Bobblehead Of The Day: Bob Hope

Yesterday would've been Bob Hope's 108th birthday. The comedian and actor sadly died eight years ago at the age of 100. He made countless appearances on broadway, radio, television, and in the movies. Bob Hope also performed with the United Service Organizations. He started entertaining the troops in 1941 during World War II and did it for another fifty years.

From Hope's Wikipedia

Hope performed his first United Service Organizations (USO) show on May 6, 1941, at March Field, California. He continued to travel and entertain troops for the rest of World War II and later during the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the third phase of the Lebanon Civil War, the latter years of the Iran–Iraq War, and the 1990–1991 Persian Gulf War. When overseas he almost always performed in Army fatigues as a show of support for his audience. Hope's USO career lasted half a century, during which he headlined approximately 60 tours. For his service to his country through the USO, he was awarded the Sylvanus Thayer Award by the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1968.

When our servicemen and women were overseas, wishing they were at home with their families, Bob Hope helped keep their morale high. On this Memorial Day, I thought it would be nice to honor the man who entertained our troops for so many years.

This bobblehead was made in 2003, for Hope's 100th birthday. He's sporting a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform with the number 100 on the back. Produced by Strike Zone Inc., there were only 500 of these made. Some were sold at Dodger Stadium's Top of the Park Gift Shop for Dodger fans to purchase, but many of them were sold online or through catalogues and ended up in the hands of Bob Hope collectors.

Here's Mr. Hope:

This is definitely one of my favorite bobbleheads in my collection. Not just because of how rare it is, but because I am a huge fan of Bob Hope's work. Thanks to Facebook friend Mike for the helpful info on this bobblehead.

Player Appearances: Jamey Carroll And Dioner Navarro

Today was one of those great autograph days that doesn't come around too often. I was able to get two Dodger autographs in two locations within an hour. Super utility man Jamey Carroll  and last night's walk-off hero Dioner Navarro were both signing today at the same time, from Noon to 1:00 pm. Carroll appeared at Sports Authority in Sherman Oaks, Navarrro at Kragen Auto Parts in Los Angeles.

I'll start with Carroll. I arrived in Sherman Oaks at 8:45am. This was the same location Bill Russell signed at two weeks ago.There was already a small line of Dodger fans when I got there. I was hoping I'd be near the front so I could get out of there early and rush over to the Dioner Navarro event.

A group of us were monitoring the Navarro event. From everything we heard, the line was short for Navarro and there was very little traffic heading downtown. If everything went according to plan, we would leave Sherman Oaks and head downtown before Navarro finished signing.

Jamey Carroll arrived thirty minutes early and started signing right away. He was very nice, chatting with everyone and signing whatever was put in front of him. I got a 2007 Topps Heritage Colorado Rockies card signed and my Dodger hat. As far as I know, Carroll doesn't have a Dodgers baseball card. If I'm wrong, let me know.

Once I got my Carroll items signed, I checked the time, it was only 11:55! Everything was working out great. It was time to head to LA. Mike Spiegel from Nomo's Sushi Platter and Super Dodger fan Theresa came along with me. We jumped on the 101 and hoped there wouldn't be any traffic.

We got lucky. We made it to the Navarro event in twenty minutes. There were about 10 people in line. So what did I get signed? Well, I attended the Dodger game the night before. Dioner Navarro got a walk-off hit in the ninth inning of the game, so I thought I'd get the game ticket signed. I also got my Navarro bobblehead, a baseball card and my hat signed. Dioner was also taking pictures with the fans. The event staff was giving away prizes and they had a Dodger bouncer out there for the kids.

Dioner added "Walk Off Hit"

I had a great day today. I want to thank Jamey Carroll and Dioner Navarro, Sports Authority Sherman Oaks, Kragen O'Reilly Auto Parts and Vin Scully Is My Homeboy for event information. It was nice seeing Mike Spiegel, Theresa, Gus from Authentic Signings and everyone else I met today. Thanks to Enrique and Alejandro for the Navarro info!

Kendry Morales Bobblehead Night

My wife and I took a trip down to Anaheim on Tuesday. Presented By Natural Balance, the Angels gave away Kendry Morales bobbleheads to all fans in attendance. There were two different versions of the Morales bobbles being handed out, one as a left-handed batter, the other right-handed. Every fan was given one bobblehead, and you couldn't choose which one you got. There were no exchanges either.

When my wife and I got to our seats, we noticed we both got right-handed Kendrys. Luckily, the people sitting next to us got two left-handed Kendrys, and were happy to make a trade with us.

We got there a little early, so I made an attempt at some autographs. The A's were in town, and they were taking batting practice when we arrived. Sitting near right field, we had a few players shagging flyballs in front of us. Kevin Kouzmanoff was one of those players. He was also chatting and signing autographs.

Once the game started, we noticed we were sitting in a small pocket of A's fans, so we had no problem cheering for Oakland. I always feel uncomfortable in that sea of red, but not Tuesday. There were so many A's fans there.

It was a good game. David DeJesus hit two homeruns for Oakland as the A's went on to beat Anaheim 6-1.

Here are the two bobbleheads:

Of course, Kendry Morales wasn't playing on his bobblehead night. He's still dealing with the ankle injury he suffered in a walk-off homerun celebration last year. Remember this?

Video Of All 34 Dodger Stadium Bobbleheads

People always ask me how I display the Dodger bobbleheads. Do I have them all together? Yes. I have all 34 Dodger bobbleheads together in one bookcase. Here's video:

Suspect In Bryan Stow Beating Caught

Word is coming in that one of the two men suspected of beating Giants fan Bryan Stow has been taken into custody.

From LATimes.com:

A man suspected of being one of the two assailants in the brutal beating of Giants fan Bryan Stow at Dodger Stadium was taken into custody early this morning, Los Angeles police sources say.

At about 7 a.m., the Los Angeles Police Department SWAT team descended on an East Hollywood apartment building with a warrant in hand. According to apartment building manager Maritza Camacho, police, using loudspeakers and with guns drawn, called out to the occupants of Apartment 25. Inside was one of the men police suspect in the March 31 beating that left Stow with brain damage. 

As residents of the three-story building stood watching from balconies, police removed, one by one, the people who were inside the apartment, according to Camacho. Among them was a man with a bald head and tattoos on his neck and arms, she said, a description that appeared to match the vague sketches released by police of one of the two suspects. She added that he did not appear to resist being taken into custody.

Several police sources confirmed that the man taken into custody was one of the two suspects in the beating.

Police officials declined to give details, including the name of the suspect, saying only that the investigation was ongoing.

Bryan Stow, 42, a father of two, was walking through the Dodger Stadium parking lot with two friends after the Dodgers'' opening-day victory over San Francisco when he was brutally assaulted. Stow, who lives in Santa Cruz and worked as a paramedic in Santa Clara, was wearing Giants apparel, police said, and two young men began taunting him. One of the assailants blindsided Stow with blows to the back and head, police said.

The two assailants repeatedly kicked and punched Stow while he was on the ground. Stow's friends attempted to help, and were also punched and kicked before the attackers fled in a car driven by a woman wearing an Andre Ethier jersey. Police said it appeared there also was a 10-year-old boy in the car.

As more time passed without an arrest, the reward fund grew to more than $200,000, and the suspects' sketches were plastered on about 200 billboards around the L.A. area.

Camacho said that the man taken into custody Sunday morning had not been a longtime resident of the East Hollywood apartment building, but she had begun to see him coming and going in the last few months.

Stow remains in critical condition at San Francisco General Hospital, where he was moved last week from County-USC Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Doctors in San Francisco told reporters Stow had opened his eyes but that his long-term recovery was far from certain.

The incident has brought scrutiny and negative media attention to the Dodgers, who are also in the midst of an ownership battle. Owner Frank McCourt is struggling to meet payroll, prompting Major League Baseball to seize all business and day-to-day operations of the team.

Bryan's sister on the news of the suspects capture.



This is some great news for the family. I hope this helps them sleep at night. The police just need to capture the other animal who took part in the beating, and a judge needs to throw the book at them.

Player Appearance: Steve Garvey

A couple of weeks ago I was driving down Ventura Blvd. in Woodland Hills when I noticed a banner above Porky’s Baseball Cards & Stuff  that read "Steve Garvey Here". I had to find out what was going on. It turned out Porky's was hosting a Steve Garvey autograph session on Saturday, May 21. So I paid for my presale ticket that day which guaranteed me an autograph.

Garvey was scheduled to appear from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm. Porky's is only about 2 miles from my home, so I didn't have travel very far. I arrived at 11:45 and was one of the first people there. Garvey arrived at 12:30 and did a private session in the shop. They finally let people in at 1:10.

It was a great appearance. The line moved smoothly. Mr. Garvey was very friendly. He posed for pictures and chit-chatted with everyone. I decided last week I was going to get a picture of Garvey, Bill Russell, Davey Lopes, and Ron Cey signed by all four of the infielders. I got Russell last week and Garvey today, so I only need Cey and Lopes now.

I had a great time at Porky's today. It was one of the best player appearances I've ever been to. Thanks to TJ and Porky’s Baseball Cards & Stuff for hosting the event. And thanks to Mr. Steve Garvey. I also wanna give a shout out to Alejandro and Andy.

It's Time For Dodger Bobbleheads!

The Dodgers have been broadcasting this commercial for three days, so most Dodger fans have seen it by now. But for those who haven't seen it, what we've got here is bobblehead Don Mattingly managing a few bobblehead Dodgers. It's a clever idea. Check it out:

Contest Time

Alright, it's time for another contest. Tonight I'm giving away a Clayton Kershaw bobblehead, the same bobblehead the Dodgers gave away at last night's game. The prize is being given away courtesy of Bobbles Galore.

Remember, in order to win Mr. Kershaw, you must be a follower of dodgerbobble.com and you must be the first person to answer the trivia question correctly. Remember to answer the question in the comments section below.You can see the complete list of rules here.

Here's tonight's question:

Two LA Dodger pitchers have struck out 18 batters in a game. It's happened a total of three times. Sandy Koufax did it twice. Who is the other pitcher?

Give your answer in the comments below. First Follower to answer correctly wins Clayton Kershaw.

Contest Coming Up

We're just a couple of innings away from the Clayton Kershaw bobblehead contest, so get your Dodger thinking caps on. Here are the rules once again:

(1)You must be a follower of this blog. What does that mean? Your name must be in my list of 'Followers' in the blog sidebar. If you're already a follower, you can win. If you're not a follower, click on the 'FOLLOW' button in the sidebar.

(2)Answer the trivia question correctly. The question will be asked once the Dodgers/Giants game ends. The first dodgerbobble follower to answer the question correctly will win the Kershaw bobblehead, courtesy of Bobbles Galore. You will answer the question in the comments section of the post.

Clayton Kershaw Bobblehead Night

Click here to purchase

Tonight was the first bobblehead night of the year, Clayton Kershaw. When we arrived at Dodger Stadium, we noticed it was much quieter than usual. In past years, there would be a long line of people waiting to get their bobbleheads, but that wasn't the case tonight. The line getting in was very short. Even half way through the game the stadium looked empty. So sad.

Empty seats

More empty seats

Anyway, it felt good getting my hands on this first bobblehead of 2011. I love the way they made Clayton look. The details on this one are amazing. From the beard to the big ears to the green eyes, this looks pretty close to the real Kersh. They even got the Duke Snider patch on the right sleeve. Good job by P2 Promotions.

Green eyes

Duke Snider patch

This bobblehead was presented by Bank of America. The Dodgers played the Milwaukee Brewers tonight, and won 3-0.

All gone.

I'm looking forward to the next bobblehead night, Don Mattingly, on June 1.