Celebrating Black History Month: Jim Brown, NFL running back extraordinaire, first black action star

James "Jim" Brown, born February 17, 1936 in St. Simons, Georgia, was a record-setting football player, an action movie star, and a civil rights activist.

He played football while at Syracuse University from 1954-1956 and earned unanimous All-American honors, and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1995. 

In the 1957 NFL draft, he was the sixth pick of the first round, by the Cleveland Browns.  He played for the Browns from 1957 to 1965.  During his career, he carried the ball 2,359 times, for 12.312 rushing yards, and 106 touchdowns, which were all records when he retired. He is the only NFL player to average over 100 rushing yards per game for his career.  He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.

He became an actor shortly before he ended his career, and starred in leading roles throughout the 1970s. He has been described as Hollywood's first black action hero. In the 1969 film, 100 Rifles, he made history for featuring the first interracial love scenes with Raquel Welch.   He won an Image Awards (NAACP) for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture for his work in El Condor.  I liked him in Ice Station Zebra, although the critics panned the movie.

During the civil rights movement, he was one of the few athletes to speak out on racial issues. He launched a foundation for diverting at-risk youth from violence, teaching them life skills.

He passed away from natural causes at 87 in May 2023.

Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month: Chi Chi Rodriguez, Puerto Rican pro golfer

Juan Antonio "Chi-Chi" Rodriguez, born October 23, 1935 in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, has won eight PGA Tour events and is the first Puerto Rican to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.  On the Senior PGA Tour, he was the first player to win the same event three consecutive years. 

He is known for his 'toreador dance' whenever he makes a birdie or eagle, where he pretended the ball was the bull and his putter was a sword. Then he would terminate the 'bull'.

Celebrating Black History Month: Jesse Owens, African-American athlete extraordinaire

Jesse Owens, born September 12, 1913 in Oakville, Alabama, is recognized as one of the greatest track and field athletes in history.  He set three world records in the span of forty five minutes during the Big Ten track meet in Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1935.

He won four gold medals at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany: 100 meters, 200 meters, long jump and 4 x 100 meter relay.  His achievements made him the most successful athlete at the games. 

The street outside the Olympic Stadium in Berlin has been named Jesse Owens Boulevard and the dormitory where he stayed during the games has been restored into a living museum with pictures of his accomplishments.

He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Gerald Ford, the Living Legend Award by President Jimmy Carter, has an asteroid named after him (6758 Jesseowens), and inducted into the inaugural class of the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.

Owens died in March 1980 from an agressive, drug-resistant type of lung cancer.