Cooke Made an Exception for Beathard

Dave Kindred in the Sporting News, writing on how Bobby Beathard, the retired general manager of the San Diego Chargers, had to sell himself to owner Jack Kent Cooke to get that position with the Washington Redskins:

“Talk about a cultural difference. Here was Cooke, a fastidious multimillionaire as pompous as he was brilliant, a man who made a fetish of calling people by their proper name, refusing to use the diminutive.

“Cooke here, Beathard there-- Beathard the very picture of the blond California surfer, a marathoner, a sport shirt and shorts guy even in the executive offices.

“So when I asked Cooke why he always called Beathard ‘Bobby,’ the owner said, ‘I just can’t bring myself to think of him as Robert.’ ”

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More Beathard: Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes that Beathard belongs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame--on the first ballot:

“As for those who believe he doesn’t belong, they are either: a) clueless; b) jealous; c) parochial; or d) what-have-you-done-for-me-latelies (the most popular answer).”

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Trivia time: Who holds the NBA playoff record for most minutes played without committing a turnover?

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A vote for Phil: Flip Saunders, coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that Phil Jackson deserved the NBA coach-of-the-year award, which went to Doc Rivers of the Orlando Magic:

“It’s more difficult for a coach to coach talent than it is to coach a hard-working team. Doc did a great job, but Phil . . . [the Lakers’] percentage of wins went up this year more than anyone else in the league, even though they were a good team last year.”

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No mystery here: Indiana investigators have 90 days to report on basketball Coach Bob Knight’s latest alleged transgressions. Writes Rick Reilly of Sports Illustrated:

“Ninety days? It’s five seconds of videotape! Knight chokes the kid! Film at 11! It ain’t Agatha Christie!”

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Strange place: Jayson Stark in the Philadelphia Inquirer: “From the beginning, when he started his offensive career by going 0 for 48, former Phillies pitcher Don Carman was our kind of guy.

“His Week in Review highlight film included these memories:

“On his airtight excuse for getting picked off second base after his second career hit: ‘I’ve never been to second base.’ ”

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Trivia answer: Dan Majerle of the Phoenix Suns, 59, at Chicago on June 13, 1993, in a three-overtime game.

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And finally: Tom Sweeney, doorman at San Francisco’s Sir Francis Drake hotel, was flying to Boston to run in the Boston Marathon when stock quotes flashing on the plane’s video told of the market’s drastic plunge.

Passengers cried out in despair and a flight attendant rushed back to see what the problem was. Someone told her that the stock market had just fallen 600 points.

“Whatever you do,” Sweeney pleaded, “don’t tell the pilot.”