Fame

Mike Mussina in the Orioles Hall of Fame? ("When Mussina, Dauer return, Hall doors to open," March 29). In his 10 seasons with O's, he never had a 20-game win. He snubbed the people in the stands as though they didn't exist. Throughout the many seasons I traveled to Ft. Lauderdale to watch spring training, I never once saw him wave, smile or autograph a ball for anyone, neither child nor adult. He wanted to play for the Yankees - let them induct him. Helen Smith

Former Terps men's basketball star Juan Dixon headlines the Class of 2012 for the University of Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame, officials announced Friday. Dixon, Maryland's all-time leading scorer with 2,269 points, was the Most Outstanding Player in the 2002 NCAA tournament after leading the Terps to the national championship. Football player Paul Vellano, father of current Terps defensive lineman Joe Vellano, field hockey player Carla Tagliente and women's lacrosse players Jen Adams and Sarah Forbes, as well as former baseball coach Tom Bradley and former women's lacrosse coach Cindy Timchal, will also be inducted into the Hall of Fame on Friday, Oct. 5, during a ceremony at Riggs Alumni Center.

All Shannon Sharpe thought about all Saturday was whether his 88-year-old grandmother, Mary Porter ever would see him get elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. "I thought if it doesn't happen today…," Sharpe began, his voice trailing. "The only thing I've ever wanted was to make my grandmother proud and I said if I don't get in, she's not going to hear me thank her and be able to give a speech. Granny, thanks for everything you did. I'm the man I am today because of you. " Sharpe, a member of the Ravens Super Bowl team, was one of seven men elected into the 2011 Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday by a 44-member panel that met for 71/2 hours to pare down a list of 15 finalists.

The state Board of Public Works unanimously approved on Wednesday a long-term lease allowing the construction of the National Sailing Hall of Fame on Annapolis' waterfront. The decision came after Annapolis Mayor Josh Cohen and Richard L. Franyo, president of the National Sailing Hall of Fame, came to an agreement regarding the nonprofit museum's compliance with local laws. Because the museum will be built on largely state-owned land and would therefore be exempt from Annapolis laws, residents and some lawmakers raised concerns regarding the museum's compliance with the construction of a building in the city's Historic District, parking and alcohol regulations.

It's frustrating to read articles about Herman Cain that claim he is trying to capitalize on his "15 minutes of fame" ("Cain says Florida win no fluke," Sept. 27). Using Andy Warhol's famous quote is insulting because it denigrates the work the Cain campaign has done to lift the candidate to the status he enjoys today. I'm a tea party guy, and there's a reason Mr. Cain is a tea party favorite. Unlike other Republican primary voters, the tea party is looking for very specific things from candidates, and Mr. Cain's 9-9-9 tax formula resonates with us. We like the fact that he talks more like a businessman than a politician.

NEW ORLEANS - A day before the 49ers and Baltimore Ravens square off in the Super Bowl, two of the franchise's most influential figures will be up for another highly sought after honor. Former 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr. and the late Art Modell, who moved his franchise from Cleveland to Baltimore, are among the finalists for enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The voting process, coupled with Sunday's big game, has left one retired San Jose resident with mixed emotions.

The man who replaced Cal Ripken Jr. at shortstop in 1997, and had one of the greatest defensive seasons at the position in 2002, will be inducted into the Orioles' Hall of Fame this August. Mike Bordick , who played with the Orioles for parts of six seasons from 1997 to 2002, will receive the honor on Aug. 13 before the team's game against the Detroit Tigers at Camden Yards. Also to be honored that night will be head athletic trainer Richie Bancells , who will receive the Herb Armstrong Award for contributions to the organization from non-uniformed personnel.

Thousands of Marylanders have grown up thinking that the sound of Chuck Thompson's voice is as much a part of a radio's apparatus as the volume switch or the channel selector.To so many of those people, that voice is the sound of summer, just as Old Bay provides the flavor of the season. Thanks to portable radios, we've listened on the road, in backyards and even surfside as that voice limned the mechanical perfection of a Jim Palmer delivery, the booming arc of an Eddie Murray homer, the graceful scoop and toss of a Cal Ripken or Brooks Robinson assist.

Art Modell, the owner who brought the Ravens to Baltimore, and Jonathan Ogden, the team's first-ever draft pick, were among 15 modern-era finalists announced Friday for the 2013 class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The announcement, which came four months after Modell's death at age 87, was a significant milestone for the late owner's Hall of Fame candidacy, though the final verdict won't be announced until the day before the Super Bowl. Modell was an NFL owner for 43 years and played a major role in helping the league become a television superpower.

Who knew there could be so much glory in nearly being spit on? When a Chicago TV news crew, trying to do a report from a city street corner instead captured the phlegmiest woman alive, the resulting video went viral. And the reporter, standing alongside as the woman spat and spat and then spat some more, went on Jimmy Kimmel last night. Turns out the traumatized reporter has a Maryland connection -- he's Christopher DeRose, a 2007 graduate of McDaniel College. He was a theater major.