American Hoops

“One day my mama bought me a basketball
And I loved that basketball
I took that basketball with me everywhere I went
That basketball was like a basketball to me.”
“Basketball Jones,” Cheech and Chong

When the boys were young I’d sing “Basketball Jones” to them at bedtime, complete with gyrations and exaggerations as I adlibbed verses to “Football Jones,” “Soccer Jones,” and the like. They loved it. One of their classmates, John Panepinto literally took a basketball with him wherever he went and in the late 1980s became a starting point guard at Portage. I’ll have to ask Carson Cunningham, a hoops child prodigy, whether that was the case with him. One Cheech and Cong verse goes: “I even put that basketball under my pillow/ Maybe that’s why I can’t sleep at night.”

In preparation for Carson’s speech, Vickie ran off flyers designed by Ryan Shelton, and IUN History Club president Heather Hollister distributed them at Tuesday’s Taste of Soul (lake effect had me snowed in). Vickie also emailed announcements via ListServe to all faculty, staff, and students. Student Life director Scott Fulk ran off 11 by 18-inch posters and put one, along with a copy of Carson’s book on the history of the U.S. Men’s Olympic basketball team from Berlin (1936) to Beijing (2008), “American Hoops,” in the Homecoming glass case. I gave a poster to the bookstore to display and put ten others up at bulletin boards. At lunch Wednesday I talked up the event. Chuck Gallmeier said he’d come and was buying the book. I sent special emails to the History faculty and Chancellor Lowe, who replied: “I am traveling back from Indianapolis tomorrow afternoon, to be in time for the Homecoming games, so I will hope to be able, at least, to stop in on the talk. My wife and I are big-time basketball fans and a guy with whom I went to high school played on the 1972 Olympic Team in Munich. So I will look forward hearing Mr. Cunningham’s talk.” I’ll introduce Carson after Ken Coopwood says a few words about Diversity Programming. Gallery director Ann Fritz is taking care of the seating arrangement and will have a table out where Carson can autograph books.

FACET administrator Kim Olivares was pleased I want to do more interviews at the May retreat. I sent her CDs containing the 15 we did last year, and “can’t wait to see them.” Last spring before her interview she said, “Pardon me, I’m lactating.” There’s a new director replacing David Malik, who remains IUN’s Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. I’m hoping Chuck, who announces the Redhawk games, talks Malik into attending. Because my bowling teammates are Purdue fans and remember his great career at their alma mater, I suggested that they come. I bowled a 525, including a 215 in the final game. With six strikes in the first eight games I had a shot to beat my career high of 232.

“Angles,” the Strokes new CD, is their first in many years, and WXRT is playing a single critics are raving about entitled “Under the Cover of Darkness.” It is about a broken romance, but two lines capture the public apathy over Americans in uniform dying in Afghanistan: “And they sacrifice their lives/ In our land are all closed eyes.”

Linda Kreuger asked me to pick up unsold copies of “Brothers in Arms” that the Post-Trib was selling a couple years ago because they’re renting out half the first floor to another company. They are down to a staff of 40 compared to hundreds during the 1970s when I’d take my weekly Gary history column to managing editor Terry O’Rourke, who invariably called me prof and liked to discuss military history with me. Instead of bustling like in the old days, the newsroom was virtually empty when I arrived on the coldest morning of the year.

I taped Sheriff Dominguez’s explanation of why he thought “Valor” a good main title for the autobiography, rather than his original idea, “Spirits from the Fields.” I promised to put together a Table of Contents and make his latest revisions. He hoped IU Press would consider putting the book out in hardback. I asked Linda Oblack about it and she said she’d try to arrange, in her words, “a split run.”

At lunch a political scientist complained that his chair wrote a negative annual report, which he passed around, alleging from student comments that his sarcasms about Obama, women, gay marriage, and bilingual phone messages turn off potential majors. He contended that he separated his course content from these expressions of rightwing opinion, but I am skeptical. I argued that the report was constructive in its criticism, but I think he intends to bother the dean about the matter, something he apparently does with regularity. Reminding colleagues of Carson’s 4 o’clock program, I suggested that a “Sports in Society” concentration might enhance the A and S division’s fledgling Liberal Studies Master’s Degree program. Chuck said he could teach a Sociology course, and Mark Hoyert suggested one in Sports Psychology. Other future possibilities: Gender Studies, Cultural Diversity, and The Presidency. Chris Young regretted that he’d miss Carson because he’d be in Chicago attending a speech on early American History. He might go to Indy for the IAH conference though.

Getting ready for Carson’s talk, Gallery director Ann Fritz had table, chairs and podium set up, and instructed me on how to turn off the lights and lock up afterwards. My introduction mentioned Carson’s academic credentials as well as his basketball prowess, and I related how when he was in elementary school he’d compete on Ogden Dunes’ outdoor court against high school kids, including my sons. Carson concentrated on matters of race in connection with 1948 and Don Barksdale (the first Black men’s Olympic basketball player), 1956 and Bill Russell (who revolutionized the center position), and 1960 and Hoosier Oscar Robertson (who reinvented the point guard position). About two dozen people showed up, including Chancellor Lowe, Athletic Director Charles Gary, a couple people who knew Carson, a man whose daughters were playing in the 5:30 game, old faithfuls Ron Cohen, Chuck Gallmeier, and Steve McShane, and several Redhawks players and coaches (but nobody from the History Club or department). Asked whether he “still got game,” Carson nodded in the affirmative and said he can still dunk and go one-on-one with his players at Andrean.

Asked what players he most emulated, Carson named two Black point guards, Georgetown’s Michael Jackson and Syracuse’s Sherman Douglas. He credited playing Biddy Basketball in Gary with honing some of his skills. Phil and Dave played in Miller under Coach Ron Hentz, who they called the “White Shadow” because of his resemblance to a star of a sitcom by that name. One team from Aetna had guys who looked to be two or three years too old. A former West Side High School coach on the sidelines barked at any referee who dared make a call against his son. Afterwards, Gallmeier told Carson that his father had been a sports reporter and that IU Coach Bobby Knight once objected to something he said and shoved him against the wall. Carson said that he and his mom had been to Bloomington on a recruiting invitation and when they saw Knight berate a player in a physical fashion, his mom told him, “You’ll never play for that man.” Carson took some pleasure recalling that his Purdue team beat IU in Assembly Hall. He regretted time didn’t permit his talking about the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City; maybe I can arrange a return trip.

Carson stayed around to chat with Chancellor Lowe and Athletic Director Gary, who worked at Purdue while Carson was the Boilermakers’ starting point guard. Sticking his head in the gym, he remarked that the SteelHeads frequently practiced there when he played for them. After graduating from Purdue, Carson also played in the CBA, Estonia, and Australia.

Anne Balay was at the women’s contest, a rout of Moody Bible Institute led by six foot four inch Sharon Houston, who had an intricate way of readjusting her uniform trunks each time she re-entered the game, almost like there was a penis in there. Struggling to blow up a long, phallic-shaped balloon, Anne said she was having erectile dysfunction. Directly across from us in the stands was Chancellor Lowe and wife Pamela, like us admiring the form of the women athletes. It reminded me of when Terry Lukas and I were across from each other at a Mr. IUN contest involving muscular male body builders. At halftime I got in line behind Gary Boys and Girls Club kids for a rather unhealthy meal of chili, chips, burger, and brownie. The Men won easily also in the nightcap.

Page proofs for my TRACES article on Vee Jay Records founder finally arrived with only two needed corrections, both so minor they were taken care of in a quick exchange of emails. The magazine is using many illustrations, including album covers featuring Jerry Butler, Gene Chandler, Dee Clark, and The Beatles.

Attorney Donald Evans asked me to be on his radio show, promising me a free meal beforehand. I told him I could talk about my Shavings series and the Ides of March project. I promised to give him several issues, including one I co-edited with James Newman about the fight to stop construction of Bailly Nuclear Plant. Attorney Ed Osann, whose interview is in it, was his mentor. Ron Cohen appeared on his show talking about the history of folk music.