No One Can Gender-Bend It Like Beckham

A recent New York Times article on men identified in popular culture as “metrosexuals” -- heterosexual men in touch with their feminine side -- reports that the European media have found a metrosexual icon in English soccer star David Beckham.

Beckham, according to the Times’ story, “paints his fingernails, braids his hair, poses for gay magazines, all the while maintaining a manly profile on the pitch.”

But Sydney Morning Herald columnist Peter FitzSimons doesn’t understand why a man needs to know the brand names of women’s shoes, or needs fragrances and moisturizers or “a face that looks like it’s been nowhere, done nothing and spent most of its time preening on the head of a louche lounge lizard found mostly in cocktail bars.”

Trivia time: Who played in every minute of 47 consecutive NBA games?

Easy as A-B-C: Barry Bonds’ recent home runs off Barry Zito and Jason Isringhausen mean he has now hit homers off pitchers whose last names begin with every letter of the alphabet except U and X.

Ugueth Urbina is the only U pitching in the majors and -- so much for hitting for the alphabetical cycle -- there has never been an X.

Measuring up: Sports Illustrated’s Rick Reilly, in a Q&A; with the Chicago Tribune about his new book “Who’s Your Caddy?”, which chronicles his experiences serving as a caddy for several prominent golfers:

“My favorite was probably Tom Lehman, just because we had a chance to win the Disney Classic. Actually, we might have if I’d have ever gotten the yardage right.

“One time, after I’d messed up like three straight holes, I promised him I’d get the correct yardage. So I got out to the fairway fast and stepped it off real carefully and told him, ‘OK, it’s 178 to the hole.’

“And he said, ‘Yeah, except that’s Bernhard Langer’s ball.’ ”

Super money: CBS has already sold about 30% of its “commercial inventory” for the 2004 Super Bowl on Feb. 1 in Houston, according to a recent article in Ad Age.

That amounts to about 20 commercials at about $2.4 million for every 30-second spot, an increase of 14% over the average of $2.1 million ABC got last year.

Such a deal! Milwaukee Buck owner Herb Kohl has broken off negotiations with Michael Jordan, which means the team will stay put for the time being. But few Buck fans have any illusions about the franchise’s fate.

As one potential investor told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “The numbers are ugly. Their revenue streams are going south and there is a huge negative cash flow.”

Other than that, it sounds like a great investment.

Looking back: Golfer Yogi Berra once pointed out that, “Ninety percent of the putts that fall short don’t go in.”

Trivia answer: Wilt Chamberlain.

And finally: LeBron James took batting practice before a recent baseball game between the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians and missed the first nine pitches from Red pitching coach Tom Hume, prompting Tom Fitzgerald of the San Francisco Chronicle to write: “Maybe he really is the next Jordan.”

-- John Weyler