No complaints about riding in the back this time

Or
I never promised you a Rosa Garden, but she did get planted

Or
Rosa is Dead, the NAACP is Blue. She wouldn’t get up then, and now that’s still true.

Or

Backseat Dier

(Belated benevolence for Don)

Or
Rosa from the Dead
(Props to Monty)

Or
Park It
(Kudos for Monty)
Rosa Parks, whose sore feet started the Civil Rights movement, has died at the age of 92. With Parks’ arrest after refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus for a white man, blacks suddenly became aware they were being treated differently than whites. On Dec. 1, 1955, Parks, who had long been a part of the burgeoning civil rights effort in Montgomery, decided enough was enough and decided to challenge the city’s blacks in the back policy. She was arrested and convicted of violating the segregation policy, costing her a $14 fine, far less than the violent, even homicidal acts that had befallen many other blacks who had previously tried defying segregation. Blacks, led by Boston University’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in the city boycotted city buses for nearly 13 months and launched a legal challenge that reached the Supreme Court, ultimately overturning the Jim Crow law. King became one of the most powerful leaders of the Civil Rights movement, and Parks became one of its most powerful symbols, remaining a quiet tower of strength for the rest of her life.

Five of us expected Rosa to get busy in the back seat of a hearse, scoring 4 points apiece. I move back into second with my Death Be Not Proud team, Keith’s Nine Old Men (and One Old Woman) take 6th, Dawn climbs into 13th, Steve pulls into 14th and Christine notches her first hit of the year to slip into 27th place.

That’s All Folks
Gordon Lee, the chubby child actor who played Spanky’s little brother Porky, has died at the age of 71. Lee appeared in more than 40 “Our Gang” shorts in the 1930s, but a growth spurt left him too thin for his character’s name and he was dropped from the rotation. Porky’s most notable achievement in the series was being the first to utter the word “O-Tay” which would become much more closely associated with his on- and off-screen best friend Billie “Buckwheat” Thomas. Lee and Tommy Bond, who played Butch and died last month, were among the last living members of Our Gang, few of whom lived to senior citizenry.

Now in the freezer aisle . . .

Or
Down in the valley (of the shadow of death) with the Jolly Green Giant
(Laudatories for both to the Angel of Death, Kirsti)
Len Dresslar, a jazz and pop singer best known for lending his baritone to the Jolly Green Giant, has died at the age of 80. His vocal stylings made “Ho Ho Ho” one of the most familiar ad jingles of the last half century. Dresslar was also the first voice for Snap, of Crackle, Pop fame.

Wellington’s beef
New York Giants owner Wellington Mara, one of the last of the NFL’s founders, has died at the age of 89. An influential owner, today’s NFL owes him a deep debt of gratitude. One of the strengths of the NFL is the revenue sharing of TV rights, which puts all teams on equal footing in divvying up the billion dollar contracts. In the 1960s, Mara and his brother Jack agreed to the plan, despite owning the team in the league’s biggest market, for the good of the league. I’m looking at you, George. After Commissioner Pete Rozelle’s retirement in 1989, Mara became the king-maker, overcoming initial reluctance to throw his support to current Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. Mara was beloved by his players, and returned the kindness, securing jobs and health care for ex-players on hard times and their families and greeting his players, win or lose, in the locker room after nearly every game. Apprised of Mara’s condition this Sunday, the Giants, having won on a touchdown in the closing seconds, chanted his nickname, “Duke” in the victorious locker room.