O'Brien to Ryan to Goldberg

I'm a sucker for baseball and... Yes, tapdancing! Especially Gene Kelly. That guy gave tapdancing something manly. Where Fred Astaire was the master of silky smooth dancing, Kelly was a stomper with selfmade choreography that still makes me wanna dance. So what if you discover a movie that's called 'Take me out to the ballgame', stars Gene Kelly and is directed by no other than Busby Berkeley: you MUST see it!
I saw the movie around 1998 for the first time and while the concept (dancing, singing and baseball) almost had me excited beyond compare I tried to tone down my enthusiasm a bit. But was all I hoped for. Kelly and Sinatra (oh, did I forget to mention he's in this flick as well?) return for another season with the Wolves after spending the off season in a vaude ville group. They tell the other guys about all the girls they've (not) conquered (great song). Then the news about the new owner sinks in. It's a woman, played by Esther Williams (you know, the girl that is famous for her swimming on the silver screen).

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There is a blackmail twist and romance and a lot of baseball. I remember the first time I saw the movie and a swimmingpool came into the story. I thought "no! They're not going to put in a pool just for Esther Williams to show off her swimming..." But, yes, they did! It's so funny, it has nothing to do with the story what so ever.
Best things in the movie? The song 'O'Brien to Ryan to Goldberg' where Kelly, Sinatra and Munchin demonstrate a 'great double play'. I love the expressions on Munchins' face. Another highlight, for me, one of the best tapdance numbers ever on screen is 'the hat my dear old father wore upon St. patricks day'. It gives me goosebumps writing about it. So if there are any people out there who love baseball and dancing, pick up this flick, it will make your off season shorter and your heart warm till spring training.      

Following your Favorite Team

Paper
I wrote in my first blog that the only way to follow my Dodgers in the ‘80s was by checking the scores in the (Dutch) newspaper and once in a while I would buy a USA Today for a bit more background. And then you had to be lucky to find a story about the Dodgers. That was how I tried to keep track of the team.

Video Tape
Then in 1989 a sports channel had commercials from PonTel. They offered MLB games on video. You'd subscribe and get one tape every two weeks from the team of your choice. That's how I saw my first Dodgers games. I replayed a game at Wrigley Field over and over again. It was a second step, I actually could see the guys play a fairly recent game.

Live
Well, in the nineties it was still difficult to follow the guys in blue, so I stuck to reading the papers. They didn't do very well in the nineties, besides the wild card in 1996 but I was faithful and in 2003 I finally visited Dodger Stadium for the first time. Since then I've seen them play a whopping 9 times. Only one time at home, three times at Wrigley Field and four times in Shea Stadium.

Internet
Since internet it's been easier for me. I can buy blue stuff and watch highlights of the games. I had a subscription on MLBTV which is awesome but the games are often in the middle of the night and I can't wait to get my hands on the final score so watching a game a day later isn't for me either. All in all, Dodger Baseball is closer than ever. What helps a lot is Facebook. To be in contact with other Dodgers fans on a daily basis is fantastic.

Live (2)
The nicest way to keep in touch with The Blue Brothers though is to visit a game live once in a while. Part of the fun is meeting fans.

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I've met Natalie and Kenny already in Chicago. But I hope to meet some more of you on April 14th of next year. On which day I'll attend the Dodgers - Cards game at Dodger Stadium.

Paper (2)
Funny thing! Just when I wanted to post this blog, the medium that kept me in the loop in the old days printed a picture of Joe Torre. This could very well be the first Dodgers related pic in a Dutch newspaper since the Orel Hershiser one after winning the World Series in 1988.

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