Tag Archives: Latinos in sport

Radio Appearance: Humboldt Magazine, KHSU 90.5 FM Arcata, CA

 Sport in the Americas and Caribbean and their connection to popular culture and politics:  The Roman Colosseum and the staging of mass public spectacle.

Friday, June 16,  2017 at 1:00  PM   

khsu_logo

Today we’ll be taking a small departure from our normal themes and discuss part of Doc’s recent trip to Italy, Italian anecdotes, and in particular, his tour of the famous Roman Colosseum, site of some of the most brutal and spectacular events in our history. 

 
We’ll discuss the famous line “bread and circuses”  that was written to describe how the citizenry was diverted from its “civic” responsibilities by the bloody spectacles put on with great efficiency and planning by the Roman emperors.  The Colosseum itself, given that it was  built almost two thousand years ago was a masterpiece in terms of its design  and function (Circus Maximus, the venue of chariot races could reportedly hold 150, 000 spectators is now occupied by a public park).  Great stadiums are now commonplace in the United States and the world, but the Roman Colosseum was and has been the standard for two millennia.  
 
The United States has eight of the ten largest (capacity) stadiums in the world – all college football stadiums. Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca has the largest (capacity) stadium in the Americas and Caribbean exclusive of the United States – and the site of some great historical sporting/political events.   The largest capacity stadium in the world currently?  Well, that might surprise you.  Listen in for a unique show on Friday!
 Roman Colosseum, completed CE 80, capacity approx. 60,000 – 85,000

 Tune in and listen to the show or stream it at:

http://www.khsu.org/listen_live

Radio Appearance: Humboldt Magazine, KHSU 90.5 FM Arcata, CA

 Sport in the Americas and Caribbean and their connection to popular culture and politics.  

Friday, April 7  2017 at 1:00  PM   

khsu_logo

Join Doc and host Danielle Orr for for their monthly feature on a review of last months World Baseball Classic.

The once-every-four-years World Baseball Classic last month was notable for its ever- increasing fan attendance, highest ever television ratings and participation by 16 international teams from Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean as well as the United States.   But perhaps the the most outstanding feature of this year’s classic wasn’t just the quality of play, but the celebratory and infectious revelry of the spectators and fans.  Commentators and sportswriters from the United States all commented on the great infusion of national pride and energy from the Latin American and Caribbean countries in particular  – as did major league players from the United States who were  inspired and proud to be a part of the international Tournament.

 

 Tune in and listen to the show or stream it at:

http://www.khsu.org/listen_live

Radio Appearance: Humboldt Homepage, KHSU 90.5 FM Arcata, CA

 Friday, October 16,  2015 at 1:00  PM  –  Lucha Libre

khsu_logo

Join Doc and host Danielle Orr for for their monthly feature on great athletes and sport from the Americas and Caribbean and their connection to popular culture and politics.

Tales of Masked Men

To conclude Hispanic Heritage Month, we’ll speak about Lucha Libre – an athletic, ritualistic, folkloric, and theatrical performance art that developed into one of the most popular forms of mass live entertainment in Mexico and was the subject of a fascinating and surprisingly culturally complex anthropological study and documentary film.

click to hear the interview (starts around 7:30 minute mark)

Radio Appearance: Humboldt Homepage, KHSU 90.5 FM Arcata, CA

 Friday, Sept. 4,  2015 at 1:00  PM  –  Pancho Gonzales:  Tennis

khsu_logo

Join Doc and host Danielle Orr for for their monthly feature on great athletes and sport from the Americas and Caribbean and their connection to popular culture and politics.

26 Jun 1969, London, England, UK --- Original caption: Wimbledon, England: Pancho Gonzales of the U.S. in action during his Wimbledon tennis open match against Ove Bengsson of Sweden. He won this Men's Singles event, 6-4, 6-3 and 6-3. --- Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS

This month, we’ll speak about one of the greats in American sport history- and America’s first minority champion in the world of tennis, Ricardo “Pancho” Gonzales from Los Angeles, California,  Though often forgotten in the age of today’s media coverage of superstar tennis players like Serena Williams and Roger Federer,  Gonzales was  big, strong, smart, fast, athletic- and both feared and admired by peers.  The self-taught Gonzales, who died 1995, dominated the game in the 1950’s and played through-out the 60’s in the wooden-racquet era.  Though a complicated and difficult personality, his peers often remarked that no-one in the game had a competitive fire like Gonzales.

http://www.khsu.org/listen_live

Radio Appearance: Humboldt Homepage, KHSU 90.5 FM Arcata, CA

 Friday, August 7,  2015 at 1:00  PM  –  

khsu_logo

Join Doc and host Danielle Orr for for their monthly feature on great athletes and sport from the Americas and Caribbean and their connection to popular culture and politics.  This feature is an outgrowth of Doc’s 14-part series on Latino athletes and sport.

 

 Tune in and listen to the show or stream it at:

http://www.khsu.org/listen_live