This year saw the end of the Boston Red Sox Curse, Martha Stewart's freedom, and yet another installment of American Idol. All things must end, and 2004 is no different. But before it does, here are some other excellent endings.
●Television series: M*A*S*H. The long-running series that brought cross-dressing, the Mud Hens, and Tony Packo's to the national fore went out on top with 105 million viewers in 1983, the most ever for a television series finale.
●Classical music: Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture." One word: Cannons.
●Rock song: The Beatles' "The End." An aptly titled song, it comes on the last album the Fab Four recorded together, "Abbey Road." It made us remember, "And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make."
●Movie: The Sixth Sense. What? Really? Director M. Night Shyamalan has made a career so far of movies that end with The Twist. This was perhaps his most skillful.
●Relationship: Britney Spears. Her January marriage to childhood friend Jason Alexander in Las Vegas was annulled 55 hours later. Runner-up: Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck. And J. Lo and dancer Cris Judd. And J. Lo and model Ojani Noa.●Book: Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms. For a style so sparse and unemotional, this finale is devastating.
●Sports career: Babe Ruth. The Sultan of Swat hit three home runs in one of his last games in 1935. And that was without steroids.
●Poem: T.S. Eliot's "The Hollow Men." It's the end of the world as we know it: "Not with a bang but a whimper."
Contact Ryan E. Smith at: ryansmith@theblade.com
or 419-724-6103
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