Stephen Rodrick

“NFL fans have less sympathy for fallen players than the Romans had for blind Christians.”

“I grew up in a town without fathers.”

“I arrive a month premature, with my dad's brains but not much else.”

“A colleague once nicknamed me - half mocking - the 'magical stranger' because I get people to tell me things.”

“The only reason baseball's numerical touchstones have any significance is that most players - even the game's greats - peter out just barely before they reach them.”

“From the outside, Rick Rubin's house above Zuma Beach is a generic millionaire beach home. There's a rarely used tennis court and a circular drive.”

“Rick Rubin eats no cheese.”

“Publicists cater to bloggers because they can play them; bloggers cater to publicists because they want their ads.”

“Brett Favre likes to tell stories.”

“Stephen A. Smith is the hardest-working man in sports show business. The ubiquitous basketball pundit appears on ESPN about 10 times a day as a regular on the show 'NBA Fastbreak,' a guest commentator on 'Sports Center,' and a pundit on 'ESPNEWS.'”

“Some eco groups suggest that as many as 73 million sharks are killed globally every year. Hammerheads, blue sharks, mako sharks - they're disappearing, and they ain't coming back.”

“When superstars go down, no matter how sympathetic the circumstances, fans know the franchise could be sunk.”

“Robert Downey Jr. doesn't work out like us regular folks. Adulation bathes him from the moment he arrives at his Los Angeles martial arts studio.”

“Jeff Bridges wants you to take it easy, man.”

“If nothing else, the act of reaching a milestone often serves to reveal a superstar's true nature.”

“Rick Rubin's undulating face hair is just as famous as his body of work. In homage to the yogis he read about as a boy on Long Island, Rubin hasn't shaved since he was 23. It's long been his registered trademark.”

“There are many reasons why I hate college football. The 4-hour games drone on longer than Steve Lyons during the American League playoffs. The ever-expanding season threatens to creep into early July. Boise, Idaho, hosts a bowl game. And it's played on blue artificial turf.”

“To build an empire - or win seven Tour de Frances in a row - you must have a Lone Star-size ego and a dash of megalomania.”

“Maybe it's impossible to spend time with Patrick Stewart and not have the conversation move to the extraterrestrial.”

“There's no doubt Matt Leinart loves his son very much.”