Tommy Kramer

Thomas Francis "Tommy" Kramer (born March 7, 1955) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the NFL from 1977 to 1990. He played collegiately at Rice University and was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round (27th overall) of the 1977 NFL Draft after being named MVP of the 1977 Senior Bowl. He was inducted with the 2012 class into the College Football Hall of Fame.

Early years

Kramer played his high school football at Robert E. Lee High School in San Antonio. He guided the Volunteers to a state title in 1971 and then to the state semi-finals in 1972. The state championship game in 1971 was the first high school game played in the new Texas Stadium (Dallas Cowboys) in Irving, Texas. Kramer guided the Lee Volunteers to a 28–27 victory which has been hailed by some as the best high school game ever played in Texas. Kramer's high school teammates included Pat Rockett (played major league baseball for the Atlanta Braves), and Richard Osborne (played for the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles).

Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League (NFL) as an expansion team in 1960, and first took the field for the 1961 season. They are in the North Division of the National Football Conference (NFC); before that, the Vikings were in the NFC Central, and before that they were in the NFL's Western Conference Central Division. The team has appeared in four Super Bowls, but lost all of them.

In May 2012, a bill was passed to build a new stadium for the team at the site of the Metrodome. The new stadium is expected to be open for the 2016 season. The Vikings played their home games at TCF Bank Stadium at the University of Minnesota while U.S. Bank Stadium is being built.

History

Professional football in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area (the "Twin Cities") began with the Minneapolis Marines/Red Jackets, an NFL team that played intermittently in the 1920s and 1930s. However, a new professional team in the area did not surface again until August 1959, when Minneapolis businessmen Bill Boyer, H.P. Skoglund, and Max Winter were awarded a franchise in the new American Football League (AFL). Five months later, in January 1960, after significant pressure from the NFL, the ownership group, along with Bernie Ridder, reneged on its agreement with the AFL and then was awarded the National Football League's 14th franchise, with play to begin in 1961.Ole Haugsrud was added to the NFL team ownership because, in the 1920s, when he sold his Duluth Eskimos team back to the league, the agreement allowed him 10 percent of any future Minnesota team. Coincidentally or not, the teams from Ole Haugsrud's high school, Central High School in Superior, Wisconsin, were also called the Vikings and also had a similar purple-and-yellow uniform design.

Tommy

Tommy is a given name that is usually the English diminutive of Thomas. The name also could refer to:

People with the given name Tommy

Dennis Chambers

Dennis Chambers (born May 9, 1959) is an American drummer. He was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2001.

Early life

Chambers began drumming at the age of four years, and was gigging in Baltimore-area nightclubs by the age of six. He was recruited in 1981 by the Sugar Hill Label to be their "house drummer." Chambers played on many Sugar Hill releases, including "Rapper's Delight".

In an interview by Bonedo in 2011, Chambers was asked who some of his influences and favorite drummers were and he mentioned Clyde Stubblefield, Al Jackson Jr., Steve Gadd, Vinnie Colaiuta, Gary Husband, Jack Dejohnette, Billy Cobham, Buddy Rich, Elvin Jones, Roy Haynes, and Tony Williams.

Career

In 1978 (at 18 years old) he joined Parliament/Funkadelic, and stayed with them until 1985. In 1986 he joined the John Scofield band. Since then he has played with most of the major figures in jazz fusion music.

He has recorded and performed with John Scofield, George Duke, Brecker Brothers, Santana, Parliament/Funkadelic, John McLaughlin, Niacin, Mike Stern, CAB, Greg Howe, and many others.

Kramer

Kramer is a Dutch and Low German word for a small merchant, hawker, or retailer and is a common occupational surname. It can also be an Anglicized version of the High German surname Krämer. For a list of people named Kramer, see Kramer (surname). The following are named after people with the name "Kramer":

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