Thursday, March 9, 2006--Beaver & The Mick

Today I found 14 cents. . . 1 dime & 4 pennies.

The dime came to me in the parking lot of The Woodlands House, a Chinese buffet where I dined for lunch. As I was getting into my car to leave I noticed the dime, which was several parking spaces away. Later in the day I found four cents at Kroger, a local grocery store. Two of the pennies were inside the store (one by the door when I came in and the other on the ground by a self-checkout line) and two were in the parking lot.

Today I bring you the first of two pictures of The Beaver, the Official Mascot of the Race of the Century, and the adventures that he had with me in Florida where I was for Spring Training. For your enjoyment I present The Beaver and The Mick. No, not Mickey Mantle but Mickey Carroll:


For those who do not know Mr. Carroll was a munchkin in The Wizard of Oz (1939). He had one line in the movie, but it might be one of the most famous lines ever: he advised Dorothy to “Follow the Yellow Brick Road.” He was also credited with writing the lyrics to "The Lollypop Guild," the song the munchkins sing during the movie.

Mr. Carroll, now 86, was visiting Astros camp to watch the workout and I asked him for a picture with The Beaver. Carroll, who probably stands less than 3.5 feet tall, has lead a very interesting life. The son of a police officer Mr. Carroll stopped growing at age nine, one year after his father died.

Following his father’s death he was cared for by his godfather, none other than mobster Al Capon (who had been arrested, and later befriended, by his father). Mr. Capone offered him employment at several mob run nightclubs and encouraged Carroll who was already interested in acting and dancing. By age 17 Mr. Carroll had befriended Judy Garland, who personally asked him to appear in The Wizard of Oz. He only accepted the roll when she agreed to let him stay with her during the filming of the movie (the movie pay was a step down from the income he earned through his nightclub employment).

Throughout life Mr. Carroll has befriended stars such as Mohammed Ali, worked for FDR and Harry Truman, roomed with Ronald Reagan, and known countess heads of state. The Wizard of Oz was his only movie.

Totals for the day: 14 cents
Race Totals: $272.71