DAILY DIRT: It was 49 years ago when we were all afraid to go near a beach

How difficult was sorting out the ’70s endings? “The Godfather” and “The Godfather II” didn’t even make the medal stand … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 1,038 of The Daily Dirt.

1. The decade of the ’70s had a ton of great films and great endings, so selecting the top three proved a tough task in our week-ending series of determining the best endings of major films.

We provided the best endings of ’60s films yesterday, and the 1980s will be showcased tomorrow. But for now, enjoy the 1970s. I certainly did:

• Gold medal: “Jaws”. Sure, we all knew that somehow the shark was going to get it in this 1975 thriller, but we never knew exactly how — or how many it would kill — until the closing minutes. The scene of Brody (Roy Scheider) and Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) swimming away from the sinking boat will always deserve a major thumbs up — even 49 years later.
• Silver medal: “All the President’s Men”: A perfect ending for this 1976 thinking man’s film. It concludes with a montage of Watergate-related teletype headlines, concluding with the report of Richard Nixon’s resignation and the inauguration of Gerald Ford on Aug. 9, 1974.
• Bronze medal: “Soylent Green”: I remember watching this 1973 film in the theater, and when the truth is revealed near the end about what soylent green actually is I looked at my friend, and in unison we both said, “Wha-a-a-at?” Of course, Charlton Heston was the star. I think every major film at this point in history starred Charlton Heston.

2. Did you know (Part 100)

• That the next two schools that could be heading to the Southeastern Conference (SEC) are not Florida State and Clemson, but rather Georgia Tech and Tulane. Apparently there’s some sort of loophole in the SEC charter that permits any founding member to rejoin in the event it/they leave their current conference(s). This could allow Tulane and Georgia Tech to (re-)join the SEC in 2025, according to media reports. Stay tuned.
• That Twinkies were invented in River Forest, Ill.
• That nearly 80 percent of Illinois is farmland. (Living in West-Central Illinois, I have no argument with that data.)
• That Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks has more miles of shoreline (1,150) than the coast of California.
• That hogs outnumber humans in Iowa 4 to 1.

3. So which MLB players are currently in the midst of the longest deals?

Bobby Witt is signed with Kansas City through 2037. (Total contract worth $288,777,777.)

Yoshinobu Yamamoto is signed with Los Angeles (Dodgers) through 2035. (Total contract worth $325 million.)

Fernando Tatis Jr. is signed with San Diego through 2034. (Total contract worth $340 million.)

Julio Rodriguez is signed with Seattle through 2034, with options for five additional years through 2039. (Total contract worth $209,300,000, not including five additional years.)

Note: Shohei Ohtani is technically signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers through 2043. Most of the money of his $700 million contract ($680 million, to be exact) will be paid out 2034-43

Steve Thought O’ The Day

The next huge MLB contract will be going to Juan Soto in the coming offseason. Early estimates figure Soto will sign some sort of deal north of $520 million.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. His contract will be less than Soto’s.