While writing my book, The Bullets, The Wizards and Washington, DC Basketball on professional basketball industry and Washington, DC, a central question emerged about the city’s fans. From the origins in the late 1920s through the Bullets in Landover, Maryland, the city’s teams never drew very well. Even when they reached the National Basketball Association…
This week marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most magical moments in Olympics history. Billy Mills became the first American to win the 10,000m in 1964, and he did so in dramatic fashion. The story is so incredible even Hollywood couldn’t have dreamed it up. But, perhaps, more significant and more important than…
Zeam Porter loves basketball. Last season, through great perseverance and resolve, the Minnesota high school junior earned the honor “Most Improved Player” as a sophomore. Yet, according to Porter, who identifies as “trans genderqueer,” the title was misleading. “The plaque said the wrong name,” Porter explained. “The cheers I received were the wrong name. ‘Go…
This time of year, it’s not entirely uncommon for sports journalists to comment upon the remarkable quantity of non-US born baseball players stealing the show in Major League Baseball’s (MLB) postseason. Other times the coverage is less laudatory. Two on-field conflicts erupted in late September of 2013 involving a Dominican player (Carlos Gomez and Jose Fernandez,…
The homecoming mum: I thought I would try something new and post from the game tonight. At this very moment I sit in a stadium that seats 20,000 people at a conservative estimate. It is an oddity that we play a varsity game on a Thursday night and it really does throw off the vibe…
On Saturday, November 23, 1963, Oklahoma and Nebraska were schedule to meet in Lincoln. It was an important game in the Big 8 standings. The Sooners were 7-1 going into the game, 5-0 in conference play. Their only loss that season was to Darrell Royal and a pesky Texas team that seemed to always have…
By Ari de Wilde, Guest Contributor Ari de Wilde is an Assistant Professor of Sport and Leisure Management at Eastern Connecticut State University. His main research interests are in the business history of sport and the North American bicycle racing industry. He received his BA from Bates College…
During my two years of coursework at Mizzou, I earned a reputation for using sports metaphors in class. While other grad students referenced – and acted like they understood or had even read – Foucault, Marx, or the like, I referenced sports. For example, in one class I asked if Nathan Hatch’s Democratization of American…
I began writing this blog post about my recent trip to the Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria for my dissertation. As the post took form, Aaron Devor’s highly anticipated book The Transgender Archives: Foundations for the Future was released. Reading the book, reflecting upon my research process(es), and continually asking myself “what am I…
Ever since humans invented motorized flight, they have attempted to race airplanes in the sky. This weekend, pilots from around the world convened at the Reno-Stead Airport in Reno, Nevada, to compete in the 2014 National Air Races. Tragically, in practice before the start of the races, retired fighter pilot, veteran air racer, and former…
Sport in American History 