Almost Met Ray Meyer

Back when I was at DePaul, I worked evenings in the phone room soliciting donations from alumni. I hated making those calls, but every night there was a different bonus contest, with the winner getting a free pizza in the cafeteria. That was incentive enough for me and I won almost every night.

Whenever I would collect my pizza, I would usually see legendary DePaul basketball coach Ray Meyer. Eve though he retired, he still was a presence at DePaul. While I chatted briefly with him a few times, I never got a picture with him. I didn't even think of getting a picture with him. Plus, that was well before the selfie days.

Meyer died in 2006 at 93 years old. By then I was long gone from DePaul. I should have gone back to try to get a picture, because Meyer was one of the greatest coaches in college basketball history.

Last month while walking to Caciatorre Field for DePaul softball, I walked by the pillar painted with Meyer's likeness. It is one of several pillars painted with various bits of DePaul history. Since I never got a picture with Meyer, I took the opportunity to do the next best thing now.

 Ray Meyer mural and me in Chicago, IL-March 2026.

Friend Encounters: Sara Richard and Noah

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends meeting celebrities.

Never one to hog the spotlight, I always enjoy when others do interviews for me (or do my work for me). Many years ago, my young cousin Noah conducted a bunch of interviews at Wizard World. One of those was with Sara Richard, one of my favorite artists and just a cool person in general. That interview is at On the Beat With Sara Richard.

With very little notice, Noah did a great job with Sara. Of course, it takes both sides to have a good interview and Sara was her usual awesome self.

I first met Sara about 15 years ago and immediately loved her artwork. Already established as a talented artist, Sara's career really has blossomed. She has done work for trading card companies, comic book publishers and many more businesses. Her work continues to amaze me.

Noah handled interviews at other places, too. He did a few classic interviews at Resistance Pro Wrestling. For such a young guy, he handled it all very well. I haven't seen him in several years, but these experiences will always be among my favorites.

For more info on Sara, go to sararichard.com. For even more fun, follow her on social media. She is a blast.

Noah and Sara Richard in Rosemont, IL-August 2013.

Celebrity Jersey Cards #792: Kim Coates & Alan Frew

Celebrity Jersey Cards is a weekly series in which I create virtual trading cards for celebrities wearing sports jerseys. Today, I continue my season-long alphabetical journey through all Major League Baseball teams.

A native of Saskatchewan, Kim Coates is an actor and producer. Possibly best known for his role on Sons of Anarchy, Coates has had many other roles in movies and on television. Coates tossed a ceremonial pitch for his home country Toronto Blue Jays to earn his Celebrity Jersey Card.

Born in Ontario, Alan Frew is a singer, actor and author. Lead singer of Glass Tiger, he has also released solo albums. After suffering a stroke in 2015, he has made a remarkable full recovery. Frew sang the Canadian Anthem for the Toronto Blue Jays to get his Celebrity Jersey Card.

Cards That Never Were: Carl Taylor Topps 1972

Cards That Never Were is a recurring series in which I create virtual trading cards for players missed in various sets. It is a concept I borrowed from far too many to list, but I appreciate all of their efforts.

Carl Taylor was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates sometime prior to the 1962 season. The step-brother of Boog Powell made his MLB debut in 1968. In 1969, he hit .348 in 221 plate appearances and looked to be a future star. Unfortunately, his stats would never come close to that again while he carved out a six-year MLB career. After two seasons with the Pirates, he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, who traded him to the Kansas City Royals after a season. He split the 1971 season between the Royals and Pirates, before spending the last two seasons of his career back with the Royals. For his career, Taylor played 411 games, hitting .266 with 10 HRs, 115 RBIs and 113 runs scored.

For his efforts, Topps gave Taylor cards in sets 1969-74, except for 1972. Once again, as I set out to make that card, Gio of When Topps Had Baseballs beat me to it. Gio has a great site with thousands of creations. Rather than try to duplicate his efforts, I always choose to highlight his versions, since he is the master.

Rachel Lewis and the Northwestern Wildcats

I have covered hundreds of college softball games. Northwestern's Rachel Lewis is one of the best and one of my favorite players I have seen in person.

A five-year letter winner for the Wildcats, Rachel started all 245 career games from 2018-22. Among her many honors and accolades, she was the Big Ten Player of the Year in 2022, when she tied a Northwestern single-season record with 23 home runs while adding 62 RBIs. Her name is still in the Top Ten of many categories on Northwestern's leaderboard.

Rachel was a powerhouse. She hit towering homers. I am not sure if she cleared the left field building, but I know she hit it multiple times.

On top of all of that, she has always beena class act. She always gave me time to chat during her career. Eve now, when I see her at games, she always has a minute or two. It was a pleasure following and covering her career. Even more, it was great knowing her a bit.

It's people like Rachel who make it fun for me. I get to meet interesting folks and watch their careers and lives develop.

Go to NUSports.com for more info. Check back here for my coverage.

Rachel Lewis and me in Evanston, IL-May 2022.

 

Trainwrecker in the House!

Is there a better name for a ring announcer than POWW's Trainwrecker? It could also work well for an actual wrestler. If you see the man behind the moniker, you would think he is a wrestler.

Trainwrecker doesn't just live on a cool name. He is a great announcer. He starts every show telling the crowd they are here to entertain and the crowd is there to be entertained. All should leave their worries at the door and enjoy the action. He also warns all about the use of foul language (a nice touch for a sometimes rowdy crowd).

It is only starting there though. Trainwrecker takes his train whistle and leads a group of youngsters in a couple laps around the ring. No, I have not been tempted to join the train. I am content watching the kids enjoy themselves. For the rest of the night, Trainwrecker uses his booming voice to introduce each wrestler for their match. 

Last year, Trainwrecker had a very special introduction and announcement. He introduced Jenna Monroe, a POWW staffer. He proceeded to propose. She accepted and I saw my first legitimate wrestling marriage proposals. Usually such stuff is for storylines, but this was real. Congrats and best wishes to both.

Trainwrecker and me in Fox Lake, IL-March 2026.

Happy Birthday, Nancy!

 Today is my eldest sister Nancy''s birthday. She is celebrating on a cruise today, but I am saluting her from here.

As I have previously written numerous times, I am lucky to have two great sisters. They are truly my rocks. I love and appreciate them more than I could ever properly express and more than they will ever know.

Nancy and I had a special time last year at our niece's wedding in Cancun. Since our other sister was a bit busy as the mother of the bride, Nanc and I had extra time together (and with her hubby Dave).It was a rare opportunity for all of us to be together outside of our area. Always looking out for her little brother, Nancy could have wanted more alone time with her husband, but she didn't exclude me.

Last year Nanc went above and beyond. On a Friday afternoon, she drove about three hours to see a band with her daughter and me. She didn't even know of the band and the two unexpected opening acts were less than great. She was a real trooper. That's just one example of her kindness.

We jokingly call her the Matriarch and she takes it in fun. She knows we love her dearly.

We will celebrate birthdays when we are all in town together. For now, I wish he a fantastic birthday here. Happy birthday and I love you!

Nancy and me in Cancun, Mexico-November 2025.

Grammar Police: Literally

I am back with my Grammar Police series. This one is long overdue.

Somehow, "literally" has become one of the most overused words. Making it worse, it is usually used incorrectly. If this makes one person drop that word from daily speech, I will be happy (but I won't literally be the happiest person ever.

It's not just me. The brilliant Weird Al Yankovic included literally in his genius "Word Crimes" song. That song is great, but it's not literally gold.

Granted sometimes using figuratively instead of literally does not work. I doubt anyone would say "Word Crimes" is figuratively gold. That's okay. Omit it. Just don't keep using literally when it is not literally a fact.

As I don't just talk the talk, I encourage everyone to say Johngy's Beat is the best, but not literally the best  

Friend Encounters: Dawn Wells and Tony

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends who have met celebrities.

Once again, I feature my good pal Tony. Today he is with one of the seven stranded castaways from tv's Gilligan's Island.

Dawn Wells played Mary Ann, too often underrated in the shadow of Tina Louise's Ginger. Both were beautiful, but Mary Ann proved she is a much better cook. That alone should give the edge to Mary Ann.

I don't think Wells took it too seriously, nor should she have. She seemed to embrace her place in television history. She made many appearances and was always hugely popular at comic cons.

I had the pleasure of meeting Wells a few times. She was always extremely sweet and engaging with all fans.

Tony met Wells a few years ago. Looking at them, I somehow think Tony could have made a good Skipper and he would probably say I would make a good Gilligan. Maybe I don't want to give him that idea.

Tony and Dawn Wells in Rosemont, IL-March 2019.

Celebrity Jersey Cards #791 Marlen Esparza & J.J. Watt

Celebrity Jersey Cards is a weekly series in which I create virtual trading cards for celebrities wearing sports jerseys. Today, I continue my season-long alphabetical journey through all Major League Baseball teams.

Born in Pasadena, Texas, Marlen Esparza was the first American female boxer to qualify for the Olympics. She won a bronze medal in the women's flyweight division in the 2012 Olympics. She has gone on to win titles in the WBC, WBO, WBA and Ring. Esparza won her Celebrity Jersey Card when she tossed a ceremonial pitch for her home state Houston Astros. 

Wisconsin native J.J. Watt was selected by the Houston Texans in the first round of the 2011 draft. He went on to play 10 stellar seasons with the Texans and two more with the Arizona Cardinals before retiring. His two brothers also have played in the NFL. Since retiring, Watt has become an outstanding broadcaster. He appeared on field for the Astros to earn his Celebrity Jerey Card.