Hero

"Max Payne 3" Xbox 360/PS3/PC Rockstar Score: 3 stars (out of 4) “Max Payne 3” is as much a meditation on '90s action films and hard-boiled detective noir as it is an excellent third-person shooter. Some video games are “cinematic” in the sense that they force you to watch a lot of cutscenes that try and explain what you've just done or are about to do. “Max Payne 3” turns you loose to shoot bad guys because after the deftly interwoven story moments, it seems like the right thing to do at the time.

The One Love Foundation, the nonprofit organization created in 2010 to honor the memory of Yeardley Reynolds Love (YRL), announced that Maryland attackman-midfielder Joe Cummings (Loyola High) and Virginia Tech senior attacker Ryan Rotanz were selected as the 2012 YRL Unsung Hero Award recipients. The award is given annually to one men's and one women's lacrosse player within the Atlantic Coast Conference for their dedication to leadership, for their community service, and for being a positive role model on and off the field.

Just watch and listen for an hour or so, and a thought crosses your mind: This doesn't seem like your typical youth sports program, this Hero's Lacrosse of Howard County you're sampling at Cedar Lane Park in Columbia on a hot Monday evening in July. Not one obnoxious parent, even after goals were scored. Only one bellowing coach (a boys coach someone who's mastered coaching effectiveness needs to talk with) out of 10 teams you see competing on four fields. At Cedar Lane-West, you chat up some girl players, and these 11-to-soon-to-be- 13-year-olds say they really like playing Hero's lacrosse because it is fun and they meet girls from other spring teams.

"Max Payne 3" Xbox 360/PS3/PC Rockstar Score: 3 stars (out of 4) “Max Payne 3” is as much a meditation on '90s action films and hard-boiled detective noir as it is an excellent third-person shooter. Some video games are “cinematic” in the sense that they force you to watch a lot of cutscenes that try and explain what you've just done or are about to do. “Max Payne 3” turns you loose to shoot bad guys because after the deftly interwoven story moments, it seems like the right thing to do at the time.

Arc of Justice: A Saga of Race, Civil Rights, and Murder in the Jazz Age By Kevin Boyle. Henry Holt. 416 pages. $26. Young Dr. Ossian Sweet couldn't escape the terrors of being black in early 20th century America. From the immolation of a black fugitive near his childhood home in Florida, to racist riots in Washington, where he was a medical student at Howard University, to the ugly intimidation of friends in Detroit who had dared cross the residential color line, racial violence was recurrent imagery for the aspiring Ossian.

Steve Job's death had the same impact on the younger generation of today that the death of John F. Kennedy had on a previous generation While it is difficult to quantify the impact of one person on an entire generation, it is safe to say that the passing of Steve Jobs had the same impact on the younger generation of today that the death of John F. Kennedy had on a previous generation. For those who witnessed both events, we will always remember where we were and what we were doing when both of these heroes passed on. Paul Jankovic, Bethany Beach, Del.

It was all there -- palm trees, swags of rope netting, and a sign announcing "Camp Kucha." Hey, was that the signature wail of a conch shell, declaring the start of the "Survivor" TV show? Nah. More the thump of disco music. This was no remote island or outback either. Rather, it was the Hippo nightclub, where no one was being voted off. In fact, folks just kept arriving at HERO's second annual spring party -- this year called Survivor Party 2001. Included in the hardy bunch of 350: Tina Lazar, event chair; Keith Pollanen, event co-chair; Anne B. Mulligan, Gary Wolnitzek, Heather Kitsko, Jenine Baker and Kristi Pettibone, event committee members; Joseph Anastasio, HERO board president; Carlton R. Smith, Lenora Davis, Wayman Merrick, Michael Miller, Rev. David Smith, and Jim Sterling, HERO board members; Dr. Leonardo Ortega, HERO executive director; Craig Wiley, Center for Poverty Solutions annual campaigns director; Gail Godwin, the Ark Northern Chesapeake Region program director; Chuck Bowers, Hippo owner; Denise Klicos, DK Salon owner; Peter Bartells, Rita St. Clair Associates interior designer; Hilary Christian, Service Coordination service coordinator; Hugh Jones, Morgan State University student; Reginald Hope, Hope Catering Co. owner; Jackie Merrick, Aramark accountant; Dr. Allan R. Rutzen, University Laser Vision Center co-director; Jon Kaplan, Image Marketing Group president; Rut Paal, Rutland Beard Florist owner; Robert Mittleman, Salon at Stevenson cosmetologist;...

A s fireworks erupted, we stood with tears of pride as Baltimore's blue-eyed home-run hitter took his last lap around the bases. Cal Ripken Jr. retired from baseball in the autumn of 2001, after 21 seasons and 3,001 games. With his charming combination of athletic ability and old-school work ethic, he seemed like one of the last genuine role models. A year later, we lost another great one when we buried Baltimore Colts legend John Unitas. The Hall of Fame quarterback with the golden arm died of a heart attack at 69. Baltimore might have been without a solid sports hero for a couple of years, but at the 2004 Olympics, a teen-age swimming phenom with crazy long arms and big ears splashed onto the scene.

I was saddened to learn of the death of John Burleigh ("Civil rights activist helped organize demonstration at Gwynn Oak Park, was active in CORE," July 20). He was an unsung hero of the civil rights struggle. The purpose of this letter is to fill in some of the gaps in his obituary. I first met John in the early 1960s when he organized a demonstration that took place in front of the Social Security headquarters to protest the agency's racially discriminatory hiring and promotion practices.

Dearest Sarah, You are my hero! It would have been so easy to say, "Oops, I misspoke. You see, I've been on the road, I haven't slept much, and I have this terrible fire in the belly. Of course, Paul Revere wasn't warning the British…" But no. You stuck to your story with, "I know my American history. " What do those Bostonians know about Paul Revere anyway? The important thing here is that you looked so attractive while saying it! Where were you, Sarah Palin, when I was getting a "D" in American history in college?

Joe Cummings' game-winning goal with six seconds left in the fourth quarter propelled Maryland to a 10-9 upset of No. 7 seed Lehigh in a NCAA tournament first-round contest Sunday night and a quarterfinal date with No. 2 seed Johns Hopkins. But the senior attackman said the true heroics were provided by senior midfielder Drew Snider, who scored two of his game-high three goals in the fourth quarter and collected a key ground ball that set up Cummings' score. “I can't take that credit,” the Towson native and Loyola graduate said Tuesday when asked about being the Terps' hero.

Nick Johnson's brief career in an Oriolesuniform offered few highlights until Friday night. The 33-year-old had grown frustrated with his inability to contribute to the burgeoning Orioles offense. It seemed as though he had left his bat at spring training in Sarasota, where he impressed the organization as one of the biggest dark horses to make the club as a non-roster invitee. But with sole possession of first place in the AL East on the line, Johnson played the role of hero. Johnson, who opened the season with a 0-for-28 hitless streak, hit a game-winning two-run homer in the seventh inning to give the Orioles a 4-3 win over the Rays on Friday night in front of an announced crowd of 26,669 at Camden Yards.

Whether teammates needed help developing their skills or just a few words of encouragement during a particularly challenging practice, Western Tech's Geraldine Ezeka and Loch Raven's Ryne Schanberger each were eager to step up. Ezeka often ran behind teammates to offer support if they were struggling with conditioning drills during Western's basketball season. She was also ready to dive for a loose ball in a practice or game, always leading by example. Schanberger, an offensive guard, was dedicated to the summer workout program for Loch Raven's football team, and learned how to punt after the team desperately needed a kicker.

For the 72 nd year, the area's most deserving unheralded football and girls basketball players will be honored at the McCormick Unsung Heroes Award Banquet Monday night at the Hunt Valley Inn. One male and one female will receive the 2012 Charles Perry McCormick Scholarships, which are valued at $36,000 over four years of college. The athletes - 112 seniors - come from 68 schools in Baltimore City, Baltimore County, the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association and the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland.

Families stood in solidarity as a wreath was placed at Maryland's Fallen Heroes Memorial on Friday in honor of police and firefighters killed in the line of duty. This year, the 27th annual memorial to Maryland's public safety workers honored Maryland State Trooper 1st Class Shaft S. Hunter, among others. Hunter died last year in a traffic accident. "There are so-called heroes in sports, and then there are heroes in life," said Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh to those gathered at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens in Timonium.

Roger Clemens is a selfish, self-serving liar ("'Trapped' in a pack of lies," April 24). How can it be justified that, in the latter years his career, he suddenly had an incredible amount of success? Blind luck? A relentless training regimen, perhaps? Or maybe it was it the vitamin B12, as Clemens stated his injections contained. Who in their proper mind would inject vitamins? This is simply a sad case of a man who is desperately trying to cling to his fading hopes of being inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Joe Cummings' game-winning goal with six seconds left in the fourth quarter propelled Maryland to a 10-9 upset of No. 7 seed Lehigh in a NCAA tournament first-round contest Sunday night and a quarterfinal date with No. 2 seed Johns Hopkins. But the senior attackman said the true heroics were provided by senior midfielder Drew Snider, who scored two of his game-high three goals in the fourth quarter and collected a key ground ball that set up Cummings' score. “I can't take that credit,” the Towson native and Loyola graduate said Tuesday when asked about being the Terps' hero.

College football Navy alum, Cotton Bowl hero Oldham dead at 74 Edwin W. "Ned" Oldham II, , captain of the Navy team that beat Rice in the 1958 Cotton Bowl and ended the season ranked No. 3 in the country, died June 28 in Naples, Fla. He was 74. Oldham, a 1958 graduate, scored all 14 points in the Army-Navy game his senior year. He commanded his company his final semester and percent of his graduating class and was named a Scholastic All-American. A memorial fund has been established for Oldham for the Athletic Excellence Program.

Those folks at Mission BBQ are serious about their commitment to honoring America's men and women in uniform. At Thursday's, "Lunch with the Heroes" event, the Glen Burnie restaurant will be providing a complimentary lunch to more than 25 Wounded Warrior Project alumni. The owners of Mission BBQ , Bill Kraus and Steve Newton, will also present a $10,000 check to the Wounded Warrior Project, money they've raised through the sale of through the sale of the restaurant's American Heroes Cups.

How refreshing to read that there still are some people willing to dip into the cesspool of politics and try to do the right thing for a change. I only wish Milad Pooran lived in Baltimore County so I could vote for him, as he sounds like a true progressive hero who actually cares about people other than his campaign donors ("Dismayed by Washington, Pooran runs for Congress," March 27). I wish him well in his new district, but somehow I doubt someone as forward thinking as Dr. Pooran will fare too well in a district that sent Roscoe Bartlett to Congress for so many years.