<link>https://twinsdaily.com/blogs/blog/3879-curtis-deberg/</link><description><![CDATA[<p> <span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="color:#282828;"><span style="font-family:Exo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:400;"><span style="white-space:normal;"><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span>I've recently written a short story paying tribute to Tony Oliva and to my favorite author. Here's a blurb. I think readers of Twins Daily will find it to be of interest! Thanks....Curt</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </p> <p> <span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="color:#282828;"><span style="font-family:Exo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:400;"><span style="white-space:normal;"><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </p> <p style="text-align:center;margin-top:40px;margin-bottom:25px;"> <span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="color:#282828;"><span style="font-family:Exo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:400;"><span style="white-space:normal;"><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span><span style="font-size:small;"><span><span><span style="color:#222222;"><span><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span><span style="white-space:normal;"><span><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span><span><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman', serif;"><span><span style="line-height:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:bold;"><font size="6"><font><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Ernest-Hemingway-Tony-Oliva-Ballplayer-ebook/dp/B0B9JVFDJN/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1660998355&sr=1-2" rel="external" style="color:#1155cc;text-decoration:underline;">Ernest Hemingway and Tony Oliva</a></font></font></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </p> <p align="center" style="text-align:center;margin-top:40px;margin-bottom:25px;"> <span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="color:#282828;"><span style="font-family:Exo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:400;"><span style="white-space:normal;"><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span><span style="font-size:12pt;"><span><span><span style="color:#222222;"><span><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span><span style="white-space:normal;"><span><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span><span><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman', serif;"><span><span style="line-height:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-size:14pt;"><span><span><span style="font-family:'Open Sans', sans-serif;"><span><span style="color:#333333;">A Tale of How the Great Writer Helped the Great Ballplayer</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom:11px;"> <span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="color:#282828;"><span style="font-family:Exo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:400;"><span style="white-space:normal;"><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom:11px;"> <span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="color:#282828;"><span style="font-family:Exo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:400;"><span style="white-space:normal;"><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span><span style="font-size:12pt;"><span><span><span style="color:#222222;"><span><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span><span style="white-space:normal;"><span><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span><span><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman', serif;"><span><span style="line-height:17.12px;"><span><span style="font-weight:bold;">What do you get when <i>The Old Man in the Sea</i> meets <i>Field of Dreams</i>? You get an inspirational story by Curtis L. DeBerg. This charming little tale, only 58 pages long, is a tribute to two men: Ernest Hemingway, the great writer, and Tony Oliva, the great ballplayer for the Minnesota Twins. Oliva was formally inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame on July 24, 2022.<br /> <br /> In the summer of 1960, Hemingway was sixty years old and in failing health. He and his fourth wife, Mary, were forced to leave their bucolic estate southeast of Havana, next to a little village called San Francisco de Paula. For nearly twenty-two years, the Hemingways had made the <i>Finca Vigía</i> their home base, but now, under pressure from the U.S. government, they vacated their beloved, fourteen-acre property.<br /> <br /> Meanwhile, Tony Oliva was playing baseball for his country team in the Pinar del Río province in western Cuba. By professional baseball standards in the United States, he was over the hill. Hardly anyone over the age of twenty would attract the attention of baseball scouts. Oliva was nearing his twenty-second birthday. A scout for the Minnesota Twins recognized his talent, but he needed to "fudge" Oliva's age in order for the Twins to sign him. This could only be accomplished with some inside help.<br /> <br /> Did Papa Hemingway and Tony Oliva ever cross paths before leaving Cuba? Did the great writer help the great ballplayer forge the identity on his passport and travel visa? It could have happened. This story is part yarn, part fantasy and part truth. It is left to the reader to decide which parts are true and which are fiction.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </p> <p style="margin-bottom:11px;"> <span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="color:#282828;"><span style="font-family:Exo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:400;"><span style="white-space:normal;"><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </p> <p> <span style="font-size:16px;"><span><span style="color:#282828;"><span style="font-family:Exo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:400;"><span style="white-space:normal;"><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span><span style="font-size:small;"><span><span><span style="color:#222222;"><span><span style="font-style:normal;"><span><span><span style="white-space:normal;"><span><span style="background-color:#ffffff;"><span><span><span><span><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman', serif;"><span><span style="line-height:normal;"><span><span style="font-weight:bold;"><span><span style="font-family:'Open Sans', sans-serif;"><span><span style="color:#333333;"><span><span style="font-weight:normal;">A perfect book for readers who love <i>The Old Man and the Sea! </i>See <a href="http://curtdeberg.com/" rel="external" style="text-decoration:underline;">http://curtdeberg.com</a></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </p> ]]></description><language>en</language><item><title>My Last Blog Paying Homage to the Great Tony Oliva (Blog #6)https://twinsdaily.com/blogs/entry/23377-my-last-blog-paying-homage-to-the-great-tony-oliva-blog-6/[Here's a passage from my recent book paying homage to Tony O. I hope you like it. The book is available on Amazon Kindle (e-book or paperback), or you can find it at my website here: http://curtdeberg.com.] We all need heroes. Other than my dad, Minnesota Twins baseball stars Tony Oliva and H...23377Fri, 16 Sep 2022 13:48:37 +0000A Tribute to Tony Oliva (Blog #5)https://twinsdaily.com/blogs/entry/23373-a-tribute-to-tony-oliva-blog-5/     As he was approaching his twenty-third birthday, Tony Oliva waved goodbye to his tightly-knit Cuban family and set off for the United States. But the road was rocky in Florida. The Twins decided that his poor fielding trumped his lively bat, so they released him. A dejected Oliva wanted to ret...23373Fri, 09 Sep 2022 07:18:56 +0000A Tribute to Tony Oliva (Blog #4)https://twinsdaily.com/blogs/entry/23370-a-tribute-to-tony-oliva-blog-4/      In the summer of 1960, Hemingway was sixty years old and in failing health. He and his fourth wife, Mary, were forced to leave their bucolic estate southeast of Havana. For nearly twenty-two years, the Hemingways had made the Cuba their home base. But in 1960, Cuba was becoming more dangerous...23370Wed, 07 Sep 2022 09:21:00 +0000A Tribute to Tony Oliva (Blog #3)https://twinsdaily.com/blogs/entry/23369-a-tribute-to-tony-oliva-blog-3/Hemingway wrote, “All good books are alike in that they are truer than if they had really happened and after you are finished reading one you will feel that all that happened to you and afterwards it all belongs to you: the good and the bad, the ecstasy, the remorse and sorrow, the people and the p...23369Tue, 06 Sep 2022 12:38:21 +0000Excerpt for my Tribute to Tony Oliva and Ernest Hemingwayhttps://twinsdaily.com/blogs/entry/23367-excerpt-for-my-tribute-to-tony-oliva-and-ernest-hemingway/Ernest Hemingway loved to tell stories. Hemingway biographer Carlos Baker called these stories “yarns.” His good friend, Aaron Hotchner, called them “practical joke fantasies.” Like all good storytellers, Hemingway exaggerated. Often, though, such talk gave him inspiration, and sometimes found its...23367Sun, 04 Sep 2022 13:46:05 +0000A Tribute to Tony Olivahttps://twinsdaily.com/blogs/entry/23365-a-tribute-to-tony-oliva/I've recently written a short story paying tribute to Tony Oliva and to my favorite author. Here's a blurb. I think readers of Twins Daily will find it to be of interest! Thanks....Curt   Ernest Hemingway and Tony Oliva A Tale of How the Great Writer Helped the Great Ballplayer...23365Thu, 01 Sep 2022 18:38:00 +0000