30 for 30

berniecarbo1

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Browndog's list is great. As a side note, I do consulting work with the company Bartman works for. It was so bad for him that his employer made him a remote employee becuse of the death threats and overall harassment he endured. To this day he is a "virtual" worker and does not work in the company's office. In fact he has no "office" location. He is an "offsite worker". Unknown if he even still lives in Chicagoland or not.

If we are going to put up a Top 30...30 for 30, I would drop "Playing for the Mob" in there in the 20-30 range. A good flick and brought back personal memeories of that time as I was in school during that period of time.
 

NortheasternPJ

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Papelbon's Poutine said:
It annoys me to no end that Netflix lists these individually. It would be much easier to browse them if "30 for 30" just pulled them all up and then you could check out the whole lot.
 
How many are actually on Netflix? Depending on what you search for some are there some are not. Is there a list? I can't find one. I find this hugely annoying. Same as Comcast OnDemand having 2-3 episodes only. 
 

TFP

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berniecarbo1 said:
Browndog's list is great. As a side note, I do consulting work with the company Bartman works for. It was so bad for him that his employer made him a remote employee becuse of the death threats and overall harassment he endured. To this day he is a "virtual" worker and does not work in the company's office. In fact he has no "office" location. He is an "offsite worker". Unknown if he even still lives in Chicagoland or not.

If we are going to put up a Top 30...30 for 30, I would drop "Playing for the Mob" in there in the 20-30 range. A good flick and brought back personal memeories of that time as I was in school during that period of time.
My current boss used to be his boss at said employer. I wonder if we know the same people.
 

twothousandone

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The Allented Mr Ripley said:
Yeah, I watched "You Don't Know Bo" yesterday with my kids just to give them an idea who he was, it's a great episode.
Me, too (but not yesterday.) My wife spent those years out of the country, so it was an eye-opener for her, too.
 
I keep trying to get my kids to watch the one about Loyola-Marymount with me, but they won't. (They think I set them up by making them watch Rocky, then Rocky II.) 
 
Is that one good?  Is it more about Westhead and the offense, or is it about Gathers and Kimball? Or both?
 

Papelbon's Poutine

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NortheasternPJ said:
 
How many are actually on Netflix? Depending on what you search for some are there some are not. Is there a list? I can't find one. I find this hugely annoying. Same as Comcast OnDemand having 2-3 episodes only. 
 
That's kind of my point. You can't just say to yourself "let's find a 30 for 30 I haven't seen...oh this one looks good!", without going to another source and then searching by title. Best I can find for the list is 
 
40 Minutes of Hell
Catching Hell
Charismatic
Fernando Nation
Four Days in October
Guru of Go
Into the Wind
Jordan Rides the Bus
June 17th, 1994
King’s Ransom
Little Big Men
Marion Jones: Press Pause
Muhammad and Larry
No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson
Once Brothers
Pony Excess
Renee
Roll Tide/War Eagle
Run Ricky Run
Silly Little Game
Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL?
The 16th Man
The Announcement
The Band That Wouldn’t Die
The Best That Never Was
The Birth of Big Air
The Dewey Bozella Story
The Dotted Line
The House of Steinbrenner
The Marinovich Project
The Real Rocky
The Two Escobars
The U
Tim Richmond: To the Limit
Unguarded
Unmatched
Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. The New York Knicks
Without Bias

 
Not sure how accurate that is. 
 

SeanBerry

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I don't think it's on Netflix but I saw When The Garden Was Eden (on the MSG network last week to celebrate Walt Frazier's 70th birthday). I love basketball and NYC so I loved it. I did get pissed when Rapaport said Bill Russell was overrated but the players reactions (including Bob Ryan) were worth it. They basically laughed him out of the room. 
 

NortheasternPJ

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I just searched Netflix again for 30 for 30 and it looks like they're now all showing up, which wasn't the case a month or so ago. Look like 40 of them (is that all of them?) are on there now by searching "30 for 30". Wish it was like this over the winter when I had more time to wactch them.
 

richgedman'sghost

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OilCanShotTupac said:
 stupid question: what does "30 for 30" mean, anyway?
The original thinking behind the series was to create 30 different movies or documentaries to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the launching of ESPN in 1979. The series was so popular upon its debut in 09 that they decided to continue it.
 

Dollar

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kenneycb

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Again, you can find pretty much all on YouTube. If you're complaining about Netflix it's likely because you either watch them on a tablet or via Apple TV, Chromecast, etc. This should not impair your enjoyment of 30 for 30.
 

Papelbon's Poutine

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I don't really understand your point.

If I'm watching them on Netflix, is there a place other than a tablet or streaming device I'd be watching them? My phone?

It doesn't hinder my enjoyment of the work, it just isn't the ideal interface provided. That's got nothing to do with 30 for 30 and is all on the app. I've tried pulling them up on Apple TV and they way they list them annoys me - you get four or five that pop up and otherwise you need to search the exact title. I think the netflix app on Apple TV sucks compared to roku, so maybe that's the issue. It would be nice if you searched and it popped up like a TV show, where it listed the episodes in full, you could browse the summaries, etc. As it is, I have to google them, find a title and search that. It's an annoyance but it's not keeping me from watching them.

I don't see where YouTube would solve that problem. I assume you would still have to search the title, no? Are they licensed cuts on YouTube or hijacked?
 

JimD

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Papelbon's Poutine said:
I don't really understand your point.

If I'm watching them on Netflix, is there a place other than a tablet or streaming device I'd be watching them? My phone?

It doesn't hinder my enjoyment of the work, it just isn't the ideal interface provided. That's got nothing to do with 30 for 30 and is all on the app. I've tried pulling them up on Apple TV and they way they list them annoys me - you get four or five that pop up and otherwise you need to search the exact title. I think the netflix app on Apple TV sucks compared to roku, so maybe that's the issue. It would be nice if you searched and it popped up like a TV show, where it listed the episodes in full, you could browse the summaries, etc. As it is, I have to google them, find a title and search that. It's an annoyance but it's not keeping me from watching them.

I don't see where YouTube would solve that problem. I assume you would still have to search the title, no? Are they licensed cuts on YouTube or hijacked?
 
Any reason you can't use Chromecast?  Works like a charm and costs only $35.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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If you have 20 minutes, this is a really good 30 for 30 short on Sidd Finch. 
 
The only part that sucks is the last 58 seconds. Other than that, it's great. 
 

GeorgeCostanza

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Watched the Hank Gathers 30 for 30 again. Man, heartbreaking. Bo Kimble shooting FTs lefty as a tribute to him pulls at the heart strings.

Where ever Simmons ends up I really hope he continues to produce documentaries.
 

cornwalls@6

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Saw the Pete Carroll/USC episode. Very disappointing. A topic I was definitely interested in, but it was ultimately just Pom-Pom waiving, swaggering from ex-players and assorted hangers on, ala "The U". The NCAA violations that drove Pete out of there were, in my view, touched on very lightly and in an almost perfunctory manner. The series has been mostly great, but don't think this was one of their better efforts.
 

edmunddantes

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cornwalls@6 said:
Saw the Pete Carroll/USC episode. Very disappointing. A topic I was definitely interested in, but it was ultimately just Pom-Pom waiving, swaggering from ex-players and assorted hangers on, ala "The U". The NCAA violations that drove Pete out of there were, in my view, touched on very lightly and in an almost perfunctory manner. The series has been mostly great, but don't think this was one of their better efforts.
May be a trend of things to come.
 
I don't remember which site I read it on, but someone had a media screener copy of the one heavily featuring Kevin Johnson that ESPN pulled and asked media not to watch before returning. They watched it anyways, and l think the reviewer called it a "hagiography" considering all the shady dealings and other things that have gone on with him.
 

Jeff Frye

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For those that have seen "Free Spirits", I just watched it again and it has additional interviews now that the Silna brothers have settled their lawsuit with the NBA, footage from the 40th anniversary party of the team, and a nice tribute to Marvin Barnes.
 

54thMA

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Caught the one on the 90's Bills, I thought it was very good. Didn't know about the idiot D Line coach who dumped all over the hogs when they played the Redskins, probably not a good idea. Jim Kelly has really been through the ringer both professionally and personally. Looking back, that team was loaded on offense, overall 8 members of those teams are in the HOF..

Nobody wanted them going back a fourth time; if they had beaten the Giants and not gone to the one where they had that huge comback vs the Oilers, naturally they'd be viewed differently.
 

TomBrunansky23

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Caught the one on the 90's Bills, I thought it was very good. Didn't know about the idiot D Line coach who dumped all over the hogs when they played the Redskins, probably not a good idea. Jim Kelly has really been through the ringer both professionally and personally. Looking back, that team was loaded on offense, overall 8 members of those teams are in the HOF..

Nobody wanted them going back a fourth time; if they had beaten the Giants and not gone to the one where they had that huge comback vs the Oilers, naturally they'd be viewed differently.
That idiot DL coach, Chuck Dickerson, went on to a decade long career on Buffalo sports radio spouting the same good old boy slobberknocker BS you saw in the movie.
 

PC Drunken Friar

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I don't know if they have another name attached to it, but there was a 30 minute one last night about some HS team in upstate NY that had like a 60+ game football winning streak. I, too have my DVR set, but it didn't record it.
 

Humphrey

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How often do they rerun these? I missed the Bills one, now I have the DVR set to record any and all episodes, new or repeat, and it hasn't recorded a thing all week.
The funny thing is, right around the time you posted this, the Bills one came on one of the many ESPN channels. I watched half of it before turning in. Got through SB2. Forgot that Scott Norwood had a game winning kick a year later (thought they dumped him after the Giants loss).
 

Kliq

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How often do they rerun these? I missed the Bills one, now I have the DVR set to record any and all episodes, new or repeat, and it hasn't recorded a thing all week.
They are really good at posting them on Netflix, if you have an account. I watched the Tyson/Holyfield documentary on there and that came out last month.
 

kenneycb

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The Tyson/Holyfield one was awesome except it makes me hate Holyfield more than I did before between the consistent theme of head butts and constant God-praising when he's up there with Travis Henry and Shawn Kemp.
 

Kliq

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Was Holyfield a Christian in that film? I couldn't tell. If only he wore some constant attire that detailed his religious affiliation.

There are few likable people in that film. I think I hate Don King the most though, if I was a fighter I would never let that creep raise my hand before a fight.
 

Andy Merchant

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I watched the rest of the Bills one over the weekend. It's been so long that I tend to forget how loaded that team was, although I could have done with less Bill Polian.
 

TheoShmeo

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The '85 Bears debuts tomorrow night. That was right when I moved to Chicago and I'd never seen anything like it. I'm still not sure I have.

Really looking forward to it.
I have 30 for 30 set to auto record, noticed this was set to record and deleted it. The Bears were amazing and totally unique, tis true. And not dislikable at all. But the homer in me still can't really enjoy looking back at them given the butt whipping they put on the team I root for and the Pats missing the chance to improbably win a SB.

My mind quickly turns to the decision to go with Eason over Grogan, Don Blackmon not pick sixing a pass that him between the 5 and the 5 with daylight to the end zone, the Pats not getting a TD on their first possession after recovering a fumble deep in Chicago's territory and Lin Dawson blowing out his knee.

I know, I know, the Pats had no shot.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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I have 30 for 30 set to auto record, noticed this was set to record and deleted it. The Bears were amazing and totally unique, tis true. And not dislikable at all. But the homer in me still can't really enjoy looking back at them given the butt whipping they put on the team I root for and the Pats missing the chance to improbably win a SB.
Dude. It was 30 years ago and the Pats had no business being on that field that day, they didn't miss anything. Let it go.
 

Van Everyman

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Until I saw the Football Life on Walter Payton, I hadn't realized that Ditka put the Fridge in to run the ball into the end zone instead of Payton, thereby denying one of the best and most beloved running backs in the history of the game the opportunity to run for a touchdown in the Super Bowl.

It's quite possible that Mike Ditka is the worst person on earth.
 
I hadn't realized that I did put the fridge in to run the ball into the end zone instead of Walter Payton, thereby denying him the opportunity to run for a touchdown in the Super Bowl. It's quite possible that Mike Ditka is the worst person on earth.
I can't stand Ditka but at least he admits it was a mistake and calls it the biggest regret of his career. I've actually seen him cry about it when questioned. He said he didn't realize it meant that much to Payton. To this day whenever Ditka sees Walter's daughter he brings it up and says, "Again...I'm so sorry...."

And fwiw, Payton was pretty childish about not getting the ball at the goal line. Immediately after the game he refused to celebrate with his team mates or speak with reporters. The Bear's PR guy and Walter's agent had to beg him to leave the trainer's room and go celebrate with the team in the locker room. His agent said something along the lines of, "Walter, please, please go meet with the team. You're being selfish and you'll never live this down if word gets out that you're doing this. Is this how you want to be remembered? Complaining about your carries in a SB win?"

Payton would eventually do an interview with Costas and even take a call from President Reagan, but still....I was surprised to hear him acting so petulant after winning a Super Bowl. Maybe it's just because I always thought of him as the ultimate team player at the RB position.

"A Football Life: Walter Payton" did a good job detailing the incident.
 
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Clears Cleaver

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It's too bad that the Pats had to spy on the Dolphins practices, bug their locker rooms and deflate their footballs before the AFC title game that year. A rematch of the Monday night win with Marino against the Bears might have generated the largest tv audience for a super bowl ever.
 

PayrodsFirstClutchHit

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No one was beating the Bears in the SB that year. The Pats just ended up with the best seats.
The playoff run with road wins over the Jets and Raiders and of course the "Squish the Fish" drubbing at Miami were magical.

I will always contend that Stanley Morgan dropping a gimme TD pass on their fist series cost the Pats momentum.
 
I also remember thinking the Pats gave up a huge opportunity on their first offensive series when they had to settle for a FG despite getting the ball in the red zone. THEN CHICAGO RAN OFF 44 STRAIGHT POINTS. There was zero chance NE was going to come close to that Bears team even if they put up a TD after the Chicago fumble.
 

valentinscycle

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I grew up in Chicago, was 16 when that game was played, and watched it with my grandfather and father, so there was Bears fandom going back to the Sid Luckman days in the room. And although everyone had been cocky all season long, when that first fumble happened there was a 'shit, here we go again' vibe suddenly among us. A couple hours later it was hard to remember. But Bears fans had felt beaten down for so long, and even though it'd only been 20 years the Super Bowl era had largely been a wasteland of mediocre QBs and, in my childhood, watching Walter grind out the offense single-handedly to reach something like a 7-9 record, it really had felt like an eternity. The days of Sayers and Butkus felt prehistoric to me. So in that one moment I thought, it's all going to collapse right here, because this is what the Bears do in the end, and I remember the tense silence in the room. Strange moment-- really the only one like it I remember from that season.

Of course now to be a Bears fan is worse than in my childhood. And the McCaskeys are still in charge, and could be well into my elderly years. So bitter nostalgia is the only recourse.
 

TheoShmeo

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Dude. It was 30 years ago and the Pats had no business being on that field that day, they didn't miss anything. Let it go.
No bitterness. Just don't care to watch a documentary about a team that beat my team in the Super Bowl. I don't watch clips of the Giants-Pats SBs or the Too Many Men on the Ice game, either. Not that they make me wet my pants; just don't enjoy them.

A sub-story for me is that the professor in my law school who I was closest with, and respected the most, was an avid Bears fans and gave me endless shit about that game during that season (my first year) and for the next two years. Like almost every time I saw him. It was good natured and I still miss him (he died young). But that's another reason why I have no need to watch a vivid reminder.
 

54thMA

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Watched the 30 for 30 on the 85 Bears last night. Amazing that they never got to another Super Bowl and their run ended at one.

The last ten minutes were tough to get through, Buddy Ryan is in very poor health. The segment where his former players read the letter he wrote through his caretaker to them was gut wrenching. Those players still love the guy, him leaving to coach the Eagles was a major blow. Nice story on how they wrote a letter to Mr Halas saving Ryan's job.

He and Ditka banged heads quite a bit, Ryan threw Ditka out of a few defensive meetings. Ryan resented Ditka and felt he should have gotten that head coaching job; maybe if he had, they would have won more than one.

The players sound like they hated Doug Flutie who was brought in off the street in 1986 and started the playoff game that they lost, a couple of them referred to him as a midget.

Never knew about the Payton thing after the game, he hid in a broom closet and had to be talked into coming out and joining the team.

a two hour show that flew by, watch it if you can.
 

Hendu for Kutch

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I thought the funniest part was that they told a couple of Ditka's guys to go pick him up after SB XX because the rest were picking Ryan up and Ditka was going to be pissed.
 

kenneycb

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It's worth it for the Singletary-Buddy interaction halfway through. The last interaction makes a lot of sense as to why Singletary coached for a bit. Holy shit that letter got dusty.

Edit: The Payton stuff is great and real but it's amazing how the Bears fans pulled an emu and dug their heads in the ground with Pearlman's book. They want to think of him as a God and he was absurdly faulty. Same with McMahon. My brother played against his son in hockey. Great father but you could tell something wasn't "right". Absurdly nice and great person though.

Edit 2: My dad looks too closely to Ditka. It kinda freaks me out.
 
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