All John Schulian Stories

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Forget the small-ball, good-writing rule. Football's cultural rise was abetted by a surprisingly rich literary canon

A One-Way Ticket to Obscurity
That's what being black in the first half of the 20th century meant for Oscar Charleston, the greatest baseball player you've never heard of

The Last Word
His death in 2002 did not completely silence the unique voice of Million Dollar Baby author F.X. Toole

One Tough Baby
It may be the most troubled of sports, but boxing still packs a punch in Hollywood. The latest fight film, Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby, just may be the greatest ever

"I'm Mad As Hell And I'm Not Gonna Take It Anymore" Between News Corp. and a new owner in hock, the author has lost all hope for the Dodgers

Old-Style Redemption When Melvin Whitaker slashed a fellow student's face after a pickup game at Virginia, his big-time college basketball career was over. But thanks to the kindness of a friend's family and a fabled small-time basketball coach, Whitaker

Bailey's Boys More than half a century ago, a crusty coach in the one-street Utah town of Bingham Canyon taught miners' sons how to play baseball--and survive in a hostile world

Laughing on the Outside The greatest slugger never to play in the major leagues, Josh Gibson, was a jovial teammate but, in the end, a tragic mystery to almost all who knew him

National Pastime When it was the home of the Braves, Milwaukee was a National League city, and now that the Brewers are in the senior circuit, their fans are back where they belong

Morman's Mission No one has ever chased his baseball dreams with more purity of purpose than Russ Morman of the Durham Bulls. But after 16 pro seasons, has his devotion been richly rewarded or cruelly punished?

PROTECTING THE INVESTMENT NBC'S OPENING-NIGHT COVERAGE WAS AS COMMERCIAL AS THE GAMES THEMSELVES

SUNDAY, BLOODLESS SUNDAY "MYSELF, I'M PARTIAL TO THE IDEA OF LIVING IN A CITY WITHOUT PRO FOOTBALL."

Of stars and Angels
Once upon a time, Tinseltown was a heavenly place to watch minor league baseball

CONCRETE CHARLIE
Chuck Bednarik, the last of the 60-minute men, was a stalwart at both linebacker and center for the 1960 NFL champion Philadelphia Eagles