Fame

Her blouse open to reveal a skimpy bra, Megan Fox strikes a dangerously hot pose on the cover of Esquire. Yet inside the talk is of God. And glossolalia. "It feels like a lot of energy coming through the top of your head," Fox, 26, says of her experiences speaking in tongues. It began when she was 8. "Your whole body is filled with this electric current," she says. "Words are coming out of your mouth, and you can't control it. The idea is that it's a language that only God understands.

POCONO RACEWAY'S Dr. Joseph Mattioli will be inducted posthumously into the National Motorsports Press Association's Hall of Fame in January. Mattioli, who died last January at age 86, was the guiding force of Pocono Raceway for decades. Other inductees are Jim Hunter and Ken Squier. Hunter, also a posthumous inductee, was a track president, NASCAR vice president and journalist. Squier is a longtime broadcaster and track owner in his native Vermont. The induction will be Jan. 19 in Charlotte, N.C. - Bill Fleischman  

The Inquirer's Mel Greenberg, a pioneer in the coverage of women's college basketball on a national level, has been elected to the U.S. Basketball Writers' Association Hall of Fame, the USBWA announced yesterday. Also chosen were three former association presidents: Alex Wolff of Sports Illustrated, Jim O'Connell of the Associated Press, and Bill Millsaps of the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Greenberg, an Inquirer employee for 33 years, will be inducted during the NCAA Women's Final Four this weekend in San Antonio, Texas.

Seymour E. Cohen said in 1985 he would bring a professional sports Hall of Fame to Philadelphia and 16 other cities. Then Cohen pulled an end run and duped investors and athletes out of $144,075, according to the state attorney general. Among the creditors Cohen left in his wake were former Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski and Houston Oilers running back Mike Rozier, the onetime Camden High School star and 1983 Heisman Trophy winner. Cohen was charged yesterday by a Pennsylvania grand jury with taking the money in the scam, according to state Attorney General LeRoy S. Zimmerman.

Music industry officials who unveiled the Philadelphia Music Foundation's Walk of Fame in Center City yesterday may get a boost from Harrisburg in their efforts to honor Philadelphia's musical heritage. State Senator Vincent Fumo, who helped lay the bronze cornerstone of the walk, said he will ask the state legislature to appropriate "a minimum of $50,000" next year for the Philadelphia Music Foundation (PMF). Fumo made the announcement to a sidewalk crowd of recording studio executives, several members of the Hooters rock band and students from the School of Creative and Performing Arts who gathered in front of the Shubert Theater at Broad and Spruce.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - Herb Magee was wandering through the exhibits yesterday afternoon when he spotted a Larry Bird mannequin in shooting position. He checked his guide hand. Perfect. He felt under his shooting hand to see that the proper distance had been maintained between the ball and palm. Also perfect. "My man," Magee said, as he moved on. Just around the corner was a statue of Dr. James Naismith. Before he saw the "Do not touch" sign, Magee hugged the man who hung those peach baskets in this town late in the 19th Century.

Former University of Pennsylvania squash coach Ann D. Wetzel will be inducted into the United States Squash Hall of Fame in ceremonies tonight at the Merion Cricket Club. Wetzel was the national champion in the sport in 1964; she had reached the tournament final in each of the previous five years. Wetzel also was part of national-championship doubles teams in 1952, 1956, 1959 and 1964. Wetzel started the women's team at Penn in 1968 and coached there until 1994. She is retired, living six months in Ocean City, N.J., and six months in South Florida.

BETHLEHEM - As the Eagles wrapped up training camp at Lehigh, they announced the passing of one of their all-time greats, Hall of Fame receiver Pete Pihos. Pihos, 87, died yesterday morning from complications of Alzheimer's disease in Winston-Salem, N.C. He led the NFL in receptions in 1953, '54 and '55 and went to the Pro Bowl six times in his 9-year career, all of it with the Eagles. "Our hearts and prayers go out to the Pihos family for the loss of Pete, who was one of the all-time great Philadelphia Eagles," coach Andy Reid said.

The Phillies again avoided the tumult that would have accompanied Curt Schilling's selection to the team's Wall of Fame. The Phillies announced that catcher Mike Lieberthal will be enshrined on Aug. 10. The announcement comes on the final day of a series with the Dodgers, the only other team that Lieberthal played for. He is the third catcher among the 34 members, joining Bob Boone and Darren Daulton. "What a tremendous honor it is to be added to the Wall of Fame along with some of the greatest players in Phillies history," Lieberthal, 40, said.

INDIANAPOLIS - Curtis Martin has gone from the mean streets of Pittsburgh to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The star running back with the Patriots and Jets for 11 seasons was one of six players elected Saturday to the shrine. Martin once disliked playing the game, but used it to escape a neighborhood where his grandmother was murdered. "When I get awarded something like the Hall of Fame, it's almost foreign to me," said Martin, the NFL's No. 4 career rusher. "This wasn't something I planned on doing.