— poppiV -
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Greek & Indian Food
Lunch
Monday through Saturday
Dinner
7 Nights a Week
992 Willamette
Eugene, Or 97401
343-9661
UNIVERSITY
Eugene Register Guard
... an unqualified delight
from start to finish.”
^ _ Paul Denison
THEATRE
^eUfeand v
’^^jentures 0f
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Robinson Theatre ^
Part I: May 18, 25, June 1@ 7
May 20, 21, 27, June 3@ 1
Part II: May 19,20,26,27 &
June 2, 3 @7
*7A May 28 @1
UTBox Office: 346-4191
EMU Tickets: 346-4363
Hult Center- 682-5000
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€
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344-31062705 wH|amette st*
(convenient parking)
PIZZA
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years running.
— “Restaurants & Institutions”
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1402 Mohawk Blvd.
South Eugene
& U of O
484-PAPA (7272)
30 W. 29th Ave.
Carry
Out or
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Delivery
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Message boards: Your forum for dialogue on topics from student
government to entertainment. WWW.dailyemerald.com
Author to share story of
‘Hammerin’ Hank Aaron’
■ One of the top storytellers
and journalists will share
his personal account of his
idol, Hank Aaron
By Jeff Smith
Oregon Daily Emerald
It all started with a simple base
ball card, and then it became so
much more.
As most eight-year old kids do,
Sandy Tolan eagerly went
through his first pack of baseball
cards on a warm Milwaukee,
Wise, afternoon in May 1964.
His big sister, Kathy, intro
duced him to the fascinating
cards, and she told him to look for
some hometown players of the
Milwaukee team — now located
in Atlanta.
Tolan popped the free stick of
gum into his mouth and closely
scanned the pack but to no avail.
His sister, on the other hand, was
smiling. She was lucky enough to
obtain a Hank Aaron card in her
pack, but Tolan was even more
fortunate when his sister gave the
card to him.
Tolan became captivated with
“Hammerin’ Hank,” and even
when his hometown team moved
away to Georgia, he intensively
followed Aaron’s astonishing ca
reer.
It has now been 36 years since
that first baseball card, and Tolan
has become an accomplished
journalist and independent radio
producer who has written articles
for more than 30 high-profile
newspapers and magazines.
His latest work is an engaging
book titled, “Me and Hank: A Boy
and His Hero, Twenty-five Years
Later.” It deals with heroism,
racism and Tolan’s personal con
nection with the man who owns
the all-time home run record with
755.
Tolan brings his talented story
telling abilities to campus
tonight, when he reads from his
new book at 5 p.m. in Willamette
100. The reading is scheduled to
last about an hour and is free to
the public. It will be followed by
a book signing.
“Sandy is a terrific storyteller
whose radio and journalistic
work is top-notch,” said Alan
Stavitsky, the Associate Profes
sor/Dean of the Journalism
school. “He has a compelling way
to tell a story beyond the facts.
(( This story is more
than a sports story: It gets
into the intersection of
sports and life.
Alan Stavitsky
Associate Professor/Dean
Journalism School 44
This story is more than a sports
story. It gets into the intersection
of sports and life.”
It is in this intersection that
Tolan first realized his idol was
involved in a situation that could
not only destroy his career but
also end his life.
It was 1973, and Aaron was fast
approaching a mark that had been
considered the greatest record in
all of sports — the legendary Babe
Ruth’s home run record of 714.
Tolan had been following Aaron
as he closed in on the milestone
over the scratchy airwaves of far
away AM radio stations.
He was so inspired by Aaron
that he started keepijig a scrap
book of his hero’s home runs,
starting with number 674.
Tolan continued this and soon
learned of the many death threats
and racist hate mail directed at
Aaron. He was not well received
by a large portion of the white
public who did not want to see a
black man break Ruth’s record.
Among the letters Aaron re
ceived was this: “You are not go
ing to break this record estab
lished by the great Babe Ruth if I
can help it. My gun is watching
your every black move.”
Such remarks stunned Tolan,
and he decided to write a note to
Aaron that said the following:
“Don’t listen to them, Mr. Aaron.
We’re in your corner. You’re my
hero. I believe in you. ”
Considering that Aaron re
ceived 930,000 pieces of mail in a
two-year period — the most mail
anyone has ever received at that
time besides the President —
Tolan didn’t expect a response.
But he got one, much to his
pleasure.
“Dear Sandy,” Aaron wrote.
“Your letter of support and en
couragement meant much more
to me than I can adequately ex
press in words.”
The feeling was mutual.
Aaron went on to shatter the
record and escape the craziness
with little physical harm. Tolan
always aspired to meet his hero
someday, and that magical day
came on January 11,1998. Tolan
got a chance to sit in Aaron’s of
fice for 45 minutes and chat with
the Hall-of-Famer, who is now a
senior vice president for Atlanta.
Tolan brought along his aging
scrapbook and also his old letter
from Aaron.
Tolan said the 45 minutes were
“over in a couple of blinks.” But
Tolan’s journey was just begin
ning. He dug deeper into the eye
opening life of Aaron and put to
gether a touching vocal story for
National Public Radio, which led
to the book.
Tonight, at 5 p.m., the public
has the opportunity to hear this
remarkable tale.
Layoff could help Lakers revitalize
By Bob Baum
The Associated Press
PORTLAND — The Los Ange
les Lakers didn’t mind the long
layoff between the second and
third games of the Western Con
ference finals.
Time heals all wounds, and the
Lakers needed time to get over
that demoralizing 106-77 home
court
loss to
the
Port
land Trail Blazers Monday night.
With the best-of-seven series
tied 1-1, the Blazers go into
tonight’s game with the home
court advantage in this series and
the NBA Finals if they beat the
Lakers.
“If we defend our homecourt
from here in, we’re crowned the
champion,” Portland’s Scottie
Pippen said. “That’s how we look
at it.”
The Lakers headed to Portland
on Thursday after a final workout
at their practice facility in El Se
gundo, Calif.
- “In order for us to be a great
team, we have to bring our ‘A’
game, do everything right,”
Shaquille O’Neal said. “We just
have to play, we’re capable of do
ing that. We just have to get one of
these two games or both of these
games, take it to them.”
The Lakers playecHheir “Z”
game in Game 2, their most lop
sided loss of the season.
But they are reminding them
selves that the last time they
played in Portland, Feb. 29, the
Lakers came away with a 90-87
victory. At the time, both teams
were 45-11 and had won 11 in a
row.
In Game 2, the Blazers frustrat
ed the Lakers with a big-guard
lineup that had Steve Smith or
Bonzi Wells guarding Kobe
Bryant, who is just 6-for-18 shoot
ing in the series. Part of that
matchup was dictated by Damon
Stoudamire’s foul trouble, but the
Lakers expect to see more of it in
Game 3.
“It’s been successful,” Lakers
coach Phil Jackson said. “I don’t
see any reason they wouldn’t do
it.”
The Blazers anticipate an all
out effort by Bryant to get his of
fensive game in gear.
“I know he wants to get his
rhythm,” Wells said. ‘Kobe’s a
great player, but we’ve got guys
we can throw at him. The first
couple of games really weren’t his
games, but we’ve got five more, *
hopefully, where he can really go
off on us. So we’ve got to just con
tinue to be humble and just try to
play good defense on him.”
The Lakers also have big prob
lems matching up against
Rasheed Wallace, whose emo
tions sometimes get the best of
him. He had 38 technical fouls in
the regular season and has six in
the playoffs, including two when
he was thrown out of Game 1 of
the Lakers’ series.
In Game 2, though, Wallace
had career highs of 29 points and
12 rebounds — and no technicals.
“That’s definitely the way
everybody would love to see
Rasheed play, including himself,”
Pippen said. “But every game is
not going to be the same game. It’s
hard to get that same result out of
every game, but that’s definitely
the way we’d like to see him. We
need him on the court to be suc
cessful.”
With tonight’s game, Pippen
will move ahead of Danny Ainge
into the No. 2 spot for NBA play
off appearances with 194.
Before the series, Jackson said
Pippen is the only player on the
Portland roster capable of provid
ing the leadership the Blazers
need to get past the Lakers. So far,
Pippen has filled that role and
then some.
“Since the playoffs began, he’s
done a 360 in his role as a leader,”
Grant said. “During the season, he
-was trying to make other guys fet
ter. Not that he’s not doing that
now, but it seems as soon as the
playoffs started, he took on a
whole new role offensively.
“Whereas he was more-swing
ing it to get other guys open, now
he’ll look to swing it and if no
body’s there, he’s going to go. We
know he’s going to go, and that’s
what we need him to do.”