Subway lovers

She burrowed her weary hooded head

on his chest as the train left the station.

Across the aisle he closed his young eyes

while she cushioned his head on her chest.

A cold day in the big city didn’t faze

busy Christmas shoppers and tourists.

The sounds and crowds of a packed train

didn’t faze lovers underneath the hustle and bustle.

Young Americans: the (almost) forgotten Cosmos

Mention of the Cosmos teams from their Giants Stadium era likely conjures up images of Franz Beckenbauer, Giorgio Chinaglia, Pele, Carlos Alberto and Johan Neeskens in the memories of aging New York City/New Jersey-area soccer fans. Those international stars may have grabbed the headlines and attracted the crowds, but I recall a less heralded group of U.S. players on the Cosmos just as fondly. 

These young Americans toiled at a time when the U.S. was habitually absent from the World Cup, but they provided the Cosmos a spark and their fans some thrills. Often, they also enabled the veteran Cosmos stars to preserve their legs on the hard, hot Giants Stadium turf.

If you assembled the young American Cosmos players during the peak of their careers, they probably would have formed a strong North American Soccer League club and competitive U.S. National Soccer team, perhaps one that could’ve qualified for a World Cup. Here’s how I think this team would’ve looked:

Goalkeeper: David Brcic or Shep Messing

Defenders: Jeff Durgan, Santiago Formoso, Werner Roth, Bobby Smith

Midfielders: Boris Bandov, Rick Davis, Angelo DiBernardo

Forwards:  Chico Borja, Mark Liveric, Steve Moyers

Rick Davis was arguably the best American player during the years the Cosmos played at Giants Stadium in front of huge crowds while winning the NASL title four times and hosting international teams between 1977-84. A clean-cut kid from California who was only 19 when he joined the Cosmos, Davis’ game grew leaps and bounds playing alongside Beckenbauer, whose number 6 he wore near the end of his Cosmos career, after the legendary German had retired.

Davis drew the wrath of some fellow American players in 1983 when he refused to join Team America, a short-lived NASL club intended to include the best Americans and strengthen the country’s chances of qualifying for the 1986 World Cup. But, he was quite happy to remain with the Cosmos and, in fact, was an honorable mention NASL all-star that season, when the league required teams to field only a few Americans.

Jeff Durgan, who made his Cosmos debut as an 18-year-old alongside Carlos Alberto, accepted the call from Team America after three seasons with the Cosmos. Durgan benefitted immensely from playing with the crafty Brazilian for a couple of those seasons, showing courage and strength defending against the league’s top attackers, and developing a mental aptitude for the game not normally associated with such a young American.

Durgan remained humble as his star in U.S. soccer circles rose quickly, and retained a great sense of humor. Watching Wayne Gtretzky on TV after a difficult Cosmos indoor game at Madison Square Garden, Durgan (sarcastically) quipped Gtretzky “plays hockey like I do indoor soccer.” He also wore a “No Bozo the Clown” patch over the Cosmos crest on his uniform one time for a road game.

Two other Cosmos and Team America clubmates of Durgan perfected their skills in the U.S. and featured on the national team after arriving in the country as youngsters. Ecuadorian-born Chico Borja played at New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark, near his family’s Belleville home and Giants Stadium, before making his Cosmos debut in 1981. He dribbled the ball and shot on goal with confidence rarely seen in Americans at the time. Boris Bandov, born in Yugoslavia, spent 1979-82 with the Cosmos, his fourth NASL club. Comfortable in midfield or defense, Bandov was a calm and steady presence on the field.

Mark Liveric and Angelo DiBernardo, on the other hand, although they also were born overseas and established their professional credentials in the NASL, were more difficult to overlook during a game. Liveric was a cheeky attacker. During the second year of his second stint with the Cosmos in 1980, he once delayed a game after hanging on to the crossbar and bringing the whole goal down after scoring. When healthy between 1980-84, DiBernardo was perpetual motion on the field, causing midfield teammate Vladislav Bogicevic to yell, “Easy, easy, Angelo!” loud enough for fans to hear during a game.

Bobby Smith was another young American difficult for fans and opposing players to overlook during games. A Trenton native and prolific goalscorer for Rider University in Lawrence, Smith began his NASL career with Philadelphia before spending three seasons with the Cosmos between 1976-78 as a respected, fearless, hard-nosed defender.

Many soccer fans walking through the Giants Stadium parking lot to games during 1978-79 didn’t have to guess who owned the 25^th anniversary Corvette near the entrance with the license plate, “Santi.” It belonged to defender Santiago Formoso, who immigrated to New Jersey from Spain and was perhaps a bit ahead of his time with overlapping runs from the back of the field.  

Another American Cosmos defender during much of the 1970s, Werner Roth, became a heart throb of many young female fans with his long black hair and twinkle in his eyes and smile. There was no doubting his steely presence on the field, however, and he was cast as a stoic German player for the 1981 movie, Victory, which also featured former teammate Pele, Sylvester Stallone and Michael Caine.

Among the Cosmos players also popular with female fans was Steve Moyers, the blond attacker who was a prolific scorer during the last three years the Cosmos played NASL games at Giants Stadium. Moyers also showed good footwork on the dance floor of the Front Row, the now-defunct nightclub in the shadows of the stadium.

Of course, few American Cosmos could match the magnetism of Shep Messing, the Harvard-educated mustached goalkeeper who posed nude for Viva magazine during his first of two stints with the club. Messing parted from the Cosmos a second time in 1977, after minding the nets in the club’s championship game win, and became the league’s highest-paid American.

You could argue, however, that David Brcic was as fine an American goalkeeper as the Giants Stadium-era Cosmos ever had. Brcic joined the club as a 19-year understudy to Messing in 1977, and was Hubert Birkenmeier’s backup for many of his eight years with the Cosmos. His quick reflexes, however, gained him lots of playing time with the indoor squads of the Cosmos and other teams for many years after the original Cosmos ceased operations.

Although most Americans who played for the Cosmos during their Giants Stadium era between 1977-84 found themselves in the shadows of more renowned players with international credentials, their contribution to the club cannot be underestimated. Nor, for at least one aging New York City/New Jersey soccer fan, are they forgotten.

An edited version of this article along with some great photos was published in the Empire of Soccer website on October 12, 2017.

America

Mexicans,

Russians,

Asian Indians,

Cubans,

Eastern Europeans,

Italians,

Japanese,

Chinese,

Germans,

Irish,

Africans,

British,

Native Indians.

Muslims,

Hindus,

Jews,

Catholics,

Protestants.

Black eyes,

blue eyes,

brown eyes.

Short,

tall.

And everybody else,

including you and your family,

me and mine.

-- Charley Bruns, 2017

"America, where are you now

Don't you care about your sons and daughters

Don't you know we need you now

We can't fight alone against the monster"

-- "Monster/Suicide/America," Steppenwolf, 1969  

Love the Sea, See the Love

The boy looked out at the sea

and saw a lighthouse.

Beyond its beacon he could imagine

his home, his brother, his mother.

He loved that sea dearly.

It was a direct path to everything

he longed for, for all he missed,

and love that awaited him.

The sea was also his best friend, 

always there day and night,

bringing him all kinds of joy.

It refreshed him, it played with him,

at times it even fed him.

But the sea was also tempestuous,

dancing wickedly with stormy rains,

knocking against his door with anger,

once even climbing inside his room

and sweeping away some toys.

It was like the father he remembered,

all playful and attentive one day,

then angry and furious the next.

But the sea did not leave him. 

It returned, calmed down 

and ready to play, refresh and feed, 

like the good women in his life.

And there were many good women.

His aunt, grandmother and mother 

and others, all took turns

to bring him back to the sea.

They waded in its waters with him,

playing and laughing with joy

as he jumped the waves 

or dove under its currents,

the silky sand under his soft feet.

But none was lovelier than the one

he married and raised their family with.

Many years she would jump right in

to share in his joy of the sea,

and see the boy who was also her man.

His eyes still sparkle by the sea, 

his wife often beside him.

He likes to watch her face 

as she relaxes under the sun, 

the sound of the surf and children

playing around them.

When he closes his eyes, 

he sees the lighthouse, feels the joy.

When he opens his eyes,

he smiles and remembers how much

he still loves the sea. 

He turns to look at his wife,

and sees a love as warm as the sun.

--Charles Bruns, copyright 2017

On May 17, 1947...

It was 70 years ago this week that the first of my family arrived in the U.S. The woman who would become my grandmother, Abuela Belen, was a widow and talented seamstress who came to the U.S. in search for a better life, like millions before and after her.

She tried, but could never master the English language like my mother did. She got most of her information from Spanish-language newspapers, magazines, radio and TV and her Spanish-speaking neighbors, friends and co-workers in New York. She cared about her new country, and regularly voted in elections.

She was one of the most inspirational people in my life, and a very loving sweet woman. And, she was a good American.

2017 baseball predictions

I've been making predictions for new Major League Baseball seasons for over 50 years. I've rarely been right about the World Series winner in my April prediction. Actually, I don't recall ever picking the correct World Series champion. That makes me as smart as the best baseball minds in Sports Illustrated, I guess.

This year, my baseball picks feature an unabashed bias for my favorite team, the New York Mets. Heck, if I'm going to be wrong again, I might as well go down with my favorite club. Then again, I haven't been right in the past being unbiased. So, let me try something new.

  

Charley's picks:

NL East: 1-New York, 2-*Washington, 3-Atlanta, 4-Miami, 5-Philadelphia.

NL Central: 1-Chicago, 2-St. Louis, 3-Pittsburgh, 4-Milwaukee, 5-Cincinnati.

NL West: 1-Los Angeles, 2-*San Francisco, 3-Arizona, 4-Colorado, 5-San Diego.

*wild cards

League championship: New York over Chicago

AL East: 1-Boston, 2-*Toronto, 3-New York, 4-Tampa Bay, 5-Baltimore.

AL Central: 1-Cleveland, 2-Kansas City, 3-Detroit, 4-Minnesota, 5-Chicago.

AL West: 1-Texas, 2-*Houston, 3-Seattle, 4-Los Angeles, 5-Oakland.

*wild cards

League championship: Boston over Texas

World Series: New York Mets over Boston Red Sox

By the way, Sports Illustrated picks the Dodgers to beat the Indians in this year's World Series.

Enjoy the season!

Photo of cover of Sports Illustrated The Baseball Book, 2006

End of the circus era

“And the circus boss leans over and whispers into the little boy’s ear
Hey, son, you want to try the big top?
All aboard, Nebraska’s our next stop”
— “Wild Billy’s Circus,” Bruce Springsteen, 1973

The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus announced earlier this winter it would soon be going out of business, just as the Cole Bros. circus Bruce Springsteen might have been singing about seemed to have done in the past year. The Ringling Bros. circus stopped being a tent show 60 years ago, further distinguishing itself from troupes like Cole Bros. that continued touring the U.S. for entertainment dollars in returns for laughs and oohs and aahs.

Even as it continued playing multiple dates in big arenas with thousands of children of all ages, however, the Greatest Show on Earth could not sustain itself economically. In its quest to update its circus to the tastes of the 21st century, Ringling Bros.’ costs escalated to the point where it could no longer expect to break even financially, let alone turn a profit.

Ironically, the Ringling Bros. circus is exiting with a production named “Out of This World” which features ice skaters but no elephants for the first time. It’s thoroughly entertaining. Circus performers can take a final bow and leave with their heads high, knowing there will never be a show quite like it again in the U.S.

For more photos from one of the circus' final performances at the Prudential Center in Newark, see my Tumblr post at http://charleybruns.tumblr.com/post/158329991745/ringside-view-of-the-end-of-the-circus-era-and

You can read the handwriting...

Ten years of iPhone

Ten years ago today, Steve Jobs introduced the original iPhone at the annual Macworld conference. I remember how pleased I was to obtain my first iPhone the following winter, even though there was not yet an App Store to load it with all kinds of cool applications. I realized then it was just a matter of time before Apple would overtake my company-issued BlackBerry in the smartphone market, although few were aware that a Google executive serving on Apple's board of directors would learn enough to launch a competing platform for his company shortly afterwards. 

I'm now on my fourth iPhone, a two-year-old gold-color 6. In addition to making my iPod and Palm obsolete, it's enabled me to put away my Nikon camera. And, I understand the camera on the iPhone 7 which my wife and youngest son got this winter is even better. I like it when technology simplifies my life! 

Thanks, Apple.

Starbucks: a personal history

Family and friends who know me as a coffee snob might be surprised to learn I was late to the Starbucks party. But, I've been making up for lost time.

Since I grew up drinking Cuban-style cafe con leche my mother learned to make from my abuela, before crafting them myself as a teenager, I never cared much for the Dunkin' Donuts or typical convenience store, diner or restaurant coffees widely available in New Jersey in the 1970s. With few exceptions, I would find them weak, tasteless or just plain awful. During the late '70s and early '80s, in fact, I would sometimes go to a Greenwich Village cafe on weekends to have great espresso-based coffee made for me and my date (who eventually became my wife).

New Jersey's first Starbucks cafe opened in Ridgewood in November 1993, according to the New York Times. Although it's hard to believe, the first New York City Starbucks cafe (at Broadway and 87th Street) didn't open until the following year, in April 1994.

It wasn't until March 2002 that I first tried Starbucks coffee. I was in Honolulu and, disappointed in the weak local kona coffee, I ventured into a Starbucks cafe across the street from my hotel and ordered a caffe latte. That first cup reminded me of my grandmother's coffee, which to that point in my life had only been matched by my mother and Cuban cafes on Bergenline Avenue in Union City, New Jersey. I went back to that Starbucks cafe every morning while I was in Honolulu. Today, almost 15 years later, I can still think of sitting in the balcony of my hotel room, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, when I enjoy a caffe latte.

When I returned from Hawaii, I sought out local Starbucks cafes and never was disappointed by their coffee or service. Whether I was in the U.S. or Europe, I would be impressed by the consistency of their quality and pleased by their friendly employees. Away from home, I would find some comfort relaxing in their cafes with a morning or afternoon caffe latte.

When we visited our eldest son in college, my wife and I and our youngest son would stop at a Starbucks in White Plains and order coffees for the ride home. During the nearly fours years I worked in midtown Manhattan, I looked forward to stepping out to a nearby Starbucks some afternoons for a pick-me-up coffee to bring back to the office.

My tastes eventually expanded to appreciate some of their other drinks, including pumpkin space latte, chai tai latte and smoothies (typically with a shot of espresso added). Along with the classic caffe latte, my favorite Starbucks coffee is the flat white with some vanilla powder mixed in and a dash of cinnamon on top.  

Today, less than 25 years later after they first appeared in the New York metropolitan area, there are over 100 Starbucks locations in New Jersey and almost 250 in New York City, and that's not counting book stores, hotels and other businesses that "proudly serve" Starbucks coffees.

Although Starbucks has managed to grow exponentially without compromising the quality of their beverages, the same can't be said of their service. Not all baristas are friendly, and a clean, comfortable cafe in which to relax is no longer a given. I guess that's to be expected from a chain that grew from 17 U.S. locations in 1987 to 22,519 globally on June 28, 2015 (according to www.starbucks.com) and now has almost 240,000 employees, few of which are likely to make it their career.   

I still enjoy an espresso-based coffee at a Greenwich Village cafe. I'm grateful for the increasing number of Cuban cafes appearing across New Jersey and New York, the ones of which I've sampled offer outstanding coffees. I'm pleasantly surprised by the quality of McCafe coffees, and in fact have stopped at McDonald's just for their lattes. My family continues to get a kick out of the different espresso coffees I craft for them. 

I still find satisfactory coffees at diners and restaurants few and far in between, and usually don't bother ordering them at the end of my meals anymore.  I still haven't tasted a good cup of coffee from Dunkin' Donuts, even though there is one less than two blocks from my home. The convenience store coffees I've tried have been unremarkable.

A Starbucks cafe when I'm away from home and wanting a great cup of coffee, on the other hand, remains a welcome sight. I've enjoyed making up for lost time, coffee snob that I am. 

Relaxing at a Starbucks cafe in Zurich, Switzerland; March 2011