All Things Expounded

In a previous post, I shared some information about the WHA, an upstart hockey league of the 1970’s. Despite the contributions it made to  revolutionary developments in the sport, it had an unusually bountiful collection of straight-up loony characters. I mean, real “basketcases”. I do not use that term lightly. One such character was Bill Goldthorpe, the real life inspiration for “Ogie Oglethorpe” in the movie Slap Shot.

“Goldie”, as he was lovingly known, wore a rare blond afro and was only 5′10 and perhaps 170 pounds. He earned 1,132 penalty minutes in 194 games in the pros (assuming no overtime and assuming a high-end ice time of 20 minutes per game, your average player will be on the ice for less than 4,000 minutes in 194 games).

And certainly, he was a showboat: “In addition to everything else, Goldthorpe was a workout fanatic and a practitioner of martial arts. Before practices with the Saints, he would walk into the dressing room while the other players were putting their gear on, pull out a set of nunchaks, and perform a Bruce Lee routine in the centre of the room. Then he would put the nunchaks away and without a word begin to get dressed for practice.” (Willes, p.94)

“Goldie” is said to have never touched come-back star Gordie Howe, who played on a team with his sons Mark and Marty Home. However, he is said to have threatened the aging star: “You can’t play forever, old man, and when you retire, I’m going to get your kids.”

Those who roomed with “Goldie” certainly remembered him. “[I]t was like rooming with Kato, Inspector Clouseau’s combative manservant in the old Pink Panther movies. ‘He always wanted to wrestle. It didn’t matter where or when. He’d jump out from behind a door or a closet and I’d have to wrestle him.” (Rebel League by Ed Willes, p.93) The team’s goalie commented that “People think he didn’t exist, Oh, he was real alright. I mean, it was scary. People watch Slap Shot and they go, ‘That never happened.’ But it happened.” (Wiles, p.94).