Favre Wants to Start and is Fined

A busy day for Brett Favre.  Following the Vikings surprising win over the Eagles, Favre was at Vikings team headquarters today trying to get cleared to play in the final game of the season.  He has to pass a series of tests proving he has recovered from his concussion to play.

In other Favre news today, the NFL hit the veteran quarterback with a 50,000 dollar fine after the star quarterback "failed to co-operate" with a probe into his conduct off the field.

The league had been investigating allegations that Favre sent lewd photos and inappropriate messages to a former New York Jets game-day hostess, Jenn Sterger.

Despite the hefty fine, officials however backed off on saying Favre violated the NFL's personal conduct policy which would have netted him a suspension as well.

"On the basis of the evidence currently available to him, Commissioner [Roger] Goodell could not conclude that Favre violated league policies relating to workplace conduct," Goodell said. "The forensic analysis could not establish that Favre sent the objectionable photographs to Sterger."

Goodell added that the current Minnesota Vikings quarterback was "not candid in several respects during the investigation resulting in a longer review and additional negative public attention for Favre, (Jenn) Sterger and the NFL."

The probe began two months ago and the decision was announced on Wednesday.

Hugh Hefner Newly Engaged

The ageless Hugh Hefner shocked the world when he announced his engagement to Playmate Crystal Harris over the Christmas holiday, so who is this Crystal Harris, and what does she look like?

24-year-old Crystal was born in Arizona and raised in San Diego. She attended La Jolla High School and studied psychology at San Diego State University. She met Hugh in 2008 and in 2009 was named December’s Playmate of the Month. 

That is pretty much the road map to marrying Hugh Hefner.  I guess we can wish the lovebirds well.

Salvation Army Bell Ringer Tries to Set Record

It's been a difficult year so far for Salvation Army bell ringers. Right now donations are down for this holiday season, but one man has set out to change all that by attempting to break a record.

Character Actor Steve Landesberg Dies

Best known for his role on "Barney Miller", longtime actor Steve Landesberg died at the age of 65.

Cause of death is not known.

More recently, Landesberg played a doctor in the 2008 hit movie "Forgetting Sarah Marshall."

Landesberg appeared in dozens of TV shows, his quick comedic timing and bespectacled face easily recognizable. Recent credits included "Everybody Hates Chris," ''Just Jordan," ''That 70s Show" and "American Dad."

His most successful role was that of Arthur Dietrich on "Barney Miller, which was set in a New York City police station populated by the oddballs and eccentrics of the NYC police force.  It aired from 1975 to 1982.

Landesberg's Dietrich was noted for his endless knowledge and expertise on seemingly every obscure subject imaginable, which was coupled with a sometimes patronizing attitude. He once refused to wish a Happy Thanksgiving to a fellow officer, explaining he was an agnostic and wouldn't know who to thank.

In "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," he listened patiently as Marshall's former boyfriend described a sexual tryst, then revealed he was really a pediatrician.

Here's the "Sarah Marshall" trailer with Landesberg in it.

Another Cub Legend Passes

Phil Cavarretta, the 1945 National League MVP who led the Chicago Cubs to their last World Series appearance, died Saturday in Georgia. He was 94.

Cavarretta died in Lilburn, Ga., of complications from a stroke, according to his grandson, Jeffrey Brown, of Lubbock, Texas.

A first baseman and outfielder, Cavarretta broke into the major leagues in 1934 and spent the first 20 of his 22 seasons with the Cubs before moving across town to play 77 games for the White Sox.

The three-time All-Star led the NL with a .355 batting average and a .449 on-base percentage in 1945, when the Cubs lost to the Detroit Tigers in the World Series. Cavarretta was one of the last living members of that team. The Cubs have not won a pennant since and their last World Series championship came in 1908.  Cavarretta was also one of the last living players who had taken to the field against Babe Ruth.  Cavarretta played against him when Ruth was a Boston Brave in 1935.

Cavarretta finished with a .293 batting average, 95 home runs and 920 RBIs in more than 2,000 big league games.

Philip Joseph Cavarretta was born on July 19, 1916 in Chicago. While attending Lane Tech High School on the North Side, he was a local sensation as both a pitcher and hitter. Among his feats at Lane, were a no-hitter and 8 one-hitters; he also pitched his American Legion team to a national championship in 1933.

Prior to graduation at age 17, Phil signed with the Cubs; upon graduation he was assigned to the Cubs' minor league team at Peoria, making a splash in his very first professional game on May 17, 1934 -- homering in his first at-bat and hitting for the cycle. In September, the Cubs called him up and on September 16th, he made his major league debut against the Dodgers in Brooklyn, only 18 years old.

Cavarretta is survived by his wife, Loraine, four daughters and one son, among others.