By MONTE DUTTON

Things I’ve noticed in movies and TV:

It never drizzles.

Movies shot in a studio have rickety doors.

Many times the bad guy or gal in modern movies is the one who smokes. In old movies, everyone smokes.

The second coming of Claude Rains was James Mason.

Newspapers in old movies are closer to the size of pup tents than modern newspapers, which are closer to the size of postage stamps.

The most bogus danger is quicksand. Number two is banana peels.

The greatest character actor was Sydney Greenstreet.

The greatest character actress was Eve Arden.

The first man who won three Academy Awards for acting was Walter Brennan.

And to sports …

Referring to an athlete by his last name only is almost extinct.

The Chicago Bears’ last decent quarterback was Jim McMahon. Before that was Bobby Douglass. Before that was Sid Luckman.

Luckman played for the Bears from 1939 through 1950. I knew as much about Luckman as a lad as modern lads about Johnny Unitas.

The oldest living baseball Hall of Famer is Willie Mays, who turned 93 on Monday. Mays hit a home run in the first major-league game I ever attended.

He was the best, Jerry! The best!

Thursday was what I saved for a rainy day.

I wrote some fiction. Something new.

For whatever reason that technology claims is impossible, my wi-fi gets sketchy in and around rain. The next day that it’s fast again, I’m going to get back to work on finding somebody in the mad, mad, mad, mad publishing world willing to put out the novel I recently finished.

I had my heart set on seeing Laurens play Friday night, but rains twice prevented a game in Fort Mill from being played, so now it’s Raiders pushed back to Saturday and possibly Monday.

The thunder rolled and the lightning flashed, but our area got off cheap when the storms came through.

By God, I folded clothes.

All the while, I was reevaluating everything in my mind. I’ve got about a month to decide where to go and what to do, and it’s possible it’ll be the same.

I keep looking for tomorrow and finding yesterday. – Mel Tillis

Laurens waits.

The Class 4A baseball playoff game in Fort Mill matching Catawba Ridge (24-4) and Greenwood (17-12) was rained out again on Thursday, forcing Laurens (23-6) to wait until Saturday at 6 p.m. to play the winner. If an additional game is required – i.e., should the Raiders lose on Saturday, the final district game is to be played on Monday.

Presbyterian College’s next four baseball games are against the Southern Conference. Wofford beat the Blue Hose, 19-2, on Tuesday. Next are The Citadel on Friday and Saturday in Clinton and Sunday in Charleston. PC visits Western Carolina next Tuesday.

PC is in the right conference. The Blue Hose are 15-6 in their own conference, the Big South, and 0-4 against the SoCon.

Perhaps they’re due.

Amid all the ups and downs, center fielder Joel Dragoo, a senior from Beckville, Texas, is a constant.

Dragoo is batting .414 with 70 hits in 169 at-bats, 49 runs, 18 doubles, two triples and 15 runs. He has driven in 56 runs with an OPS of 1.320 and a slugging percentage of .811. He has started all 48 games, 25 of which the Blue Hose have won. Dragoo has been safe on 10/12 stolen-base attempts.

Decision time is approaching. What’s next? Do I keep doing it the way I am now? Do I amend this site? Do I continue to concentrate on local sports coverage, or do I change my priorities?

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