Welcome Back Kotter’s “Epstein’s Mother” Writes Last Excuse Note

Full name: Juan Luis Pedro Phillipo de Huevos Epstein

Robert Hegyes, who played Juan Epstein on ’70s sitcom “Welcome Back, Kotter, died Thursday.

Drink one for Juan…

Cheers,

Woody

Who Got to Marianne Gingrich?

First interview since her 1999 divorce? 2 days before a critical primary vote? Who’s trying to buy an election? Or at least, influence the outcome for their own purposes.

How low can Network News sink?

Perry’s out, who’s next?

AND, what’s with Romney and his tax returns? You’d think these guys would be smarter with their answers.

AND, what’s with the Iowa re-count, lost counties? Who really won? Does it really matter?

AND, what’s with Ron Paul? If not the US Ron, who? We don’t have enough natural resources to cut ourselves off completely from the world. We need them – some of them need us!

Hey Republicans!!! Keep this up and we’ll be stuck with 4 more years of trillion+ deficients, unemployment, crapping economy, crummy housing market, and first-class White House parties. America deserves better from ALL of you!!!

Drink on for me,

Woody

What’s Wrong With Nebraska Football?

Another game, another terrible  ‘beat yourself’ finish. These “end of game”, “end of season”, “end of bowl games” meltdowns have to stop.  This IS NOT Nebraska football. The lack of execution, penalties, and best players playing their worst game – missed field goal, Dennard getting ejected, etc has got to end! I’m tired of the coaches (obviously) answers like, “it makes you want to throw up”, when asked by a member of the media what happened. The fans can throw up. Coaches are paid to prevent fans from throwing up! That tells me the coaches don’t know how to fix it.

I’m also sick and tired of Pelini’s pat comment “…we’ll be OK…” every time a sportscaster asks him what does his team need to do to… (you fill in the blank).

As a Husker fan I DO expect more! Much more!!! I’ve followed the Huskers as close as anyone and longer than most having sat in the Knot Hole Section in my Boy Scout uniform during Devaney’s first year to sitting in the press box with my dad (Bill Wood) and Dick Perry through most of the 70’s.

I’ve come to the realization that there is a direct correlation between Pelini’s eruptions of negative emotions and his team laying an egg shortly after those eruptions. Am I wrong?

I’ve decided that Bo can’t control his emotions when the going gets tough. He is a good coach. He is a good coach when things are going is way. He isn’t a good coach when things are going against his team. Given time, he’ll channel those emotions to be ALWAYS positive. I haven’t seen ANY progress in this area in 4 years.

The question for Nebraska fans is, “do we give Bo time to develop his skills at Nebraska or somewhere else?

On another note: What has the coaching staff done to Taylor Martinez? They have taken an outstanding running QB that couldn’t throw and have made him into a QB that can’t run or throw. In his freshman year, Martinez punished people that tried to tackle him. This year, just before he gets hit, he slows down and braces for the impact. That, football fans, is going to get T-Magic hurt – and hurt bad.

Some will say the coaches were protecting him this year because there was no backup. Maybe true. But how many playing minutes did the backup QBs get this year? Not nearly enough — there still isn’t a backup for next season.

What were they saving Martinez for in the bowl game when you have months and months to heal? I’m afraid they’ve damaged the kid’s mental toughness.  I just wonder if it is permanent? A bloody shame if it is…

Drink one for me,

Woody

Go Navy!!! Beats Army To Make It 10 In-a-Row

In their 112th meeting, Navy beat Army 27-21. ah, those sailors – you gotta love’m.

Drink one for me (I’m ex-Navy)

Woody

“Just the Facts Mam!” M*A*S*H’s Col Potter Dies at 94

Actor Harry Morgan, who appeared in more than 100 films but was best known as Colonel Sherman Potter died on Wednesday at his Los Angeles home. In 1980, “Sherm” won an Emmy award playing the upstanding commanding officer of a U.S. Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (M*A*S*H) during the Korean War. Morgan appeared in “M*A*S*H” from 1975 to 1983.

Along with Jack Webb, he also appeared as Officer Bill Gannon on television crime series “Dragnet” from 1967 to 1970.

He appeared in “The Ox-Bow Incident” in 1943 with Henry Fonda, “High Noon” in 1952 with Gary Cooper, “The Glenn Miller Story” in 1954 with Jimmy Stewart and “Inherit the Wind” in 1960 with Spencer Tracy.

Morgan cried during a 1983 news conference after taping the final episode of “M*A*S*H,” which became the most-watched show in the history of U.S. television. He told reporters, “I’m feeling very sad and sentimental. I don’t know if ‘M*A*S*H’ made me a better actor but I know it made me a better human being.”

He was married twice and had four children with his first wife, Eileen, who died in 1985. His son Daniel died in 1989. He is survived by three other sons, eight grandchildren and his second wife, Barbara Bushman.

Drink one for me,

Woody

Paterno’s Career Ends @ 409*

Hours after this blog predicted it, Penn State fired both Joe Paterno and the university’s president. Effect Immediately. ”Success With Honor” is finally over – over in the most sordid way imaginable.

Are you tired of hearing “Paterno is not a target of the criminal investigation” yet? The actions by the university are not for criminal activity, rather a moral obligation to all of us — in particular to the victims and their families. Gut-wrenching to say the least.

This isn’t over yet NCAA. When are you going to man-up and clean up your mess. Now you’ve got Ohio State, Miami, and Penn State to deal with. How many more BIG $$$ caused issues are you going to ignore before dealing with a national epidemic of ‘win at all costs’.

409*? Ask the victims what the footnote should say.

Drink one for me,

Woody

Saturday’s Nebraska Game Will Be Paterno’s Last @ Happy Valley

This afternoon, Joe Paterno announced that he will retire at the end of the season. Check out http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7211281/penn-state-nittany-lions-joe-paterno-retire-end-season for the details.

This Saturday’s game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers will be his last home game.  A fitting reminder that everything we do, as adults, in this world is “for the kids”. However, it isn’t a given if his announced retirement is enough. Stay tuned…

I suspect it will be a sellout — if not for the tradegy, then for the thousands of Nebraska fans that were going to travel to PA long before any rumors started about this ugly vulgar situation.

Bitter-sweet at many levels for Husker fans. Sad, but an absolute requirement to begin the healing for the victims. I hope the Huskers keep him at 409!

Drink one for them,

Woody

Who Will Replace Joe Paterno?

Yes, it is “will,” not “if”. If Ohio State’s Jim Tressel can’t
survive lying about a few tats how in the sam-hill does Penn State and Joe
Paterno survive this disgusting, revolting, repulsive,
make-you-want-to-puke-your-guts-out saga?

They can’t! AND, they should not!!! No-way-Jose!!!

Look for Paterno to resign before Saturday’s game with
Nebraska.

Rightly so, this soils the entire sport of college football.
If the NCAA couldn’t / wouldn’t rein in BIG $$$ before, it damn better do it
now! BIG BUSINESS, BIG $$$, BIG TV CONTRACTS — all built on top of one of the
most egregious acts that one human being can do to another.

Murder is instantaneous. Child-rape is a life time. There is
a special-hell for creatures that prey on kids.

Who replaces JoePa? Better yet, who would want to replace
him? No self-respecting God-fearing coach will touch this job with a 10-foot
pole. Why? Simply put, it isn’t a quality job anymore. It is NOT a
resume-builder. In fact, it is a pariah.

Look for one of the assistant coaches, one that isn’t
involved in the situation, to take over — if there is one. After the season,
look for many assistant coaches leave to protect their own integrity. Look for
many of the younger players request transfers.

Rivals has Penn State’s pending recruiting class ranked #19;
Scout #15. Look for that to implode as many recruits change their minds before
signing day.  Would you want your son to play
at ‘Disgraced-U’?

With a reputation that is decimated, and no quality coaches,
and no top recruits, football at Penn State will cease to exist. The result
will be a SMU-like death penalty — a once proud program with be a non-factor
for years, maybe decades, to come.

A disgraced institution will be playing ‘at’ football with
no-name coaches and players that nobody else wants. Fans, alums, and boosters
will turn away by the thousands. The money will dry up.

It wouldn’t surprise me if the Big Ten will ultimately
request that Penn State leave the conference — the other 11 schools will
probably insist. OR, does football at Penn State get cancelled all together? They
wouldn’t be the first institution to do that.

Joe, as an employee of Penn State, you followed the rules.
As a football coach, you disappointed. As a Christian and a fellow human being
- you get a resounding “F”. You need to be expelled from the profession of “building
young men”. Your coaching record(s) should have an “asterisk” attached. I’ll
leave it to the imagination of my readers to decide what the “*” should state…

Remember, this isn’t about football, Penn State, or JoePa. It’s
about the kids. Drink one for them. They’ll need our support and prayers for
years to come…

Woody

Janis Joplin: We Miss you Baby…

If still alive, she would still be rock’in at 68 years old.

The Queen of Rock & Roll was an iconic singer and songwriter.
Who can forget Big Brother and the Holding Company, The Kozmic Blues Band and
The Full Tilt Boogie Band?

Death at 27 is premature for anyone. What if? What if she’d
been writing and performing non-stop since 1970? What would the world of rock
music look like?

We’ll never know…

Many may view her as a black sheep. I’d say a pearl — a
black pearl – the rarest of the rare.

“Pearl” is the only quadraphonic album I ever purchased (in
the Far East while in Vietnam). Check out http://www.ussmullinnix.org/JanisJoplin_Pearl.html.

My Woodstock page: http://www.ussmullinnix.org/WoodysWoodstock.html.

Drink one for me,

Woody

Delores Hope: Thanks For the Memories & Bob…

Dolores Hope, wife
of the Bob Hope died Monday at age 102 at her home in Toluca Lake of natural
causes. The Hopes, who were married for 69 years, adopted four children.

In 2002, the Hopes donated $1 million to the Academy of Television Arts &
Sciences Foundation in North Hollywood to create the Archive Comedy Collection.
It paid for 100 interviews with comedy legends, as well as writers and
production personnel who had worked with Hope.

She joined him on many of his USO trips to entertain the troops and often sang
in the show. After they married, she put her professional singing career on
hold to raise their four children. She made her last visit to the troops during
Operation Desert Storm when — at age 84 — she performed “White Christmas” on the
back of a truck in the middle of the Saudi desert.

Services will be private, and the burial will be at Bob Hope Memorial Garden at
San Fernando Mission, next to her late husband.

Check out http://www.ussmullinnix.org/BobHopeTribute.html
to see the joy that Bob and his troupe brought to the troops!

Thank you both, for
the memories,

Drink one for me,

Woody