Best Pitcher Finals!

The finals are now set! With his legendary Tirabassi Excavator lineage, Rocky Tirabassi will take on the world-class showman, Gary “Wizard” Petersen. Here is how they got here:

Semi-final Results

Rocky Tirabassi – 56%

Danny Llanas – 44%

Wizard Petersen – 54%

Mario Bonofiglio – 46%

The Finals poll will be open until May 5th at 6:00pm. On Wednesday, the first round of the “Best I Ever Saw” 1^st Basemen tournament will kick off.

Until next time…from the booth.

Best Pitcher – Semi-Finals

Before I post the results of the round one voting for the “Best Pitcher I Ever Saw,” I need to point something out. First of all, I apologize to anyone who felt overlooked. Believe me it was tough narrowing it down to only eight greats. Also, I need to emphasize that these are players that I actually saw play in person. Sorry, Travis Clark. Now for the results…

Rocky Tirabassi – 88%

John Ruffolo – 12%

Danny Llanas – 63%

Ed Van Tine – 37%

Wizard Petersen – 70%

Jim Nehls – 30%

Mario Bonofiglio – 79%

Mike Oblen – 21%

Here are the semi-final matchups:

Rocky Tirabassi vs. Danny Llanas

Mario Bonofiglio vs. Wizard Petersen

The poll will be open until May 3^rd at noon. Please vote for both matchups.

Until next time…from the booth.

The Best I Ever Saw - Pitchers Round I

As many of you know, I have a great passion for Kenosha Softball, especially the Golden Age. Because of that, I have decided to start a new feature From The Booth. It will be called “The Best I Ever Saw.” It will be a “poll tournament” that will allow you to vote on the best player I ever saw play at each position. I will leave each round of the tournament up for 2-3 days.

The first position will be pitcher. There are four quarterfinal matchups featuring the best eight Kenosha pitchers I ever saw. The four winners will square off in the semifinals. The top two vote getters from the semis will then battle it out in the finals. These are the opening round pairings:

1. Rocky Tirabassi vs. John Ruffolo
2. Ed Van Tine vs. Danny Llanas
3. Gary “Wizard” Petersen vs. Jim Nehls
4. Mario Bonofiglio vs. Mike Oblen

Remember, these are the best pitchers that I saw play and this is just for fun. Please vote for all 4 matchups and come back in a couple days to vote for the semifinalists.

Until next time…from the booth.

Again With the Debate

There are rumors that the weather might be improving. Maybe. Something that coincides with summertime is the drive-in and in Kenosha that means Big Star and The Spot. We are fortunate to have not one, but two ‘50s style burger drive-ins to choose from and everyone seems to have their favorites. 

This was evidenced in a blog poll that I conducted a couple of years ago, with Big Star garnering one more vote than The Spot. The small margin of victory tells me that the debate rages on. Which is Kenosha’s favorite drive-in? 

First of all let’s make it clear that there is a definite difference between a drive-in and a fast food restaurant. There are fast food joints all over America. In fact they are all over the world. You would be hard pressed to go anywhere and not find a McDonalds, Burger King or KFC. But go to those same places and try to find a Big Star or The Spot. It’s just not going to happen.

Fast food is fast food, no matter where you are. A Whopper is a Whopper and a Big Mac is a Big Mac, whether you are in Kenosha, Wisconsin or London, England. But a Big Star double-cheeseburger is unique to our fair city, as are those at the Spot. 

We are fortunate to have two one-of-a-kind drive-in restaurants to choose from. But which do you prefer?

Having a rough time making up your mind? It used to be a lot tougher. Back in the ‘70s there were at least five drive-ins to choose from. Besides The Spot and Big Star, there was also A&W, Chat ‘n’ Chew and the legendary Fon Tan Blu. Each had it’s own distinct style and menu. And each featured things that stick out in my memory.

A&W was on Roosevelt Road and 30th Avenue. It has since become Andy’s Drive-in. It has become more of a sit-down establishment, although they will provide service to your car if you leave your headlights on. 

Back in the day Andy’s was strictly a drive-in that featured carhops. I remember driving by and reading the daily special posted on the tall roadside sign. You couldn’t beat a one-dollar pizza burger.

Located on 52nd Street and 40th Avenue was Chat ‘n’ Chew. I don’t quite recall when it went out of business but I do remember the fragrant aroma that the small building exuded. The smell was different from any that of the other drive-ins. Like the other drive-ins, it stayed open late. 

I fondly recall working at Burger King, closing up and heading over to the “Chew” with the gang after we got done. Its focal point was an enormous billboard that doubled as a menu.

Another Kenosha landmark sat kitty corner from Holy Rosary church, the Fon Tan Blu. The oddly shaped blue building was a destination spot for softball players who had spent the night enjoying adult beverages after their game. 

It was not uncommon to have your burger or “Soakie” prepared by none other then Kenosha’s premiere double-play combination, Nick Perrine and Dick Laba. Mama Perrine’s Italian Bombers were second to none. Fon Tan Blu is sorely missed.

Alas, venerable institutions like Chat ‘n’ Chew and Fon Tan Blu no longer grace our hometown. In my humble opinion, with all due respect to Andy’s, Kenosha only has two true drive-ins. The Spot and Big Star are the two remaining survivors. And both have their loyal legion of supporters. Which of the two do you prefer? They both have their pros and cons.

The biggest difference between the two is the hours of operation. Big Star is “Closed for the Season” from Labor Day until March. While on the south side of town the carhops at The Spot have donned their long johns and are waiting on cars into the wee hours of the frigid morning.

Big Star’ normal hours of operation are 11:00 AM until 11:00 PM. Their cross-town rival opens at the same time, but stays open until 3:00 AM during the week and 3:30 AM on Friday and Saturday. Perhaps Big Star subscribes to the theory that “absence makes the heart grow fonder”, or in this case, the taste buds.

Both of the popular eateries are located on busy thoroughfares. The Spot at the intersection of 75th Street and 22nd Avenue, while Big Star is directly across from Time Warner Cable on Washington Road. 

Because of the traffic, coupled with their popularity, getting in and out of the parking lots can be a bit dicey at either of the drive-ins. But their scrumptious food makes it well worth the hassle.

Both Big Star and The Spot are known for their flavorful root beer and make it available in various sizes all the way up to gallon jugs. The only drawback to the tasty beverage is the swarms of bees that it attracts during the summertime. I think the carhops should be eligible for hazard pay during bee season.

Another delight that each of the two carry is ice cream. The Spot currently features six different “hand-packed” flavors with Big Star offering soft serve cones of the vanilla, chocolate and twist varieties. If you enjoy rich and creamy ice cream, The Spot is for you, but be prepared to pay for the frozen treat.

The menus are similar at both restaurants, offering burgers, fish, chicken, etc. The burgers come in an array of sizes with Big Star tempting your appetite with a half-pounder. 

It should be noted both places have steak sandwiches on the menu. Having enjoyed both, I must report that Big Star’s is closer to an actual piece of steak, while Spot’s is more like Salisbury steak. Advantage to Big Star on the steak sandwich.

Another thing that is offered on both menus is a grilled cheese sandwich. Big Star’s is very tasty and cut on the diagonal, just like mom used to do. On the other hand, the last time I had a grilled cheese at The Spot, it was made on a hamburger bun! Maybe it has changed since then, but a hamburger bun for a grilled cheese sandwich? Please!

The last menu item that I will comment on is the double-cheeseburger, a standard that any good drive-in can be judged on. This is a tough one for me. They both have their own special qualities. Both get very high grades in my book.

The Spot

The freshness of the ingredients that make up a Spot double-cheeseburger is second to none. The meat appears to have been ground and formed into a patty moments before hitting the grill. 

If you like your onions grilled, you will love the ample amount slathered on this sandwich. The only downside to this taste delight is that too much of the cheese sticks to the wrapper! But I am nitpicking. The Spot double-cheeseburger is outstanding.

Big Star

Big Star’s double-cheeseburger is no slouch either. It too draws rave reviews for its unparalleled taste. There truly is nothing like a Big Star double-cheeseburger. The simple reason is the cheese! Some call it a cheese sauce, or Cheese Whiz, but I have heard from reliable sources that it is actually Velveeta. 

Whatever it is, it’s good! And packaging the yummy sandwich in a Styrofoam container solves the oozing cheese problem. You just wait for it to cool and dig it out with your finger.

Well, there you have it. I guess you want to know which double-cheeseburger I prefer. I guess it matters on how much money I have in my pocket or how hungry I am. You see, the thing is, a double-cheeseburger at The Spot will run you about twice as much as its counterpart at Big Star. But they are both great and quite unique to Kenosha. 

After much consternation and more taste tests than I care to admit to, I give the edge to The Spot’s double-cheeseburger. While it is still a bit pricier, the quality of ingredients is superior to that of Big Star’s. As the old adage goes, “You get what you pay for.”

I probably didn’t do much to help to solve the Kenosha drive-in great debate. I presented some pros and cons and, honestly, I enjoy them both. Quite a bit. 

Whether you are a fan of Big Star or The Spot, summertime is (supposedly) on the way, so go out and enjoy one of Kenosha’s outstanding drive-ins. You won’t be disappointed no matter which one you chose.

I have decided to run a new poll. This one asks you to choose your favorite Kenosha Drive-In ever! It is located on the right side of this blog. Until next time…from the booth.

More Kenosha Softball

Kenosha Mayor Keith Bosman

Foreword 

Kenosha, like a lot of cities in these United States, has always held sports activities in high regard. But, here in Kenosha, there was a time when the game of slowpitch softball enjoyed a popularity that could only be called “biblical.”

One could argue that the Golden Age of Kenosha Softball began in 1962 when Tirabassi’s Excavators won the World Industrial Softball Tournament in Pittsburgh. The resultant publicity from that triumph peaked the interest of ballplayers in Kenosha to the relatively new game of slowpitch softball. In the years that followed, players either wanted to play for Tirabassi’s or tried to assemble teams to compete with Tirabassi’s.

Slowpitch softball was an attractive alternative to playing baseball. Most baseball player’s careers were done certainly by the time they finished high school. Slowpitch softball did not require the ability to hit a curveball nor did it require a pitcher to throw a curveball. The version that used the 12-inch ball required many of the same skills as hardball, but it was a game that many more people had the level of skill to play and still enjoy the competition. Slowpitch softball was an opportunity for friends to get together and socialize and it only took one hour to play a game. Then it was on to the serious socializing.

For somewhere around thirty years, slowpitch softball was the game of choice for Kenoshans.

I had the opportunity to live through much of that era, from watching Tirabassi’s play in the ‘60s and reading about their tournament exploits, to playing hundreds of games and dozens of tournaments over a twenty-year career, from 1968 to 1988.

Paul Vagnoni has witnessed, firsthand, Kenosha Softball over the years. From his many years in the booth at Finney’s West and his long association with the 400 Club, he has direct personal knowledge of the teams and the characters that made up the Golden Age of Kenosha Softball. To his credit, he has taken the time to put his observations in this book.

More Kenosha Softball is not only full of times, dates, places and who won and who lost, but we also hear from many of the legendary players, managers, umpires and characters that made the era so special. This book will take a reader though a time in Kenosha when thousands of people were playing the game of softball on hundreds of teams. An era when there were as many as 72 teams were participating in the City Tournament and managers would have to get in line at the Recreation Department at 4:00AM just to make sure that they got a spot in a league.

It was a special time in Kenosha. Paul Vagnoni’s More Kenosha Softball chronicles that special time.

Kenosha Mayor Keith Bosman

*     *     *     *     *

That’s the foreword that Mayor Bosman wrote for More Kenosha Softball. If you would like to purchase a copy of the book, call me at 262 671-4251.

Until next time…from the booth.

Rock ‘n’ Roll All Night

It was Friday morning at Koos Inc. and later that night I would be attending my very first Rock concert with Harry, Munk, Weber, Sluga and several other Koos luminaries. We were going to see KISS at the MECCA Arena in Milwaukee. The only problem was getting our supervisor to allow us to leave two hours early at 3:30 so we could cash our checks and wash off the Koos stink before the show. After much pleading and a promise that we would definitely be at work at 6:00 a.m. the next day, we finally got the okay. We were going to see KISS!

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

Weber picked me up promptly at 5:00 in his small blue sub-compact with Harry and Munk already stuffed into the backseat with a case of Pabst Blue Ribbon. As I attempted to squeeze my large frame into the small vehicle, Munk shouted at me, “Where’s your wine, Puddles?” 

Smiling, I reached inside my jacket and produced a chilled flask full of Boone’s Farms finest. “Oh, you already put it in the flask!” was the response I received. With that, we made our way up I-94 with Munk and Harry attempting to pour wine into their flasks as we all chugged ice cold PBR. 

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

Forty minutes later, with the all the flasks filled and the case of beer consumed, we pulled into the enclosed parking structure just west of the MECCA Arena. With all that beer in my bladder, I needed to make quick work of the three-block journey that separated me from a restroom in the Arena.

That problem was immediately eliminated when I noticed that Weber, Munk and Harry were standing over a drain in the corner and were in the process of unzipping their jeans to relieve themselves of their Pabst. I instantly followed suit, shrugging my shoulders, wondering what I had gotten myself into.

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

Feeling much better, we made our trek to the Arena in record time and found our seats just as a nondescript opening act started playing some rather mediocre music. That was okay; this gave us an opportunity to get to the concession stand to buy some  (you guessed it) more beer!

Back from the concession stand, we eased back into our seats, with the strong aroma of Cannabis permeating the air, and were bombarded with extremely loud music, brilliant pyrotechnics and Gene Simmons’ bloody tongue. Enjoying the show, we filled our now empty beer cups with the wine we had smuggled in. Beer, my first concert, more beer and now wine. What more could an 18 year old guy ask for? 

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

After the show ended we stepped out into the cool Milwaukee night and met up with Sluga and his “uncle.” After a quick critique of the concert, it was decided that it was much too early to go back to Kenosha and that we were going to a trendy local nightspot. Having no say in the matter, I wondered to myself how we were going to make it work the next day.

The club was an enormous 2-story structure whose name escapes me. Hey, it was over 35 years ago, what can I say? I do remember Sluga’s “uncle” challenging another guy to a game of foosball and ripping his shirt open, causing the buttons to fly everywhere. Oh yes, and we also drank some more beer.

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

After a couple of hours, the four of us had had enough and we said good-bye to Sluga and his “uncle.” Glancing at my watch I noticed it was 1:30 a.m. Hopefully I could get three hours of sleep before work. That idea was quickly put to rest when Harry announced we need some more beer for the ride home. I just shook my head as Weber obediently pulled off of the Interstate in pursuit of a new supply of alcohol.

Finding a neighborhood tavern, Weber hopped the curb parking on the sidewalk just outside the front door of the establishment. He quickly jumped out and ran inside. With a six-pack under his arm, he ran out just as quickly, screaming, “They’re rednecks! They’re going to kill us!” Our small car sped away into the darkness just as a large contingent of angry locals emerged from the bar, shaking their fists.

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

Relieved that we had escaped the wrath of the hayseeds that didn’t appreciate our ‘70s hairstyles, we laughed at our good fortune. There was only one problem – we didn’t know where the hell we were! 

Trying his damnedest, Weber could not find his way back to I-94. He turned left and we nearly ended up in Lake Michigan. When he turned around and headed west we ended up in Greenfield, but we still could not find the Interstate. Something told me the chance of me getting any sleep before work was rapidly diminishing.

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

Realizing that we needed help getting our bearings, we pulled into a George Webb restaurant complete with its two clocks on the wall. Inside there was a cook, a waitress, a truck driver and a young couple who promptly departed when they saw us stumble in. We opted to get something to eat as long as we were getting directions.

Harry, Weber and myself chose to have breakfast. So did Munk. Along with breakfast he ordered a double cheeseburger, French-fries, a chef’s salad, a milk shake and a large bowl of chicken soup. Evidently he was hungry. Unfortunately he didn’t like the shade of green that the soup was, because he threw it all over the front window of the diner. 

The rest of the “meal” must have agreed with Munk because upon completing it he proceeded to emit one of the largest belches that I have ever been witness to. The colossal burp obviously impressed the truck driver because he responded with, “That’s nice.”  To which Munk sprung up from his seat and barked out, “Oh ya! If you don’t like it, step outside with me and my friends.” Where were we, the old West?

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

Luckily cooler heads prevailed and armed with our directions we were finally heading back to Kenosha. We were going home. Or so I thought. Even though we had just filled our bellies at George Webb’s, we had a more than an ample supply of alcohol sloshing around in us as well. The ride home was going to be adventurous to say the least.

It was at this point that I realized that I was the only one not in some various stage of unconsciousness. Regrettably, I wasn’t behind the wheel, Weber was. At one point he came to long enough to see me looking terrified, clutching onto the small grab bar located above the passenger door. He merely mumbled that if we crashed, that wasn’t going to save my ass. I knew he was right, I just prayed that I didn’t die.

I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day…

Well, happily I didn’t die and we miraculously made it home safely sometime after 4:00 a.m. As you can imagine, none of us made it to work. Not me, not Munk, not Harry, not Weber, not Sluga. Not even Sluga’s “uncle” made it. Wait, he didn’t work at Koos, so he was okay. We all caught hell and because of our irresponsible actions, nobody was allowed to leave work early for the next thirty years. Management at Koos was tough.

However, when I eventually did wake up (sometime around noon), I make it over to Midtown Records and purchased the KISS Alive album. 

I pulled this one from the Koos Vault because someone on Facebook mentioned their first concert, and after all, it is Throwback Thursday. Until next time…from the booth.