Tuesday, May 28, 2019


Bart Starr’s legacy is vast and historic

Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr and his wife Cherry have been married form 62 years. They talked to us about life, love and marriage at their Hoover home. Photos of Bart and Cherry Starr. (Joe Songer/jsonger@al.com). al.com

al.com
Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr and his wife Cherry have been married form 62 years. They talked to us about life, love and marriage at their Hoover home. Photos of Bart and Cherry Starr. (Joe Songer/jsonger@al.com). al.com
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Bart Starr meant more to the game of football than arguably any other player in the history of the sport.
But that is only a small part of his legacy.
Starr’s grace, humility, courage and love for his wife, Cherry, and their family are what truly defined him. Starr died on Sunday in Birmingham. He was 85. A former Sidney Lanier and Alabama football player, Starr was the MVP of the first two Super Bowls and quarterback of the best team in the NFL at a time when football became America’s No.1 sport.
Born and raised in Montgomery, Starr moved to the Birmingham area after retiring from professional football and lived in Hoover. Charity work was his great passion beyond football, and the NFL’s Bart Starr Award, given to a player each year who "best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community,” honors Starr’s character.
Elevated to stardom from obscurity by legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi, Starr helped build a dynasty in small-town Green Bay, Wis., that launched the NFL and professional football into the national consciousness.
Lombardi was a demanding man, and Starr would come to be known as the embodiment of what the Hall of Fame coach wanted in not only a player, but a quarterback: a pinpoint passer, sure of hand under center, and a confident field general who led his men with toughness and intelligence.
We all tried to play up to 100 percent of our ability, and none of us quite made it” wrote former Green Bay right guard Jerry Kramer, “but Starr came the closest.” 


It was Kramer who delivered the lead block for Starr’s touchdown run to win the “Ice Bowl,” one of the most famous games in football history. Amid a windchill of minus-46 degrees at Lambeau Field, the Packers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 21-17 in the 1967 NFL championship game on Starr’s quarterback sneak. He scored with 16 seconds left.
That run was quintessential Starr, who was at his best in the postseason. He went 9-1.
"The quarterback’s job is to be a coach on the field,” Starr once said. “I’d say there are three things a quarterback must have. One, he’s got to have the respect of his teammates. Two, his authority must be unquestioned. And three, his teammates must be willing to go to the gates of hell with him.”


Starr’s only loss in the postseason was his first appearance, a 17-13 defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1960 NFL championship game. But in defeat a legendary team was forged. Starr and the Packers went on to win five NFL championships over a seven-year span, including three in a row and the first two Super Bowls.
While he won back-to-back Super Bowls, Starr preferred to wear his pre-merger, 1967 NFL championship ring in retirement. Inlaid with three diamonds, the ring signified the peak of greatness for Lombardi’s Packers, and of course that brutally frigid night in Green Bay.
Starr revered his legendary coach, who pushed his quarterback to greatness early in his professional career. For many years, Starr’s office desk in his Hoover home featured a picture of Lombardi and one of his famous quotes: "Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence."
Those words summed up Starr’s career. He worked hard, led by example and got the most out of his 6-1, 196-pound frame.
"If you work harder than somebody else, chances are you'll beat him though he has more talent than you,” Starr said.
Starr called himself Lombardi’s “coach on the field,” and in an era when most NFL quarterbacks called their own plays, Starr did it better than anyone. Extensive work in the film room alongside Lombardi set him apart. No one could read a defense like Starr. His preparation set a standard for quarterbacks of future generations.
“Out on the field, he knows what’s going on with the other team’s defense,” Lombardi once said of Starr. “He knows it better than any of the coaches.”
Said Starr of his preparation for games: “It takes me about a week and a half to really analyze a game — play by play.”
Starr is one of only two players, the other being Terry Bradshaw of the Pittsburgh Steelers, to win Super Bowl MVP awards in consecutive years. Only Joe Montana (three) and Tom Brady (four) have been named MVP of the Super Bowl more times than Starr.
Former Alabama coach Bill Curry was Starr’s center for the Packers during Super Bowl I, a 35-10 victory against the Kansas City Chiefs at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Starr completed 16 of 23 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns to go along with one interception. It was one of three interceptions Starr would throw throughout his postseason career.
More than 44 years after his final game in 1971, Starr’s quarterback rating remains the highest in NFL postseason history (104.8 rating). He threw 15 touchdowns and 1,753 yards in his 10 postseason games, and Starr’s three interceptions are the fewest in NFL postseason history among quarterbacks with at least 150 attempts.
Among those quarterbacks, Starr’s postseason interception percentage (1.41) remains the second-lowest in league history. First on that list is Drew Brees (1.29), another quarterback known for his accuracy.
By any measure, he was one of the best postseason quarterbacks in NFL history, but his five championships put him in elite company. Above all, Starr was a winner, and his five NFL championships were the most of any quarterback until Brady won his sixth Super Bowl this year.
Championships made Starr famous, but perseverance defined him.
Starr suffered a back injury at Alabama during a hazing incident, and it kept him off the field for most of his time with the Crimson Tide. When the injury disqualified him from military service, he gave professional football a shot. Starr was selected in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft. He credited Alabama basketball coach Johnny Dee for recommending him to Jack Vainisi, the Packers’ director of player personnel.
Even then it was hard to envision Starr developing into the player he would become. It took three years and two coaching changes for Starr’s intelligence, experience and ability to meld a winner.
Starr started most of the Packers’ games in 1958, and the team went 1-10-1.
In 1959, everything changed. The Packers hired Lombardi, who brought stability to the Packers and Starr, who from 1954 at Alabama to 1958 at Green Bay played for five different head coaches in six years.
"Coach Lombardi showed me that by working hard and using my mind, I could overcome my weakness to the point where I could be one of the best,” Starr said.
Joseph Goodman is a columnist for the Alabama Media Group. He’s on Twitter @JoeGoodmanJr.

Monday, May 13, 2019

At the U.P. bar called Remie's, cocktails come by the quart

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Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com
BY AMY SHERMAN | asherma2@mlive.com
Want to hit up a classic UP bar that has a feel all it's own, and three sizes of drinks to boot? Then head to beautiful Marquette, Michigan and check out Remie's Bar, a local institution since 1934. We'll get to those crazy cocktails in a minute, first a bit of history.
Remie's, or the more formal name "Remillard's", has a long history in Marquette. Located in the oldest city building that has been used as a tavern, the original bar opened in 1870. It's been both a saloon and a boarding house. The bar has gone through several different name changes over the years, including "John V. Lustila's Saloon" and "Leander Wiinka's".
When Prohibition finally ended in 1933, local prison guard John Baptist Remillard purchased the bar. Three generations of his family proudly owned and ran the bar until 1990, when the current owners, the Moddell family bought the bar.
They made a few changes at Remie's when they took over. Owner Russel Moddell Senior, told us "Our drink lineup and service is a very original, and special indeed. We do small, medium, and large sizes of both beer and drink options, with the 32oz cup being our trademark that we began in 1999."
Before we go any further, please remember to always drink responsibly, and never drink and drive.
Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com
Yep, that is a cocktail being made in a plastic 32 oz container, also known as "Remie's Big Cup".
Remie's offers 100 different cocktail flavors for you to choose from. Owner Russ told us that they've got  "classic flavors, like Long Island Ice Tea, or a Long Beach, to Remie's original flavors, such as our best sellers Sex on the Pool Table, Remie's Captain Cream Soda, or Remie's Red Punch, to name a few".
They also offer customized cocktails, known as "Build Your Own Flavors". "We work with our customers individual preferences of liquors, soda, juice, and other flavors, to create a drink experience tailored and customized to their own personal likes. It is interaction with our guests at its finest and just one of our staff's qualities that make the Remie's experience a fun, comfortable, and welcoming one", owner Russ Modell explained.
Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com
The big 32 oz cocktails start off at $6.95 each, a bargain. You can also get a draft beer in the "Big Cup", and those start at $4.50.
Wednesday the big draft beers start at $3.50. Thursdays you can get the big drink specials starting at $4.95.
The drinks are great, but not what they are most proud of. "Your drink is simply a garnish to the overall experience that our bartenders provide", Remie's owner Russ explained.
Picture used with permission of Remie's Tavern.
On Friday and Saturday nights you can also indulge in one of Remie's house made pudding shots. These have been on the menu since 2015 and over 57 flavors have been created since then.
Photo used with permission of Russ Mondell.
Pictured are Russ on the left, Jon Taffer in the center, and Heather on the right.
They are pretty proud of these pudding shots at Remie's, and with good reason. They're made by Russ' wife and business partner, Heather Modell. This chick is no joke, with an amazing resume in the hospitality industry. Trust us, with someone like this behind the pudding shots, you know they're going to be good.
Heather is the former executive pastry chef for Palace Restaurant Management Group (yes that Palace, former home of the Detroit Pistons). She is also a gold medal winner in the Collegiate Culinary Competition. At that time, she was the first female with a Chef title in the history of the Palace of Auburn Hills.
Heather knows what she's doing.
Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com
Cheap drinks, a few pool tables, darts, and a super friendly staff? Sounds like dive bar heaven may be in Marquette.
IF YOU GO:
111 S. 3rd St
Marquette, Michigan, MI 49855

Accessibility And Acceptability: How Wisconsin Developed A High Tolerance For Booze
Experts: When And Where People Drink Reinforces Longstanding Stereotype
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Experts: When And Where People Drink Reinforces Longstanding Stereotype
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The sun is starting to come up on Sunday morning. It's just before 6 a.m., about 40 degrees and people are swaddled in sleeping bags in a brewery parking lot.
Greg Francyk is awake, sitting in a lawn chair.
"I think pretty much everyone is sleeping," he said, surveying the hodgepodge of tents set up outside Vintage Brewing Co. in Madison. Air mattresses are poking out of a few tents and some campers have brought grills and are starting to make breakfast.
Nick Courtney serves bacon to several friends gathered under a pop-up tent.
"It's a thing to do — you show up, you have some fun, you drink some beers, you grill some meat," he said, filling a plastic foam plate.
The atmosphere in the parking lot is camping-meets-music festival-meets-doorbuster line on Black Friday. And everyone is here for just one thing: beer.
About 250 people are waiting in line to buy tickets to a craft beer festival called Great Taste of the Midwest. Some have been camped out for nearly 24 hours already. The tickets go on sale in six hours.
This is Wisconsin, and people are passionate about their beer.
Zach Holder, left, Bill Disrud,center, Nick Courtney, right, and friends
Zach Holder, left, Bill Disrud,center, Nick Courtney, right, and friends arrived before midnight on Sunday, May 5, 2019, to get in line to buy tickets for the Great Taste of the Midwest. Laurel White/WPR

A Drink For Every Occasion

In fact, eating and drinking outside is Wisconsinites' second-favorite recreational outdoor activity. A 2019 survey from the state Department of Natural Resources ranked it just behind walking and running.
Julia Sherman, coordinator of the Wisconsin Alcohol Policy Project at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said alcohol is associated with things like summertime, sports and college campuses just about everywhere, but she believes Wisconsin is different.
"I think that a lot of it comes from the fact that it’s not specific occasions, it’s almost every occasion," Sherman said.
She noted events like baby showers and children's birthday parties in Wisconsin often involve booze.
"Several people that have moved here have mentioned to me that they're surprised that the adults at a child's birthday party would have alcohol," she said. "But in Wisconsin, many people would not think of having adults over that they didn't offer an alcoholic beverage."
The Wisconsin Alcohol Policy Project estimates, based on federal statistics, the average Wisconsinite has 634 drinks each year. That's nearly 150 more than the national average.

A Sticky Stereotype

Jim Draeger, a retired state historic preservation officer, co-authored "Bottoms Up," a book that explores the history of bars and brewing in Wisconsin. He said there's a cultural consensus that Wisconsin is a place that imbibes freely and frequently.
"People are told to think of Wisconsin that way, because people constantly talk about it that way," Draeger said.
He believes media plays a big part in perpetuating the stereotype of Wisconsin as a boozy state.
That includes comedians like Lewis Black, who has riffed on the theme during standup appearances in the state.
"I love Wisconsin. I love coming here. I perform here a lot because I've discovered that you people apparently have some sort of federal grant for drinking," he said at one performance.
Someone snoozes while waiting in line for tickets for the Great Taste of the Midwest in Madison
Someone snoozes while waiting in line for tickets for the Great Taste of the Midwest in Madison on May 5, 2019. Laurel White/WPR
Draeger said Wisconsinites play into this sort of message.
"People are more outwardly social about alcohol in Wisconsin than they are in other places," he said.
Draeger outlined examples of "outwardly social" drinking: things like craft beer festivals, street festivals and or simply choosing to grab a drink at a local bar rather than imbibing at home.
He said Wisconsin has, historically and today, more bars than the vast majority of other states.

Plenty To Go Around

Some media outlets have used federal census data to estimate the number of bars or alcohol licenses per capita in Wisconsin, saying it has one of the highest rates in the country. Those numbers have also been used in lists of the "drunkest cities in America," which often include Wisconsin communities.
Sherman agrees availability of alcohol plays a big role in shaping the state's identity.
"We're, to my knowledge, the only state where you can have a beer, wine or distilled spirits tasting at a gas station," she said.
Sherman also recalled a demographer's map comparing the number of bars in Wisconsin to the number of grocery stores. The higher the number of bars gets, the redder an area appears on the map.
"And you can — it's national — you can basically pull the lines of Wisconsin right off the map, because we're practically solid red," Sherman said.
The ratio of bars to grocery stores
The ratio of bars to grocery stores. Map by Nathan Yau of Flowing Data

In Our Blood

Some point to the state's German heritage as an impetus for Wisconsin's long-term relationship with alcohol, but both Sherman and Draeger refuted that.
Sherman pointed out the rate of alcohol dependence in Germany is just 3.5 percent, compared to 8 percent in Wisconsin.
Draeger said there were a number of other factors that aligned to make Wisconsin a national hub for alcohol production and consumption.
According to Draeger, Wisconsin's relationship with beer, in particular, was cemented by a perfect storm of immigration, geography and a major disaster for one of the state’s southern neighbors.
German, Polish and Irish immigrants all made up a big part of Wisconsin's population in the early 19th century and brought with them a history of drinking and brewing beer, but the geography of their new home state played a large role in making it possible for them to continue brewing traditions, Draeger said.
"You needed good crop land to grow the barley and the hops. You needed ice, which is pretty limiting, if you think about it in the geography of of the United States," he said. "Those two factors certainly favored Wisconsin."
He also pointed out Wisconsin had an ample supply of quality fresh water, which is crucial for concocting good-tasting brews.
Of course, Chicago had all of those things too. And, on top of that, it was was railroad hub, making it easy for Chicago companies to ship their beers across the country, spurring industry growth.
So why didn't Chicago become the brewing capital of the country instead of Milwaukee?
According to Draeger, the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 derailed the city on its path to alcohol dominance.  
"The fire burned down most of the breweries in Chicago and the Milwaukee breweries stepped into that market," he said.
And so, companies like Miller, Pabst and Schlitz became giants and cemented Wisconsin as a brewing industry hub that still exists.

A Call For Change

Sometimes, Wisconsinites poke fun at their own image as social drinkers.
They wear "Drink Wisconsibly" T-shirts, take pride in tailgating in below-zero weather and share links on Facebook to media reports that rank the state high on binge drinking or "party city" lists.
Sherman called it a "perverse pride."
"But attitudes can change," she said. "And attitudes are going to have to change here in Wisconsin."
Sherman said the cultural association Wisconsinites sometimes embrace has a dark side and a high cost: health care costs, law enforcement costs and human costs when lives are lost.
She said to avoid racking up more of those costs, Wisconsin communities need to embrace other parts of the state’s identity.
So, she issues this gentle reminder: Wisconsin has a lot more to offer than just a cold beer.

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