The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-12-31

| " D0NA V aAAAAAS9t kt4A4AAttkAG WAbA&V0t winning q major tournament. The long-driving pro became the lead- Ing Gaoney.winner of the year, grabbed low-scoring honors and earned the Vardon Trophy for ale around excellence of play.
 Louis, c champion without par, resisted seven attempts to knock him from his heavyweiaht throne. And now, with the field oe chal- lengers virtually exhausted, the greatest og hla ere may vacate hia title tindefeated--sor the army. BloEss, another physical giant, was Q super Goliath among the sports figures. Time and again the Georgetown University Hnastodon broke his own shotput records both outdoor and indoor. Later, he donned football shoes and. moie- skins to win fresh laurels as c tackle for the Georgetown eleven.
 The turf world enjoyed one of the most exciting years in its history. Two super.horses rose from the ranks and attendance and pari- Snueuel figures broke All figures.
 WhAlAway, Alsab Dominate Hoses
 whilaway became the Those of the year" by sweeping almost every important stake open to three.year-oids. The Calumet Cannonball became the fifth horse in history to win the golden triple the Kentucky Derby, the Freak ness and the Belmont.
 The Warren wright wonder horse now stands third in the ranks of all-tlTne money winners - third behind Seahlscuit and Sun Beau. And c victory in this winters &lo0,- GOO Santa Anita Handicap-if the army ever permits 1t to be rlr-- can make him monarch of the turf,
 Yet Wfirly's exploits were al- most ecllpsed by the spectacular sortles of Q vwo-year old speedster named Ass. This youngSter from turf's bargain basement knocked off all opposition in and outside his division and set track and world records with almost ridiculous ease.
 In baseball, the New York Yan. kees put on e resurgence of power that surpassed all previous heroics of this mighty diamond dynasty. The Bronx Hombers clinched the American League pennant by the unprecedented margin of i7 games ---a full month before the seasons end. Then the Yankee machine moved down the Brooklyn Dodgers who won their first pennant in two dreary decades--in c five game World Series.
 Mickey Owen Series Goat
 One of the game's most amazing boners-the third strike which catcher Mickey owen dropped-oc. cured in this series. It was Q rnis. cue that cost the Dodgers the fourth gATne oi the series "a game they'd already won. And before Brooklyn could recover, the Tanks had cinched another title.
 Among the swimming Eerfor- raanceS that made I0Ai a xiemor- able year, none were more spec. tacular, nor etched with more glamour, then those of gorgeous Gloria Callen. This i6-year old New York girl ecllpsed many of the world back-stroke marks of her viyacious predecessor Eleanor Holm. And as the year wanes, the newest queen of the Sliermaids Is considering several offers from Hollywood.
 Although these were tho stellar performances Of tho year, every sport played its part in the spec tacular parade with baseball espec- ially providing c series of unprec- edented thrills.
 The Yankee stampede was sparked by c Tecord- d-breaking hitting streak by Joe DiMaggio. The Yankee siug- ger ran . sato-hitting string through 90 consecutive games, wiping out the old mark of 46 set by Wee Willie Keeler back In 1897.
 His slugging brought him the American Leagues most valuable player award but he shared dia. Tnond glory with 4oston's Ted Williams who crashed the select circle of 400 hitters to win the bat. ting crown.
 Dodgers. Cards Battle t0 Wire
 In the National League, the race was . ding.dong battle ali the way between Brooklyn and the St. Louis Cardinals. Nino times during the campaign tho lead changed hands, And the Flatbushers did not sew up the flag until two days before the seasons end
 Pitching by 22.game winners Kirby Higbe and Whit Wyatt - and the brilliant fielding and timely hitting Of first baseman Dolph Camilll gave Brooklyn It's triumph. Dolphs stellar work earned him the senior circuits most valuable player award.
 Baseball hAd It's dark days, too. And one of the darkest wes June And, when one of the game'6s im- naortals, Lou Gehrig, succumbed to an incurable disease. Every baseball figure from the highest.prlced play- CT to the bat boys mourned Lou's passing.
 Managerial upheavals put Roger Peckinpaugh ct the helm of the Cleveland Indians after Oscar Witt was fired and toward the seasons end, Luke Sewall succeeded Fred Haney as manager of the St. Louis Browns. Since the campaign closed, Lou Bourdreau has become the man. ager of the Tribe as Peckinpaugh moved Into the front office as vice. president; Mel Ott took the relns of the New York Giants and Hans Lobert replaced Doc Prothro at the head of the Philadelphia Phillies.
 Minnesota Football Champ Again
 Footballs perennial paragons, the Minnesota G0phers, again galloped off with the Big Ten crown and mythical national honors. So rocky were the gridiron roads, however, that only three major teams emer- ged with perfect records Minnesota, Duke and Duquesne.
 Notre Dame came through its first season undefeated under new ssamat. Esnax.t~ Na t.1s eFs7aa T~.fmta nmsE