Goddamn you, Challenger! This is the Beloved's time to shine. Couldn't you have blown up next week?

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they still should've won more. part of why i've never warmed up to the bears after that SB was that they've just been an organization of egomaniacs with absolutely nothing to show for it. that team should've been a dynasty, and became their own worst enemies in the playoffs. and since then, they've been a disappointing team and a lot of times, just plain arrogant.

the 85 bears were an awfully fun team to watch and a team to root for. they were just nasty but they were respectable. and they were awesome.

One lasting effect of that '85 Bears team is to look at the attendance for Bear games.

As late as '84 there were games that did not sell out and games were blacked out. Wondering whether Bear home games would be on TV was a frequent concern.

Do we ever think about home games being blacked out now? I don't even recall that being a problem even under the darkest years of Wanny and Jauron.

That '85 team (and the Ditka era Bears) really cemented the Bears #1 status in Chicago.

That's a great point, enigma. That was always the Friday story.

Would the Bears sell-out at the last minute? Would an anonymous (WBBM) buyer come in at the last second and buy the remaining tickets?

Don't hear that much anymore.

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My Maserati does 186.

Any good stories or highlights from the evening? Did you get drunk, pull out your stamps, and show them how to party?

Alright, here's a little play-by-play. I went with a buddy of mine. We had the VIP pass which allowed us to go backstage prior to the show and mingle. While the appetizers and drinks were on the house, the whole thing was a bit too crazy. There were a ton of people back there and you were pretty much elbow-to-elbow with everyone. Based on the VIP cost and the number of people back there, they must have made some coin on this event.



The singer back there, Johnny Vincent (the guy facing the camera in the picture above), who is apparently a regular performer at Ditka's, was tremendous (Sinatra, Johnny Cash, Louis Armstrong). That guy was really talented.

I'm not much of an autograph guy, but, quite honestly, there really wasn't much else to do back there except get some autographs. The thing was - some of those guys really hadn't seen each other in a long time and would go up to each other with a slap on the back and "how you doin'". So, your move is to interrupt them for autograph, which is a dick move but, still, what else are you going to do back there and that's what they are there to do. Still, I think I pissed off Matt Suhey doing that. I felt bad.

Here's what it felt like - it was like going to someone's 25th High School reunion and interrupting them all the time to have them sign something for you.

Too many BRUSHES WITH FAME to recount them all, but here are a few -

Harry Teinowitz
Lou Canellis
Mike Adamle
Marv Levy
About 30 Bears
Jarrett and Brittany Payton
One of those Walter E. Smithe brothers
A couple of the McCaskeys
Tom Dreesen
I think Ted Phillips was there but I didn't see him.
Ronnie Woo Woo

That's off the top of my head. As for the event, about what you'd expect. Some good stories but nothing that was earth-shattering or some other version of things that you'd probably heard before. Buddy Ryan doesn't look too good, pretty frail and you could barely hear what he was saying. Mike Adamle almost single-handedly ruined the event with his incessent cackling. I mean it was unbelievable the ear-piercing volume of his shrieking and his over-the-top antics. He dialed it down a little in the later stages of the event.

But, overall, a pretty enjoyable night. All the Bears were very gracious in thanking you for coming out and none of them were jagoffs in any way. Even McMahon, who I've dealt with before, was really open to just hanging out. As I mentioned before, a far more interesting group of characters than anything the Bears have run out there since.

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My Maserati does 186.

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My Maserati does 186.