio had good fun, with Amani Toomer even imitating the classic model’s slouch for the delighted audience. ...
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Read MoreIt’s getting harder and harder to tell the proverbial players without a scorecard in the NFL as the rules keep changing daily, the scandal widens and the hits (to those off the field) keep coming.
First Adrian Peterson (running back, Minnesota Vikings, felony child abuse charge) was deactivated, then reactivated and now he’s on something called Commissioner Roger Goodell’s permission/exempt list, which sounds like a good thing but is a good/bad thing, because he can’t play (altogether now, awwww!) yet still gets paid, which, as we know, is the most important thing.
Joining Peterson in the lucrative timeout corner is Greg Hardy (Carolina Panthers, defensive end, appealing a conviction of domestic abuse). Will Jonathan Dwyer (Arizona Cardinals, running back, charged with aggravated assault involving his wife and toddler) be far behind? For now he’s been deactivated, but, as we’ve seen, anything can happen. ...
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Read MoreWell, that was quick.
No sooner was Adrian Peterson deactivated by the Minnesota Vikings for felony child abuse than he was reinstated after his team took a drubbing from the New England Patriots.
While Peterson is said to be a few floors short of an observation desk, he may not be as lacking in self-awareness as his smiling mug shot would attest. He’s taken to posting biblical passages of the “judge not lest ye be judged” variety. Religion may not be “the opiate of the masses,” as Karl Marx called it, but it is certainly the last refuge of the vilified.
Meanwhile, the Vikings have taken refuge in that other august document, the Constitution, saying there’s no reason Peterson should not play while awaiting due process. Really? ...
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Read MoreJust following a train of thought from a previous post, in which I discussed a revealing Sports Illustrated cover featuring rival QBs Russell Wilson of the Seahawks and Colin Kaepernick of the 49ers, both of whom seem to be flying commando, so to speak.
The consensus was that though taller and heavier than Russell, Colin came up short in that department. But what most posters missed from an iconographic viewpoint is that Russell’s body is pretty much workaday; Colin’s, ripped and armored with intricate tattoos, is a work of performance art.
And in art history, large genitalia are considered vulgar, as seen in these images of the Apollo Belvedere and the Farnese Hercules….
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Read MoreAnother Sunday, another equestrian event, this time the $200,000 American Gold Cup and Longines World Cup Qualifier CSI4* - W, presented at Old Salem Farm in North Salem Sept 14 by the farm and Stadium Jumping Inc.
The event, which capped five days of competition, saw Jessica Springsteen of her family’s Stone Hill Farm, lead an American sweep. Aboard her equally superb mount, Vindicat, Springsteen was flawless riding early in the draw and combined precision with speed in the jump-off to determine the winner among the immaculate riders. Laura Kraut out of Stars & Stripes road aggressively to give her a run for her money aboard Andretti. (Aren’t these horses well-named?) Katherine Dinan, riding Nougat du Vallet for Grant Road Partners LLC, captured the bronze.
Springsteen – yes, she’s the daughter of Bruce Springsteen and Patti Scialfa – has been trained by one of the best, Old Salem head trainer Frank Madden. ...
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