Sidd Finch has special fondness for St. Charles

Leave it to Jeff Orland to notice some local history in a place others would not. The semiretired Avenue Two barber in St. Charles has lived here all of his 70 years, so he's gotten to know a few people along the way.

One of those was a fellow named Joe Berton, who graduated from St. Charles High School in the early 1970s and went on to Northern Illinois University before becoming a teacher in Oak Park.

“He lived on Dean Street and his father, Julius Berton still lives in St. Charles,” said Orland, who was recently reminded of Berton when stories surfaced last month about the anniversary of a great sports mystery.

Joe Berton was part of one of the all-time great sports hoaxes when he posed as Sidd Finch in a 14-page Sports Illustrated story by George Plimpton on April 1, 1985.

The greatest April Fool's story ever told created this mysterious New York Mets pitching phenom — a guy who could throw a 168 mph fastball while pitching with one bare foot and wearing one boot.

The story goes that Berton was friends with a Sports Illustrated photographer at the time who had seen the first draft of Plimpton's make-believe tale, and he let editors know that Berton was a perfect match for Plimpton's description of Finch.

“It was a crazy story, and most people believed it,” Orland recalls. “This Sidd Finch guy was supposedly training in Tibet, and did all kinds of strange things.”

Letters to share: When Sarah Giachino of St. Charles mentioned to me two months ago that she had seen an item in my column about the “Letters Home: A Memorial Day Remembrance” being staged by Fox Valley Repertory at Pheasant Run, I knew she would get involved quickly.Giachino works year-round for Fox Valley Troop Support to encourage people to write letters to our service personnel overseas. She has often told me about the numerous letters her parents wrote to each other during World War II.The Memorial Day weekend shows, to be held Saturday and Sunday at Pheasant Run's main stage, will feature some of the letters that Giachino discovered and kept after her parents' passing.Actors will read the letters and tell stories, accompanied by the Fox Valley Band Concert in this patriotic event. A portion of the $20 admission ticket will be donated to the Fox Valley Troop Support Inc. and the Illinois Wounded Warriors program. Veterans get 50 percent off their ticket price for the shows, at 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Ticket information is available at (630) 584-6342.Move it outside: The hint of warmer weather and the numerous Memorial Day weekend events taking place in the area gets one to thinking about eating outdoors more regularly.This is good news for a new business, like Magoo's Brew and Burgers in downtown St. Charles, as it banks on attracting people to el fresco dining in a double-decker patio setup.It's one of many restaurants in the area that fares well when people can eat outdoors. And that's a short season in these parts.dheun@sbcglobal.net