His Eyes Revealed True Nature

David Halberstam was in the Bay Area recently to promote his latest book, “Playing for Keeps, Michael Jordan and the World He Made.”

In an interview with Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle, he acknowledged that Jordan’s famous competitiveness bordered on the unhealthy:

“Not all samurai are lovable,” he said. “He’s a warrior, a killer. If you see a Jordan-like rise in your own eyes, that would be uneasy.”

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Trivia time: Which heavyweight boxing champion had the most bouts in his career?

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Other uses: Minnesotan and former Zamboni driver Paul Howard, on one of the many virtues of the ice-resurfacing machine, which turns 50 this year:

“The shavings are great for packing beer kegs. Packs better than ice cubes, lasts longer--and it’s cheaper.”

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Just like L.A.? Now that the Chicago Bulls are just another team--and not a very good one--the Sporting News took a shot at Chicago’s dismal sporting scene:

“What does it say about a city’s chances when its best hope for postseason glory [the Fire excluded] comes from a team--the Cubs--that hasn’t won the World Series since the wheel was invented?”

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More Chicago bashing: From Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News: “Action: the Cubs have taken to proudly referring to themselves as the ‘defending National League wild-card champions.’

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“Reaction: No wonder they call Chicago ‘Second City.’ ”

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Clean-air courses: If you think it’s OK to smoke outdoors, it’s not permissible at the Tucson Open.

Cigar sales are banned there as they were at the recent Phoenix Open after some fans complained about the smoke and smell.

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Swing freely: Tom Watson, who’ll turn 50 on Sept. 4, commenting on an advantage of playing on the senior tour:

“There’s no cut hanging over your head. So you can play with a little more abandon.”

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FYI: Two sports events made the list of the 20th century’s top 100 stories, selected for the Newseum of Arlington, Va., by journalists and scholars:

Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in baseball in 1947 was ranked 44th and Babe Ruth’s 60-home run season in 1927 was 89th.

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Trivia answer: Ezzard Charles, 122 bouts. He won 96 and lost 25, with one draw.

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And finally: Michael Ventre of MSNBC: “I think more than anything else in the sad, tragic life of Mike Tyson, the recent incident where he angrily threw a television set in the Montgomery County [Md.] Detention Center speaks volumes about the dearth of quality network programming on Saturday night.”