SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Hall of Famer Merlin Olsen, who helped form one of the NFL’s greatest defensive lines before embarking on a successful career in television, died Thursday after a battle with cancer. He was 69. Olsen was a member of the Los Angeles Rams’ “Fearsome Foursome” along with Deacon Jones, Lamar Lundy and Rosey Grier in the 1960s. He later starred on NFL broadcasts, commercials, and as Jonathan Garvey on the TV series “Little House on the Prairie.” “He was ferocious and fearless on the football field and then the other probably more important aspect of his personality was he was a true gentleman,” said fellow Hall of Famer Jack Youngblood, his teammate with the Rams in Los Angeles. “We all know what a wonderful, tremendous football player he was, but he was so much more than that.” Utah State, Olsen’s alma mater, said he died outside of Los Angeles. He was diagnosed last year with mesothelioma, a cancer of the lung lining often linked to asbestos. Olsen filed a lawsuit last year, claiming he contracted the disease as a result of being exposed to asbestos on construction sites where he worked as a child and young adult. “He cared deeply about people, especially those that shared the game of football with him,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said. “Merlin was a larger-than-life person, literally and figuratively, and leaves an enormously positive legacy.” Olsen was a consensus All-American at Utah State and won the 1961 Outland Trophy as the nation’s best interior lineman. The Rams drafted him third overall in 1962 and he spent the next 15 years with the team, and is still the franchise’s career leader in tackles with 915. He was picked to 14 straight Pro Bowls, a string that began with his rookie year. He joined Deacon Jones, Lamar Lundy and Rosey Grier on the Rams’ storied “Fearsome Foursome” defensive line known for either stopping or knocking backward whatever offenses it faced. The Rams set an NFL record for the fewest yards allowed during a 14-game season in 1968. Youngblood joined the Rams as a rookie in 1971, backing up Jones as Olsen continued to anchor the other side of the line. Youngblood remembered Olsen telling him as a young player to push to be great not just on every play, but with “every heartbeat.” “When you stop and think of Merlin on the field, he accomplished things that will never be accomplished again,” Youngblood said. “If it hadn’t been for Merlin Olsen, I wouldn’t have turned out to be the football player that he helped mold and make.” Former Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Jerry Kramer remembered in his 1968 book “Instant Replay,” co-written with late sportswriter and broadcaster Dick Schaap, dreading Olsen. “I’ll be facing Merlin Olsen, and that’s definitely work, not fun,” Kramer wrote. “Merlin never lets up. He’ll run right over you no matter what the score is.” Olsen was voted NFC defensive lineman of the year in 1973 and the NFL MVP in 1974, and was voted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982. “Merlin Olsen is one of the best players in the history of the NFL,” Rams general manager Billy Devaney said. “His passing is a tremendous loss for the Rams. He will always be remembered as an ambassador for the organization as well as the National Football League.” Olsen made a few television cameos during his football career and turned to acting full time after he retired in 1976. He’s best remembered for his role alongside Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert on “Little House on the Prairie” from 1977-81, and on the short-lived “Father Murphy.” He also stayed in the game as a broadcaster. Olsen wasn’t just some former player who knew football and would weave tales of his playing days into the broadcast. He was well-spoken and smart. The son of a former school teacher, Olsen graduated summa cum laude at Utah State with a degree in economics and earned a master’s in economics in between his 15 NFL seasons. “Merlin was a valued and cherished member of the NBC family in the 1970s and ’80s. He loomed as large in the broadcast booth as on the football field,” NBC Sports president Ken Schanzer said. “Merlin brought both his knowledge of the game and his humanity to bear on his work.” Utah State honored Olsen in December by naming the football field at Romney Stadium after him. Because of his illness, Olsen’s alma mater didn’t want to wait until football season and made the announcement during halftime of a basketball game. Olsen was well enough to attend, but did not speak at the event. He stood and smiled as he waved to fans during a standing ovation and chants of “Merlin Olsen!” and “Aggie Legend!” Utah State is also planning a statue of Olsen at the southeast corner of the stadium. “This was the voice of a man who not only became one of our country’s most decorated athletes, but also one of the most accomplished and respected people ever to hail from the state of Utah,” said Stan Albrecht, president of Utah State. The Rams also honored Olsen during a game Dec. 20, with a video tribute narrated by Enberg. Olsen did not attend because of his health. His name was already part of the Ring of Fame inside the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis along with other franchise standouts. “I love the game of football,” Olsen said in his Hall of Fame induction speech. “There was some special magic out on that piece of grass out there on that field. And win or lose when I came off that field, it was always coming down. I am sure that the thing I miss most about the game is the people, the very special people and those incredible highs and lows.” Olsen is survived by his wife, Susan, and three children. There was no word Thursday on funeral arrangements.
March 12, 2010 | Posted in
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The commentary on social media during the Academy Awards broadcast was often more entertaining than the show itself. Here are 10 of the funniest Oscar tweets. Think of them as notes from the peanut gallery. -”Shhhh. I’m live tweeting from directly under Sandra Bullocks chair.” – Rainn Wilson (rainnwilson), actor. -”Charlize Theron would like to thank R. Crumb and my 16-year-old id for designing her outfit tonight.” – David Itzkoff (ditzkoff), New York Times reporter. -”Just got lost for a minute, sorry. Where was I? Oh yeah … Zach Effron’s (Zac Efron) eyes!” – Rob Corddry (robcorddr), comedian. -”Looks like a Young Victoria sweep.” – David Wain (davidwain), comedian. – “Shortest Oscar story in history: ( ! > $ )” – Roger Ebert (ebertchicago), film critic. -”Jeff Bridges is quickly closing in on Matthew McConaughey for `best actor who has become a character from an early movie.’” – Bill Simmons (sportsguy33), ESPN columnist. -”Oscars Fun Fact – Samuel L. Jackson spends 40 percent of his yearly income on Kangol hats …” – Eric Stangel (EricStangel), “Late Show With David Letterman” writer-producer. -”Oh, Sam Worthington, your glasses make me think you’re imperfect and therefore accessible.” – Mindy Kaling (mindykaling), actor-writer. -”Oprah’s about to tell everyone in the audience there’s an Oscar under their seat.” – Foster Kamer (weareyourfek), blogger. -”James Cameron is going into his own hurt locker right now.” – Paul Scheer (paulscheer), comedian.
March 8, 2010 | Posted in
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NEW YORK (AP) — Web tracker ComScore says Yahoo took the gold in Olympics Web traffic, besting NBC’s site for the games. Yahoo’s Olympics-devoted site received 32 million unique visitors during the two-week event. NBC’s Olympics site drew 18.9 million unique visitors. Both sites had reason to celebrate. While Yahoo could trumpet its record traffic, NBCOlympics.com tripled the users of the 2006 Winter Games with 45.7 million total visits compared to 13.3 million in 2006. NBC, which owned exclusive broadcasting rights to the games, also drew 45 million video streams of its video offerings online. NBC says that likely helped the site keep visitors for an average of 13.3 minutes, the most among Olympics-devoted sites. — On the Net: http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics http://www.nbcolympics.com
March 5, 2010 | Posted in
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LOS ANGELES (AP) — What O.J. Simpson wore when he was acquitted in 1995 of murdering his ex-wife and her friend was the suit seen around the world during one of the most watched televised moments in history. But the Smithsonian Institution, America’s repository of historical artifacts rejected it Tuesday as inappropriate for their collection. Announcement of the museum’s snub came the morning after a California judge approved the donation as the solution to a 13-year court battle over the carefully tailored tan suit, white shirt and yellow and tan tie. The ensemble has been held by Simpson’s former sports agent, Mike Gilbert. Fred Goldman, the father of the man Simpson was accused of killing in 1994, had been fighting Gilbert for the suit, which Simpson has said was stolen from him. The suit was indirectly responsible for Simpson’s current predicament: The former NFL star is imprisoned in Nevada for a bungled effort to reclaim items of his memorabilia from a Las Vegas hotel room. Simpson had been told the suit was in the room and was being offered for sale, along with other artifacts of his life. It turned out the suit wasn’t there. The Smithsonian announced its decision with a terse announcement on its Web site. “The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History will not be collecting O.J. Simpson’s suit,” it said. “The decision was made by the museum’s curators together with the director.” Gilbert, who has the suit in storage, said he was disappointed with the decision. “Whether we like it or not, it’s part of American history,” he said. “I’m disappointed that they didn’t wait to hear from me and consider my vision of how it should be displayed.” Attorney Ronald P. Slates, who represents Simpson, said he’s keeping his client informed about the donation effort. Superior Court Judge Joseph S. Biderman consulted Simpson by phone Monday, then approved Gilbert’s plan after Simpson said he would agree as long as no one made any money. “I’m saddened by the fact that the foremost museum in America has refused this very important item in the history of American jurisprudence,” Slates said. “Regardless of one’s feelings about Mr. Simpson, his acquittal by a jury of his peers on Oct. 3, 1995 was of great significance and is widely talked about to this day.” Even then-President Bill Clinton watched on television when the jury announced the acquittal in the killing of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman after a yearlong trial. The museum’s spokeswoman, Linda St. Thomas, said curators consider several criteria for accepting donations, including whether an item has historical significance, whether it is needed to complete a collection or is needed for research. “In this case, they knew it was not appropriate for the collection,” she said. Attorney David Cook, who represents Fred Goldman, said he was sure other institutions would want the suit. “We’re going to hang this suit in America’s closet and there will be no lack of people who want it,” Cook said. “It’s a matter of finding the right fit.” He said he already has some ideas including two Washington, D.C., museums: the Newseum, which has a collection on historical news events, and the Museum of Crime and Punishment. Slates said he may suggest that it go to the University of Southern California, where Simpson made his mark as a star football player. Gilbert, who was placed in charge of facilitating the donation, said he would consider all suggestions. He was given 30 days to report back to the judge, and could receive another 30 days if an agreement hasn’t been reached by then.
March 2, 2010 | Posted in
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LOS ANGELES (AP) — A “Baywatch” babe, an astronaut and a gold medal figure skater are among those who will compete on the spring season of “Dancing With the Stars.” Host Tom Bergeron and former finalist Melissa Rycroft revealed the cast Monday. It includes Pamela Anderson, astronaut Buzz Aldrin and reality stars Kate Gosselin and Jake Pavelka. Also competing for the mirrorball trophy will be: gold medal figure skater Evan Lysacek, sportscaster Erin Andrews, singer Nicole Scherzinger, football star Chad Ochocinco and actors Shannen Doherty, Aiden Turner and Niecy Nash. “It’s definitely one of our strongest cast lineups ever,” said executive producer Conrad Green. “Pound for pound, it should be really fascinating watching.” “Dancing With the Stars” returns on March 22. Green said the recipe for a great cast is “part hope, part luck, part skill, part research.” The show’s staff has been courting many of the newly announced contestants for months, he said. The new dancers will train for three weeks before making their primetime premiere. Green said his staff is enforcing limits on training time to avoid the spate of injuries that plagued last year’s cast and caused two stars to drop out before the competition began. — On the Net: http://abc.go.com/shows/dancing-with-the-stars
March 2, 2010 | Posted in
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BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) — ESPN has suspended host Tony Kornheiser from his television talk show “Pardon the Interruption” for two weeks for comments he made on the radio last week about SportsCenter anchor Hannah Storm’s clothing. Kornheiser announced the suspension on his Washington D.C. radio show Tuesday morning, calling his remarks about Storm intemperate and stupid. “As the result of this, I have been sent to the sidelines of PTI for a while,” Kornheiser said. In a written release Tuesday, ESPN called Kornheiser’s comments inappropriate. “Hurtful and personal comments such as these are not acceptable and have significant consequences,” said John Skipper, ESPN’s vice president for content. “Tony has been suspended from PTI for two weeks. Hannah is a respected colleague who has been an integral part of the success of our morning SportsCenter.” Kornheiser described an outfit Storm was wearing at ESPN last week as “horrifying,” saying her shirt was too tight and looked “like she has sausage casing wrapping around her upper body.” Kornheiser said he had called Storm to personally apologize for the remarks. “If you put a live microphone in front of somebody, eventually that person will say something wrong,” Kornheiser said on his show Tuesday. “This was one of the times I said something wrong.” Storm declined to comment, ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz said. ESPN has been troubled by a series of workplace issues involving alleged misconduct by its television personalities, though they have involved behavior off the air.
February 24, 2010 | Posted in
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NEW YORK (AP) — A longtime journalist’s “inside account” of Tiger Woods is being published in June. Atria Books announced Thursday that Robert Lusetich’s “Unplayable: An Inside Account of Tiger’s Most Tumultuous Season” will tell “how golf’s greatest and most famous player built a public persona at odds with his private life.” Lusetich is a senior columnist for FoxSports.com who reported on Woods throughout 2009. His book is scheduled to come one month after another biography about the golfer. That book is being written by People magazine’s Steve Helling. It’s called simply “Tiger Woods” and promises a “never-before-seen portrait.” Atria is an imprint of Simon & Schuster.
February 18, 2010 | Posted in
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NEW YORK (AP) — A look at NBC’s coverage of the Winter Olympics: IDOLATRY: With “American Idol” in the picture, the Olympics are still silver medalists. Television’s most popular program topped the Vancouver Games in Tuesday’s ratings. The winter sports barely made a dent in Fox’s audience, with the Nielsen Co. saying “American Idol” averaged 23.6 million viewers. During the same two hours, the Olympics’ audience was 19.7 million. When “Idol” went off the air, enough people flipped channels so the overall Olympics audience was 20.3 million people, Nielsen said. Four years ago, during the lower-rated games from Turin, Italy, “Idol” topped the Olympics by 11 million voters during their first night. “Congratulations to ‘American Idol,’” said Mike McCarley, NBC Sports senior vice president for marketing. “The show extended its six-year winning streak from 221-0 to 222-0. The show is a juggernaut.” “Idol” had a particular advantage among younger viewers. Among the 18-to-49-year-old demographic that both Fox and NBC seek, the show had a 69 percent advantage, Nielsen said. If NBC wants to unseat “Idol,” the Wednesday schedule probably offers the best opportunity. Snowboarder Shaun White is making his debut during NBC’s prime-time coverage, with other American stars Lindsey Vonn, Shani Davis and Apolo Anton Ohno also set for airtime.
February 17, 2010 | Posted in
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ROME (AP) — “I’m 40 now,” Alexander McQueen said in one of his last known interviews. “When I’m dead, hopefully this house will still be going.” A day after his apparent suicide, the fashion world is confronted by a familiar question: Can his company thrive without his inspiration? Many brands have succeeded: When Gianni Versace was gunned down in Miami Beach, his sister Donatella took over. But McQueen’s work is considered so unique that some are voicing serious doubts. “It is a very powerful brand, but it’s almost impossible to separate him from it,” British fashion editor Jessica Brown said. McQueen, who rose to fame in the 1990s, was known for his daring and edgy style and skillful tailoring. He is credited with helping to revive the once-moribund British fashion industry. “Creating those show-stopping pieces – there isn’t anyone who does that. And he has exceptional skills as a cutter, because of his background in tailoring,” Brown said. In the interview published this week in Love magazine, McQueen was also quoted as saying he thought fashion shows were going to evolve “within the next 10 years.” The French retail luxury group PPR, which controls the McQueen brand, declined to speak Friday on what will happen to Alexander McQueen’s brand or give any further comment beyond a statement released a day earlier by its CEO, Francois-Henri Pinault, praising McQueen’s “genius” and calling him “one of the greatest designers of his generation.” “He generated emotion at the release of each one of his collections,” Pinault said. “As a visionary and avant-gardist, his creations were inspired by both tradition and ultra-modernity, making them timeless.” A tough act to follow, leaving the fashion world a number of succession models – some successful, others less so. Versace’s death in 1997 was as unexpected as McQueen’s, and came at a time when the company was considering going public. Sister Donatella, already in a creative position designing for the Versus label, moved up as the new head of design. But the company has never gone public and acknowledged it has had to battle to keep up sales as the luxury world has been hit hard during the world’s financial meltdown. In contrast with the Versace succession, Franco Moschino’s company went ahead using the sketches the innovative Italian designer left behind after his death following a long illness in 1994. When Tom Ford moved in to take over design at Gucci, he turned the staid leather company inside out to create a brand new sexy Gucci style that became the hottest made-in-Italy label. When he left the company and turned his talent to his own menswear label and new career as a film director, designer Frida Giannini never turned back and kept up a contemporary look. Karl Lagerfeld has faithfully kept up Coco Chanel’s inspiration since taking over as designer at the French fashion house in 1983. Chanel, famous for the little black dress, died in 1971. “I think a living memorial is better than some sort of respectful tomb,” Lagerfeld said a few years ago. “She is lucky, because nobody has survived as well, thanks to what we are doing. I don’t mean just myself, but the people who own the company.” In a world where designers often have as little staying power as coaches of professional sports teams, the conglomerates that have taken over many houses have lots of options on the table to keep the brand going. McQueen himself designed for Givenchy until he was poached by the Gucci Group to put out his own label. He called Givenchy’s past designs “irrelevant,” but later he reportedly acknowledged he treated the house badly and it was mostly money to him. Valentino went through turbulent times after the Italian designer retired. His immediate successor, Alessandra Facchinetti, was bounced the day after she showed her second ready-to-wear collection. The Italian designer, who had come from Gucci, said she only learned of her ouster through a press release. Luca Solca, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein in London, said it was hard to quantify why some brands thrive after their founder’s departure while others don’t. “It’s a very specific and to some extent almost unmeasurable combination of matching the good designer and creative talent with the DNA of the brand. I don’t believe brands only live with their founder. At a point you inject a new designer and creative talent, and if you can find a good match with the DNA of the brand … you can inject new life into it. That is for sure an opportunity.” The big question in today’s fashion scene is what happens when the company is still owned and run by the founding designer, with Giorgio Armani a leading example. Armani, who had a recent bout of hepatitis, has said he wants to remain as his own boss as long as he can. Just as Armani is known for his stand out well-tailored look that may be hard to replicate, the fashion world seems to have settled on the word “unique” for McQueen. “He had a way of approaching fashion – both as a tailor and as an inventor – that was all his own,” Gucci’s Giannini said in a statement. “That unique vision led to some incredible runway moments. He was an enormous talent whose creative genius will forever remain in the history of fashion. I think everyone is feeling this terrible loss.” — Associated Press writer Jill Lawless in London, Angela Doland in Paris and Shahrzad Elghanayan in New York contributed to this report.
February 12, 2010 | Posted in
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NEW YORK (AP) — Jay Leno ushered out one of television’s biggest flops without sentiment on Tuesday, the final night of a prime-time experiment doomed by bad ratings and bad vibes. Leno told a few barbed jokes about “The Jay Leno Show,” and Donald Trump told him “you’re fired.” Leno will return to his old perch at the “Tonight” show after the Olympics. Desperate to keep both Leno and Conan O’Brien, NBC gave Leno a show five nights a week at 10 p.m. EST and made O’Brien the “Tonight” show host. “The Jay Leno Show” was one of the boldest scheduling moves in years, but the size of Leno’s audience – while fine for late night – couldn’t cut it in prime time. Late news shows following Leno on NBC affiliates dropped sharply in the ratings. With some affiliates threatening to yank Leno, NBC proposed cutting his show to a half-hour at 11:35 p.m. and moving O’Brien back a half-hour. O’Brien refused and took a buyout from NBC. “It seems like just yesterday I was telling NBC this was not going to work,” Leno said in his final monologue, and it wasn’t clear he was joking. “This show was supposed to be on for two years,” Leno said, “but we got five months for good behavior.” Leno said he should have known it wasn’t going to last, and he showed a film of him pulling his car into a parking space that said, “Jay Leno, No Parking After Feb. 9.” Actor Ashton Kutcher was a guest, and recently retired pro football quarterback Kurt Warner was brought on to throw a few passes to him. Actress Gabourey Sidibe came on to talk about her best actress nomination for the Academy Awards. Leno didn’t talk about the “Tonight” show move. The studio set, if it’s kept, will require some changes: the number 10 is now inlaid onto the stage where Leno stands to deliver his monologue. When the show ended, there wasn’t any time to say goodbye. A question-and-answer session with NBC Sports anchor Bob Costas appeared to run long, and Leno barely had time to urge his viewers to stay tuned for the late local news.
February 10, 2010 | Posted in
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