Would you trust
this man with your life's savings? Successful entrepeneur and president of Trans Continental Airlines cum boy band svengali,
Lou Pearlman was the guiding hand behind N'Sync, the Backstreet Boys, and O-Town. Now, however,
he's on the lam, wanted by the FBI for swindling old folks out of $317 million. Pearlman was last seen in Berlin on February 1st; as he sat in a crowded theater watching his latest creation, the German boy band
US5, win an international pop award, FBI investigators were already combing through his Florida home and offices.
posted by billysumday
on Apr 17, 2007 -
43 comments
Jim Abbott probably shouldn't have been a professional athlete.
Born without a right hand, he defied the odds and grew up to be a major league pitcher. In 1991 he won 18 games for the Angels while posting a 2.89 ERA, in 1992 he pitched a no-hitter against Cleveland, and in 23 career at-bats, he amazingly got
two hits (while playing for the Brewers). But Abbott (
now a motivational speaker) wasn't the first handicapped professional baseball player.
Pete Gray lost his entire right arm in a childhood truck accident and, due to the shortage of major league players during WWII, became an outfielder with the St. Louis Browns. His fielding, naturally, was unorthodox:
After catching a fly ball, Gray would tuck his thinly padded glove under his stump, roll the ball across his chest, and throw, all in one fluid motion.
But if those guys don't impress you, then what about
Bert Shepard, who had his right leg amputated after his fighter plane crashed in Germany?
The gutsy left-hander from Dana, Indiana taught himself to walk and then to pitch with an artificial leg -- all within the confines of a POW camp in Germany. The length of his major league career consisted of pitching five innings in one game for the Washington Senators. Then of course there was
Lou Brissie, the only survivor of his WWII infantry unit, which was wiped out in battle. An exploding shell shattered Brissie's left leg, causing him to wear a brace during his pitching career.
The 6'4" southpaw went 16-11 in 1949 for the Athletics and helped himself by batting .267. So...who's your favorite handicapped ballplayer?
Eddie Gaedel?
posted by billysumday
on May 24, 2005 -
31 comments
