William Theodore "Bill" Walton III is a retired basketball player and TV
sportscaster. He led the Portland Trail Blazers to a sweep of the Los
Angeles Lakers in the 1977 western conference finals and was named
MVP. He went on to help the Blazers to the NBA title over the favored Philadelphia 76ers.

Portland Trail Blazers’ Championship Team, 1976-77

Bill Walton taking a shot as Darryl Dawkins of the Philadelphia 76ers blocks

The party in Portland following the championship win

English actor John Marwood Cleese is 73 today. He became a member of  
the comedy troupe Monty Python in the late 1960s and is probably best 
known for his role in “A Fish Called Wanda” (1988). Prior to fame, Cleese 
studied law at Cambridge.

The Python troupe in 1969, (back row) Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry
Gilliam, (front row) Terry Jones, John Cleese, and Michael Palin.

      Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995)

Mantle was a baseball center fielder who played 18 seasons in Major
League Baseball for the New York Yankees from 1951 to 1968. He is
regarded by many to be the greatest switch hitter of all time, and one
of the greatest players in baseball history. Mantle was inducted into
the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974, and elected to the MLB
All-Century Team in 1999.

Lonnie Shelton behind the wheel of his new collectible

In 1948 the Ford Motor Co. presented baseball great Babe Ruth with a new Lincoln Continental two-door hardtop coupe to show their appreciation for his tireless devotion 
to Little Leaguers and the sport of baseball. It is believed to be the last car Ruth ever 
drove before he died of cancer in August of that year. 

Lonnie Shelton, a big Ruth and baseball fan from Pampa, Texas, recently acquired 
the car for an undisclosed amount. The “Yankee” blue colored car had been parked
the past 35 years in a couple of museums in Minnesota and Texas. The new owner
said it has 81,000 original miles on it. 

The “Bambino”… George Herman Ruth, Jr.

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Paul Frederic Simon is 71 today