THERE’S A MOVEMENT AFOOT TO BLOW UP PARKEY FOOTBALL
Play ball! But first you gotta find it! Grant DePorter, the maven of sports memorabilia who blew up the infamous (Steve) Bartman ball in 2004, tells Sneed he has been swamped by requests from Bears fans demanding he blow up da football that just blew da Bears’ chance to make a deep playoff run.
“If someone wants to give me the ball, I’ll blow it up,” DePorter said about the piece of pigskin which shockingly bounced off an upright and a crossbar in a tipped kick by Cody Parkey during the wild-card game with the Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday, which brought the Bears postseason to a sudden halt.
But what happened to the ball? No one is saying.
DePorter, who tells
Sneed he has been making inquiries about where the ball actually IS now, claims he still has the Bartman Ball buster’s “bulletproof plexiglass containment chamber” in his office.
“It’s the one designed by Academy Awardwinning special effects director Michael “Jurassic Park” Lantieri,” said DePorter — who had purchased the ball at auction in 2003 for $113,824 (including tax) before blowing it to bits in what became a nationally televised stunt.
The Sun-Times reported Friday memorabilia expert Ken Goldin estimates the ball could fetch $25,000 at auction or upwards of $100,000 if the Eagles win the Super Bowl.
“I agree that’s a possibility,” said DePorter, who bid successfully on legendary Bear Walter Payton’s final touchdown football for $15,535 and wouldn’t be averse to bidding on it at auction. “If we did destroy the football we would do it in such a way it would be sensitive to Cody Parkey, because I feel bad for him.
“But hey, we don’t even know where the ball is and who has it ... let alone know who actually owns the ball [or] ... who has the rights to it,” DePorter said. “Is it the Bears or the NFL? I’ve put out inquiries, but I just don’t know yet what the answer is.”
The magnificent Magnus . . .
No words can describe.
May I have the honor of introducing you to Magnus William Sneed-Griffin, my first grandchild.
Magnus was born Jan. 5 — a few weeks early — weighing in at 6 pounds and 11 ounces in Minnesota. His parents — my son, Patrick Martin, and his wife, Dr. Sarah Rebecca “Becca” Peglow — are glowing and exhausted.
Magnus was named after his great-great grandfather on the Peglow Scandinavian side — and his two grandfathers, William J. Griffin and Dr. William Peglow.
Grandmothers Sue (Foley) Peglow and Michael Sneed-Griffin are over the moon.
I have been in the newspaper business for 52 years plus or minus a little change.
This time … I remain speechless.
Sneedlings . . .
Saturday’s birthdays: Zayn Malik,
26; Jeff Bezos, 55; and Issa Rae, 34 .... Sunday’s birthdays: Liam Hemsworth, 29; Shonda Rhimes, 49; and Michael Pena, 43.