T.D.

Here's a good one: Livestrong donations skyrocket in wake of Lance Armstrong’s decision to stop fighting charges On one hand, P. T. Barnum and H. L. Mencken seem to have flattered American sports fandom; On the other hand, I suppose the money's going to a good cause (I'd like to see Livestrong's expense/management fee ratios, though).

I noticed that Berkshire Record Outlet (!) had a bunch of Hat cut-outs, so binged on: Ran Blake and Anthony Braxton, A Memory of Vienna Joe McPhee Po Music, Oleo Stefan Wolpe, Enactments Archie Shepp, I Know About the Life Jon Lloyd, Four and Five John Law, Abacus Ellery Eskelin, Forms

They might have go down to 3-10th place finishers to find someone. Here's just one example (from Yahoo! finance, so likely not totally accurate): Armstrong will likely be stripped of his seven Tour de France titles, despite the fact that he passed every test given to him at that time. Fine. If it happens, the logical victor of the 2005 Tour is Cadel Evans. Evans finished 8th in the part of the race in which people actually pedaled, but the seven riders in front of him are all proven cheats. Congrats to Cadel.

Does GoodSpeak follow cycling?

With my usual suboptimal timing, I ordered both the Monk and Mingus sets from UK-based Amazon sellers in the 10 days leading up to Lon's posting!

Tobey Maguire to star as Bobby Fischer in new film

+1. I also enjoy Tipo's Bach, but that is a politically incorrect stance that will likely get me flamed...

Recently picked up this weird microtonal accordion + electronics disc, which is pleasant to nod off to...

This just in: Kasparov arrested and beaten at Pussy Riot trial

Nastia Liukin Brutus Beefcake Nigel Short

I suspect that #9's an urban legend at best, more likely an outright hoax. There's been a similar item re. Arnold Palmer, that I personally recall circulating for well over 40 years! Allegedly from the Johnny Carson Tonight Show. Johnny was supposed to have follwed up with* "Oh, does that make his putter stand up?" * I also doubt the veracity of this hoary anecdote...

Correct! He's now President of the Ukrainian National Olympic Committee.

Dude, ESPN plagiarizes everybody, all the time! NY-area media columnist Phil Mushnick never tires of pointing this out. Usual dodge is to say "ESPN has learned" or "ESPN sources" with reference to things like Yahoo! reports.

On an Olympic theme, who's the guy on the far right (with no nameplate visible)?

When Rudisha first beat Wilson Kipketer's former world record (1:41:11) back in 2010, experts said he would be the first human being going under the mythical 1:40. Now, with three consecutive new world records, he's on his way to legend! Interesting article about the speed of the 800m final. Note that the silver and bronze medalists are only 18 and 17 respectively! And the 800m WR is by no means "soft" - to this date only two men (Rudisha and Kipketer) have gone under Coe's ancient 1981 mark (and silver medalist Amos just equaled it).

+1 (except that I'm not in the least bit a golf fan, but let's just say that I'll be paying more attention to the PGA results women's hammer throw final than to the "dream team"...)

Happy Birthday, Mark!

GA, be sure to check Importcds.com 's prices on these boxes. That's where I've bought most of mine (others in occasional J&R sales). For the Russell, Importcds advertises in stock at $26.13 + $2.99 S/H, so the difference is negligible, but they sporadically run "10% off" sales.

As I understand it, NBC coverage is geared toward prime-time viewership. The prime-time TV-watching demographic is mostly female, so NBC programs accordingly, and does not target the "typical sports fan". Thus you see boatloads of gymnastics in the Summer Olympics and figure skating in the Winter Games, sports that have proven to deliver high Nielsen ratings.

In another upset of sorts, Manzano (USA) got silver in the 1500m - first US medalist at that distance since Jim Ryun in 1968!

I already own quite a few Manne recordings, but must get this one...As a chess player, any album with a tune entitled Isolated Pawn is required! And the lineup is excellent.

I'm kinda partial to rhythmic gymnastics (one of the few all-women's sports). Looks absurd at first glance, but quite hot on closer inspection!

As a former distance runner (well, recreational marathoner), I'm looking forward to the men's 10,000 meters, just starting now. Apart from the standard Ethiopians and Kenyans, GBR and USA have some potential medalists for a change... [Added] Holy crap, Farah (GBR) and Rupp (USA) 1-2, followed by 2 Ethiopians. The great Bekele finished outside the medals in 4th. Mo is going to be a hero!

Happy Birthday, Lon!

Some UK-based sellers on amazon.com (US site) have very low prices on the Monk and Mingus "Complete Columbia Albums". This has been happening with a number of boxes originally offered by Popmarket.