Machon is not sure who he will be rooting for during this years ALCS. There is no real emotional pull for me to go either way. I am glad that Detroit has a winning ball club again, but they are not getting any sympathy votes with the Red Wings and Pistons in town. So let’s compare the two cities off the field.
History:
Detroit:
-Founded in 1701 by the French and originally named “Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit”.
-City was referred to as the “Paris of America” in 1800’s due to the quality of the architecture in town.
-In the late 1800’s, early 1900’s, individuals such as Henry Ford, Walter Chrysler, and the Dodge brothers landed Detroit the label of “automotive capital of the world"
Oakland
-Oakland was claimed by the Spanish Empire in 1772.
-Population boomed due to the gold rush in 1848
-The first cable car left Oakland and arrived in Berkeley in 1891.
Edge: Detroit. Looking back, the automobile seems to have been a bit more economically important than the cable car.
Music
Detroit:
-Motown Records brought us: Aretha, The Temptations, Four Tops, Smokey Robinson, Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye and many more.
-Jazz. Detroit’s legendary jazz spot the “Black Bottom” became the regular stomping ground for the likes of Duke Ellignton, Ella Fitzgerald, and Billy Eckstine to name a few. Arguably, one of the three or four most important jazz cities(see St. Louis, New York, Chicago, New Orleans)
-Detroit Rock City. Native Detroit rockers include: Alice Cooper, Bob Seger, Mitch Ryder, Ted Nugent, Kiss, Iggy Pop and the Stooges.
-Today, Machon’s two favorite bands out of Detroit are The White Stripes and Sufjan Stevens.
-Can’t forget Eminem and D12 and Kid Rock.
Oakland
-MC Hammer, Digital Underground, Del The Funky Homosapien, Too $hort, 2Pac (grew up in Baltimore & NY, but lived in Oak longest), Green Day, En Vogue, Tony! Toni! Tone!,.
-Many of South Centrals finest lived in Oakland including Snoop and Ice T.
Edge: We like to Hump Around as much as the next guy, but Detroit in a landslide here.
Cinema and Television
-Detroit: Detroit Rock City, Hoffa, Out of Site, Beverly Hills Cops, 8 Mile, Exit Wounds, True Romance, “Martin”, Presumed Innocent, Grosse Pointe Blank, Evil Dead, The Crow, The Virgin Suicides.
-Oakland:Rent, Hulk, Comedian, Matrix Reloaded, Too Legit: The M.C Hammer Story, The Rain Maker, The Cable Guy, So I Married an Axe Murderer, Basic Instinct, Mrs. Doubtfire, Made in America, “Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper”, Sneakers, Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Edge: This is a tough one, but there won't be any draws this week, so let’s find us a winner. I really think the movies are pretty equal. In my opinion, Basic Instinct and True Romance cancel each other out. So I Married an Axe Murder and The Cable Guy should cover Beverly Hills Cop. You know what, I am going with Oakland here. I always enjoyed “Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper” more than “Martin”. Oakland also receives some bonus points for Jessica Rabbit.
Celebrities:
Detroit: Xzibit, Tom Sizemore, David Alan Grier, John Hughes, Gilda Radner, Jerry Bruckhiemer, Tom Selleck, Diana Ross, Ed McMahon, Smokey Robinson, Rosa Parks, Robin Williams, Stevie Wonder, Kid Rock, Tim Allen, Francis Ford Coppola, Joe Louis, Madonna, Jerome Bettis, Thomas Hearns, Charles Lindbergh...
Oakland: Mark Hamill, Max Baer, Bill Russel, Tom Hanks, Rickey Henderson, Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Jimmy Rollins, Joe Morgan, Jack London, Ezra Pound, Brandon Lee...
Edge: Detroit. The Detroit crew had their part in: The Godfather Series, Apocalypse Now, Saving Private Ryan, Point Break, Pimp My Ride, ALF, Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Weird Science, Pretty in Pink, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Uncle Buck, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Rock, Remember the Titans, Days of Thunder, Top Gun, Three Men and a Baby, “Stop in the Name of Love”, The Supremes, “Heeeeerrrrreeeee’s Johnny”, My Girl, Civil Rights, Dead Poets Society, Good Will Hunting, Mork, “Superstition”, Joey C, Home Improvement, “Like a Virgin”, etc. This list is scracthing the surface. Also, Joe Louis Knocked out Max Baer in 4.
Little League Affiliation
Detroit: Clarke was a Tiger.
Oakland: Machon was an Angel, but they recently became the Athletics. So the question is, do my Little League loyalties remain with the Angels or do I make the move north to Alameda County with the franchise?
Edge: Oakland. Machon was only a couple outs a way from a perfect game against the Tigers. Then they pinch hit John Erlick, who has a strike zone the size of walnut. On a 3-2 count, Teddy Ballgame (the legendary Swampscott umpire) called a questionable pitch ball four. Machon keeled over in disappointment, the catcher did not notice this and hurled the ball off Machon's frontal lobe. Extremely embarrassing .
Final Verdict: Detroit (3-2), better break out the Cecil Fielder Jersey
20 comments:
haha might be my fav post ever!
Do more of these. Seattle would be an easy and entertaining one (starbucks, microsoft, grunge...)
Slight correction...Clarke was a two-time town champion with the Tigers. I may have to dig out the old green satin jacket for the ALCS. My Tiger roots run deep.
Regardless, great job with the comparison. Well done.
Good post, but who will win game 6, and if it is Oak, who will game seven. Predicting the team to first win 3 games in a 7 game series is an interesting prediction. You get originality points but leave us wanting more.
Mike, 3-2 was not the series prediction. It was the tally of the results in the post. Detrot had the edge in 3 categories, while Oakland managed to take two.
Got it..thanks for the explanation. Good post btw.
Tom Hanks grew up in Oakland, not to mention a ton of sports figures including Rickey Henderson, Bill Russell, Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Jimmy Rollins, Joe Morgan, and I'm sure many others. The Black Panthers first formed in Oakland and so many of their founders were from the city. The hip hop duo the Coup is also from Oakland as is everybody's favorite 80's girl group, the Pointer Sisters. In literature Oakland can lay claim to Jack London and Ezra Pound. Oaktown Pride!
Thanks for the help on Oakland celebs. However, I would still give the edge to Detroit. I left out quite a few, including The Bus, Thomas Hearns, and Charles Lindbergh.
Clint Eastwood went to Oakland Tech. I believe Mark Hamill and Brandon "The Crow" Lee were born in Oakland.
We will add the names listed in the comments to see if the oaktown faithful can swing the vote.
However, that may prove to be tough
Big problem for Oakland. IMDB says Glenn Frey was born in Detroit. The H is O, baby.
All original members of the band KISS were raised in New York City, where the band was formed--not Detroit. Of the four, only Gene Simmons was even born outside of NYC. He was born in Haifa, Israel.
Mude, point taken. However, I would argue the Detroit scene heavily influenced them in the late 70's, specifically Alice Cooper and Iggy Pop. Also, "Detroit Rock City" is the opener on Destroyer and was written by Bob Erzin. Erzin was Alice Cooper's long time producer.
Kiss or no Kiss its hard to argue that musically Oaktown stands a chance against Detroit. Literature (with London especially) it might have the edge...but music is a easy win for Roit
All of the "Detroit Rockers" you listed besides Iggy are negatives.
Bowie, that is just not true.
-Alice Cooper born 2/4/1984 in Detroit, MI
-Ted Nugent born 12/13/1948 in Detroit, MI
-Bob Seger was born at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. He played clubs in Detroit with "Bob Seger and the Last Heard" for over a decade before becoming the Silver Bullet Band in 74
-Mitch Ryder's band was called "Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels".
I could have added Glen Fry, Brownsville Station, MC5 and Rare Earth.
The only questionable one is KISS
I meant negatives as in, they suck.
No one named David Bowie can say Bob Seger sucks....ziggy stardust my ass
Machon, you're reaching...
The Beatles were influenced by Elvis Presley, but that doesn't mean they're considered sons of Tupelo or Memphis!
KISS just doesn't belong up there. Hell, they're more Israel than Detroit.
Yeah, Clint, as well as Curt Flood, went to Tech. Brian Shaw went to McClymonds, as did Vada Pinson, Bill Russell, Paul Silas, and Frank Robinson. OAKTOWN!!!!
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