Latest news with #BobbyJenks
CBS News
01-06-2025
- General
- CBS News
Windy City Thunderbolts playing with purpose as manager Bobby Jenks battles stomach cancer
The Windy City Thunderbolts baseball team is playing with a special purpose this season. Their leader and 2005 White Sox World Series champion, Bobby Jenks, is battling cancer thousands of miles away, while his friend and former teammate tries to hold down the fort in Crestwood. Ozinga Field feels a little empty this season, with the Thunderbolts missing their manager, Bobby Jenks. "Bobby last year was one of those guys you really want to rally behind and play for," pitcher Greg Duncan said. "He was fun. He was very fun to play with, but also if you're doing something wrong, he's going to let you know," pitcher Buddie Pindel said. "It was unbelievable. I mean, he cared so much. His work ethic was unbelievable. Personally, I grew up a White Sox fan, so that was really cool for me," infielder Christian Kuzemka said. Jenks took over as manager of the Thunderbolts in the independent Frontier League last season, and was set to return for a second year until he was hit with a stage 4 stomach cancer diagnosis, news that hit this Thunderbolts team hard. "Gut-wrenching. It was really hard. I teared up when I heard about it; someone so genuine and so special, that gives you opportunities, and is there for you, not only as a colleague, but also as a friend. But I know he's not soft. That is for dang sure. He's going to fight like hell, and he's going to do his best to get back here, and I'm really looking forward to seeing him," Duncan said. "Devastated, right? But he's a fighter. My father had stomach cancer, so I'm really in tune with what that battle is like. Obviously, just heartbroken, but if anyone can beat it, it's Bobby Jenks. You saw it when he pitched with the Sox, right? He grinded every day. He threw 102 mph before everyone else did. So, heartbroken, but we know he can fight it," Kuzemka said. Toby Hall, who Jenks had hired to be his bench coach in 2025, is now tasked with trying to fill Jenks' shoes as interim manager this season. Hall was an assistant on Jenks' staff last season, but they're more than just colleagues. They're also good friends and former teammates on the White Sox in 2007 and 2008, making this an incredibly difficult circumstance to take over the interim manager duties. "It sucks. You know, because one of my best friends is going through what he's going through, and I told him I'd hold down the fort," Hall said. Do Hall and Jenks get the chance to talk at all lately? "It's via text lately," Hall said. "Last good conversation about a month ago, and that was a tough one, but he's in spirits. He's sending me players, and telling me you gotta get this guy, and that guy, but we only have so many transactions that we can do. I try to let him know, hey, everything's fine, we're good, but on the flip side it's keeping him engaged." This team has Jenks on their mind every time they take the field in Crestwood or on the road, as he clearly made quite an impact in his first and only season managing them. "Every time we step out there, we know Bobby's paying attention. We want to do it for him, because if we can make him a little more happier, we know that's going to help his fight, and when we're tired in the dog days of summer, we know we're not as tired as he is right now," Kuzemka "We had a players only meeting about it, and it was like, 'those who are new, and don't really understand the situation, here's what it is.' You're not only playing for the guys in front of you and behind you, you're playing for someone bigger than that who's going through a fight, that is killing to be here right now. It's just one day at a time, one fight at time, just like he's doing," Duncan said. Hall said he also wants all players to play for themselves as well, as they chase their baseball dreams, while keeping Jenks in their thoughts. Jenks remains in Portugal, where his wife's family is from. According to the Thunderbolts, his treatment has been going as planned with no major complications, and he is still hoping to make it back to Chicago this summer. The White Sox' 20-year World Series reunion is set for the weekend of July 11 at Rate Field.
New York Times
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Remember when Pope Leo XIV went to the World Series? Now it's part of White Sox lore
CHICAGO — If you thought the city was running out of stories about the pope and the White Sox, well, this could go on for Pope Leo XIV's entire tenure in the Vatican. We still don't know exactly how he likes his Italian beef or who his favorite '85 Bears player was. But if you were curious where 'Da Pope' — then known as Father Robert Prevost — sat during Game 1 of the 2005 World Series, well, you got an answer Monday afternoon as the team unveiled a mural just outside Section 140, where he was one of 41,206 who watched Bobby Jenks close out a 5-3 victory over the Houston Astros. Advertisement 'He sat in row 19, seat 2,' said Nick Schmit, whose father, Eddie Schmit Jr., brought Prevost to the game. 'My dad always sat in row 19, seat 1. He never gave that seat up to anybody. That was his seat. So when he took people, those people would sit next to him, usually.' The Schmit family still has its late father's season tickets. The Schmits have the first four seats in both rows 19 and 20 on the White Sox home dugout side and use them all the time. 'We go to a lot of games,' Nick told me. 'We were going to give them up (this year). We were just … it's too much sometimes. It's tough, you know?' He could've been talking about the cost (eight seats in their location run about $32,000 for the season) or the mental anguish of being a Sox fan in a time of unprecedented losing. I didn't ask, but I'm guessing it was a little bit of both. (The White Sox, it should be noted, lost to the Seattle Mariners 5-1 on Monday to fall to 14-34.) Last week, the Sox told me they were waiting until the pope's official installation before talking details about honoring their new most famous fan (sorry, former President Barack Obama) at the ballpark. Well, that happened Sunday in Rome. On Monday, the artwork, located on a pillar outside of Sections 140-141, was shown to the world. As the team celebrates its 125th anniversary — and the 20th anniversary of its World Series victory — the Sox highlighted the mural by pointing out the family's long-standing relationship with the team — the late Eddie Schmit first got season tickets at Comiskey Park in the late 1970s — and how that led to the fateful moment of a future pope watching a World Series game 20 years ago. 'It's a generational experience when you talk to people of why they're White Sox fans,' White Sox senior vice president Brooks Boyer said at the event. ''My grandfather was a White Sox fan, my father was a White Sox fan.' However, that may come down through the generation, this family is no different. And they have stood with us through thick and thin. They understand what it is to be a White Sox fan. There's a pleasure that comes along with it, and there's been some pain that has come along with it.' Advertisement 'A lot of pain,' one family member joked. 'A lot of fun too,' someone said. Several Schmits nearly broke down in tears talking about the patriarch of the family, who died on July 22, 2020. While they half-joked with Boyer about getting a discount for their seats, they kept them even after a 121-loss season because they're a part of their family legacy. 'All the nephews are home from college, all the nieces, they all go,' said Nick Schmit, who is one of five siblings. 'They bring their friends and that's what my dad wanted. He wanted the family to still go like we did growing up.' The mural shows a picture of the Pope along with some biographical information (it says he was born in Dolton, Ill., which is actually where he grew up) and a smaller picture of Prevost with Eddie Schmit III and his son Eddie IV at the game. They're the ones you might have seen on the viral clip of the Fox game broadcast. Pope Leo XIV made the broadcast while at Game 1 of the 2005 World Series — Joe Binder (@JoeBinder) May 9, 2025 How did someone find that crowd shot in the first place? It was Eddie IV who sent the video to the Sox on 35th blog. Years ago, he saved that shot of him at the game just to show people he was really there as a 5-year-old. When the pope news came down, his family supplied the Sun-Times a picture of him and his grandfather at the game with Prevost behind them. Then Eddie IV, who is now 25, put an exclamation mark on it with the video. 'I didn't know he was sitting next to us, or directly next to us,' he told me. 'And when I looked back, I said, 'Oh wow, OK, he was next to us.' So I wanted to get that out there.' He allowed that he probably could have kept it private, but he wanted it to be known who the pope really roots for. 'I'd rather everyone know that he was a Sox fan and not a Cubs fan,' he said. 'I can't stand the Cubs.' Advertisement Eddie IV doesn't remember a ton from that game, but he can relive that moment every time he walks to his seats and sees himself as a little kid. Twenty years later, he's still an avid fan, as much as the current rebuild pains him. 'I like to come out to the ballpark with all my buddies as much as we can,' he said. 'And I get tickets whenever I want.' On a serious note, during a brief news conference in front of a phalanx of cameras and TV reporters who aren't usually at White Sox games, Eddie IV highlighted why he's so proud to call the pope his family friend. 'A lot of this is about the White Sox, and it should be more about what kind of guy the pope is,' he said. 'I mean, you look at some of the things he's done with his missions. It's incredible. He's been in places that are so poor, just trying to help other people. That's why he was elected to be the next pope, because of all the good things he's done around the world, and I'm sure he's going to continue to do that.' Though the mural will be a popular photo spot, what about the seat? There's nothing yet to mark it as being special, and the rights to it belong to the family. Eddie III said he wanted to talk to his siblings about auctioning off opportunities to sit in the seat, with proceeds going to charity. 'My father was really good with charity,' he said. Nick Schmit said his father would always brag about Prevost, telling them (and him) that he was going to be a cardinal and then the first American-born pope. 'Yeah, my dad always told us, 'Oh, he's going to be cardinal,'' he said. 'And we're like, 'OK, Dad.' You know, he was a good friend. … And then when he got elected, we were, like, Dad did this from heaven. Dad made it happen.' But in 2005, he was just Father Bob, a friend of Eddie's. As the video and picture show, Prevost wore a jersey to the game, though no one I asked knew whose it was. Eddie III guessed Paul Konerko, who, of course, wore No. 14. And Prevost just might have joined the family at the old Redwood Lounge on 32nd and Wallace for a couple of postgame drinks. That was Eddie Schmit's neighborhood bar, after all. (The Sun-Times even quoted him from there in a 2005 story about the Series, where he talked about his special voodoo doll that took down the Red Sox and Angels.) No one knew they were sitting with the future leader of the Catholic faith that night. It wasn't unusual that Prevost was a White Sox fan. But it's still mind-blowing that the pope is one. 'He was one of us,' Eddie III said.
The Hill
10-05-2025
- Sport
- The Hill
Video shows Pope Leo at White Sox World Series game
A video of Pope Leo XIV at the 2005 World Series game between the White Sox and the Houston Astros emerged Saturday, confirming his fandom for the Chicago baseball team. The first American pontiff in history was caught on camera as his face twisted when White Sox closer Bobby Jenks closed out a 5-3 win over the Astros. The footage ends days of speculation about which team Pope Leo XIV has traditionally pulled for. 'He was never, ever a Cubs fan, so I don't know where that came from. He was always a Sox fan. Our mother was a Cubs fan,' his brother, John, told WGN News Thursday. 'I don't know, maybe that clued in there, and our dad was a Cardinals fan, so I don't know where that all came from.' The Chicago Cubs-White Sox rivalry has existed for over 100 years. On Thursday, the Cubs franchise shared an image of a digital board at Wrigley Field that read, 'Hey Chicago! He's a Cubs fan!' The Sox also shared an image of the board at Rate Field congratulating the new Pope, hailing him as 'the South Side's very own.' Pope Leo XIV, formerly known as Robert Prevost, is a native of Dolton, Ill., right outside the Chicago city limit. He earned a bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University and completed mission work in Peru. President Trump, former President Barack Obama and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson have congratulated Pope Leo XIV in public posts, wishing him a successful papacy.
New York Times
15-04-2025
- Health
- New York Times
Former White Sox closer Bobby Jenks opens up on terminal diagnosis: ‘I'm going to be here fighting'
For his 44th birthday, just one month ago, Bobby Jenks asked his family to buy him a tent. It was a gift he knew he couldn't use, not right now. It was more about what it represented. Someday, when his body allows, he wants to take his family on a road trip through Europe, stopping to camp along the way. Advertisement 'We understand that may not be possible,' said his mother-in-law, Kate Souglides. 'But we don't want to break his spirit either.' Nowadays, the once-elite Chicago White Sox closer is living in Portugal with his wife and her family. His days are a mixture of hospital visits and constant exhaustion. On Jan. 7, his family's home in California burnt to a crisp in the Palisades wildfires. Every memento of his baseball career turned to ash. His first game ball, his first win, first strikeout, first save, all gone. It was a loss that Jenks called 'a shock to the system.' Later that month, Jenks received an even greater shock. After suffering pulmonary embolisms in October, followed by months of fatigue and a hospitalization for jaundice, Jenks was diagnosed with Stage 4 adenocarcinoma, a form of stomach cancer. The cancer has spread to other organs. It's a terminal illness for which there is only treatment, not a cure. Upon receiving the news, his wife, Eleni Tzitzivacos, ran out of the room in tears. 'I'll never forget the sadness in his eyes when the doctors said that to him,' said Antonio Da Cunha, Jenks' father-in-law. Jenks no longer has his home, his worldly possessions, his life savings, or his health. He's had to sign baseballs to pay for medical treatments. The family dropped their medical insurance years ago, Eleni said, because it was expensive, and they didn't have health concerns. Being overseas has only complicated efforts to have his treatments covered. Those close to him waffle between the hope that this strong, tough man will make it through, and the reality of a terminal diagnosis. 'I guarantee you, everybody thinks about death on a daily basis,' Jenks said. 'It's just that people don't usually have an actual day on theirs.' Jenks said he strongly believes that he will beat this cancer. His otherwise weak and fatigued voice was sharp, as it had been throughout his phone interview with The Athletic earlier this month. 'What gets me through this is my faith.' Advertisement But with that faith comes an understanding. 'I've come to the realization that it could be six months, or it could be three years,' he said, speaking of his own mortality. 'But I'm ready. And however long it takes, I'm going to be here fighting it.' Jenks ranks 75th all-time in career saves, all in just six seasons with the White Sox. But that doesn't tell the full story of his career, or the mark he left on a franchise that continues to celebrate him. He was a memorable figure in Chicago, a husky presence — six-foot-four, 275 pounds in his playing days — who came in throwing triple digits. The rookie who closed out the White Sox's only World Series championship in the last century. 'Bobby is a larger-than-life figure,' said longtime White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski. 'He was like Paul Bunyan. A gigantic human being.' Now he must go to a doctor every Monday, return on Wednesday for immunotherapy, and take home a device that attaches to his chest and dispenses chemo for two more days. He's also undergone radiation treatment. The process is exhausting and repetitive. He tries to save what little energy he has for when he and Eleni's kids, 11-year-old Zeno and four-year-old Kate, come home. For their son, old enough to grasp everything but still too young to process it, these months have been extremely difficult. Amid the treatments and the despair, Jenks hangs onto that tent and the hope it represents. 'Just being myself, and living a normal life again. That's my motivation,' Jenks said. 'Having the strength to do my daily activities. To run around with my kids.' Jenks unequivocally told his doctors not to schedule any appointments for him in early July. For all the bad things that have befallen him, getting to Chicago to celebrate a milestone anniversary with his teammates represents a source of genuine excitement. 'The doctor looked blankly at him,' Souglides said. 'He told them, 'Listen, whether you like it or not, I'm going. So can you organize that all my treatments are done?'' Advertisement It's been 20 years since the White Sox won the World Series. Two decades since Jenks threw his arms above his head, and then opened them wide as Pierzynski, the catcher, leapt onto Jenks' large frame, celebrating a 1-0 win to cap a 4-0 series sweep. Jenks pitched in every game of the World Series. Eleni is not well-versed in baseball. She always knew that her husband played the sport, but didn't internalize how important he was to it — until she attended the team's 10-year championship reunion in 2015. 'Bobby Jenks is a hero in this town. A hero,' said Ozzie Guillen, manager of that championship team and a South Side legend in his own right. 'To not have Bobby there (this summer), and not be able to give him some grief, it just wouldn't be the same,' Pierzynski said. 'Not only for the players, but for the fans. Bobby meant so much to a lot of White Sox fans.' Pierzynski said they've texted here and there with messages of encouragement. But specifics on his condition, even for the White Sox organization, haven't been easy to come by. After connecting with Jenks last week, the White Sox announced a charity event, benefitting the Ronald McDonald House charities in greater Chicagoland. Fans can purchase shirts honoring Jenks, with proceeds going to a cause he cares about. Jenks was never projected to be the important South Side figure that he became. He was a waiver claim, after all, DFA'd from his first organization, the Angels. During Jenks' first spring training in 2005, Guillen said he saw the rookie throwing heat on a backfield. His initial reaction was to tell the pitcher, 'I don't know who the f— you are.' Guillen was annoyed not by Jenks' ability, but at the notion that going all-out early in spring training would somehow impress him. Jenks spent the first half of that championship season as a 24-year-old in Double A. Advertisement Twenty years later, both have retired. Guillen spent 13 years as a player with the White Sox, eight more as a manager, and the past few as a team broadcaster. In the 2005 World Series, he famously called for Jenks from the bullpen by spreading his arms out wide and then raising them over his head, as if to say give me the big, tall guy. Jenks has lost much of that physicality. He's lost weight, strength and stamina to this disease. He lost most of his worldly possessions to the fire. But one thing that he still has is his World Series ring — a physical reminder of his legacy and what he means to his old team. The normally brash Guillen suddenly became more solemn: 'If I can hold him, and give him a big kiss, a big hug,' he said, 'that would be special for everyone here in Chicago.' All of Jenks' medical expenses are paid out of pocket. Every dollar spent is burning through their savings. The family is in financial trouble. They'd hoped to rent out their California home to supplement their income. That is no longer possible. Nor is it possible for Jenks or his wife to work. Their time and money go to his treatments and their two children. 'It's not a position I wish anybody was in,' Jenks said. Jenks enlisted the assistance of B.A.T., more formally known as the Baseball Assistance Team, a resource for former players. His friend and former big leaguer Darren Dreifort started a GoFundMe. Recently hospitalized, Jenks signed memorabilia from his bed as a part of a fundraising effort. 'We definitely need the help,' Jenks said. 'We're in a tough situation. And we're counting on as much support as we can have.' Two suitcases full of memorabilia were flown to Portugal with a representative of the company PastPros, which organized the signing. Fans purchased balls, baseball cards and other mementos for Jenks to sign. Advertisement Jenks, however, was unable to sign everything; his illness made it impossible. He hopes to finish at a later date. In his stead, other players are participating in the signing. 'There are guys that played against him, and guys that never played against him or never met him, that are jumping in on this,' Dreifort said. 'It's nice to know that you made an impact somewhere.' For all the financial assistance that Jenks needs, the people closest to him have helped with everything else. His youth coach, Dave Grim, flew to Portugal to spend 10 days with Jenks last month. Decades ago, it was Jenks who slipped a check into Grim's pocket when his mentor was in need. Now, Grim returned the favor simply with his presence. 'It's brutal,' said Grim, whose current youth team jerseys all have Jenks' name on the back. 'It's a terrible, terrible sadness. I tried to hold it together in front of Bobby. Because I didn't want him to think that I thought it might be the last time.' Eleni, his wife, has also been his 'rock star' over the past three grueling months. The two met nearly 15 years ago at a rehab center in Arizona. Bobby had become addicted to painkillers following a botched surgery that ended his career, and nearly his life. Eleni was battling an eating disorder. They moved to Portugal in October because Jenks wanted to be in his wife's close family unit. Eleni and her sister, mother and stepfather have all rallied around Jenks. Eleni's day starts before the sun rises. She administers his medications. She handles the affairs of their burnt home and finances, making multiple trips back to California, and takes care of their children. Their daughter, Kate, kissed all the items that were brought for her father to sign, then started to cry. The Jenks family does need the money, but there are certain challenges that financial help can't fix. Advertisement 'I've just been honest, told (our son) we're doing the best we can,' Eleni said. 'We're doing the best that we can to get his dad right. I'm not saying anything negative to him. But he understands what cancer is.' 'I'm just giving them extra love. I'm holding them. There's nothing more that I can do.' Jenks needed a break from the interview. Emotion was pouring out. His mind was on the four children that he did not have by his side, all living in the United States with their mother, Jenks' ex-wife. He does not see them, and said he's hardly spoken to them since his diagnosis. But, he said, he loves them. 'I think about it every single day,' said Jenks, the pain of the topic clearly overtaking him. 'And if they read this, I want them to know, I think about you guys every single day.' The pain of this illness transcends the physical. It's become mental, as well. He'll have chemo 'hot flashes,' which cause him to shout for reasons he can't understand. This summer, Jenks should have been in Chicago, managing the Windy City Thunderbolts — an indy ball team in the Frontier League. It's a roster he helped build. Jenks would have been in his second season. Instead, he'll watch his team's games via an online stream. 'He's gonna be fine,' said Toby Hall, a White Sox teammate, close friend and the Thunderbolts' interim manager. 'He's gonna get through this.' Within seconds of saying that, Hall was sobbing uncontrollably. 'I'm holding down the fort for my boy. And I'm going to make him proud,' Hall said through tears. 'It's just, that's a hard one.' For everyone in Jenks' orbit, there's a seesaw between optimism and the unavoidable realities of a terminal diagnosis. Eleni said she hasn't allowed herself to think of a world without her husband. There's been no planning ahead — a deliberate choice. Advertisement 'I'm just staying present,' Eleni said. 'Because it's too overwhelming for me to think about anything other than the present. I think it will paralyze me to have any fear or doubt.' After Bobby received his diagnosis, the doctors asked him if he had any further questions. He said no. He didn't want to know the doctor's timeframe for the end of his life. And to this day, he's adamant that no doctor or medical determination can define what happens next for him. Jenks is fighting. To get back to Chicago. To manage his Indy ball team. To be a father, husband, teammate and friend. To someday use that tent, and to share his story. He doesn't know how much time he has left. But he knows he wants to make the most of that time. 'If it's able to help one, it's able to help many,' Jenks said. 'Whatever they can take from it. If they turn around and throw it right in the trash and say, 'F this guy.' That's their prerogative. And there's plenty of that in this world. 'But at the end of the day, I think this world needs more love than anything else. And right now, that's what we need to give.' (Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; Mario Tama, Jonathan Daniel, Ron Vesely / MLB Photos, Christian Petersen / Getty Images)
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ex-Angels draft pick Bobby Jenks fighting for his life after losing home in Palisades fire
Former Angels draft pick Bobby Jenks helped the Chicago White Sox win the 2005 World Series. Twenty years later, the 44-year-old and his family need some help. Jenks has been diagnosed with Stage 4 adenocarcinoma, a form of stomach cancer. In addition, the family lost its home in the Palisades fire. Jenks is taking part in a private memorabilia-signing event arranged by PastPros. The money raised will go toward helping the former closer who forced the Houston Astros' Orlando Palmeiro into hitting a game-ending groundout Oct. 26, 2005, to end the White Sox's 88-year championship drought. "As many will have heard, former White Sox closer Bobby Jenks has been diagnosed with stage 4 stomach cancer (after losing his home in the LA fires)," PastPros posted Wednesday on Instagram. "To help Bobby and his family with medical costs, we have arranged an in-person private signing with him. All profits will be given to the Jenks family." Read more: Nearly everything Tommy Hawkins cherished in life was destroyed in the Palisades fire Fans are asked to send the items they wish to have signed (cards, photos, balls or jerseys) to an address provided on the PastPros website by March 25. The items will be signed by Jenks in Portugal — where he, his wife and two of his six children are currently living — and returned by mail. PastPros also announced that former Dodgers pitcher Darren Dreifort is donating his proceeds from a similar signing event to Jenks and his family. The Jenks family, through PastPros, declined to comment for this article. Born in Mission Hills, Jenks later attracted the attention of baseball scouts as a hard-throwing teenager on an American Legion team in North Idaho. After graduating from Inglemoor High School in Kenmore, Wash., in 2000, Jenks was selected by the Angels in the fifth round of that summer's draft. Jenks spent much of the next several years dealing with injuries and was designated for assignment after the 2004 season. He was claimed by the White Sox and made his first MLB start in July. In October, he appeared in all four World Series games during Chicago's sweep of Houston, giving up three hits and two earned runs with seven strikeouts and two walks over five innings pitched. Read more: Gary Hall Jr. won 10 Olympic medals in the water. Then he lost them in the Palisades fire Jenks played six seasons with the White Sox, earning All-Star nods in 2006 and 2007, then one season with the Boston Red Sox before his career ended after he underwent emergency surgery on his spine to fix a spinal fluid leak that caused a major infection. Jenks was in Crestfield, Ill., managing the Windy City Thunderbolts independent professional baseball team when the Palisades fire hit. He had his World Series ring with him at the time, Jenks told in February, but all the other tangible memories of his baseball career are gone. 'I've got one suitcase left to my name,' Jenks said. 'It's all gone. Everything else I've ever done. ... All those things are irreplaceable.' He added that he has every intention of being able to manage the Windy City team again this year, as well as attend the White Sox's 20-year World Series reunion in July. 'Now it's time to do what I got to do to get myself better and get myself more time, however you want to look at it,' said Jenks, whose family moved to Portugal to be closer to his wife's family. 'I'll tell you one thing: I'm not going to die here in Portugal." Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
