Native Washingtonian Maurice Morning Wills October 2, 1932 (sunrise) September 19, 2022 (sunset)

Sonny Wills aka Maury Wills, Today and Yesterday nowhere to run and nowhere to hide.

Dick Heller/Washington Times Sports Columnist

Sonny Wills led the Major Leagues in stolen bases six straight seasons.  In 1962 he stole 104 bases breaking the legendary Ty Cobb’s record and was named MVP in the National League.  Cobb held the record for 47 years.  Wills defined and changed the way the game was played offensively–homeruns became an after thought.’

Over two decades ago when Wills was “Dead Man Walking” as it pertained to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.  In 2002 at the Langston Golf Course in Washington, DC I joined Sonny and his brother  Donald for lunch.   It was here they asked me to start a media campaign to help get Sonny inducted into the hall–enter Dick Heller.   I asked the late Washington Times sports columnist to assist me on this mission. The same Dick Heller who helped me get Willie Wood inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in 1989, and NBA pioneer Earl Lloyd inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2003 and help me to get Jim Brown (NFL) out of jail in 2007.  Willie Wood was the only one to say “Thank You.”  I remember Muhammad Ali once told me never to expect “Thank You” when you help someone else in a time of need–it was great advice.

Stature of the late NBA pioneer Earl Lloyd in the Charles Houston Rec Center, Alexandria, Virginia.

The late Washington Times sports columnist Dick Heller and I congratulate Green Bay Packer great Willie Wood on his induction into the NFL Hall of Fame.

Sonny was like a big brother not only to his siblings but also to me and other youngsters growing up in the Parkside housing project in NE DC.  He was a great athlete at Cardozo High School and he flaunted it. He was one of the best all-around athletes this city has ever seen to include, Avatus Stone, Reggie Lee, Lew Luce (Wilson HS) and Gary Mays.

During breaks while playing in the minor leagues Sonny would come home and join us in pick up basketball games.  We would follow him to the other side of the railroad tracks for the games at an elementary school on Minnesota Avenue in NE DC.

He was a great running back with speed to burn.  During the off season he played football for a popular DC group of semi-pro athletes, they called themselves the Stone Walls.  For whatever reason, they never got the opportunity to play at the next level, college or pro.  They were truly “Weekend Warriors” who were admired and respected in The Hood.

Their homefield was Bannecker Stadium located on the Georgia Avenue corridor accross the street from HBCU Howard University.  On weekend nights you could find football fans packed into the stadium to see their favorite semi-pro team.  The stadium is now named in the honor of Maury Wills aka Sonny Wills.

My freshman year at Spingarn high school, coach Dave Brown would prepare us for the upcoming season by arranging for us to scrimmage against the Stone Walls.  Sonny was a running back for the team, kick and punt returner.  It was like “Men against Boys.”  But it paid off, we had an outstanding 1955 season. We were led by Maury’s little brother, our QB, Donald aka Duck.  We won the East Division title against a strong and talented Armstrong High School team.  Their QB was future NFL Hall of Fame player Willie Wood.  The final score 13-7.

The 1957 Spingarn HS (Green Wave) football team: Lawrence Lucas standing next to NO. 19 and me standing in back row with my helmet in hand.  I am standing between Donald Wills and Al Mayor.

1960 Winston-Salem State Rams: DC’s finest; QB Donald Wills (20)-WR Harold Bell (88)-Richard ‘Jelly’ Hansberry (71)-Charlie Mayor (26) and Reginald ‘Slick’ Livingston (82) 

I thought I was the straw that stirred the drink in high school, “It was throw me the dam ball, I am open!”

In 1957 the Stone Walls returned to Spingarn for a scrimmage and there was Sonny Wills smiling from ear to ear.  This time I was the starting WR and Duck again was the QB.

Instead of Sonny lining up as a running back, he lined up on defense in front of me and he was not smiling.  He shut me down and would not allow me to catch a ball.  After the scrimmage, he came over to me and said, “Harold you are going to be good one day, but not today.”  He walked away, I was steaming!

I still think to this day, Coach Dave Brown was the architect of the lockdown.  I was smelling myself and that day was a wake up call.  Coach Brown knew how to put you in your place without saying a word.

Like Sonny, Donald and I played all three sports at Spingarn.   They were not the best athletes or best baseball players in the Wills family.  Older brothers Guy, Bobby and Dukey were considered better.  It was thirteen of them, even the sisters were great athletes (Mae and Pat).  Rev. Wills their father was a minister and Ma Wills was a stay-at-home mom.  They were not the typical “We Are Family” found in a housing project.  The Wills children stayed out of trouble and kept trouble out of their home.

Sonny spent almost a decade in the Dodgers’ minor league farm system (8 years), but he made the best of those years.  He taught himself to become a switch hitter, All-Star shortstop and the best base stealer in the minor leagues.  He was a 27 year old rookie when he finally made it to the major leagues and was he ready!

From 1961 to 1965 he made the home run obsolete.  He was considered to be the best shortstop of his time, appearing in 7 All-Star Games. His lifetime batting average is higher than many of the Hall of Fame shortstops.  For example, his average is 21 points higher than Bill Mazeroski, 19 points higher than Luis Aparicio and Ozzie Smith, 12 points higher than Pee Wee Reese, and 8 points higher than Phil Rizzuto.

The excitement he brought to baseball stadiums around the country was only matched by Jackie Robinson.

I remember the summer 1962 when he was the talk of the baseball world.  The Wills Family rented a bus to travel to Philadelphia to watch the Phillies take on the L. A. Dodgers.  Friends and family were invited to participate.  Donald and I were home from from school.  We were roommates and teammates at Winston-Salem State University (aka Bighouse Gaines U).

As college student/athletes we were struggling to maintain and we thought this trip would provide us with an opportunity to hit up “Big Brother” for some funds.  Immediately after the game family and friends gather outside the visitor’s exit from the ball park waiting for Sonny to emerge.  He was mobbed by family, friends and fans when he made his exit.  It didn’t look like we were going to be able to get our sales pitch in–it looked impossible!

Donald and I were laid back off to the side trying to figure out the best way to get a few words in with him alone.  As he was boarding the bus to leave for the airport he looked over and saw us.  He pushed his way through the well wishers and took us around to the other side of the bus out of sight.  He asked Donald, “Whats on your mind little brother?” Donald told him we were both now in college at Winston-Salem State and needed a little cash to help us out.

His response blew me away, he said “Guys I am broke, but not broke in the sense of being broke like you.  I am barely able to keep up with my life style I have to maintain during the baseball season.”  

That was all I needed to hear, I turned and walked away leaving him and Donald alone, I didn’t believe him.  I later discovered the Dodgers were paying him ‘Peanuts’ compared to the white superstars.

In 1962 our junior year at Winston-Salem, Sonny literally set the baseball paths on fire when he stole 104 bases for a Major League Baseball record.  He broke the notorious Ty Cobb’s record that had been around for 47 years.   Cobb was the God of the stolen base during his era.  He instilled fear into opposing players, he would shapen his spikes every game and slide into bases with spikes high .  Cobb was a racist and a dirty player and many were happy when Sonny broke his record.

The Dodgers won the World Series and Sonny was named MVP of the league.  In 1963 the following year he send a check to Winston-Salem State University made out to the Winston-Salem athletic department.

The check was from a corporate sponsor and earmarked to be donated to a non-profit organization–enter Winston-Salem State University.

I have no idea how much the check was worth, but through one of our contacts in the President’s office Donald found out it was $10,000.   One day he gave me five 20s out of the blue.  I never asked any questions relating to where it came from.  I had learned early, “never to look a gift horse in the mouth.”

Maury Wills’ omission from the baseball hall of fame had nothing to do with his playing ability.  It has everything to do with his character and integrity and that is where he came up short.  His choice of white women, especially his relationship with Doris Day was never forgiven by white media.  He was a favorite of the tabloids and this pissed off the white media.

The Washington Times column also mention that he had some ups and downs–now you are talking about an understatement.  He said, “I want to be an inspiration for inner-city kids”?   He was never an inspiration or  role model for his own son, Bump.  Despite their problems, Bump went on to have a decent MLB career.

Andy Ockanhuser

&

Charlie Brotman

Dave Kane is a native Washingtonian and friend who now lives in Arizona.  He recently e-mailed me a story written in the Washington Post related to a Washington-Jocks-Hall-of-Fame and its new inductees (see link below). Dave and I are not scared to discuss racism in America and that is why I trust and value his opinion on many different levels.  We don’t always agree and I find that a healthy state of mind for any enduring friendship.  But we recently agreed there are some white folks who don’t know when they are being racist—meet Charlie Brotman and his partner, snake oil salesman, Andy Ockanhuser.  These two sponsored a joint venture several years ago and called it “The Washington Jocks Hall of Fame” and to cover their asses they wrote in disappearing ink ‘No Blacks Allowed.’ Let me make one thing perfectly clear that white folks don’t have a patent on racism in America, there are some blacks that could give them a 101 Lesson in Racism as it relates to other blacks.  I can see the Race Card clearly on both fronts because I am black.   You would have to have walked in another black man’s shoes to recognized over 400 years of racism and why they find it difficult to “Just Get Over It” as some whites and blacks have have exclaimed in frustration.  If you read Page One in the Washington Post on Sunday April 19, 2015 you would understand, why some of us both black and white cannot ‘Just Get Over It.’

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/wp/2014/04/14/washingtons-jocks-hall-of-fame/

After I read the story I could not understand the reasons why the hall had been established, but my buddy Dave
hinted he knew exactly why.

“I am pretty sure it’s all White guys and some Jewish guys, not sure why. They are more like reunions for older White guys. I only heard of it recently.”

This was my response to his diplomatic assessment:

Not sure why?

You can bet if Charlie Brotman and Andy Ockanhuser are the organizers, the Race Card is on the table and it is being played in spades with the joker wild.  In 2015 are the DC Jocks Hall Fame telling us there were no outstanding black athletes playing football, baseball or basketball in the 50s?  Three of the greatest all-around athletes, black or white were Gary Mays, Willie Wood and Maury Wills bar none.  Each one played in the 50s! By the way Washington Post sports columnist Dan Stienberg is dangerous with a pen and pencil in his hand.  This group of bigots would never have passed the smell test with the legendary Washington Post sports columnist Shirley Povich (author of No Cheering in the Press Box).  This book should be made required reading for all sports columnist especially those at the Washington Post.

Let’s keep it real, the KKK and their siblings are alive and well.  They are on the rise again, they are no longer wearing robes and hoods.  They are now wearing cop uniforms and hiding behind a Code of Silence and wearing three piece suits and establishing their own hall of fame.  The cops are killing black men across America (see Sunday’s Page 1 story in the Washington Post) and getting away with it.  In 2007 Mike Tyson’s last fight here in DC at the Verizon Center I asked Charlie Brotman’s partner with Brotman’s & Associates how they could take black money but hire only whites?  His partner whose name escapes me said, “Harold we have hired black people before, but she quit.”

To really understand why the likes of Brotman can get away with this kind of economic racism you have to look no further then, Don King, Butch Lewis, Sugar Ray Leonard,  Rock Newman, Bernard Hopkins, and the list goes on and on (a story for another time).

In the meantime, Charlie and Andy have decided to help turn back the clock to the 30s, 40s & 50s by creating their own “Whites Only” hall of fame.

If this is “The Race Card”, two can play it.  And anyone who supports these two idiots and their plantation mentality, evidently, have problems of their own.

Dave Harris is seen in photo with hall of fame inductee Dan Droze.  Dave was an All-Met in football and track.  He caught the winning touchdown pass from Droze in the first integrated High School All-Star Game against undefeated St. Johns.  Dave played both offense and defense in the game.

Harris & Droze together again.

The 2oo4 50th Anniversary of Droze to Harris for the winning TD was the First integrated HS All-Star Game in the Nation’s Capital (1954).  The DC Jocks Hall of Fame honoring Droze and others set race relations back 50 years.

In all due respect Droze was not even the best passer on the DC Public HS All-Star team–it was QB Willie Wood of Armstrong HS.  Willie was selected the MVP as the outstanding defensive player.  Gary Mays without a doubt was the best all-around athlete in DC in the 50s.  You can see “The One Arm Bandit” in photo below as he drives around two Spingarn HS defenders that include the great Elgin Baylor (No. 23).  Spingarn lost the game as Gary shutdown the high scoring Baylor who was averaging close to 50 points a game.  Gary was also a catcher on the Armstrong HS baseball team and a stolen base against him was next to impossible.  He was also a power hitter.  In a MLB tryout held at old Griffin Stadium in 1953 he was chosen MVP after allowing no stolen bases and hitting a home run out of the stadium with the one arm.  Maury Wills aka Sonny played every sport at Cardozo HS and was an All-Star in all of them.  He turned the stolen base into an offensive weapon and was a record breaker in the art of the stolen base.  He led MLB in steals on several occasions.  He also led the LA Dodgers to a World Series and he is still in search of the MLB Hall of Fame.  Dan Droze and the other hall of fame inductees were not in the same class as Dave, Willie, Gary and Maury–where is the beef?

Photos: see below four the best black all-around athletes in DC in the 50s.

Willie Wood                      Gary Mays                     Maury Wills      Dan Droze (inductee)     Joe Mona (inductee No. 86)       Dave Harris

I want to congratulate my former teammates Dan Droze and Joe Mona on their induction into the Charlie Brotman and Any Ockanhuser Hall of Fame for whites only!

Mona was an outstanding high school athlete (St. John’s) and wide receiver at Maryland University.  Droze’s feats as a high school running back are legendary.  Mona and Droze were my teammates with the Washington Redskin’s farm team, the Virginia Sailors before they were cut.

The Washington Post writer Dan Steinberg keeps coming up short when he tries to write about sports history here in the Nation’s Capital—he continues to prove he does not have a clue.

For example; In the 50s playing at Eastern High School were several great athletes that I faced on the field of play.  One was Bernie Chavis who played football, basketball and baseball and the other was Jimmy ‘Blondie’ Jones, who played Football, basketball and ran track for the Ramblers.  They not only played the games, they excelled at them.  Bernie went on to play college basketball at Villanova and ‘Blondie’ took it to the next level with the NFL Chicago Bears as a wide receiver. There were many other outstanding black athletes in the 50s but I went head to head with Bernie and Blondie.

Charlie Brotman also claims he was behind the boxing success of Sugar Ray Leonard, another lie–I was there with Ray before the million dollar pay days and when the boxing hall of fame was just a dream.  Keeping it real in DC sports (The Original Inside Sports).

Ray and Harold in Inside Sports radio studios

In Appreciation & Setting the Record Straight

NBA Earl Lloyd

Dick Heller

Earl and wife Charlie

Red Auerbach and Earl

On Saturday March 7, 2015, President Barack Obama; first lady Michelle Obama; and their teenage daughters, Malia and Sasha, help mark the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday in Selma, Ala.  It was there in 1965 on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, that state troopers violently attacked a peaceful civil rights march.  In the meantime, U. S. Attorney General Eric Holder’s Justice Department had accused the Ferguson Police Department of racial bias while routinely violating the rights of black citizens, including using excessive force.  The Justice Department found a pattern of Ferguson police using unreasonable force against black citizens in 88% where the department used force.  In all of the 14 dog bites incidents for which racial information was available, the person bitten was black (it is probably double the original count).  There were racist emails found written by Ferguson police and municipal court officials.  In 2008 one email read, “President Obama would not be President for very long.  What black man holds a steady job for 4 years”?

NBA legend and color analyst Charles Barkley called the blacks in Ferguson hoodlums and thugs!  I think he was a little confused, the hoodlums and thugs were wearing uniforms and three piece suits!  His partner in this Tomfoolery ESPN’s Michael Wilbon went on national television and said, “I use the N word all the time around my friends and family.  My grandfather use it”.  Don’t look for an apology any time soon from neither one.  This is a sad commentary because they both are spreading this ignorance on to their children.

My thoughts on marking the 50th Anniversary of the march on Selma—the participants’ next march should be headed to Ferguson!

Fifty years after Selma, there was Rodney King, Travon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and an untold number of black men brutalized and killed by police departments across America.  According to the Justice Department there are at least 20 police jurisdictions around the country being investigated for civil rights violations.

My friend, civil rights advocate and sociologist Dr. Harry Edwards says, “I love Charles, Michael and Stephen A. Smith”!  My problem, I find it difficult to love someone who does not love himself or his people.  But I understand Dr. Edwards’ love, “You can catch more flies with honey then vinegar”! 

Speaking of 50 year anniversaries, NBA pioneer Earl Lloyd died in February 2015 Black History Month.  He didn’t have a clue that he was braking down a barrier when he became the first black to play in a game in October 1950.  He admits “I was no Jackie Robinson”.  Thanks to Branch Rickey, Jackie was the first black to play Major League Baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.  He made headlines across America for his daring feat against all odds.  Earl received little or no fanfare.

Even though he went on to become one of the first blacks to play on an NBA Championship team. The first black to become an assistant coach.  He also could have easily become the first black to coach a major sports franchise in modern sports history, but his black skin was a liability.  It would take 50 years plus before he would be inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame as a “Contributor”!

As the first black President, Barack Obama and the politicians march in Selma, I am reminded 50 years after Selma, there are still no black owners in the NFL, MLB, NHL and one black owner in the NBA.  There are no black owners in major media, black CEOs make up 1% of Fortune 500 Companies and white men still make double the salary of a black man in 2015 (the cry for equal pay)—did I miss something?

“50 years after Selma, Earl Lloyd owe thanks to 2 white men for his induction into the NBA Hall of Fame, the great Red Auerbach and the late Dick Heller of the Washington Times newspaper.  There lies the fact, “That every black face you see is not your brother and every white face you see is not your enemy”!  I am not aware of any member of the NBA Hall of Fame or one of the 50 Greatest Players of all time campaigning for his induction.

Earl grew up in Alexandria, Virginia in the shadows of the Nation’s Capitol and played at Parker-Gray High School.  He received a basketball scholarship to West Virginia State in Charleston.  The school played in the CIAA (Central Inter-collegian Athletic Association).  In the 1947-48 season West Virginia State was the only undefeated college basketball team in America.

Earl was selected in the ninth-round of the 1950 NBA draft by the Washington Capitols. On October 31, 1950, Lloyd became the first African American to play in an NBA game, against the Rochester Royals.  The Capitols folded on January 9, 1951 after 7 games.  Earl joined the U.S. Army and was station at Fort Sill, Oklahoma before the Syracuse Nationals picked him up on waivers.  He spent six seasons with Syracuse and two with the Detroit Pistons before retiring in 1960.

Earl was called “Big Cat and Moon”, he was one of three blacks to enter the NBA at the same time in 1950. It was only because of the order in which the teams’ season openers fell that Lloyd was the first to actually play in a game. The date was October 31, 1950, one day ahead of Cooper of the Boston Celtics and four days before Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton of the New York Knicks.  Earl played in over 560 games in nine seasons, the 6-foot-5, 225-pound forward averaged 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.

Earl retired ranked 43rd in career scoring with 4,682 points. In the 1953-54 season, he was also known as “The Enforcer aka Hatchet Man” he led the NBA in both personal fouls and disqualifications.  His best year was 1955, when he averaged 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds for Syracuse, they beat the Forth Wayne Pistons 4-3 for the NBA title. Lloyd and Jim Tucker were the first blacks to play on an NBA championship team.

In 1965 Detroit Pistons General Manager Don Wattrick wanted to hire Earl as the team’s head coach.  The decision would have made him the first black head coach in modern day pro sports.  Dave DeBusschere was instead named Pistons’ player–coach.  Earl finally got his chance to coach the Pistons after serving as a scout for five seasons in the 1972-73 season.  Earl always felt the decision to name DeBusschere coach was because of the color of his skin and in the end his own players ran him out of the league after one year.

In retirement Earl Lloyd became frustrated and irritated that the NBA was only throwing him crumbs off of the table when it came to recognizing his contribution to the league.  Those contributions; being the first black to play in a game in the NBA, one of the first two blacks to play on a championship team with teammate Jim Tucker with the Syracuse Nationals and the first black hired as an NBA assistant coach.

It just wasn’t the NBA Hall Fame that ignored his contributions but his own people refused to recognize his contributions as a player in the CIAA (Central Inter-Collegian Athletic Conference).  It took them almost 50 years for them to induct him into its hall of fame.  The only reason he was finally inducted was because I questioned my former coach and mentor, Clarence “Bighouse Gaines” the God Father of the conference about his absence.

We were having our annual breakfast at his house the Sunday morning after homecoming weekend–he was the chef in charge.  This breakfast was for his ‘Boys Club’ that included, Ted Blunt, Earl Monroe, Jack DeFares, Carl Green, Barney Hood, myself and a few other stragglers.  It was here he gave his “State of Winston-Salem Basketball” and received updates on any possible basketball recruits, who was in lock-up or who died or who was headed for divorce court.

On this particular morning I kicked off the breakfast by asking, “Why isn’t Earl Lloyd in the CIAA Hall of Fame”?  His response almost made me fall out of my chair.  He said “The committee says West Virginia State is not a member of the CIAA”!  My response, ‘Come on coach, Earl Lloyd made his name in the CIAA, that is nothing but bullshit and it sounds more like envy, jealousy and personal to me’!  The following year Earl Lloyd was inducted in the hall of fame.

Earl “The Pearl” Monroe and Bighouse Gaines

I have known Earl Lloyd since I was growing up in NE DC as a teenager.  He lived on the other side of the 14th Street  bridge, but he was like a “Homeboy” to most us in DC.  He spend a lot of time in the Nation’s Capitol, he had a brother living in NW DC that he would often visit.  As a teenager, me and my homeboys would travel from our NE housing project to the Bannecker and Park View playgrounds to watch ‘The Big Boys’ play the game.  The big boys included, Elgin Baylor, Gary Mays, Daddy Grace, Terry Hachett, Willie Jones and a cast of other playground greats.  It was here I established a bond with a guy that would become like a Big Brother in the decades to follow.

With his approval in the late 90s I would under take the task of “Earl Lloyd NBA Hall of Fame or Bust”!

My first recruit in this effort would be the man who told me that Earl Lloyd was the first black to play in the NBA, the Legendary, NBA coach Red Auerbach.  I then called Washington Times long time sports columnist the late Dick Heller to join us.

My friends in the sports media like George Solomon (Washington Post), Sonny Hill (NBA/CBS) and Howie Evans (New York Amsterdam News) all said “No Way”!  They were under the impression that Chuck Cooper and Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton were the first until I told them my source was Red Auerbach.

I would use my Inside Sports connections as a vehicle to bring everyone together.  It was during Black History Month in 1998 I would coordinate and host “A Salute & Tribute To Earl Lloyd”.  The  tribute and salute would be held at Bolling Air Force Base Officer’s Club in SE Washington, DC.

I would invite the usual suspects, Sam Jones (NBA), James Brown (Fox Sports), Roy Jefferson (NFL), George Nock (NFL), Dick Heller (Washington Times), Hall of Fame Martial Arts Warrior Furman Marshall, the late Jim “Bad News” Barnes (NBA),  Butch McAdams (Radio One) and the late writer/poet Murray Brooks.

Sam Jones, James Brown, HB and Earl Lloyd celebrate Black American history at Bolling AFB

Butch McAdams would send out press releases to all local media outlets including, the Washington Post and its sports editor George Solomon. Solomon for what ever reason chose to ignore the event.  I would then place a call to Washington Post owner Donald Graham.  I  met Donald while I was working on the streets with youth gangs as a Roving Leader for the DC Recreation Department in the late 60s.  He worked those same streets as a DC cop. It was a rebellion move against his mom Katherine Graham, but he finally came to his senses and took his rightful place on the paper.

Donald, would later mail me a hand written note saying, “George said he didn’t know anything about the event.”  George Solomon was a bald face liar (see hand written note below).

To his credit Dave McKenna from the City Paper along with Dick Heller of the Washington Times would be the only media outlets to cover the event. But McKenna’s agenda was not in the best interest of Harold Bell and the salute to Earl Lloyd and Black History Month.

One of the reasons I remember Kenna’s involvement was because of a story line that he followed after the salute.  For example; He introduced the story saying, “Last week, Harold Bell, the talk-show host, sports writer, do-gooder and all-around rabble-rouser, threw a party to honor Earl Lloyd, the NBA’s first black player.  In a crowded ballroom at Bolling Air Force Base, folks who remembered Lloyd from his days across the river at Parker Gray High School in Alexandria in the mid-40s mingled with those who just wanted to be near the alarming obscure athletic pioneer, who broke the color barrier as a member of the Washington Capitols in 1950.  Lloyd, for whatever reason, (like it had nothing to do with the color of his skin) never got his just due around his hometown through the years, and sadly he still isn’t likely to after this function.  Local and daily newspapers and television stations, along with local sports figures, all stayed away from the tribute.  Local sports celebrities would rather eat glass than take Bell’s calls.  They all got their press releases, so why didn’t they come for Earl? Ask Bell.  Deep down, Bell knew the answer:  The mainstream press and jocks didn’t come because of him. Plenty of people , including some of the biggest names in town, want no part of Harold Bell or anything that he is associated with.”

McKenna’s story was titled, “Microphone as Megaphone”.  He assumed because they would not return his calls for a story about me, they would not take mine.  McKenna needed to check the telephone records at AT&T and see when was the last time I spend ten cents a minute to call Larry Brown, Dave Bing, Jim Brown, James Brown, Rock Newman, Glen Harris, Jim Vance, John Thompson, Doug Williams, Marion Barry, Sugar Ray Leonard and Don King—the Sacred Cows in the black community?  If  McKenna was trying to be objective, he would have checked some of their backgrounds for perpetrating a fraud, drug abuse, domestic violence, lies, alibis, and not keeping it real while claiming to be black and proud!

I apologize to Dave McKenna for not being a part of the “In Crowd” the jocks, politicians and news media personalities who abuse drugs, steal money from kids and lie until their noses out grow their faces!

I also apologize for having great sporting personalities as my true friends, like Muhammad Ali, Red Auerbach, Bert Sugar, Angelo Dundee, Willie Wood, Dave Robinson, Roy Jefferson, Harold McLinton and a host of others who tolerated me and supported my endeavors despite my less then perfect God like qualities.

My grandmother Amy Tyler Bell taught me “A lie will change a thousand times but the truth never changes” and that is why I always stick with the truth.

McKenna’s first lie, he never talked to or quoted any celebrity who would go on The Record as it related to me. The second lie, he claimed he had never heard my show Inside Sports,  still he says, “On Inside Sports, callers weren’t afraid to rail about Marion Barry’s legal and drug problems, and Doug Williams’ benching and maybe establish a link between the two.  And the host, well, he was not afraid to rail about anything or speak up against anyone.”  He got that right!  Dave McKenna, I don’t think is really a bad guy, a little too ambitious is the best way to describe him.

McKenna’s problem, he was trying to use me as one of his stepping stones to a job at the Washington Post (now under new management it looks they have allowed him to freelance).  He is an excellent writer, but like Korhisner, Sharpiro, Feistein, Chad, Wise, Solomon, and Wilbon you cannot trust anything that he writes.

George Solomon and his writers were frequent guest on Inside Sports.  I am amazed how folks in media are always trying to demean our progress and at the same time stealing our ideas and contributions.  But they don’t want to give credit where credit is due (for example;  check the copy rights for Inside Sports and see who owns it) and you will see the more things change the more they remain the same.

I will never forget how Leonard Sharpiro tried to come on Inside Sports to sell “The Real John Thompson story” the book was a joke. He never did his home work.  In turn when I tried to contact him for a Review on my exclusive one on one interview with Muhammad Ali, he would not entertain the thought (pay back is a bitch).  I guess when they cannot find you do drugs and you don’t steal money from the children, their only other vehicle is to tell lies and water down your contributions.

I had one former high ranking NBA administrator say to me as it related to his colleagues/friends in New York writing a story on me for Black History Month, his response, “They say its a local story”!  My contributions in sports media and the community is more national then all of their contributions put together.  I wonder how many of them have made national contributions when it comes to sports media and community involvement?  For example; Inside Sports changed the way we talk and reports sports in America.  Every pro sports franchise has copied Kids In Trouble, Inc. “I Care” community formats.  How many radio, television and print media personalities have been individually responsible for 2 pro athletes being inducted into the NBA and NFL Hall of Fames?

Civil Rights icon Congressman John Lewis joined the Kids In Trouble team to help promote the NBA All-Star Tribute for Earl (see letter below).

Back to Dave McKenna, I had to write the City Paper and ask for equal time and space because of the erroneous and negative story written by him–my request was granted.

The paper granted me a whole page in “The Mail” section of the next edition to air my grievances.

The Washington Times would follow my tribute and salute with a Page One story on the trials and tribulations of Earl Lloyd’s journey through the NBA.  Leading up to the 2000 NBA All-Star Weekend.  Red Auerbach and Earl would appear in a basketball forum at the Smithsonian Museum with NBA Commissioner David Stern.   Dick Heller would take over the lead and write about the Kids In Trouble, Inc and Inside Sports sponsored activities planned to honor Earl Lloyd in Alexandria and DC during NBA All-Star Weekend.  The NBA would usually shutdown any basketball activities not approved by them.

Several weeks before the game was to be played Dick and I met with city leaders in Alexandria and planned “Earl Lloyd Day” at the Charles Houston Recreation Center.  Vice-Mayor Bill Cleveland, Sam Jones, Sonny Hill, Bob Lanier, Al Attles, K. C. Jones and hundreds of kids from the city playgrounds would participate.  Later that evening a tribute would be held at the historic Bohemian Caverns Jazz Club in NW DC.  Jazz legend Najee would headline the tribute.  This would be the only NBA All-Star weekend activity that the late great Red Auerbach would participate in.

Sam Jones (NBA), Christie Winters-Scott (Round Ball Report and NCAA College Basketball Analyst), Andrew Dyer (Round Ball Report) and my wife Hattie had lunch with James Brown (Fox Sports) at Union Station. It was here James agreed to co-host the tribute with Sonny Hill.  He was a no-show, but the show went on.  A host of NBA players and former players that included Red Auerbach stopped by the Caverns that night to pay their respect to Earl Lloyd.  Despite hired assassins (NBA Insiders) to sabotage my efforts to honor Earl, the weekend activities were a success.

My former friend and the guy who hired me as a Nike rep John Phillips, scammed Kids In Trouble, Inc. out of a $34,000 donation (Frito Lays was the corporate sponsor) for the weekend activities, except for the scam it was a great weekend for Earl Lloyd.

The Washington Post published a front page story in the Style section of the newspaper following the Sunday game but barely mention that a local hometown boy had coordinated and hosted the weekend events honoring Earl Lloyd (I guess I must have been too local).  The sports pages of the newspaper were also no-shows and non-participants.

The NBA All-Star Game comes to Washington in 2001 fifty years after Earl Lloyd’s NBA debut in 1950. The newspaper headline read, “A Player Stands Tall”. 

I remember the same Washington Post publishing a Front Page One story on DC’s notorious drug dealer Rayford Edmonds.  I wrote the paper’s owner Donald Graham letting him know my displeasure with the story, citing the paper was promoting criminal activity in the black community, he disagreed.  The story promoted a DVD on Edmonds’ deadly reign of terror.  Edmonds left so many dead bodies behind during that era we still have no count—Page One?

I am reminded of an earlier quote by City Paper columnist Dave McKenna–famous last words,

“Lloyd, for whatever reason, never got his just due around his hometown through the years, and sadly he still isn’t likely to after this function”.

Guess who knows Earl Lloyd now?

*NBA HALL OF FAME *USA Today *Washington Post *New York Times *Los Angeles Times *Fox News *NBC *ABC *CBS *CNN *ESPN *Reuters News Agency *National Public Radio.

I wonder what words taste like when you have to eat them?

The news media gives us very little credit for living, but in death, for example; the Washington Post in their section of the paper devoted to the dead, now pretend that they knew Earl Lloyd while he lived.

Thanks to the late Red Auerbach and Washington Times sports columnist Dick Heller, Earl Lloyd was finally inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2003 as a Contributor—“I heard it though Grapevine”.

Earl Lloyd was inducted into the NBA Naismith Hall of Fame in 2003. Standing behind him is NBA Hall of Fame player Dave Bing (DC native).

The late Earl Lloyd said it best in an interview with former GT coach and former sports talk show host John Thompson on ESPN 980, in response to the mention of my name, he said, “Harold Bell may be controversial but I have yet to hear anyone call him a liar”.  Amen, RIP my man.

Judge Carton Reeves 

James Anderson (the victim)

 Deryl Paul Dedmon, Dylan Wade Butler and John Aaron Rice (the killers)

In Mississippi you can find a lot of things but equal justice would not one of them until February 2015.  I have been disappointed by some decisions made inside and some times outside of the courtrooms by black judges when it comes to equal justice, until I was introduced to Judge Carlton Reeves in of all places—Mississippi.  If we are going to start the healing process—this is a must read for black and white America!

Here’s an astonishing speech by U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves, one of just two African-Americans to have ever served as federal judges in Mississippi. He read it to three young white men before sentencing them for the death of a 48-year-old black man named James Craig Anderson in a parking lot in Jackson, Miss., one night in 2011. They were part of a group that beat Anderson and then killed him by running over his body with a truck, yelling “white power” as they drove off.

The speech is long; Reeves asked the young men to sit down while he read it aloud in the courtroom. And it’s breathtaking, in both the moral force of its arguments and the palpable sadness with which they are delivered. We have decided to publish the speech, which we got from the blog Breach of Peace, in its entirety below. A warning to readers: He uses the word “nigger” 11 times.

One of my former history professors, Dennis Mitchell, recently released a history book entitled, A New History of Mississippi. “Mississippi,” he says, “is a place and a state of mind. The name evokes strong reactions from those who live here and from those who do not, but who think they know something about its people and their past.” Because of its past, as described by Anthony Walton in his book, Mississippi: An American Journey, Mississippi “can be considered one of the most prominent scars on the map” of these United States. Walton goes on to explain that “there is something different about Mississippi; something almost unspeakably primal and vicious; something savage unleashed there that has yet to come to rest.” To prove his point, he notes that, “[o]f the 40 martyrs whose names are inscribed in the national Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, AL, 19 were killed in Mississippi.” “How was it,” Walton asks, “that half who died did so in one state?” — my Mississippi, your Mississippi and our Mississippi.

Mississippi has expressed its savagery in a number of ways throughout its history — slavery being the cruelest example, but a close second being Mississippi’s infatuation with lynchings. Lynchings were prevalent, prominent and participatory. A lynching was a public ritual — even carnival-like — within many states in our great nation. While other states engaged in these atrocities, those in the Deep South took a leadership role, especially that scar on the map of America — those 82 counties between the Tennessee line and the Gulf of Mexico and bordered by Louisiana, Arkansas and Alabama.

Vivid accounts of brutal and terrifying lynchings in Mississippi are chronicled in various sources: Ralph Ginzburg’s 100 Years of Lynching and Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography in America, just to name two. But I note that today, the Equal Justice Initiative released Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror; apparently, it too is a must-read.

“They came ready to hurt. They used dangerous weapons; they targeted the weak; they recruited and encouraged others to join in the coordinated chaos; and they boasted about their shameful activity. This was a 2011 version of the nigger hunts.”
– Carlton Reeves, U.S. district judge

In Without Sanctuary, historian Leon Litwack writes that between 1882 and 1968 an estimated 4,742 blacks met their deaths at the hands of lynch mobs. The impact this campaign of terror had on black families is impossible to explain so many years later. That number contrasts with the 1,401 prisoners who have been executed legally in the United States since 1976. In modern terms, that number represents more than those killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom and more than twice the number of American casualties in Operation Enduring Freedom — the Afghanistan conflict. Turning to home, this number also represents 1,700 more than who were killed on Sept. 11. Those who died at the hands of mobs, Litwack notes, some were the victims of “legal” lynchings — having been accused of a crime, subjected to a “speedy” trial and even speedier execution. Some were victims of private white violence and some were merely the victims of “nigger hunts” — murdered by a variety of means in isolated rural sections and dumped into rivers and creeks. “Back in those days,” according to black Mississippians describing the violence of the 1930s, “to kill a Negro wasn’t nothing. It was like killing a chicken or killing a snake. The whites would say, ‘niggers jest supposed to die, ain’t no damn good anyway — so jest go an’ kill ’em.’ … They had to have a license to kill anything but a nigger. We was always in season.” Said one white Mississippian, “A white man ain’t a-going to be able to live in this country if we let niggers start getting biggity.” And, even when lynchings had decreased in and around Oxford, one white resident told a visitor of the reaffirming quality of lynchings: “It’s about time to have another [one],” he explained, “[w]hen the niggers get so that they are afraid of being lynched, it is time to put the fear in them.”

How could hate, fear or whatever it was transform genteel, God-fearing, God-loving Mississippians into mindless murderers and sadistic torturers? I ask that same question about the events which bring us together on this day. Those crimes of the past, as well as these, have so damaged the psyche and reputation of this great state.

Mississippi soil has been stained with the blood of folk whose names have become synonymous with the civil rights movement like Emmett Till, Willie McGee, James Cheney, Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner, Vernon Dahmer, George W. Lee, Medgar Evers and Mack Charles Parker. But the blood of the lesser-known people like Luther Holbert and his wife, Elmo Curl, Lloyd Clay, John Hartfield, Nelse Patton, Lamar Smith, Clinton Melton, Ben Chester White, Wharlest Jackson and countless others, saturates these 48,434 square miles of Mississippi soil. On June 26, 2011, four days short of his 49th birthday, the blood of James Anderson was added to Mississippi’s soil.

The common denominator of the deaths of these individuals was not their race. It was not that they all were engaged in freedom fighting. It was not that they had been engaged in criminal activity, trumped up or otherwise. No, the common denominator was that the last thing that each of these individuals saw was the inhumanity of racism. The last thing that each felt was the audacity and agony of hate, senseless hate: crippling, maiming them and finally taking away their lives.

“In the name of White Power, these young folk went to ‘Jafrica’ to ‘fuck with some niggers!’ — echoes of Mississippi’s past.”
– Carlton Reeves, U.S. district Judge

Mississippi has a tortured past, and it has struggled mightily to reinvent itself and become a New Mississippi. New generations have attempted to pull Mississippi from the abyss of moral depravity in which it once so proudly floundered in. Despite much progress and the efforts of the new generations, these three defendants are before me today: Deryl Paul Dedmon, Dylan Wade Butler and John Aaron Rice. They and their co-conspirators ripped off the scab of the healing scars of Mississippi … causing her (our Mississippi) to bleed again.

Hate comes in all shapes, sizes, colors, and from this case, we know it comes in different sexes and ages. A toxic mix of alcohol, foolishness and unadulterated hatred caused these young people to resurrect the nightmarish specter of lynchings and lynch mobs from the Mississippi we long to forget. Like the marauders of ages past, these young folk conspired, planned, and coordinated a plan of attack on certain neighborhoods in the city of Jackson for the sole purpose of harassing, terrorizing, physically assaulting and causing bodily injury to black folk. They punched and kicked them about their bodies — their heads, their faces. They prowled. They came ready to hurt. They used dangerous weapons; they targeted the weak; they recruited and encouraged others to join in the coordinated chaos; and they boasted about their shameful activity. This was a 2011 version of the nigger hunts.

Though the media and the public attention of these crimes have been focused almost exclusively on the early morning hours of June 26, 2011, the defendants’ terror campaign is not limited to this one incident. There were many scenes and many actors in this sordid tale which played out over days, weeks and months. There are unknown victims like the John Doe at the golf course who begged for his life and the John Doe at the service station. Like a lynching, for these young folk going out to “Jafrica” was like a carnival outing. It was funny to them — an excursion which culminated in the death of innocent, African-American James Craig Anderson. On June 26, 2011, the fun ended.

But even after Anderson’s murder, the conspiracy continued … And, only because of a video, which told a different story from that which had been concocted by these defendants, and the investigation of law enforcement — state and federal law enforcement working together — was the truth uncovered.

What is so disturbing … so shocking … so numbing … is that these nigger hunts were perpetrated by our children … students who live among us … educated in our public schools … in our private academies … students who played football lined up on the same side of scrimmage line with black teammates … average students and honor students. Kids who worked during school and in the summers; kids who now had full-time jobs and some of whom were even unemployed. Some were pursuing higher education and the Court believes they each had dreams to pursue. These children were from two-parent homes and some of whom were the children of divorced parents, and yes some even raised by a single parent. No doubt, they all had loving parents and loving families.

In letters received on his behalf, Dylan Butler, whose outing on the night of June 26 was not his first, has been described as “a fine young man,” “a caring person,” “a well mannered man” who is truly remorseful and wants to move on with his life … a very respectful … a good man … a good person … a lovable, kindhearted teddy bear who stands in front of bullies … and who is now ashamed of what he did. Butler’s family is a mixed-race family: For the last 15 years, it has consisted of an African-American stepfather and stepsister, plus his mother and two sisters. The family, according to the stepfather, understandably is “saddened and heartbroken.”

These were everyday students like John Aaron Rice, who got out of his truck, struck James Anderson in the face and kept him occupied until others arrived. … Rice was involved in multiple excursions to so-called “Jafrica”, but he, for some time, according to him and his mother, and an African-American friend shared his home address.

“What is so disturbing … so shocking … so numbing … is that these nigger hunts were perpetrated by our children … students who live among us.”
– Carlton W. Reeves, U.S. district judge
And, sadly, Deryl Dedmon, who straddled James Anderson and struck him repeatedly in the face and head with his closed fists. He too was a “normal” young man indistinguishable in so many ways from his peers. Not completely satisfied with the punishment to which he subjected James Anderson, he “deliberately used his vehicle to run over James Anderson — killing him.” Dedmon now acknowledges he was filled with anger.

I asked the question earlier, but what could transform these young adults into the violent creatures their victims saw? It was nothing the victims did … they were not championing any cause … political … social … economic … nothing they did … not a wolf whistle … not a supposed crime … nothing they did. There is absolutely no doubt that in the view of the court the victims were targeted because of their race.

The simple fact is that what turned these children into criminal defendants was their joint decision to act on racial hatred. In the eyes of these defendants (and their co-conspirators) the victims were doomed at birth. … Their genetic makeup made them targets.

In the name of White Power, these young folk went to “Jafrica” to “fuck with some niggers!” — echoes of Mississippi’s past. White Power! Nigger! According to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, that word, nigger, is the “universally recognized opprobrium, stigmatizing African-Americans because of their race.” It’s the nuclear bomb of racial epithets — as Farai Chideya has described the term. With their words, with their actions — “I just ran that nigger over” — there is no doubt that these crimes were motivated by the race of the victims. And from his own pen, Dedmon, sadly and regretfully wrote that he did it out of “hatred and bigotry.”

The court must respond to one letter it received from one identified as a youth leader in Dylan Butler’s church — a mentor, he says — and who describes Dylan as “a good person.” The point that “[t]here are plenty of criminals that deserve to be incarcerated,” is well taken. Your point that Dylan is not one of them — not a criminal … is belied by the facts and the law. Dylan was an active participant in this activity, and he deserves to be incarcerated under the law. What these defendants did was ugly … it was painful … it is sad … and it is indeed criminal.

In the Mississippi we have tried to bury, when there was a jury verdict for those who perpetrated crimes and committed lynchings in the name of White Power … that verdict typically said that the victim died at the hands of persons unknown. The legal and criminal justice system operated with ruthless efficiency in upholding what these defendants would call White Power.

Today, though, the criminal justice system (state and federal) has proceeded methodically, patiently and deliberately seeking justice. Today we learned the identities of the persons unknown … they stand here publicly today. The sadness of this day also has an element of irony to it: Each defendant was escorted into court by agents of an African-American United States Marshal, having been prosecuted by a team of lawyers which includes an African-American AUSA from an office headed by an African-American U.S. attorney — all under the direction of an African-American attorney general, for sentencing before a judge who is African-American, whose final act will be to turn over the care and custody of these individuals to the BOP [Federal Bureau of Prisons] — an agency headed by an African-American.

Today we take another step away from Mississippi’s tortured past … we move farther away from the abyss. Indeed, Mississippi is a place and a state of mind. And those who think they know about her people and her past will also understand that her story has not been completely written. Mississippi has a present and a future. That present and future has promise. As demonstrated by the work of the officers within these state and federal agencies — black and white, male and female, in this Mississippi they work together to advance the rule of law. Having learned from Mississippi’s inglorious past, these officials know that in advancing the rule of law, the criminal justice system must operate without regard to race, creed or color. This is the strongest way Mississippi can reject those notions — those ideas which brought us here today.

A new exhibit at the Mississippi state archives includes photographs, excerpts from journals and film clips documenting 1964’s Freedom Summer.
CODE SWITCH
Mississippi Marks 50 Years Since History-Changing ‘Freedom Summer’
At their guilty plea hearings, Deryl Paul Dedmon, Dylan Wade Butler and John Aaron Rice told the world exactly what their roles were … it is ugly … it is painful … it is sad … it is criminal.

The court now sentences the defendants as follows: [The specific sentences are not part of the judge’s prepared remarks.]

The court has considered the advisory guidelines computations and the sentencing factors under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). The court has considered the defendants’ history and characteristics. The court has also considered unusual circumstances — the extraordinary circumstances — and the peculiar seriousness and gravity of those offenses. I have paid special attention to the plea agreements and the recommendations of the United States. I have read the letters received on behalf of the defendants. I believe these sentences provide just punishment to each of these defendants and equally important, I believe they serve as adequate deterrence to others and I hope that these sentences will discourage others from heading down a similar life-altering path. I have considered the sentencing guidelines and the policy statements and the law. These sentences are the result of much thought and deliberation.

These sentences will not bring back James Craig Anderson nor will they restore the lives they enjoyed prior to 2011. The court knows that James Anderson’s mother, who is now 89 years old, lived through the horrors of the Old Mississippi, and the court hopes that she and her family can find peace in knowing that with these sentences, in the New Mississippi, justice is truly blind. Justice, however, will not be complete unless these defendants use the remainder of their lives to learn from this experience and fully commit to making a positive difference in the New Mississippi. And, finally, the court wishes that the defendants also can find peace.

Reeves is a U.S. District Court judge for the Southern District of Mississippi. He made waves last November when he ruled Mississippi’s same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional. That case is currently under appeal in the Fifth Circuit Court.

When being first can hurt, Jackie Robinson and President Obama have been there and done that. And now the children of Chicago!

Jackie Robinson Major League Baseball’s first black player

Chicago Little League Champions first black team to win it all

Barack Obama the first black President

In the summer of 2014 the Jackie Robinson West Little League team became the first all-black team to win the United States Little League Championships.  The windy city team’s victory — amid a deadly summer marked by gun violence — won the hearts of many, including President Barack Obama.  He invited the team to the White House. Their dramatic triumph ended in scandal when Little League International concluded that coaches had knowingly falsified records in order to include ineligible players who lived outside the team’s residential boundaries. The players apparently did not know.

“The president is proud of the way that they represented their city and the way they represented the country,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said. “The fact is, you know, some dirty dealing by some adults doesn’t take anything away from the accomplishments of those young men.”

President Obama was exactly right, I feel sorry for the kids, once again some over zealous adults who wanted to bend the rules ruined a great run for the first all black team to win the league championship.  When are we going to understand that no one is playing fair but us?  I will bet you a dollar to a donut the Jackie Robinson team is not the first to use disqualified players! The problem, we cannot do what they do and expect to use The Race Card to explain our bad behavior as some parents have already tried to do.

When the great Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947 they were not playing fair then and they are not playing fair now.  Sixty-eight years later after Jackie Robinson and 47 years after the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Major League Baseball, NFL Football, NBA Basketball and NHL Hockey still resemble “The Last Plantations” when it comes to black ownership in pro sports.  In 2015 our theme song is still “We Shall Overcome”.

So called Minority ownership by the likes of James Brown (CBS) Washington Nationals and Magic Johnson (NBA) Los Angeles Dodgers is nothing but a joke and cover-up for no black faces in “The House”.  They make no baseball decisions (trades, hiring and firing coaches, etc.).  They will allow James to announce the Opening Day Line-up from the pitcher’s mound (look at me)!

In the NFL, the “State of the League Message” delivered by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell before the Super Bowl XLIX was highly anticipated. It fell short like a 50 yard winning field goal at the end of the game.  The Domestic Abuse (Ray Rice), Inflate-Gate (NE Patriots) and Marshawn Lynch (Seattle) issues were like end run treatments and out of bounds.  Goodell tap danced his way around these important issues. But the real crime, there was no one in the media who thought about asking him about the business of his sport, “Why in 2015 there are not any minority owners”?  He beat the media like a drum, the owners should have given him a raise.

Back to Jackie Robinson, he and President Obama must have been very proud when the little league champions from Chicago were recently honored at the White House.  But Jackie must have turned over in his grave when the team was stripped of the championship because some adults decided to cheap their way to the top.  We cannot cry foul because some parent from a neighboring jurisdiction got wind there was something foul going on with the champions and went on a hunt for the truth and found it.  Don’t blame the messenger, blame “The Torch Bearers” who are sending the wrong messages to our children.

Unlike Jackie’s unbelievable odyssey through Major League Baseball, he cleared the way for these young people to never have to experience black cats being let loose on the field of play, the word nigger yelled at them from the opposing team or disgruntled fans.  All they had to do was play the game fair and follow the rules.  But the adults after bending the rules cried foul and then wanted to use the race card–are you kidding me?

Our children are victims of the needs and wants of adults.  Their negative behavior is learned from adults who are always looking for shortcuts in the game called life and will be the first to ask what is wrong with our children?

You show me a child that came out of his mother’s womb with an AK47 and I will show you a born killer, show me one wearing a Klu Klux Klan robe and I will show you a born racist, show me a child coming out of his mother’s womb using the words, MF, bitch and with a kilo of cocaine and I will show you a criminal on the way to hell in a hurry.  There are no such children, their bad behavior is all learned from adults—like the ones in Chicago.

When my grandmother told us as have other black parents growing up in the racial climate of America in the 40s, 50s and 60s told their children “You are going to have to be threes times better than the white man or woman you have to compete against”.  Nothing has changed, but we don’t have to cheat to be better.

Lester Holt auditions to become the first national black male news anchor since Max Robinson anchored “The World News Tonight” on ABC News

Brian Williams

Byron Pitts                                

Russ Mitchell                        

Max Robinson        

Ed Bradley

The best advice my Grandmother ever gave me when I became a community/radio personality, she said, “Son I want you to always tell the truth, because a lie will change a thousand times, the truth never changes”.  Grandma Bell knew best and that is how I have lived my life in the media spotlight.

It is evident that NBC News Anchor Brian Williams’ Grandmother never sit him down and gave him that same kind of advice.

“I don’t know the particulars about that day in Iraq. I do know Brian. He’s a longtime friend and we have been in a number of war zones and on the same battlefields, competing but together,” Dan Rather told Deadline.Com.  “Brian is an honest decent man, an excellent reporter and anchor – and a brave one. I can attest that – like his predecessor Tom Brokaw – he is a superb pro, and a gutsy one.”

We must remember Rather was forced to resign from his CBS newscast in 2005 after it turned out a report on President George W. Bush’s Vietnam-era National Guard service was based on forged documents.

Media columnist and others like them are also speaking out on the lies that Williams made up about being in a helicopter that he was in a helicopter that was under attack in Iraq by enemy fire in 2003.  The next lie uncovered was, while he was on assignment in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, he said “I saw a dead body floating down the street from my hotel room window”.

The Baltimore Sun’s David Zurawik led his column with: “If credibility means anything to NBC News, Brian Williams will no longer be managing editor and anchor of the evening newscast by the end of the day Friday.”

I totally agree with Mr. Zurawik, there is no way we should see Brian Williams anchor the news again, credibility is everything and it is the only thing a reporter can hang his hat on at the end of the day is his credibility mixed with integrity and honesty.

NBC News President Deborah Turness announced there would be a probe in an internal memo on Friday.  Williams has expressed his regrets to his colleagues for the impact the episode has had—too little too late!

If anyone of the above reporters, Byron Pitts, Russ Mitchell, the late Max Robinson or the late Ed Bradley were caught lying as it related to a news report–they would be fired immediately.  My friend Max Robinson was at the top of his game on the local news here in Washington, DC and as the first black to be named a news anchor for ABC News.  His life style off the air lead to his early demise (age 49) but his integrity in reporting the news was never in question.  I have fond memories of Max because he believed in me and Inside Sports.

Max and I would see each other in passing at different community/media functions around town during his TV News career here in DC.  In fact, I really never knew if he knew who I was until he left for Chicago.  There he would become the first black to anchor a national televised news show, ABC World News Tonight.   I was in his hometown of Richmond, Virginia attending the annual CIAA (Central Intercollegian Athletic Association) basketball tournament in 1986.  I was staying at the downtown Marriott and remember him walking into the restaurant where I was having breakfast. He was with his parents.  He nodded at me in recognition and I nodded back at him.  A few minutes later he waved me over to the table to introduce me to his parents.  The introduction almost knocked me off of my feet.  He said, “Harold I want you to meet my mom and dad, Mr. and Mrs. Robinson.  Harold Bell has the best sports talk show in Washington, DC and when I want to know what is really going on in sports I listen to him”.

I remember Washington Post sports columnist Donald Huff once writing, “Harold Bell gets his ratings off the streets of Washington”! I had just received another rating from Max Robinson.

Ed Bradley of CBS 60 Minutes walked around the CBS studios like it his home away from home.  You could see and hear in his voice and in his body language he was happy in the skin that he was in.  He was a pro’s pro and he was not intimidated by the white power structure at CBS. During his 26 year career at CBS he won 19 Emmy Awards.

A Fox News analyst, Howard Kurtz, said, “The admission raises serious questions about his credibility in a business that values that quality above all else.” On CNN’s “New Day,” the host Chris Cuomo said that attributing the lie to “the fog of war” wasn’t acceptable and the Internet would “eat him alive.” Rem Rieder, a USA Today media columnist, wrote, “It’s hard to see how Williams gets past this, and how he survives as the face of NBC News.”

When long time local W-U-S-A TV 9 veteran reporter J.C. Haywood’s name got caught up in a recent Charter School financial scandal, the handwriting was on the wall–she lost all credibility in the Washington community.  It did not matter if she was guilty or not her time was up–no credibility.

Lost in the shuffle are the class acts and pros like Byron Pitts and Russ Mitchell who seem to be stuck at the proverbial glass ceiling.  It seems strange that Ed Bradley has been dead for all most 10 years and 60 Minutes the popular magazine show has not been able to find someone of color for the Sunday evening time slot?  Enter, Byron Pitts and Russ Mitchell waiting in the wings for a call that would never come from the CBS brass.

60 MINUTES THE NUMBER ONE MAGAZINE TV SHOW IN AMERICA: ZERO black reporters (Ed Bradley never again).  They did have lurking in the shadows relief pitchers named Byron Pitts and Russ Mitchell.  Byron told CBS News recently “Goodbye” and switched to ABC NEWS.  The reason, he could not get the producers to air any his stories—too black?  The 60 Minute producers have since  brought INSIDE THE NFL host James Brown in as a token black every now and then.  He adds a little color to the program–he will go along to get along and he is safe!

Mitchell a popular CBS weekend anchor cleaned his desk out in December 2011.  He took a job at NBC affiliate WKYC television in Cleveland.  Mitchell was wrapping up his tenure as anchor of the “CBS Evening News” weekend editions and the “The Early Show” on Saturday.  He was also a national correspondent for “CBS News Sunday Morning,” the weeknight editions of the “CBS Evening News” and “The Early Show.”

Mitchell had been passed over so much at CBS he was beginning to feel like QB Tim Tebow.  First, it was Katie Couric and then it was Scott Pellet as the CBS Evening News anchor.

In the meantime, As NBC’s weekend anchor, Lester Holt has been named to replace Williams while NBC checks how hot the heat is in the kitchen to replace Williams.   “Holt is kind of like Williams’ vice president, so he’d be the default choice,” says Bob Thompson, professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University.  Brian Steinberg, senior TV editor for Variety.com, agrees, calling Holt the obvious choice.  “He is more often doing the job when Brian is not. He fills in for Brian. When Brian’s in the field, Lester is in the chair,” he says.

Black men have become almost invisible as television news anchors.  It has become the American Way.  If NBC makes the decision to replace Williams Holt would almost be a lock with black male anchors already being locked out of the television news market.  NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox News, CNN are already view as “The Last Plantations”.  It is said, the most segregated place other then a church on Sunday morning, is a news room at deadline.

If you don’t think it is big problem with black reporters and anchor men in major media markets, here are some stats for you to chew on as it relates to the television Black Out; 

HEADLINE NEWS REPORTERS: 25 (no black men)

FOX NEWS REPORTERS: 42 (one black man)

CNN NEWS REPORTERS: 26 (2 black men)

MSNBC & NBC: 21 (no black men)

CNBC: 11 (no black men)

TOTAL: 125 REPORTERS (3 black men)

Note worthy: These stats will need to be updated

The NABJ (National Association of Black Journalist) is another organization that is crying cry “Foul” several years ago they called for a meeting with the Presidents of the major news networks as it relates to the Blackout of black reporters.  The network Presidents ignored them with “No comment”  God bless the child that has his own and  the NABJ needs a timeout to clean up its own house before they try to clean up another’s house!

CNN ran a human interest story about a black woman who was still driving at the age of 103.  In the closing segment a rap song was hear in the background playing and using the words, “nigga, nigga, I am mf nigga!!!”  The station apologized claiming it was all a mistake. 

The negative images we see and hear on television as it relates to black people can be attributed to no black producers, anchors, and reporters in the studio.  Major Media and the NFL, NBA, MLB and the NHL are still “The Last Plantations in America”.

Mike Greenberg is the co-host on Mike & Mike radio and television morning sports talk show heard Mon-Fri on ESPN.  He was heard during the celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday saying “Happy Birthday to Dr. Martin Luther Koon!”  He also claim it was a mistake.  It is here the double standard occurs, ESPN’S Ron Parker said during a debate about Redskin QB RG III, “We know he has a white girlfriend, is he a corn head brother or what?”  ESPN suspended him and then fired him!  The crime didn’t fit the punishment according to ESPN’s track record.  The only comparison is the punishment for distribution of crack cocaine and cocaine distribution.  One sentence is given for a black distributing crack and another sentence for a white distributing cocaine when they are both the same?  Justice & Just Us! 

My impact on sports talk media has been global, every radio and television sports talk show you see and hear is a copy of the Original Inside Sports format, and those sports media outlets include, ESPN’s, Sports Reporters, Outside the Lines, HBO’s Real Sports, Inside the NFL, etc.  

In the 50s Earl Lloyd was the first black player to play in an NBA game.  He was heard on ESPN Radio several years ago during an interview with host and former Georgetown basketball coach John Thompson.  My name came into the conversation and Earl said, “Harold Bell may be controversial but I have yet to hear anyone call him a liar”.  Thanks Grandma Bell and stay tune. 

IN APPRECIATION

Thurgood Marshall receiving the NAACP Life Time Award from the founder of the Afro-American newspaper Mr. Carl Murphy the father of Frances Murphy.

The late Mrs. Frances Murphy was the patriarch of the Afro-American newspaper. She was a sister, mother, grandmother, aunt, cousin, friend and guardian of the black community. Mrs. Murphy was a giant in media and in our community. The Afro-American newspaper is one of the oldest Black newspapers in America.

She gave me my first opportunity to hone my skills as a writer when she allowed me to write commentaries and columns in the Afro-American in Washington, D. C. in the late 70s.

It all started when I gave Ms. Murphy one of my commentaries I had written on my pioneering radio sports talk show Inside Sports.  We were attending a community meeting in the inner-city when we first met.  I never thought I would see my commentary in the newspaper. Two weeks later there it was in the Editorial section of the Afro along with the typos and bad grammar all corrected.

The published commentary inspired me to continue to improve my writing skills.  This was long before my commentaries and columns appeared in the Washington Post and other print media outlets around the country.  She gave her approval for me to continue to write and reveal the darker sides and controversial sides of sports that included stories on our so-called heroes and sheroes in our community.  She published stories on Georgetown basketball coach John Thompson and boxing icons Sugar Ray Leonard and Don King,  heroes in the black community. The only time these stories were hear or read in the media was on “Inside Sports.”  Ms. Murphy provided a platform that allowed me to be something more then a cheerleader in the sports press boxes of the Nation’s Capitol.

These were stories the Washington Post would dare not touch until the Afro published them first. The Washington Post followed Inside Sports and the Afro’s lead when it came to reminding the black politician and athlete who he was and exactly where he came from.

The Afro-American  published “The Real John Thompson Up Close & Personal” on January 22, 1999.  The story was the talk of the town.  On February 18, 1999 the Washington Post tried to make up for lost ground when they decided to published “Casino Executives and John Thompson Aligned.” Sub-title read, ‘Ex-GT Coach is partner in land deals’.

The Washington Post published the first of a two-part series on the basketball icon with the second part of the series never appearing in print.  My sources in the sports department of the Washington Post told me the second series was too explosive.  Word came down from owner Donald Graham to Sports Editor George Solomon, “hold the presses”. It was feared if the second part of the series was published the Georgetown athletic department would face sanctions from the NCAA.  The investigative reporters discovered that Big John was also taking money under the table from sports agent David Falk.  Falk ripped off a host of black athletes including Adrian Dantley for millions of dollars.  John Thompson was a millionaire long before he stepped down from Georgetown.

Big John was involved in land deals with his “Girl Friday, Saturday and Sunday” Academic Counselor, Mary Finley.  They brought and shared property together and slot machines at the airport were a part of the deal.

On April 11, 2011 two years later The Bleacher Report a popular blog website own by CBS Television published my follow-up story, “Will the Real John Thompson Stand-Up”? The story received over 30,000 reads in 2 days.  http://bleacherreport.com/articles/658973-will-the-real-john-thompson-stand-up-for-jason-whitlock

If anyone tells you that crime does not pay be sure to point to Big John Thompson of Georgetown University.   The school is in the process of building a sports complex in his name on the campus–can you blame them?  He made millions not only for himself but also for the school.

Ms. Murphy and I would see each other in the community and we would pass each other like ships in the night. We would always speak and move on.  In 1980 I would see Ms. Murphy at Face’s Restaurant on Georgia Ave. NW. having lunch. Face’s Restaurant was then a popular hang out of the movers and shakers in the black community. I stopped by her table as I was leaving to thank her for her support.  She looked up at me and said, “Hi Mr. Bell, congratulations on being named Washingtonian of the Year, what a nice honor. I like what you are doing with our young people keep up the good work.”  In 1980 I was the first sports media personality ever named Washingtonian of the Year by Washingtonian Magazine. I was honored again by Ms. Murphy’s kind and thoughtful words.

In February 2007 I was honored by Tom Joiner on his morning show heard in 142 markets throughout the country “As a Little Known Black History Fact”.   I was also the featured story on Americablackweb.com during Black History Month. The story was titled “Living Black History: Broadcasting Icon Harold Bell the Visionary Behind Inside Sports.”

On November 15, 2007 I was involved in one of the breaking stories on the 4:00 pm and 6:00 pm news on NBC TV 4. The story was “Good Samaritan Rescues Child From Subway Tracks.” On November 26, 2007 again I was cited by Tom Joiner on his morning radio show and again I was the featured story on the Americanblackweb.com. The story was titled “DC Broadcast Pioneer Lauded For Rescuing Girl Who Fell Onto Subway Tracks.”

I pay tribute and say thanks to Ms. Frances Murphy “Three Times A Lady” for honoring and helping me to become all that I could be in the community and in sports media.  She allowed me to take stands and make statements that others in print media dared not.

Ms. Murphy proved that no man is an Island and we all need a helping hand in this “Game Called Life,” her helping hand had no boundaries in the black community.  Frances Murphy, “A Teachable Moment in Black History”.

Virginia Sailors “We are the champions” back to back    

NFL Chicago Bear WR & KR Cecil Turner & HBell.  Pass catching clinic at Lorton Reformatory for men   

Virginia Sailor QBs huddle with HBell. No. 12 is QB John Thomas out Southern University aka Russell Wilson          

HBell Sticky Fingers 

The last second NE Patriots 28-24 win over the Seattle Sea Hawks in Super Bowl XLIX was in part thanks to the worst play ever called in pro football history.  With the outcome of the game on the line, Seattle had the ball on the one yard line, third down, one time out and 20 seconds left in the game. In the Seattle backfield was stood one of the most feared and brutal runners in the NFL, Marshawn Lynch.  Then came the call heard around America, “a slant-in from the one yard line to the wide receiver.”  It is the last place you would want to try to complete a pass.  First, it was close quarters and there was the possibility that one of the Patriot’s lineman might tip the ball for an interception or the worst case scenario the defensive back might jump the pass route and intercept the ball—guess what happen?

The defensive back jumped the route and intercepted the ball.  Two downs, a timeout and a 240 pound running back wasted–game over.

My journey as a wide receiver started with me playing pick-up football in the streets and alleys in my NE DC housing project.  Comedian Bill Cosby’s rendition of “Street Football” found on one of his early comedy albums described how the game was played in my neighborhood.  I then moved on to Spingarn High School where I would become a pain in the butt to my coaches and some teammates.  I always wanted the ball when the game was on on the line.  I never saw a football I could not catch.  My high school coach Dave Brown instilled in me that anything that touched my hands, I should catch and I believed it.

I carried that same “Throw it to me” attitude to Coach Bighouse Gaines and Winston-Salem State University, on to Perry Moss and the Charleston Rockets minor league football team in Charleston, West Virginia, and back to my hometown where I chased my NFL dream with Coach Billy Cox and the Virginia Sailors.  The Sailors were a minor league team for the Washington Redskins.

RB Hezikiah Braxton

WR H. Bell

The two years I played with the Sailors we won the Minor League Championship two years running.  We were blessed with some great athletes and one of those athletes was a 6’3 240 pound halfback by the name of Hezekiah Braxton.  He was out of Virginia Union University in Richmond.  He could run by you or run over you.  Make no mistake when the ball was on the one yard line there was little doubt who was getting the ball.  This brings me back to Super Bowl XLIX.

The pros and cons in social media about the merits of running or throwing the ball on the last and final play of the game was deafening.  Some of the conclusions reached were evidently made by some folks who just watch football during the Super Bowl.  And then there were those who were out looking for a good party and at the same time stumbled on to a football game.

I browsed different sites on the internet listening to the Monday Morning Quarterbacks and the paid idiots of ESPN.  It was here you would find the chief “Know it all” Stephen A. Smith on ‘First Take’.   The guys who played the game (NFL) gave the best analysis, but Stephen A. Smith was also on the one for a change.  He totally disagreed with the play called by Seattle Coach Pete Carroll and predicted the call would haunt Carroll for the rest of his NFL career, I totally agree.

It was on Face Book that I found the most confusing analyst it was a buffet of thoughts, opinions and folks who just wanted to join in the conversation. The comments sounded like most had not seen the game or just didn’t have a clue to what was going on.

There was one guy who I think calls himself “The In-House” sports expert of Face Book!  While the discussion centered around on whether the final play of the game was the correct call, he took the conversation into 2016 saying “The Sea Hawks need to come up with some better wide receivers for next year?”  I agreed, but what does that have to do with the final play called in this year’s Super Bowl?

Was it the right call on the one yard line with three downs to get the touchdown with 20 seconds left on the clock and one time out?  And the most important question of all, Marshawn Lynch is in your backfield, the most dangerous runner in the Super Bowl, should you run or pass–whats in your wallet?

No. 17 Spingarn HS

Winston-Salem State University (HBell 88)

Virginia Sailors / native Washingtonians

I have always argued the point and disagreed with those experts who claim you need a good running game to be successful in football.  The short pass is the most dangerous play in football (down and out, slants, curls, etc).  It not only sets up the run but also sets up the long pass down field.  My idol growing up and watching pro football was NFL Hall of fame WR Raymond Berry of the Baltimore Colts.  He was not fast of foot, one leg was shorter then the other and he was slight of built.  Berry ran the best down and out pass route I have ever seen in pro football.  He and NFL Hall of Fame QB Johnny Unitas were the deadliest combo in the NFL when it came to the short pass.

The NE Patriots out played Seattle only because they were able to complete the short pass and break the tackle after the completion against one of the best tackling teams in the NFL.  NE had no running game because Seattle shut them down at the line of scrimmage (their running game was the short pass).  Seattle out played NE on both sides of the ball but the worst called ever made in a pro football game was made on Super Bowl Sunday 2015, it was made from the one yard line in the closing seconds of the game.  The bottom-line, it makes no difference who runs the ball better, or gains the most yards on pass receptions or makes the worst call ever in pro football.  The only thing that counts is the final score!

Coach Pete Carroll and QB Russell Wilson have both said, the botched play from the one yard line will not define them, I got some bad news for them, if they don’t get back to the Super Bowl and win it— it will be the defining play of their careers.

Getting back to the Super Bowl will be a difficult task because so much depends on good health, good luck with the officiating, and hoping the competition does not improve.  My other problem, for those who are stuck on stupid (Monday Morning QBs and the pro football players) and claim you have no problem with the fatal passing play called on the goal line, I will say this, “I hope you will never become a coach of little children.”

My question to you, “What ever happen to Common Sense?”

A BLACK HISTORY TEACHABLE MOMENT

“Duane’s friendship with the great Jim Brown lasted about two days, at which time Duane packed his bags and slipped out of Brown’s Hollywood mansion in the middle of the night. “Duane had the impression that Jim Brown was trying to use him, just like everyone else,” says Raymond Mapps, an SMU football player who has known Thomas since childhood. “Duane has no illusions about being rich or famous. He just wants to do things his own way.”

This was a paragraph that appeared in The Texas Monthly Magazine in February 1973.  It is the most in-depth story I have ever read on Duane Thomas and his Odyssey through the NFL (see link below).  This is a must read if you are a Dallas Cowboy fan or don’t know Jim Brown.  Duane was on to Jim Brown over 4 decades ago–he discovered he was a user of people.

http://www.texasmonthly.com/story/lonely-blues-duane-thomas

(NFL) Duane Thomas, (NFL) Ricky Williams and Ohio State sensation Maurice Clarrett football careers were cut short after a Jim Brown encounter.

The NFL was not ready for running back Duane Thomas in Super Bowl VI in 1971.  Duane was drafted in the first round of the 1970 NFL DRAFT by the Dallas Cowboys. As a rookie even though he didn’t start until the fifth game of the season, he led the team in rushing and finished eighth in the NFL  with 803 yards on 151 carries (5.3 yards per carry) and five touchdowns.  At the end of the season he was already being compared to the great Jim Brown.   He was named the NFL rookie of the year for the National Football Conference.

During the 1971 off season, because of a contract dispute. Duane requested for his 3-year contract to be rewritten (I will bet a dollar to a donut this was on the advice of Jim Brown).  Duane refused to report to training camp, he was traded to the New England Patriots, alongside Hakvor Hagen and Honor Jackson in exchange for Carl Garrett and the Patriots No. 1 draft choice in the 1972 NFL Draft.  Within a week, because of problems with the Patriots and head coach John Mazur, in an unprecedented move NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle voided part of the trade, sending Thomas and Garrett back to their original teams. The Patriots kept Hagen and Jackson in exchange for a second and third round draft choices in the 1972 draft. Thomas returned to the Cowboys, but decided to keep silent all season long, refusing to speak to teammates, management, and the media.

On October of 1971 he scored the first touchdown in the new Texas Stadium playing  playing against the Patriots. That same 1971 season, Duane led the league in rushing and total touchdowns with eleven rushing and thirteen overall. He also was named All-Pro and led the Cowboys with 95 rushing yards and a touchdown in Dallas’ first franchise Super Bowl victory, a 24-3 win over the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI.

All Duane did was take the ball and run every time they called his number – which came to be more and more often, and in the Super Bowl he was the whole show.

Before taking part in Super Bowl VI, Thomas was asked about playing in the ultimate game. His response was: “If it’s the ultimate game, how come they’re playing it again next year?”.  During a post game interview following that Super Bowl, television announcer Tom Brookshier noted Thomas’ speed and asked him, rhetorically, “Are you that fast?” he responded, “Evidently”.  Brookshier was all shook up and was perspiring profusely when Jim Brown standing next Duane asked Brookshier, “Are you nervous Tom?” and the whole room broke out laughing.

It was reported Duane Thomas was voted as the Super Bowl MVP by an overwhelming margin. Duane, however, had boycotted the media throughout the season as well, and Larry Klein, editor of Sport Magazine, which presented the award, didn’t know how Duane would act at a banquet in New York. With this in mind Klein announced he had change his mind and named Roger Staubach the winner.

In Super Bowl XLIX its was Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch’s turn, “To hear no evil, speak no evil and speak no evil”.  Hopefully, a repeat performance by Lynch running the ball in from the one yard line and Seattle wins.  He is named MVP and at the news conference he says just enough not to get fine.  This time we don’t have to worry about Jim Brown being involved he will be in the locker room of the NE Patriots.  He will be with his main man Bill Belichick who is the coach of the Patriots.  Its a good thing that Jim is in the other locker room because the running backs he has counseled have never recovered from his advice.

I met Duane Thomas when he signed with the Washington Pro Football team in 1973.  I was introduced to Duane on a SE DC playground by DC Recreation leader J. D. Brown.  We became friends and the 2 years that he spend here in DC he was a class act when it came to the community.

NFL Hall of Fame player Willie Wood–Duane Thomas and Hattie T–HB and Duane–Jim Brown, HB and the children–HB, Jim and Sonny Hill

I recently read a commentary written by so-called sports columnist Jason Whitlock.  The commentary was titled “Jim Brown My Hero.”

Mr. Whitlock, was defending Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan against Jim Brown’s beliefs that they were out of touch and were not giving back to the  black community.

He even wrote that Jim Brown was more dedicated and committed to the black community then Muhammad Ali.

There is an old saying “It is best to be thought a fool then to open one’s mouth and remove all doubt.”

My friend NBA pioneer Spencer Haywood once said on my sports talk show “The Original Inside Sports” if a child has to look beyond his dinner table for his heroes, he is in trouble.” Meet Jason Whitlock.

First, let me introduce you to Jim Brown NFL Hall of Fame running back and the man picked by the football experts to be “The Greatest football player in the history of the NFL”.

Jim Brown in his own words, “Harold Bell has been a crusader for the rights of black people all of his life. He has also been a crusader in sports and has had a lot of friends in both the black and white community in sports. He has always been outstanding, always an individual speaking his mind and giving you a outlet to express your views.  He has always provided a platform for those without one and when I was incarcerated he did everything he could to attack those who had incarcerated me unfairly. He is one of my friends. Harold is truly a man, a man who believes in his culture and his people. We have done many things together in the community over the years. He is a real man and he is always going to be that way, because no one has ever been able to change him.  That is my partner”

In 2007 I wrote an “Open Letter” to Jim as it related to some concerns about our friend NFL Green Bay Packer Hall of Fame player, Willie Wood. The contents of the letter can be read below.

Dear Jim,

In a telephone conversation with you on Wednesday April 18, 2007 for some reason you took off and went into in a profanity laced tirade directed at me. The tirade started after I asked why you were interrogating me about my motives as it related to Willie Wood and Bob Schmidt. My motive should have been self explanatory to someone like you. When I asked where was the money that Bob Schmidt and his family collected for benefit tribute to Willie Wood?  It did not require you to have a PHD to understand what I was saying.

This is the same Bob Schmidt who by all accounts didn’t want you to be a part of the benefit for Willie Wood until I requested that we invite you.  I already knew and he was also aware that you were scheduled to be in town along with the other Pro Football Hall of Fame players for a card show in nearby Fairfax, Virginia. For whatever reason, he was reluctant to extent you an invitation until I said I would call you.

Remember, I didn’t interrogate Monique, Karen and Rock when they called me to reach out to you while you were being charge with domestic violence in L.A.  I didn’t question you about your motives for destroying your wife’s automobile or your domestic violence history. I immediately came to the aid of a friend.

I can’t believe that you were taking sides against me with a “Good Old Boy” in whose clothes closet you might find a hood and robe. It sounds like the Willie Lynch doctrine to me. The surprise to me is that you have adhered to it. When I suggested sending you written documentation or doing a conference call with our friend Dick Gregory who had the documentation in front of him, you said no thanks???  For a man who is always talking about telling the truth.  It does not seem like you were interested in the truth. You have played right into Schmidt’s hands, divide and conquer.

When you sought me out to help you fight the system that was trying to railroad you off to jail I used all of my media resources to assist you and your family. I was trying to do the same thing for Willie Wood.

During your ordeal my college roommate Barney Hood helped with the media in Chicago.  He called on his old and dear friend, the late Lou Palmer a power-broker in the windy city of Chicago.  I spoke with Lou and discovered he was a friend of yours.  He had not heard about your dilemma. He was having some health problems, Lou had lost his sight, but he jumped in and offered all of his resources.

He and Barney worked together to get your story in the Chicago Defender and on talk radio stations in Chicago. After you got out of jail you called Lou and thanked him. You have yet to thank Barney Hood.  Once again you are always talking about respect but you give it only when it is in your best interest.  Jim Brown, respect, is still a Two-Way Street.

Immediately after the benefit tribute in Willie Wood’s honor I called you to alert you that I was suspicious about the financial commitment to Willie.  I asked you to get me a number for Sylvia Mackey the wife of NFL Hall of Famer John Mackey. Your response, “Harold, let me get right back to you.” That conversation took place over three weeks ago. I have called and left several messages for you since then without a response.

It seems to me Bob Schmidt was just an excuse for you to lash out at me, which I find all the more puzzling. What was your motive???

Jim, I first met you in Winston-Salem, NC in 1959 at the YMCA during a Winston-Salem State University athletic banquet for upper class-men only.  I was a freshman but I decided to crash the party.  I wanted to meet the great Jim Brown.  I decided to worry later about the tongue lashing from my football coach, the legendary Clarence “Bighouse” Gaines. I was just another face in a crowded room of athletes, but I never forgot the experience of meeting you.  I still have the program.

I have never been into the HERO worshiping scene.  My heroes were my black women and not black athletes.  They had names like, grandma Bell and Mommy B, but there have been athletes I have admired and respected, men like Jack Johnson, Jackie Robinson and Paul Roberson.  You once claimed these men were also your heroes.  I regret I never had the opportunity to break bread with them.

I think they must be turning over in their graves as they watch “The Player Hating” going on in our community among black men. They must be wondering where did we lose the love and the respect we once had for each other and how can we get it back?

You are always talking about keeping it real, truth and respect among brothers and sisters. I am trying to figure out where, when and why have you suddenly have not kept it real, truthful and honest with me.  My conversation with you on the telephone I still find hard to believe. How could you of all people allow someone like Schmidt to use the Willie Lynch Doctrine to divide and conquer the two of us?

That is exactly what you played into when you allowed him to disconnect Willie’s sister Gladys off of the telephone conference call with you.  You didn’t have a clue on what the problem was but you felt confident (that’s right you are a intellect) talking with Schmidt a total stranger? You didn’t even have the professional courtesy to call me and Gladys back to give us an up date about your conversation with Schmidt.  I had to call you, it was then I knew you had let him sell you a bill of goods.  I can’t believe you would allow one “Red Neck” to come between us and you talk about how black you are! Have you forgotten the little girls blown up in church and how black and white men were lynched by their necks standing up for us and now we still can’t stand up for ourselves?

 Bob “Money Bags” Schmidt       Jim Brown & Dick Gregory         Sam Huff, HB, and Willie                           Willie and young fans

I have had your back unofficially since we first met in 1959. I found your act and actions appalling.  The bottom-line you are nothing but a con artist hustling your own people.

The type of envy and jealousy you have had to endure your entire NFL career–I have been there and done that in sports media.  The hostility and disrespect I encountered in sports media press rooms I still find unbelievable to this day.  I learned that there is nothing more powerful and respected in media than the written word.  I may do a lot of talking, but what makes me a decent writer, I listen well and what I heard come out of your mouth on Wednesday night was not music to my ears.

Jim, once I became a media personality I refuse to allow the so-call major media or anyone to talk negative about black leadership in America. There were many who were putting their lives on the line for others. I have always had an on air response to uplift those who had become a target of a bias media. It was the written word that made me so effective on your behalf during your incarceration. The likes of USA Today’s Jon Saraceno, the Washington Post’s Michael Wilbon, NBC Sports Machine’s George Michael, Fox Sport’s James Brown, etc. each cautiously walked a fine line during their news reports as it related to your incarceration.  They knew I was watching and listening.  I took offense to Saraceno’s column titled “Jim Brown does not know how to be a black man.”

My question to him, “What in the hell do you know about being a black man?” When I got through with him in written commentaries and on talk shows across the country, he was begging for me to get off of his ass.  But now it looks like Saraceno’s was right on the one, “Jim Brown does not know how to be a black man.”

Saraceno e-mailed Reggie Hammond a sports talk show host on WCLM radio in Richmond, Virginia, he asked Reggie to contact me and tell me to please stop misquoting him. His next column in USA Today was an apology to guess who, Jim Brown?

You are now a frequent guest on Reggie’s talk show. The introduction was made by me. Did you ever thank Reggie for his support?  Once again, respect is still a Two-Way street. No one owes you anything.

Have you forgotten the conversation I taped of James Brown (NFL/CBS)?  He was reminding participants in a sports forum on the campus of the University of the District of Columbia “I am not the James Brown that does drugs and beats his wife and I am not the Jim Brown who throws women over balconies.”

Let us not forget your good friend Congresswoman Maxine Waters and her comments about you during a panel discussion at the Congressional Black Caucus weekend. She was discussing reaching back into the community to help black folks and said, “Don’t be like Jim Brown with your hand out expecting to get paid.”  This is the same Maxine Waters you introduced to her husband, your former Cleveland Brown teammate, Sidney Williams.

When I mailed you the tape, you could not believe she was saying those kinds of things about you. I remember you saying, “Man I introduced her to her husband and she has been in my home with Jack Kemp.”

I ignored Charles Barkley, Michael Jordan and Jackie Joyner Kersey calling you a “Professional Beggar” pretending you cared about the community.  In fact Kersey told you exactly how she felt about you expecting today’s athlete to give back to the community to your face. The live debate was on a nationally televised forum with several high profile athletes and President Clinton in attendance.  You had no response.

Then there was Hall of Fame running back Lenny Moore allegedly speaking negative about you to several Baltimore Raven players. You asked me, “Harold, what is that all about I have never shown Lenny anything but love for Lenny.”  I intervened and asked Lenny to give you a call and straighten, the he say, she say gossip out and he did. Lenny Moore later thanked me for being the middleman.

I remember one year at the Bobby Mitchell Hall of Fame Golf outing in Virginia, I watched in amazement when he turned you and your guest away from a luncheon in a tent.  He said, “Jim, I can’t accommodate you and your guest, we are over crowded.”

You looked into the tent and then at me as if to say, “what in the hell is going on?” You then invited us up to your room in the hotel and ordered room service for everyone. This is the same Bobby Mitchell that you called one of my best friends and the same Bobby Mitchell you lobbied to get inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

With friends like Bobby Mitchell you don’t need any more enemies.  On the ride to the airport the next day you were very quiet and then you said, “Harold what do you think of Bobby Mitchell?”  My response was, ‘He is a ass kissing fraud and he ain’t worth two dead flies’ a wide grin broke out across your face and you fell off to sleep.

I had never before said a word to you about Bobby Mitchell until you asked me that day.  This brother has never stood for anything in his life, he has been nothing but a follower. He was dismissed and out of his job at the Washington Pro Football HQ with his belongings in a paper bag.

I even called out Calvin Hill (Dallas Cowboys) another fake brother who talked about you behind your back but was seen during the Willie Wood tribute in 2007 smiling in your face.  I said, “Calvin remember this is the same Jim Brown that you said, according to Bubba Smith, “He thinks he is smarter then everyone else and he always wants to take over every discussion.” I called him a hypocrite; I despise hypocrites, smiling in your face while stabbing you in your back.  They don’t get any bigger then Calvin Hill and Bobby Mitchell.

You have a habit of talking out of both sides of your mouth.  I mention our buddy boxing promoter Don King and you said to me, “I think Don is doing a wonderful job.”   This is the same Don King who you said during the Mike Tyson years, “I stay out of that nigger’s way, he is poison.”

It is now becoming much clearer why you and Schmidt hit it off. You two belong together he has played you like a bad call in the forth quarter of an NFL game.  Comedian Bill Cosby said “The enemy is us” I am in total agreement. We have sold each other out. I remember you bad mouthing Bill Cosby, you wondered why your one time tennis partner and friend had kicked you to the curb? Evidently, he saw the handwriting on the wall before most of us.

I have heard you say on several occasions “You can’t wait for anyone to deliver you.”  I am further confused on why do you think you are the only one who should get today’s athletes and entertainers to fund your community projects?

My wife and I have always put our own monies back into our community projects. There have never been any grants or loans to bankroll our commitment to our community.

For example; when Prentis Byrd approached George Foreman at a reception in Los Angeles reminding him that he had made a promise to me that he was coming to DC to do a fundraiser for Kids In Trouble. You told Prentis to step aside and said, “I will handle and take care of this for Harold.”  The arrangements were never made and to this day you have never said one word to me.   George was seen giving you a check later that evening. There was another occasion that you were to contact Minister Louis Farrakhan for me and there was no follow through on that one either. It has always been about Jim Brown.

I have said this to you before, I have always earned my own way.  I have never asked anyone for a hand-out, only a helping hand.

The athletes and sports personalities who have benefited from Kids In Trouble and Inside Sports read like a Who’s Who.  They include; John Thompson, Dave Bing, Doug Williams, Don King, James Brown, Oden Polyniece, Michael Wilbon, Dave Aldridge, Adrian Dantley, Adrian Branch, Lamont Jordan, Dave Aldridge, Sugar Ray Leonard, Cathy Hughes, Dave Dupree, etc. Not one of them has ever donated a toy or dollar to the program. I operate under the premise that if you have never benefited from the programs Kids In Trouble and Inside Sports you don’t owe me anything, but if you have been a benefactor you owe the programs to reach back and help someone else.

There is nothing wrong or criminal about reaching back to help someone, everybody does it but us. Don Imus, Russ Limbaugh, Bill O’Reilly they are  not the problem, we are the problem. I have never seen so many envy, jealous and selfish people in one community.

My question to you, where is the beef and exactly what is your problem? Why did you find it necessary to tell me to kiss your ass and fuck me over the telephone because I asked you why are you questioning me over the motives of some “Good Old Boy” who has shown no respect for Willie Wood, his family and me? You are as wrong as two left football cleats.

Several years ago when I brought to your attention I had a project that I was working on that could be worth millions of dollars if marketed and promoted in the right hands. I offered you a piece of the project. You never responded. So you got a problem and I am going to let you keep it.

Just like you lobbied to get Bobby Mitchell into the hall of fame, I lobbied to get Willie Wood and Earl Lloyd into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and NBA Hall of Fame respectively. Much like I lobbied to get your black ass out of jail.

Several years ago Earl Lloyd was heard on WTEM all sports talk radio here in DC with fraudulent John Thompson saying, “Harold Bell maybe controversial but I have yet to hear anyone call him a liar.” Guess what, I am still sticking to the truth.

In closing, I think you got me mixed up with one of your cheer-leading friends. Your profanity laced tirade reminded me of an uneducated rapper and street thug who has run out of a logical solution to the problem being discussed. He then turns to the vulgar language of the streets. You sounded nothing like the Syracuse University scholar that you are made out to be. I for one don’t need all this hate from a so-called BLACK MAN like you. I have been your friend for over 30 years and I am not going to suddenly become your bitch.

You got a wrong number. Now you can team up with the rest the frauds like Don King, Rock Newman, Michael Wilbon, James Brown, John Thompson, Dave Bing, Sugar Ray Leonard, Cathy Hughes, etc and your new found friend Bob Schmidt in the “I hate Harold Bell fan club.” In the meantime I will keep you and your family in prayer.

Serena Williams wins her 19th career Grand Slam and her 6th Australian Open.  She beat Maria Sharapova in straight sets. More history was made when three black female players made it to the quarter finals.  Never in Grand Slam history has this ever happen.  Serena and sister Venus and nineteen year old Madison Keys are keeping hope alive in American tennis.

There has not been a No. 1 black male tennis player since Arthur Ashe in 1971.  Where are all the black American men?

A footnote in Black History: While we celebrate Serena lets not forget Arthur and Althea  Gibson who started it all.

I remember a black Newspaper Columnist, Adrienne Washington writing, “I am still trying to figure out how our story gets told by everyone but us?”  Adrienne, What took you so long to figure that one out?  First, we don’t own any major media outlets to tell our own stories.

Our history is either being ignored or stolen while we stand idly by and do and say nothing.  The thieves are stealing our music.  The Oldie but Goodies formats are being sold out all over the country and it has gotten so bad if you spot a black face in the audience you celebrate.   The most popular rapper in America has blond hair and blue eyes–Emien.  A black jockey has not been seen at the Kentucky Derby since the 1800s. Asians have taken over the soul food market, when was the last time you saw an Afro-American own cleaners?

When I talk about stolen goods I have to look no further than ESPN’s VP Steve Walsh.  He listened to Inside Sports while working in the Style Section of the Washington Post in the 70s.  In 1978 he took the concept and format of the show and parlayed it into Inside Sports Magazine and today’s ESPN television format.  It was my fault because I didn’t trademark the name as my attorney had advised me.

I decided to separate my sports talk radio format from his magazine so I re-named my format “The Original Inside Sports!”   You would not believe he is still trying to claim ownership, in his profile on the internet he calls his magazine“The Original Inside Sports Magazine!”  He has no shame in his game! You still want to know why our history is being told by everyone but us?

In 1968 tennis legend Arthur Ashe won his First Grand Slam, the U. S. Open.  Shortly after the big win he and his good friend, business partner and Davis Cup teammate, Donald Dell were driving around Washington DC when Arthur came up with the BRAINCHILD the National Junior Tennis League (now under the umbrella of the USTA).

Arthur and his Davis Cup teammates, Donald Dell in dark sport coat

Arthur and Donald had just finished conducting a tennis clinic for inner-city youth at the Bannecker Recreation Center on Ga. Ave. NW.  The Rec center was located directly across the street from Historical Black College, Howard University. Despite his success Arthur had not forgotten who he was and where he came from!  He remembered the harsh reality of racism in his hometown of Richmond, Virginia.  He had to leave town just to escape racism on the tennis courts.

Arthur conducting tennis clinic in NW DC

Shortly after the devastating riots in 1968 had torn DC apart, several blocks away at 14^th & W Streets NW there was another youth works project in progress.  Kids In Trouble was designed to help rescue at-risk children in the Shaw/Cardozo community.

I was working for the DC Recreation Department in its elite Roving Leader Program (Youth Gang Task Force).  KIT was a non-profit organization and my BRAINCHILD.  The program was established to help the growth of inner-city children using recreation and tutorial programs as a vehicle.  Pro athletes were invited to be mentors.  Native Washingtonians, Dave Bing (NBA) and Willie Wood (NFL) were the first to volunteer.  Today every pro sports franchise from, Major League Baseball, NHL, NFL and NBA “Cares!”

In 1970 Arthur Ashe won his Second Grand Slam, the Australian Open.  In 1971 he won his first French Open Doubles Championship with doubles partner Marty Riessen.  Arthur was ranked the No. 1 tennis player in the world.

 The idea for the title Inside Sports for my ground breaking radio talk show came from my wife, Hattie.  It was 1971 and we were having dinner one evening when he asked her to suggest a title for my new show and without hesitation she blurted out “Inside Sports.”  The airing of Inside Sports made me the first black to host and produce his own sports talk show in the Nation’s Capitol on W-O-O-K radio.   

Sports talk in America would never be the same.  Long time sports columnist Dick Heller has called me “The Godfather of Sports talk—the good kind.”

In 1972 during a break in the action at the Evening Star Tennis Tournament in DC I would asked Arthur Ashe if he would come on my show for an interview, but he turned me down.  In the infancy of the tournament the media and players co-habituated in and under one tent.  We were all up close and personal.  The Media had total access to the players.

 Ashe turned me down but Jimmy Connors standing nearby over heard the conversation and volunteered to be onInside Sports via telephone.  The Sunday of the show NBA legend Red Auerbach and his wife Dotie were scheduled to be my guest.  It was 15 minutes into the show and as promised Jimmy called.  Red and Dotie were unaware of my special telephone guest because I was not sure if he was really going to call.  My producer Carl Furgerson was the only one I told about the possibility of Jimmy calling into the show (he managed the phones).

When Carl signaled me that Jimmy was on the line I plugged him into the studio and said “Jimmy Connors say hello to Red and Dotie Auerbach.”  When Jimmy said ‘Hello’ Red dropped his unlit cigar out of his mouth in disbelief!  Red was a big tennis fan and during our long friendship he participated in several of my celebrity tennis tournaments.  Red took over the show and made me the guest as he and Jimmy talked tennis for next 15 minutes—I enjoyed every minute of it.

July 2013 will mark 40 years since Arthur Ashe became the first black to win the Evening Star Tennis Tournament(Legg Mason) in Washington, DC.  Covering the event at courtside was the only black sports reporter and talk show host in DC covering the event—Harold Bell.

July 2013 will also mark the summer riots of 1968 and how my good friend and head U. S. Marshall Luke Moore and I walked arm and arm with Willie Wood in the 14th Street NW cooridor trying to save lives.  It also marks the birth ofKids In Trouble.

In 1973 Inside Sports was the talk of the town and the No. 1 ranked listened to sports talk show on the airwaves!

In 1975 Arthur Ashe won his 3^rd Grand Slam, the French Open beating arch-rival and nemesis the legendary Jimmy Connors in 5 sets.  In November 1975 I became the first black ever to host and produce his own sports television special on NBC television in prime time.  The show was aired on NBC affiliate WRC-TV 4 in DC prior to the Washington Redskins taking on the Oakland Raiders in Oakland.  My special guest was The Greatest, Muhammad Ali.

Today Arthur Ashe is still the only black man to be ranked No. 1 in the World and win all 3 Grand Slams. His humanitarian efforts on behalf of the less fortunate and the underdog, makes him a better human being than an athlete.

They say the greatest form of flattery is imitation; the original Inside Sports talk show format has often been imitated around the country but never duplicated.

During Black History Month 2013 I was invited to be a guest on a sports talk show on the Howard University radio station WHUR.

The host was Ricky Clemons an old friend whose sporting credentials are vast and unchallenged.  His show’s title“Sports Insider” sounded vaguely familiar!  He confessed on the air that his title for the show was inspired by the original Inside Sports.  I said ‘Why Not’ everyone else seems to have been inspired by the title for example; Inside Major League Baseball, Inside the NFL, Inside the NBA, Inside Hockey, Inside Tennis, and the political talk shows have even got in on the act with Inside Washington, etc.

The benefactors who have emerged from the shadows of Kids In Trouble and Inside Sports before their 15 minutes of fame read like a Who’s Who in media, John Thompson, James Brown, Sugar Ray Leonard, Grant Hill, Michael Wilbon, Cathy Hughes, Dave Aldridge, Adrian Dantley, Kevin Blackistone, and Adrian Branch.

American and Black Sports History will one day look back and take note that while Arthur Ashe and Harold Bell were 2 ships passing in the night in Washington, DC, they were making waves and clearing a path for our youth!