MiamiMan Magazine V1N1

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George Anastasia’s

MOB SCENE

HEAT COACH

DOLPHINS LEGEND

Malik Allen Larry Csonka

Photo: Natalia Garcia / Miami Lights Studio

Volume 1 • Number 1 – $3.95

Miami State OF Mind MiamiMan Magazine com miamimanmagazine

www.doyarestaurant.com

PUBLISHER

FROM THE VOLUME 1 • NUMBER 1 ______________________________________________________________________________________ MiamiMan Magazine

BY KEN DUNEK

Ken Dunek Publisher ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Ashley Dunek EDITOR George Brinkerhoff ART DIRECTOR Steve Iannarelli CONTRIBUTING WRITERS George Anastasia, George Brinkerhoff, Sam Carchidi, Mark Eckel, Sam Kraft, Vincent Mantuo, Dan Morroni, Mike Shute, Kurt Smith

Introducing MiamiMan Magazine Join us for A “Cool Change!”

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recently heard a song on XM Radio.

It was “Cool Change” by The Little River Band. And it got me thinking, what a cool change MiamiMan Magazine is for us.

Photographer Natalia Garcia, Miami Lights Studio

First of all, escaping the brutal Northeast winters is very appealing. That is indeed a cool (or maybe a warm) change.

Event Coordinator & Administrative Assistant Alexandra Dunek

Second, the people of Miami/Fort Lauderdale seem happy and excited about life.

Website & Digital Coordinator Jamie Dunek Editorial gbrinkerhoff@jerseymanmagazine.com Advertising 856-912-4007 Printing Alcom Printing, Harleysville, Pa.

Maybe it’s the glorious weather, perhaps the delicious seafood, or maybe, as the song says, “It’s the cool and bright clear water.”

Whatever the reason, bringing our now national brand (Boston, New Jersey, Philly) into Miami is very exciting.

Sales Associates Ashley Dunek, Jamie Dunek, Terri Dunek, Allison Farcus, JP Lutz

We are more than a magazine. Our private business network we call Legacy Club has over 300 members in Philly, and 150+ in Boston. We expect the power of putting powerful businesspeople together with the common cause of mutually beneficial partnerships will work well here too. We meet about once per month at upscale and exciting venues and facilitate important relationships.

Intern Chloe Senatore

The tagline is “A social club where business happens.”

MiamiMagazine is a product of a partnership between Peter Cordua, Ken Dunek, Anthony Mongeluzo, and Alcom Printing Group, are published by New Opportunity Publishing, LLC, with offices at 5 Perina Boulevard, Cherry Hill, NJ 08003. Copyright 2022.

Our Chairman’s Club attracts together C-Level executives creating an exclusive mastermind group that benefits from added exposure in the magazine and at our events. The quarterly dinners at VERY nice restaurants are a perk too!

Controller Rose M. Balcavage

www.miamimanmagazine.com

And our annual gala honors men and women in the community for their commitment to business excellence and philanthropy.

So put on your life jackets as we head out to sea in Miami.

For us, it is a very cool change – indeed.

Legacy Club Mike Adada. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Black Steel Group Ernesto Alvarez. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gutters by TK Robin Andras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Albacorps Stephen Bellosi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Prudential Alex Bort. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Friedman Dental Group Louis Bucelli. . . . . . . . . . . . . Bucelli & Company LLC Daniel Checchia. . . . . Colliers Engineering & Design Natalia Garcia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Miami Lights Studio Jimmy Gibson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alcom Printing Fernando Gomez. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TD Bank Matt Lill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Corcoran Group Real Estate Vincent Mantuo. . . . Copesetic Therapeutic Bodywork Robert Marovik. . . . . . . . Mechanical Piping Solutions Dean Parsons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Epic Cigars Dianna Vasturo. . . . . . . . . . . . . Lazy Days Restaurant Mark Vasturo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ziggie & Mad Dogs

JOTTINGS

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BY GEORGE BRINKERHOFF

Jersey Farmer’s Road to Success Miami Beach.

From North Beach all the way down to South Beach. One long line of searing sun, silky sand, and soothing sea, (well, at least when the weather’s good!) And there’s nightlife, and eateries and activities to meet almost everyone’s wants.

And straight through the heart of this erstwhile swampy barrier island, like the main artery it is, lies Collins Avenue, also known as State Road A1A, all 13 miles of it. So, just who was this Collins and why was he honored with this major thoroughfare bearing his name?

John Stiles Collins was a Quaker farmer from New Jersey, of all places. Born in 1837, he was the 6th generation of the Collins family to farm his ancestral land in Moorestown, NJ. But he had far bigger aspirations and in the late 1800’s he purchased land in South Florida, eventually coming to own five miles of what’s now Miami Beach.

He envisioned establishing an operation cultivating vegetables and exotic crops that were not then widely available in the market, like coconuts, mangoes, avocados, in what was then mere swamp land on the island.

Being a practical sort, he soon realized he needed a way to transport his product to the mainland, and so with the financial assistance of his children who were then running the farm back in Jersey, they formed the Miami Beach Improvement Company in 1911, allowing him, in 1912, to build about 2.5 miles of a wooden bridge with the idea of connecting Miami Beach to the mainland. Money ran short,

however, before the last half mile of the 3-mile bridge was completed. It was then that Carl G. Fisher, an Indiana auto parts tycoon who had just established the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and with it the Indy 500, offered $50,000 to Collins in exchange for 200 acres of Miami Beach which allowed the bridge to be completed.

Fisher described Collins, then in his 70’s, as “a bantam rooster, cocky and unafraid.” It was the longest wooden Collins bridge in the world at the time. By 1915, Miami Beach incorporated as a city. And though by 1922 Miami Beach had some of the largest mango and avocado groves in the world ultimately the tourist trade became the most valuable “crop” to raise.

Together Fisher, John Collins and the Collins family continued to develop Miami Beach, whose population grew by 400 percent between 1920 and 1925, and was exceedingly lucrative for all involved throughout the 1920’s and beyond.

John Collins died in 1928 at age 90, but he’s remembered today through his namesake road as a visionary developer of Miami Beach and its environs.

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Sources: http://eastofcollins.com/news/?p=109; https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/miami-john-collins/

What We Read Here’s a cool new read for all the classic car collectors, restorers and dreamers out there. Secrets of the Barn Find Hunter: The Art of Finding Lost Collector Cars by Tom Cotter (Motorbooks, release date May 24, 2022) is a veritable cornucopia of entertaining stories showing the passionate depths that Cotter will plumb to uncover the classic cars he’s pursuing and to tell the stories behind them. As the star of the YouTube show, “The Bard Find Hunter” since 2016, with over 100 episodes to his credit, Cotter’s lively and informative stories demonstrates his tricks of the trade, his unique perspective and his unquenchable thirst for revealing the next dusty barn find wherever they may be lurking. Whether you’re going to the classic car auction or chasing the rusty oldies yourself, there is something in this volume for everyone. The book is liberally illustrated with photos of some of his most epic hunts.

Surprising visitors

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WO RARE SIGHTINGS of endangered animal species in South Florida were reported in April. The first was a surprising visit by the rarely seen Florida Panther on a doorbell camera in Naples. The video shared by the homeowner shows the healthy feline casually strolling up the walkway then sauntering off into the front yard with a quick glance at the camera. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, there are an estimated 120 to 230 still left in the wild in the state. Check out the video here: www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article260089550.html The second sighting was of two smalltooth sawfish (above), possibly a mating pair, which had entered Biscayne Bay. In 2003, the smalltooth sawfish became the first marine fish listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. The sighting of the possible mating pair was cheered by scientists as an encouraging sign of hope for the species in light of the ongoing pollution issues around Biscayne Bay. You can view the photos here: www.miaminewtimes.com/news/endangered-smalltooth-sawfish-spotted-miami-biscaynebay-14275561 l

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MOB SCENE

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BY GEORGE ANASTASIA

The Fiction of The Godfather

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he Godfather, Francis Ford Coppola’s Mafia classic, marked its 50th-anniversary last month. It has been described—and rightfully so—as one of the greatest movies of all time. It is a film that changed American cinema.

Based on Mario Puzo’s best-selling novel, it re-established a genre that began in the 1930s with films like Little Caesar and Scarface. And it was the precursor to modern-day classics like Goodfellas and Donnie Brasco. You could also argue that the HBO mega-hit The Sopranos traces its bloodlines back to the Coppola trilogy that started a half-century ago with the March 24, 1972, opening of The Godfather.

But in the midst of all the glowing stories about Don Corleone and his family, it’s important to keep one thing in mind.

It’s fiction.

Puzo saw the story as a family saga. That was part of the pull the book and the film had on viewers. But the honor and nobility that he attached to the Corleone family was based on a myth. The reality is that the Mafia took the values of the Italian American experience— honor, loyalty and family—and bastardized them to justify its existence.

If there ever were “men of honor” they had disappeared long before Puzo began cranking out his masterpiece.

The story also tapped into the American public’s fascination with the outlaw. There is part of our psyche that identifies with and grudgingly admires the rogue, the individual who sets his own agenda, who operates on his own terms and according to his own set of rules.

Billy the Kid or Jesse James, Bonnie and Clyde or John Dillinger, Al Capone or Don Corleone, they all fit that mold and are examples of the phenomenon. Those of us who follow the rules watch and wonder about those who do not. Their success, however short-lived, is nonetheless alluring.

A New York Times review of the novel underscored that point, noting that the story “is 6

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Violence, greed and treachery were all part of The Godfather.

It was set in a bloody and wantonly brutal world. But the film always offered a picture built around family values.

a voyeur’s dream, a skillful fantasy of violent personal power without consequences.”

Puzo’s first novel, The Fortunate Pilgrim, was a literary masterpiece about the Italian immigrant experience in New York. But from a financial perspective, it was a flop. He wrote The Godfather looking for a payday. He got much more than he bargained for. The bestseller brought him cash and celebrity, but there are those who believe he was troubled by the glorification of the Mafia that came with the success of his book and the movies that were based on the story.

That was not the primary intention when he wrote the novel, according to Mark Seal, whose book Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli is a fascinating account of the trials and tribulations that went into the making of the movie.

“Beneath all the blood and gore,” Seal writes, “he (Puzo) realized that these criminals weren’t merely cold-blooded killers, but family men with wives and children and grandchildren. They were also consummate American entrepreneurs.”

Seal also describes the vociferous public opposition to the making of the movie, much of which came from the Italian American Rights League. The league had launched a campaign in 1970 decrying the stereotyping of Italian Americans as gangsters and blasting the FBI for targeting defendants whose names ended in vowels. The organization threatened to picket and disrupt the filming of The Godfather which was set to shoot on the streets of New York.

Tens of thousands of Italian Americans turned out for massive rallies organized by the league. In a compromise that allowed filming to proceed, the producer of the movie agreed that the word “Mafia” would not be used in any of the dialogue. (In fact, the word only appeared once in the original script and was never spoken in the movie itself.)

The Italian American Civil Rights League was led by Joseph Colombo, boss of one of the five New York Mafia families. Colombo epitomized the dark side of the Italian-Amer-

ican experience and contributed to the public perception that led to the stereotyping. But those facts didn’t seem to register with the thousands of Italian Americans who shouted and marched in lockstep with a Mafia boss.

Colombo’s morals and methods mattered less to them than his message. It was a page out of a political playbook that is still relevant today.

B

Y THE TIME the novel, and then the movie, took hold of the American public, many of the Mafiosi on whom the story was based were gone. So, for the next generation of wiseguy, The Godfather was something like a training film. It was a demonstration of how a “real” Mafioso carries himself. For twenty-something goodfellas whose families had moved from the Italian ghettoes of lower Manhattan, South Philadelphia or Newark to the homogenized suburbs of middle-class America, the movie was a look into the past, a story about how things used to be when honor and loyalty mattered, when family trumped all else, when omerta was the code that everyone lived by.

Coppola’s take was to “use the Mafia as a metaphor for America,” wrote Seal, quoting from an interview the director did with a British magazine when the film debuted.

“Both the Mafia and America feel they are benevolent organizations,” Coppola explained. “Both the Mafia and America have their hands stained with blood from what it is necessary to do to protect their power and their interests. Both are totally capitalistic phenomena and basically have a profit motive.”

I

N THE FANTASY that Puzo created, and that Coppola expanded, the Mafia was a way of life. But by late 20th century America, the profit motive that Coppola described had distorted everything else. For many, Cosa Nostra was no longer a way of life, but rather a way to make money.

“Vice is commerce” a Newark wiseguy once told me, explaining away any moral compunction about gambling, loan sharking, prostitution or drug trafficking.

“It’s all about the chicken,” said a South Philadelphia mobster now living in suburbia.

Making money is the goal and the driving force.

That philosophy helps explain the death of omerta and the demise of the American Mafia. If it is a business, rather than a way of life, then wiseguys who find themselves jammed up and looking at twenty-to-life in a RICO case, make a business decision.

Omerta is not part of the thought process.

The only question they ask is based on the business model: How do I cut my losses? Cooperation is the answer, and the Witness Security Program is the doorway out.

Violence, greed and treachery were all part of The Godfather. It was set in a bloody and wantonly brutal world. But the film always offered a picture built around family values.

“I believe in America” is the opening line in the movie. It is spoken by the undertaker seeking Don Corleone’s help to right a personal injustice that has befallen his family.

The scene sets the tone for the rest of the film.

There is something noble about Don Corleone’s “I’ll make him an offer he can’t refuse” approach to life. And there is a certain admirable panache in Clemenza’s classic “leave the gun, take the cannoli” comment after a traitor is dispatched.

But these are fictions.

At its core, the Mafia is a corrupt, violent and evil organization. That shouldn’t be overlooked as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of one of the greatest movies of all time.

Back in March 1980, nobody made Philadelphia mob boss Angelo Bruno an offer he couldn’t refuse. They just fired a shotgun into the back of his head. l

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MiamiMan Pre-launch Party at DOYA Photos: Natalia Garcia / Miami Lights Studio

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Photos: Natalia Garcia / Miami Lights Studio

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MiamiMan Launch Party at American Social (Brickell) Photos: Natalia Garcia / Miami Lights Studio

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MiamiMan at Bayside Cigars Photos: Natalia Garcia / Miami Lights Studio

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WHAT WE WEAR

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BY DAN MORRONI

www.morronicustom.com

others. 's Get Personal

Let’s Get Personal When you choose ​custom clothing, every element of u choose custom clothing, every Orson Welles your wardrobe becomes personal, from fit to colors,

of your from wardrobe style to size. becomes personal, o colors, from style to size.

Personalized fit: A custom wardrobe ensures that every item of clothing exactly fits you, even if your arms or legs are not the same lengths. Unlike when wearing off-the-rack clothing, non-standard proportions are cleverly disguised—or even disappear—in a custom wardrobe. We take a multitude of measurements so that your custom clothing moves easily with you instead of binding uncomfortably or restricting movement.

ized fit: A custom wardrobe ensures y item of clothing exactly fits you, even ms or legs are not the same length.

Personalized color palette: You’re never limited to the trending colors or what store buyers have decided to stock. Instead, your custom wardhen wearing off-the-rack clothing, nonrobe is built on the colors you love—and that look fantastic on you. Bold or muted, seriousare or playful: the choice is disguised—or always yours. proportions cleverly Personalizedastyle: Traditional wardrobe. or modern, minimalist or eclectic— ppear—in custom We your unique style is always on display when you build a custom ultitude ofFrom measurements that your wardrobe. highly visible styles such so as shawl collars, peaked, or notched lapels down to the nearly invisible details such as using lothing moves with youon instead a contrasting thread easily color for the buttonholes your coat sleeves, you choose how to present yourself with your custom clothing. You’re g uncomfortably or restricting always in charge of selecting your favorite stylings for cuffs, pockets, Building Your Upper nt. lapels, collars, and more.

Dan Morroni

Casual Wardrobe

“ Create your own visual style...

There’s a growinglet trend the discriminating it befor unique fororyourself yet ized color palette: You’re never limited to the trending colors what store gentleman’s wardrobe: luxurious custom-made identifiable for others.”

– Orson Welles ave decided to stock. Instead, sportswear, your custom wardrobe is built on the colors also called upper casual.

—and that look fantastic on you. Bold or muted, serious or playful: the choice The effects of global trends in offsite work, with the yours.

Building Your Upper Casual Wardrobe

increasing prevalence of partial work-from-home options may meanormore professionalunique time is spent ized style: Traditional or modern, minimalist eclectic—your style is dressed casually—but that shouldn’t require making n display when you build a custom From highly visible styles The effectswardrobe. of global trends in offsite work, with the increasing prevalence of partialsuch work-fromsacrifices inmean quality and style. home options may more professional time is spent dressed casually—but that shouldn’t

There’s a growing trend for the discriminating gentleman’s wardrobe: luxurious custom-made sportswear, also called upper casual.

collars, peaked, or notched lapels down tointhe require making sacrifices quality nearly and style. invisible details such as ontrasting thread color for theDesigning buttonholes on your coat sleeves, you choose an upperan casual wardrobe gives you options for casual occasions with theoptions same qualDesigning upper casual wardrobe gives you ity, refinement, and eye for detail as you enjoy in dressier business attire. Sophisticated design, resent yourself with your custom clothing.

You’re always in charge ofrefinement, for casual occasions with same premium fabrics, and color-coordinated piecesthe can help create aquality, casualwear wardrobe a generous step above the traditional polo shirt and khaki trousers. your favorite stylings for cuffs, pockets, lapels,ascollars, and and eye for detail you enjoy in more. dressier business

attire. Sophisticated design, premium fabrics, and color-coordinated pieces helpelements create a casualwear k together to build a custom wardrobe that brings allcan these 12 MiamiMan Magazine a generous stepconfidence, above the traditional polo shirt and khaki trousers. forwardrobe unsurpassed comfort, and enjoyment.

Upper casual is a great way to broaden or freshen your custom wardrobe, letting you enjoy the perfect fit of custom clothing on weekends or during casual occasions. l

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INTRODUCING

Anthony Medina Doya’s World Renowned Mixologist and Influencer

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NTHONY MEDINA

is a world-renowned, awardwinning mixologist and bar consultant. For over 18 years, he has run some of the most recognizable and iconic bars in the hottest areas of New York and now Miami. Anthony is considered an expert in cocktails and served as Academic Director of Tubartender.com in Caracas, Venezuela, and as a Certified Instructor or TIPS, Instructor at IUGT, the Metropolitan School of Bartending and The National Academy of Bartending, and is currently studying neurogastronomy.

Anthony has traveled the world competing against the world’s best mixologists in Europe, France and Latin America. Among his many championships and awards, he has been named National Champion in the World Class Diageo 2009 where he represented us in London, World Champion of the Diplomatico World Tournament competition in Venezuela 2013.

Known for his unique style, creative flair, professionalism, and strong work ethic, Anthony has developed a stellar reputation for his attention to detail and passion for excellence.

He earned the respect of top executives and restaurant owners and helped generate sales of $40K-$80K a night everywhere he worked.

DRIVEN BY A STRONG UNDERSTANDING of strong leadership, strategic communications, and finding solutions during intense situations and environments.

Anthony has worked as a bartender and manager for top venues including Republica

Restaurant and Rooftop Bar in Manhattan, New York City, Zona De Cuba, in The Bronx, Bathtub Gin Speakeasy Cocktail Bar in Manhattan, Wahi Oyster Bar in Manhattan, and Domaine Select Spirit in Manhattan, among many others. He continues in his trade and has taught and dictated Master Classes in Spain, Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Peru and the United States.

Anthony is committed to his craft and to being the best; he has studied flavors and combinations, always looking for ways to ensure that his customers not only drink his cocktails but experience them on a new level. He stud-

ied wines, liquors, oils, chocolates, fruits, waters, cheeses and meats, with that in mind.

Revered by many, Anthony has served as an influencer for various brands and has over 9,000 followers on Instagram, all eager to share and learn from the creative style. Making people happy is what drives him, and he makes sure that his enthusiasm and love of life is evident in every pour. He founded an academy to teach the next generation about bartending and share his passion.

Currently based in Miami working as Bar Manager of a prestigious restaurant called Doya. l MiamiMan Magazine 15

ZONK Photos courtesy Miami Dolphins

BY KURT SMITH

He was a legendary fullback and one of the most important players on a Miami Dolphins team that stood on top of the football world two years in a row.

To this day, the Perfect 1972 team still stands alone.

To this day, Miami is the only NFL city whose team has gone a full season with a zero in the loss or tie columns.

Somewhere, probably in the clouds today, is an Akron area juvenile court judge and junior high principal we should thank for pointing a tough young kid in the right direction…back onto the football field, and on track to carry the ball for that perfect squad.

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“I watched my older brother play,” Larry Csonka remembers. “I went to a high school football game on a Friday night. There were probably three or four thousand people there, which was an immense crowd, I’d never seen anything like that growing up, a country kid on a farm. To play under the lights, I thought that was big time!

THE LAST FRONTIER Visit Larry Csonka’s website and you’ll see a selection of videos of him and Audrey Bradshaw, his lovely longtime partner, catching fish in the midst of beautiful Alaskan backgrounds.

Many of the videos are from his surprise hit show, “North To Alaska”, which enjoyed a successful run until its retirement in 2013. “North To Alaska” was everything an outdoor life show should be…a former star athlete enjoying retirement by becoming just like one of the rest of us again. He and Audrey catch fish together, visit beautiful lodges in remote areas of a remote state, and share the greatness of outdoor life in the last frontier. It all makes for enjoyable, leisurely, and educational television.

What makes “North To Alaska” special enough to have enjoyed a 16year run is that Zonk, a man who made a considerable mark on a football field, is there as a hunting and fishing enthusiast, not a former star athlete. It’s because he has just as much enthusiasm for Alaskan life as he did for football.

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N CASE YOU’RE TOO YOUNG to remember Larry Csonka, or you need a refresher on what your parents told you, here’s a bit about why he was adored by the football-loving faithful here.

In just eight seasons as a Dolphin, he rushed for 6,737 yards and 53 touchdowns…both still team records to this day. He averaged over five yards a carry in 1971 and 1972, and in 1979, as a power running back at the age of 32, he rushed for 837 yards and 12 touchdowns.

He also was, obviously, a key player on the unbeatable 1972 team, gaining 1,117 yards and averaging 5.2 yards a carry. The following season he was a Super Bowl MVP, rushing for 145 yards and two touchdowns against the Vikings. Read that again…Zonk ran for 145 yards against a defense good enough to be in the Super Bowl.

A player known for his legendary toughness, and sometimes carrying several defenders with him into the end zone, is quick to credit another man for his drive on the field…another legend in Miami, otherwise known as the winningest coach in football history.

“The competitiveness of it grew on me a little later, and then meeting a guy named Don Shula in the pros rejuvenated that feeling I had when I was a boy. After going through junior high, high school, and college and being on some winning teams, I was motivated by that, but I still hadn’t become possessed by it. When you play for Shula, you either become possessed or you play for another team.

Csonka tells a story about Shula’s motivational skills that isn’t surprising.

“I got hit one time and was laying on the sidelines, and he ran up to me and said, ‘You can’t be hurt!’ It made me so mad I forgot I was hurt, I jumped up to grab him, and he took off!” Csonka remembers with a laugh. “He said, ‘I knew if I made you mad enough, you’d forget you were hurt!’”

“He had a real chip on his shoulder about being unprepared, he wanted to anticipate everything that could be anticipated. In other words, total concentration, total commitment to the win.

“Now, that sounds easy, and all of us want to do it, and that sounds fine to go to a Boy Scout meeting and stand out and get your honorary badge, that’s great. But when you do it 17 or 18 times in a row, it’s hard to keep that up. And he would mandate that, he would demand that, and he would raise hell if he thought you were screwing around in practice and not paying attention.

“Through my entire career, starting in high school or junior high, I aspired to get to Alaska by hook or crook. I got sidetracked into the NFL, and some ten years after the NFL, I finally got a chance. Starting with ESPN and our sponsors NAPA and STIHL, we put together an outdoor adventure, fishing, and hunting series. Audrey and I moved north and bought a place in Anchorage and then Wasilla. We were residents of Alaska for some 20 years and still go back for a month and a half each year.

“I think from the time I was probably 11 years old, I just wanted to go to Alaska because I figured that was the last place you could experience things like Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett did.

“What a great way to do it, getting paid to do it. By the time the series ended, it was doing quite well. By the time it was in its 16th year, we had been a lot of places that most people don’t get to see in the state of Alaska.”

The popularity of a retired football star, even a Hall of Famer and Super Bowl MVP, isn’t enough to carry a low-quality show for a decade and a half. The appeal of “North To Alaska” may be that Zonk shows us all that it doesn’t take piles of money or fame to enjoy the good life.

He’s the ultimate everyman with a genuine love for the outdoors, and it works.

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Photos courtesy Miami Dolphins

“I was sent down to the bench by my father, he sent a dollar down to my brother because he made a great catch. I got to go down by the bench and hand him the dollar, and I just marveled at the sidelines, I was just in awe of the whole thing. I couldn’t wait to get old enough to play.”

That is until he was actually getting hit. “I went out for football in seventh grade, didn’t know anything about it, got knocked down a lot, and quit.”

Shortly after quitting, the kid from Stow, Ohio got into a bit of trouble and was put before a forward-thinking judge who possibly saw his potential as a superstar fullback.

“The juvenile court judge told me that I needed to report to my principal every day. He would be responsible for me. Mr. Saltis made me write reports on football”, Csonka says with a laugh. “I started to understand the game and got back into it, otherwise I might not have ever played again.”

Every superstar player in sports history probably has a story of when their path to stardom came close to being derailed. Larry Csonka knows full well how important all of the ingredients are not just to an individual’s success, but to a team’s success.

We’ll come back to that.

GOING OUT ON TOP Csonka broke away from the NFL to play in the ill-fated World Football League with the Memphis Southmen, and then played a couple of seasons with the Giants before returning to play with the Dolphins in 1979. He was hired by the Dolphins to be a blocking back for Delvin Williams, but when Delvin performed below expectations, they gave Zonk the ball…and he carried it for 837 yards and 12 touchdowns, a performance that won Zonk the Comeback Player of The Year award.

“I came back to be a blocking back for Miami. I became the guy running the ball. I think on one occasion, I carried it 40 times in a game, and at 32 years old, whatever I was at the time, I don’t recall, I didn’t need to be carrying the ball 40 times a game.

“That’s very much a young man’s game, a power running game, and you have to have great offensive linemen, which I had in ’72 and ’73.

The end of Larry Csonka’s NFL career came shortly afterward, with Don Shula making the decision for him.

“I made the decision to hold out unless I got paid a whole lot of money to run the ball, I was still pretty healthy. But instead, I held out and Shula got mad and fired me.”

He has no regrets. “I wasn’t mad that he fired me. I was at a point in my career where I was glad he said I was through. That gave me all the pushing I needed.

Photos courtesy Miami Dolphins

“At 33 years old, it’s time to retire, particularly for a power running back.”

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“When the ’72 team gets together, there’s a great camaraderie, and there’s a constant feeling when eyes meet, nothing has to be said.”

“Two and a half hours, a couple of times a day – that’s five hours a day, and you’re talking about six weeks of intense concentration in training camp. It’s pretty hard to keep that up, on that plane, but with him behind you, we were motivated to stay on that plane.”

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ONK REMEMBERS that Don Shula pushed for absolutely every edge on a football field…including having a team train in the July Miami heat to prepare for hot days. After an embarrassing Super Bowl loss to the Cowboys, the coach made the team use the loss as motivation.

It worked out perfectly.

“Getting that far in ’71, and then getting your ass handed to you in the Super Bowl was embarrassing. But Shula said to us after that game, ‘I want you to remember this moment, because we’re gonna use this as a basis to make even more sacrifices next year.’

“He didn’t say what our objective was going to be. What he said was, we’re gonna treat every game like it’s the Super Bowl.

That way we can’t ever relax. By the time we get to the Super Bowl, we’ll be able to make sure that we do it one more time.

“Those words rang true, that was a great prediction after a terrible loss.”

Indeed, as the football world remembers, the Miami Dolphins made winning quite the habit in 1972. The backfield of that team contributed to the obsession…the interchangeable squad of Csonka, Jim Kiick, and Mercury Morris made opposing defensive coordinators want to put 15 players on the field. It was an idea Shula had once he believed Morris could take the punishment.

“Coach Shula decided to talk with the offensive line coach to see if we had the offensive linemen that could get to the outside.

And we did. Larry Little, a huge, big man, who was super fast in the 40, so we could get somebody out there to block for Merc, and we could have that outside threat.”

“It gave us a three-dimensional backfield, and that made a difference. That was one of the contributing factors to going undefeated.”

The Dolphins’ backfield was so strong that even losing a Hall of Fame quarterback in the fifth game didn’t stop the victory train.

But Csonka is quick to point out that absolutely everyone on the team made contributions to a season still unmatched in NFL history…starting with Kiick and Morris.

“In order to do that,” Csonka reflects about the interchangeable backfield, “you have to have the talent to do that, but you also have to have the personalities to do that. Jim Kiick and Mercury Morris were two unique personalities, but the great common thing between them was the mutual respect for each other. One realized the other had talent that he didn’t, and they both recognized that fact and were all right with that.

He continues: “If any one ingredient doesn’t mix with the other ingredients, then you’re gonna have that kind of animosity that’ll

A BIRD ON THE COVER Larry Csonka made the cover of Sports Illustrated a few times in his career, but easily the best-known cover shot features him and backfield teammate Jim Kiick…in a pose that featured Csonka giving a not-sosubtle middle finger. What makes the photo so priceless is the snickering look on Zonk’s face. You can easily find a copy of it on eBay if you’re interested.

Intentional? Not on Csonka’s part, at least as far as the photo actually making the cover.

He’s not sure about the Sports Illustrated folks, though.

“We shot probably 200 photos that day of all the different kinds of poses. We had a couple of photos we just wanted for us to be funny, so we did that, and somehow that photo got in with the others and somehow inadvertently got put on the cover. I received very nasty letters from irate nuns for about five years after that!

“I sometimes wonder if that wasn’t done on purpose, but it wasn’t meant to be on the cover, it was meant for our own personal thing.

So, after that, I didn’t do that anymore. I certainly apologized, but at the same time, it was supposed to be private, and it didn’t turn out that way.”

“But I’ll tell you what, a lot of people kept that issue!” grow to be a cancer and it’ll keep you from attaining a perfect season.

There’s a reason there’s only one team that’s ever done that. We had the best blend of players and coaches.”

“When you look at it, … take any one player, if you take Bob Griese, starting quarterback, Earl Morrall, the substitute quarterback, [they] all made contributions. Charlie Babb, special teams, rookie player, got in there, made a big play, blocked a punt. You take Charlie out of that game, we lose that game.

“As a rookie playing on special teams, [Charlie] only got on the field a few times, but he got on there just enough to make a difference in us going undefeated or losing one game.

“That’s how finite it gets.”

Z

ONK is, at least partially, so fondly remembered in South Florida for an unfortunate reason. He represents a successful era for a team that hasn’t won a playoff game in over two decades. Young Miami football fans aren’t even accustomed to frequent playoff runs these days, much less three straight Super Bowl appearances.

Read some of the blog posts on his website about the team in recent years, and it’s apparent that like the rest of the city, he becomes frustrated with the Dolphins’ shortcomings. He’s still supportive, but it’s clear that it’s no easier for him to watch sometimes than for the rest of us.

Csonka confesses to not being able to apply his understanding of the game in his playing days to the game of today. But he does think there’s one constant in winning football that the Dolphins need to embrace to get back on top again. When asked that question, he begins his answer with one word: unity.

“If you get a strong head coach that believes in a certain way to do it,

and you can get a cast of players that believe in him, I don’t think that formula has changed that much.

“Is it Don Shula reborn again? I don’t know, but I think it starts with that. I think it starts with a strong coaching staff and the dedication of the players, and finding 40 or 50 players that really, truly want to win, and they’ll make whatever sacrifices that are necessary in order to obtain that.”

That said, he does make an occasional public appearance to talk about the glory days.

“We get a few fans that might go back and remember, and some of the young folks that have heard things from their parents or grandparents, or perhaps even great grandparents,” he says with a laugh. “What I do is reminisce about the championships and how we got there. Coach Shula, the colorful, fun parts of the game that you still see on Sunday are fun to talk about. Sports humor is really what it’s about, it’s a good time, not any deep message or anything.

The Perfect Season, justifiably, is still today a great source of gratification for the Hall of Fame fullback.

“More than personal pride, it’s fun to feel a team pride in being part of that. I’m sure there are other people that have made it to the top of Everest and stood there and felt that exhilaration of being on top of the mountain. But to be able to stand on top of the mountain and know there’s an entire team standing there with you and you’re all part of that, is just another benefit.

“When the ’72 team gets together, those that are still standing and walking around, there’s a great camaraderie, and there’s a constant feeling when eyes meet, nothing has to be said.

“The fans that were there, again, that are still standing, when we see them, it’s a celebration that’s very unique. They can’t wait to tell us about it, we can’t wait to hear about it. It’s a celebration that goes on and it’s just as enthusiastic today as the day it happened.”

Zonk also has a sense of gratitude towards one other group of people: The Super Bowl XLII-winning New York Giants.

“I’m indebted to my teammate at Syracuse, Tom Coughlin, the head coach of the Giants, and Eli Manning. I am still their biggest fan!” l

HEAD ON MiamiMan loves success stories and views behind the scenes, especially when it comes to legendary sports achievements…and the Perfect Season certainly qualifies.

Larry Csonka’s upcoming book, Head On, shares tales behind his and the Dolphins’ success in that era. It includes flashbacks of his nearly quitting football, his occasionally rocky relationship with Don Shula, and his palling around with the likes of Burt Reynolds, Lee Majors, Elvis Presley and others during and after the Dolphins’ high-flying run.

But Csonka also shares some wild stories beyond the bright lights of the football field…such as his confronting thieves with a sawed-off shotgun, being adrift in gale force winds in the Bering Sea, and taking sniper fire in the midst of a USO tour.

As Csonka was quoted in Life magazine back in 1972, “No matter what your style, you have to take a beating.” Indeed, from the sound of it, the book describes a life of an athlete who took the hits on and off the field and keeps moving forward.

Head On is slated for release on October 4, 2022. You can pre-order it on the Amazon and Barnes & Noble websites, and from the publisher, BenBella Books.

MiamiMan Magazine 19

P RO F I L E

Malik Allen PUTTING IN THE WORK

F For southern New Jersey native Malik Allen, Miami holds a big place in his heart.

The 2021-22 NBA season marked the 43-year-old’s third on Erik Spoelstra’s coaching staff with the Miami Heat and his eighth season overall as an NBA assistant coach. Of course, that came on the heels of an NBA playing career that spanned 10 seasons (2001-11), including his first four in South Florida. Not a bad resume for a guy who went undrafted after his senior season at Villanova and spent his first year as a pro toiling in the wilderness of minor league basketball.

“I feel like, professionally, I grew up here in Miami,” said Allen, now a married father of two. “I learned how to play in the NBA here and it has always held a place in my heart. The people here, there’s still a lot of people around from when I was a player and it’s nice knowing who you’re going to work with every day. That’s the biggest thing about being here.”

One of those familiar faces was Spoelstra’s.

He was an assistant coach/video coordinator with the Heat during Allen’s playing days. In 20

MiamiMan Magazine

BY MIKE SHUTE fact, since originally landing the video gig in 1995, Spoelstra has only worked for the Heat and became the team’s head coach following the 2007-08 season.

Allen has learned a lot about handling the modern NBA team working under Spoelstra.

“I think one of the biggest things I’ve learned [from Spoelstra] is that flexibility is a great trait to have,” Allen says of the current Heat head coach, the sixth in franchise history, who completed his 14th season running

the show in Miami. “He has a very good pulse on the type of team that he has and I think, especially in today’s NBA, the worst thing you can do is be very, very rigid in how you approach every day. You just have to have a lot of flexibility about you and I think that’s one of the best things about him.

“He’s brilliant obviously as a coach but again the thing that makes these high-level coaches, and these well-respected coaches so unique is their ability to adapt. It’s one of the

Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images

biggest strengths I’ve seen of his. And somebody as smart as he is, that’s what makes him who he is as a coach.”

But it was a head coach for whom Allen played that brought him into coaching and has been a mentor over the years.

“I had played for Stan Van Gundy twice,” said Allen, who was playing with the Heat during Van Gundy’s time as both an assistant (1995-2003) and head coach (2003-05), and also played his final NBA season (2010-11) for

Van Gundy in Orlando. “After my playing career ended we moved back to Pennsylvania for a while to be closer to our families but I had always been in close contact with Stan. When he got the head-coaching job in Detroit (201418), we talked, I went through the interview process and got hired by the Pistons. And he threw me right into the fire as a coach.

“It was great and I had a lot of responsibilities right off the bat and I was fast-tracked.

It was the best learning experience I’ve ever

had, especially in terms of the learning curve of the league from that side of it.

“I was so fortunate with Stan because I saw the level of preparation that he took, dayin and day-out, to try and be ready to win a game. And that’s not to disparage or say that other coaches don’t do that. But for me, seeing Stan and what he put in to try and win a game, or to try and win the day at practice, that was the best experience I could’ve had in my first go-around as a coach in this league.

MiamiMan Magazine

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Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

The amount of detail he would go through, that was a great experience and I was very fortunate to see that.

“Stan is definitely a huge influence and mentor for me,” Allen added. “I was very fortunate to be around great basketball minds, but he was a big part of getting me in the door and really helped in getting me off the ground on this side of the bench as a coach.”

Van Gundy speaks highly of his protégé and his preparation, too.

“ i want to be a head coach in this league. there’s no guarantee of that but i’ve been putting in the work to learn and grow to hopefully get that opportunity one day.”

“Malik approaches the job of coaching the exact same way he approached it as a player – he works his butt off,” Van Gundy told the Bucks County (PA) Courier-Times in 2017.

“He does everything he can possibly do to get better every day. I totally trust his preparation when it’s his game plan [of an opposing team]. He’s a guy that is always looking to get better. He’s got a good relationship with the players… but not one where they would probably call him their best friend. He pushes guys pretty hard. He’s a demanding guy.”

C

OACHING wasn’t necessarily on the radar for Allen during his playing days at Shawnee High School in Medford, NJ, where he helped lead the Renegades to back-to-back state championships in 1995 and 1996. Nor was it a thought while the 6-foot-10 forward helped Villanova to two NCAA Tournament appearances (1997 and ’99) during a four-year career (127 games, 1996-2000) that saw him compile 1,131 points and rank fourth in school history in blocked shots (191).

“I wasn’t that ambitious back then to know or think that I was going to coach,” says Allen who was a member of the 2021 class of the Villanova University Varsity Club Hall of Fame and was inducted at its 45th annual Hall of Fame Dinner on February 4, 2022. “My path in the NBA was just different as a role player and I had to prepare for every role in the league – I started, I was the first big off the bench, I was the utility guy at the end of the bench. To me, that just lent itself to having a different approach to the game.

“And now from a coaching standpoint, you’re learning every day,” said Allen. “The great thing that I get from coaching is that everyone I’ve coached with and coached under, 22

MiamiMan Magazine

they’re very humble in their approach and they’re eager to learn. If they’re eager to learn and I’m learning every day from them, then the approach you have to have is not just a hardworking approach but it’s also being humble in order to improve. And I think that was a little bit of the approach I had when I was younger. I

wasn’t going to be hard-headed – where a lot of guys are – and thinking they know everything all the time… Life just doesn’t work that way.

To have that unique learning approach carries down to our team. We’re not perfect and it humanizes us a little bit to our players and they can identify with it.”

Photo courtesy Villanova University

T

O PULL OFF a 10-year NBA career without being chosen in the annual NBA Draft takes a lot of hard work but also a ton of resiliency. Allen just never gave up on himself nor his goals and, in fact, his career outlasted five of the top 10 picks of the 2000 NBA Draft, including No. 2 choice Stromile Swift, No. 3 pick Darius Miles and No. 4 pick Marcus Fizer. Only 14 of the 58 players chosen in the 2000 NBA Draft played more seasons than the undrafted Allen.

“I spent a year playing in the minor leagues, which was crazy. It was poorly run but I played well enough that Miami saw me and eventually invited me to a free-agent mini-camp in the summer of 2001. I went down there and they kept asking me to stay.

You work out for a week, they ask you to stay, and the next week you work out against another group of free agents they bring in.

But as each week went by, I was getting better, so why would I leave if they’re investing in me enough? That’s how I got my foot in the door in the league. I don’t have a magic story. I worked my ass off and I didn’t quit.

“The fact that I played in the league 10 years, I’ve seen it all. But to get to 10 – that was a big deal for me, especially after not being drafted, having to make a contract, make rosters. It was just a big stamp on what was

From left to right: former Villanova guard John Celestand, former Villanova coaches Jay Wright and Steve Lappas, Malik Allen, his mom Tracey Allen at the Villanova Varsity Club HOF induction.

a huge accomplishment for me. I’m very proud of that.”

Now Allen has a new goal in mind.

“Everybody has goals and aspirations,” said Allen, who served as the Heat’s head coach during the 2021 NBA Summer League circuit. “I want to be a head coach in this league. There’s no guarantee of that but I’ve been putting in the work to learn and

grow to hopefully get that opportunity one day. You’d love to be put in front of guys and asked to lead a team in that way. That’s just me. There are guys that love the role that they’re in and there’s nothing wrong with that. Sometimes you just mesh well. I worked to be put in a position so that, hopefully, I can get that opportunity to be a head coach.” l

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MiamiMan Magazine 23

GET FIT

______________________________________________________________________________________________

BY VINCENT MANTUO

Therapeutic Massage Helps with Recovery

T

HE IDEA OF “GET FIT” is exciting because it is a time you dedicate to work on yourself physically, typically by working out and/or eating healthier; but what if there is more to this phrase that we don’t think about.

There are things we can do to take care of our bodies that are just as important as working out and eating healthier. Our bodies are super complex machines that need maintenance as well as time to recover.

Muscles lose 50% of their efficiency due to structural imbalances and length discrepancies, causing over 90% of painful symptoms. Structural Energetic Therapy® uses revolutionary techniques to restore muscle balance and function, enabling you to use up to 100% of your muscle efficiency.

WHAT IS STRUCTURAL ENERGETIC THERAPY AND HOW IS IT DIFFERENT THAN MASSAGE THERAPY?

The body needs rest to stay healthy, one way to aid in the recovery process is through massage therapy. As a Licensed Massage Therapist and Structural Energetic Therapist (SET Therapy), I recommend a therapeutic massage that helps to release knots and adhesions in the muscles, as well as any toxins, inflammation, or lymphatic fluid that occur from daily activities, work, stress, and exercise.

Structural Energetic Therapy is the integration of 3 techniques:

There are many massage modalities that specialize in therapeutic massage, so it’s important that you find the one for you.

Together these techniques not only restore structural balance and function, but also provide lasting relief for the condition being treated. l

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MiamiMan Magazine

1) Cranial/Structural Releases (NOT craniosacral) 2) Specialized Muscle Tissue Protocols 3) Body Sensory Techniques

MiamiMan Magazine 25

Eyes ON THE

Prize

Panthers have the talent to win their first Stanley Cup

BY SAM CARCHIDI

But this could be the year.

The high-scoring Panthers not only had a sensational regular season, but they added key players at the trade deadline. Clearly, they are going all-in.

By acquiring Philadelphia forward Claude Giroux, and defensemen Ben Chiarot (Montreal) and Robert Hagg (Buffalo), the Panthers showed the future is now.

“It was like Christmas morning when we got these guys,” Florida coach Andrew Brunette said.

Giroux, the long-time Flyers captain, was the marquee player on the market, and Chiarot, who is a physical, stay-at-home player, was one of the premier defensemen available. Both are pending unrestricted free agents, but the Panthers are only focusing on the playoffs at the moment.

Chiarot “has leadership qualities and has a physical element to his game,” Panthers gen26

MiamiMan Magazine

eral manager Bill Zito said after he acquired the defenseman for forward prospect Tyler Smilanic, a first-round draft pick in 2023 and a fourth-rounder this year. “He’s a guy who has the experience of going deep in the playoffs with Montreal,” which reached the Stanley Cup Final last year.

As for the 34-year-old Giroux, Zito believes his experience and work ethic will benefit the Panthers in the playoffs.

“Claude has been one of the most complete talents in the National Hockey League for over a decade,” Zito said, explaining why he gave up another first-round pick (2024), a thirdrounder in 2023, and right winger Owen Tippett in the trade package.

Giroux, who led the Flyers in points in eight of the last 11 seasons, is seeking his first Stanley Cup. He played parts of 15 seasons with Philadelphia.

He is impressed by his new teammates.

Photo courtesy of Zack Hill, Philadelphia Flyers

Since their NHL franchise started in 1993-94, the Florida Panthers have never won the Stanley Cup.

Philadelphia captain Claude Giroux displays the puck from his 1,000th and final game with the Flyers. He was traded to Florida, making an elite team even better.

“Those guys are fast players,” he said, adding that Aleksander “Sasha” Barkov “can pretty much do anything you want a player to do. I’m pretty excited.”

Giroux said he doesn’t care how much he scores; his number one priority is helping the Panthers hoist the Cup.

Or as he put it: “My job is to blend in and help the team win.”

ALREADY ELITE Before the trades, Florida was already among the NHL’s elite. Now the Panthers are even deeper, with little if any holes in their lineup.

Florida revolves around MVP candidate Jonathan Huberdeau and Barkov, two of the league’s most dynamic players. The powerful offense is also sparked by Giroux, Sam Reinhart, Anthony Duclair, Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Bennett, Mason Marchment, and Anton Lundell.

The defense is anchored by Aaron Ekblad, who, at press deadline, was expected to return from a leg injury and play in the playoffs. Radko Gudas, the league’s most physical defenseman, is also a key contributor. The same goes for Gustav Forsling, MacKenzie Weegar, and Chiarot.

Sergei Bobrovsky supplies the Panthers with solid goaltending.

The Panthers were so dominating in the regular season that they set a franchise record for goals scored – with 16 games remaining.

They also established a franchise record for

wins and points.

“It means a lot, but I don’t think it changes anything,” Gudas said about the Panthers’ terrific regular season. “Since day one, we have just been looking at the game ahead of us. That’s the mentality in this locker room.

We want to get better in every game we play.

That’s what is unique about this group; we have short memories and just go out and work. We’ll see where that takes us.”

play of Ekblad, who was a Norris Trophy candidate as the league’s best defenseman before he went down with a right leg injury on March 18. Getting Ekblad (57 points in 61 games) back to form in the playoffs will be critical.

A year ago, Ekblad was sidelined with a broken left leg when the Panthers lost to eventual-champion Tampa Bay in the first round, four games to two.

‘BOB’ THE X-FACTOR

Shortly after the Panthers added players before the trade deadline, Brunette liked the direction his team was taking.

“We just want to get our game in shape, get into that cadence as a group,” he said. “We have a few new pieces and while we’ve played well, we want to stay on top of things and play our best moving forward.”

Setting several franchise records in the regular season was a nice accomplishment. The Panthers want more.

“We’re not content just breaking these little records,” Brunette said. “We have our eyes on a bigger prize. We still have a ways to get there.”

Fasten your seatbelts. It should be a fun ride. l

It should take them far if Bobrovsky is consistent in the playoffs. That hasn’t always been the case in his career. Though he is a two-time Vezina winner as the NHL’s best goalie in the regular season, he hasn’t been at his best in the playoffs – a 13-23 record with a 3.24 GAA and .899 save percentage.

If the player they call “Bob,” struggles, the Panthers can turn to Spencer Knight.

The Panthers have qualified for the playoffs in each of the last three seasons, but never have they had loftier goals. They have not gotten past the first round since 1995-96 when they reached the Stanley Cup Final.

Besides Bobrovsky, another key will be the

BRUNETTE’S VIEW

MiamiMan Magazine 27

Photo: Joel Auerbach/Getty Images.

Aleksander Barkov (left) and Jonathan Huberdeau celebrate a Panthers goal.

South Africa meets America Gary Player’s son Wayne brings South African delicacy to America

BY MARK ECKEL

W

28

MiamiMan Magazine

Photos: playerbiltong.com

hen Hall of Famer Gary Player was one of the dominant forces on the PGA Tour, winning three Masters among his nine majors in the 1960s and 70s, he set himself apart from the rest of the tour.

Player was into physical fitness, which was unheard of back then. He worked out, lifted weights, and became friends with the model spokesman for physical fitness at that time, Jack LaLanne.

Turn the clock ahead to 2022 and Player, as a spokesman, and his son, Wayne, at the control, are still into health but in a different way.

Player Brand Biltong is a healthy alternative to the common beef jerky that Americans buy in quantity in grocery stores, convenience stores, gas stations and almost anywhere across the country.

Biltong, a South African tradition, contains no MSG, no sugar, is low in carbs (1 gram), high in protein (18 grams) and contains about half the sodium (about 300 grams, as opposed to 600 grams) as your store-bought jerky. And according to Wayne Player “tastes a lot better, too.”

“I’m telling you,” Wayne said. “Once you try Biltong, you’ll never want to eat jerky again. Or as we like to say, using our name, ‘Don’t be a jerky, be a Player’.”

Gary’s fascination with being fit helped him to become one of the dominant golfers of his time. It’s one of many traits that makes Wayne proud.

“My dad was so far ahead of his time when it came to health and fitness,” he said. “Nobody, and I mean nobody, back then, even thought about working out. I mean never.

It was just one of the things you didn’t think about doing — except for my dad. He was the

only one. They all thought he was nuts. He was in impeccable shape. Now, you look at the PGA Tour today and it’s required to work out and lift weights and be strong.”

Wayne followed in his dad’s golf shoes at an early age, playing in both the British Open and the U.S. Open as a teenager. The fact that his mother was a 1-handicap, and her father ran a driving range provided even more in the genetic pool.

“I was very good young player. In my teens you might have called me a whiz kid,” Wayne said.

After graduating from high school in South Africa, Player did his mandatory two years in the country’s National Service and then turned pro and moved to Boca Raton, Florida in his early 20s. He stayed on the tour until his mid30s but was never his father on the golf course.

Then again, how many were?

“I gave it the old college try,” he said. “But I was ruined by paralysis by analysis. I had the talent, but I got too technical, and it hurt me.”

P

layer first got into the business world with Wayne Player Enterprise where he hosted corporate outings and connected fans with some of their golfing heroes, including his father.

“I was always an outward person and a good speaker,” he said. “Being around golf and my dad my whole life I had the experience. And then you have my dad who was so popular, people loved him.”

Player Brand Biltong uses American beef, traditional South African flavors, all-natural ingredients and original recipes from yesteryear to manufacture high-protein, zero-sugar Biltong snacks.

were focused on both his father and Lee Elder, who was being honored at the event.

“OnCore X1 is the ball my dad uses. He loves it,” Wayne explained. “When he was teeing up the ball, there was no way anyone would know what ball Gary Player is using. So, I see all these cameras, everyone has brands all over the place, I suddenly took out the sleeve of balls and put them on my side.

“They said I disrespected Lee Elder and the media made a big deal of it. Lee is a good

In South Africa, they have been making Biltong the same way for hundreds of years.

And Wayne loved what he did.

“I really did,” he said. “I did it for a good part of my life. I loved embracing people. That was another aspect that my dad was a good role model for me.”

In between hosting those golf outings and starting the Biltong business, Wayne ran into some trouble. He spent five days in jail once for a bad check and was recently barred from The Masters for what was called “guerrilla marketing.” He admits his mistakes and doesn’t mind talking about them.

“It was a $2,000 check, not $2 million,” he said. “And I paid it back.

“Who in this life hasn’t made a mistake?

If you ask for forgiveness for your mistake, shouldn’t you be forgiven? I’m not asking to be forgiven for murder.”

At the Masters, Wayne held up a sleeve of OnCore X1 golf balls, the one his father was about to tee up, in front of several cameras that

friend, we’ve been on vacation together, he said he didn’t give it a thought. They called me a guerrilla marketer. If I knew that I would have had a bag of Biltong tied around my neck.

“I’m not ashamed. Would I do it again, after seeing what has happened? I would not. I guess there are certain things you don’t do at Augusta.”

W

hat Player does now is sell Biltong. In just about a year-and-a-half the company has done over $500,000 worth of sales and continues to grow. Like golf, the snack has been with Wayne and his family forever.

“In South Africa, there’s no such thing as jerky,” Player said. “We have Biltong. The grocery stores, the bars, the golf clubs all have Biltong. I ate Biltong every single day of my life.

“Prior to Covid, South Africa was a great and popular destination for Americans. Whether it was the safaris, the golf, or the vineyards, there

were a lot of travelers. A lot of them would eat Biltong and fall in love with it. They would say ‘We can’t get this back home.’ And they would take some home with them. But they couldn’t take it through customs. Our whole pitch is if jerky was that good, why would people try to bring Biltong back with them?”

So, in a world where more and more people are trying to watch what they eat, go carb-free and watch the levels of sugar and sodium they intake, Biltong was a natural snack, or at least that’s what Player hopes. So far, he’s been right.

“The flavor we get from the Biltong comes from the fat in the meat,” he said. “The reason a ribeye steak is so good is because of the flavor of the marbling. So, we get our flavor from the fat, not the sugar. In South Africa, they have been making Biltong the same way for hundreds of years all the way back to when the Dutch landed in Cape Town.”

Vinegar and sea salt is used to preserve the meat, which is U.S. prime, and the spices include rosemary, coriander and pepper. The Player Brand product is produced in North Carolina at a plant run by a South African native Gary Moorecroft, who was named after Gary Player. It’s currently selling in both Carolinas and Florida. Soon, they hope, it will be available across the country.

“You have to be a bulldog and pound the street and knock on doors,” Player said. “That’s what I do on a daily basis. If you’re not successful that way, you’re not going to be successful.”

It also helps to have a beloved Hall of Famer helping as a spokesperson for the product.

“Yeah, it’s pretty cool to have a legend promoting your product,” Wayne said of his dad.

“And the best part is we don’t have to pay him.” l MiamiMan Magazine 29

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Investment Strategies for Volatile Markets

Investing During Volatile Markets tendencies is a challenge

during the best of times. But what happens when price

swings grow abnormally large?

Understanding the stock market’s unpredictable tendencies is a It is essential for investors to challenge during the best of times. But whatunderstand happenshow when price market swings grow abnormally large? It is essentialvolatility for investors toand underaffects them stand how market volatility affects them and their investments. their investments.

Volatility: Definition and Causes It is in the stock market’s nature to fluctuate sharply during the short term, making volatility inevitable. The market’s volatility is measured by its standard deviation, how spread apart the data is from the expectation.

Periods when prices fall or rise quickly cause spikes in volatility that take time to revert back to the norm. While driven by a number of factors, uncertainty is a primary culprit.

But what drives uncertainty? Everything from emotional responses from investors to differing opinions from experts. Investors tend to overreact to specific events in the market, causing a contagion-like episode that spreads from one institution to another.

The 24-hour news cycle and differing opinions from market experts also complicates matters. Emotional reactions along with oversaturated financial information drive volatility.

Investment Strategies for Volatile Markets Investors must understand their personal risk tolerance levels to succeed during volatile times. Remaining disciplined to proven strategies can be effective, but regular audits of your portfolio and adjusting your risk tolerance levels accordingly is also prudent.

The investor must determine whether a con-

Investors must understand their personal risk tolerance levels to succeed during volatile times.

Remaining disciplined to proven strategies can be effective, but regular audits of your portfolio and adjusting your risk tolerance levels accordingly is also prudent. The investor must determine whether a conservative or aggressive investing strategy is right

servative Volatility: or aggressive investing Definition andstrategy Causes is right forIt them. conservative approach is in theAstock market’s nature to might callfluctuate for minor portfolio sharply duringadjustments the short making volatility inevitable.

The while still term, focusing on the long term.

On the market’s volatility risk-taking is measured stratby its other hand, an aggressive standard deviation, how apart egy may focus on capitalizing onspread the highs the data is from the expectation. and lows of volatile markets. Either way, Periods when prices fall or rise understanding personal risk tolerance and quickly cause spikes in volatility that is crucial. take time to revert back to the norm. drivento bytake a number of factors, Investors While who want advantage of uncertainty is a primary culprit. volatile times may consider the following strategies: But what drives uncertainty?

Everything from emotional responses

• Dollar-cost averaging involves investing from investors to differing opinions small incremental amounts instead from experts.

Investors tendof to committing alloverreact of the capital at events once. in This to specific the remarket, causing a contagion-like duces investor risk because total capital is never fullyepisode at risk.that spreads from one institution to another. The 24-hour

• Adjusting stops reflect a news cycleand and targets differingtoopinions stock’s price range can also be an effective from market experts also complicates strategy. Consider using thereactions Average True matters. Emotional along Range (ATR) to monitor a stock’s average price over time when adjusting your stops and targets. ATR tries to show the commitment of traders. Large or increasing ranges can indicate that traders may continue to bid up or sell down a stock. A decreasing range can suggest waning interest.

• Portfolio rebalancing is the strategy of buying and selling bits of a portfolio to return each asset class to its original proportion. This method also works if the investor’s risk tolerance level has changed and the portfolio needs to adjust similarly.

Chart suggests generic volatility behavior and does not represent specific market data. Past market performance does not guarantee future results.

In Conclusion It is the stock market’s nature to be volatile over the short term. Staying informed, understanding your risk tolerance, and sticking to your long-term goals and planning is usually in your best interest. The investing experts at Prudential can help guide you through volatile times. l

Stephen Bellosi | Financial Planner | Prudential Advisors• 5355 Town Center Road, Suite 704, Boca Raton, FL 33486 • Phone-954-224-5299 • stephen.bellosi@prudential.com This article was written by Advicent Solutions, an entity unrelated to Prudential. ©2021 Advicent Solutions. All rights reserved. Prudential Advisors is a brand name of The Prudential Insurance Company of America and its subsidiaries, located in Newark, NJ. Prudential and its representatives do not give legal or tax advice. Please consult your own advisors regarding your particular situation.

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MiamiMan Magazine

THE CIGAR

GUY

______________________________________________________________________________________________

BY SAM KRAFT

HVC’s Hot Cake

H

Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés • Binder & Filler: Nicaraguan

VC WAS FOUNDED IN 2011 by Reinier Lorenzo.

“HVC” stands for Havana City, the place Lorenzo spent most of his young life. Cuba is notorious for cigars and cigar manufacturing. The Cuban name is often used by cigar brands as a way to elicit excitement from consumers. For HVC, it’s not about associating the cigar with Cuba, but about bringing the wonders and culture of Cuba to its smokers. Many of HVC’s cigar lines directly reference the city of Havana. They have the Cerro Maduro, which pays homage to the oldest neighborhood in Havana, El Cerro. Another blend is called San Isidro, which is the name of a street in Havana where a notorious gangster was killed. Every cigar Lorenzo blends is saturated with love and pride for Cuban history.

HVC is a small company but has found much success over these past 11 years. They are known for producing small batches of high-quality, meticulously crafted sticks. A lot of what they release is limited to 2000 boxes or less and may only come in a few sizes. Their newest release is La Rosa 520. It premiered at the TPE this year, in 2022.

One of the most popular sticks in their lineup is the Hot

Cake. It has a beautiful rust-colored brown wrapper that smells like fermented honey. The dry pull is also sweet and tastes like fall fruit. On the first puff, this syrupy Hot Cake starts off surprisingly spicy. It has red pepper flakes on the retro-hale and dominates the pallet with richly bitter flavors.

In the first third, the Hot Cake is predominantly vegetal tasting. It holds that single note for a few puffs, before beefing it up. Meat gets added to the potatoes and the cigar becomes toastier and more well-rounded. The spice is hardly noticeable by the second third as the cigar transitions to velvety earth. At this stage, it’s more like a pot pie than a stack of pancakes. But true to its name, the cigar finishes sweeter. Its final third is warm bread with hints of inviting cinnamon.

The Hot Cake might be HVC’s most notorious cigar. It’s unique, exciting, and is packed with quality tobacco. But HVC has a lot to offer in its other blends as well. Their cigars range in strength and intrigue, but one thing remains consistent. All HVCs are ingrained with love and pride for Havana, Cuba. l

Rich Corboy rich@sovyachts.com 609-577-1404 MiamiMan Magazine

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THe HOTTEST Cuban Spot spot IN MIAMI

IS IN FORT LAUDERDALE

800 E Las Olas Blvd, Fort Lauderdale cubalibrerestaurant.com

MiamiMan Magazine