Ellis, Barbara W., and Fern M. Bradley, eds.The Or-
ganic Gardener’s Handbook of Natural Insect and
Disease Control. Emmaus, Pa.: Rodale Press, 1997.
The bible of nonchemical pest control; perenni-
ally in print.
James Pauff
See also Bioengineering; Farm crisis; Genetics re-
search; Malathion spraying; Superfund program;
Water pollution.
Bird, Larry
Identification Hall of Fame professional
Basketball
Born December 7, 1956; West Baden, Indiana
As the leader of the Boston Celtics basketball dynasty, Bird
became a living legend and is recognized as one of the great-
est players ever.
After leading Indiana State University to the Na-
tional Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) bas-
ketball national championship game in 1979, Larry
Bird became a member of the Boston Celtics. Dur-
ing the 1979-1980 season, Bird led the Celtics to a 61-
21 record, the best in the National Basketball Associ-
ation (NBA). In his first NBA season, Bird was voted
a member of the Eastern Conference All-Star team
and was named NBA Rookie of the Year, edging out
his collegiate rival Earvin “Magic” Johnson, who
played for the Los Angeles Lakers.
In the 1980-1981 season, Bird was joined by Rob-
ert Parish and Kevin McHale to form one of the best
front courts in the NBA. The Celtics won the NBA
championship in six games, defeating the Houston
Rockets. In the 1983-1984 season, Bird won the
NBA’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) award and led
the Celtics to another NBA championship, defeat-
ing the Los Angeles Lakers in a seven-game series.
Bird was named the MVP of the NBA finals. He cap-
tured the NBA MVP award again in the 1984-1985
season. During the 1985-1986 season, Bird once
again led the Celtics to the NBA championship with
a six-game victory over the Houston Rockets. He was
named the NBA MVP for the third consecutive year
and the MVP in the NBA finals for a second time.
During his illustrious NBA career from 1979 to
1992, Bird averaged 24.3 points per game, recorded
a .496 field-goal percentage, a .886 free-throw per-
centage, 5,695 assists, and shot .376 from beyond the
three-point line. He was named an NBA All-Star
twelve times, a member of the All-NBA team nine
times, and voted onto the NBA All-Defensive second
team three years in a row from 1982 to 1984.Impact Along with Magic Johnson, Larry Bird
helped rejuvenate the NBA by bringing fan interest
back to a high level. The Bird-Johnson rivalry, which
carried over from the 1979 national collegiate bas-
ketball championship game, fueled new excitement
in the NBA and helped build a franchise rivalry be-
tween the Celtics and the Lakers. Bird was recog-
nized for his innate ability to anticipate and react to
the moves of his opponents. He was a fierce competi-
tor whose leadership and team play brought out the
best in his teammates. Known as one of the most114 Bird, Larry The Eighties in America
Larry Bird passes the ball after being trapped by two Philadelphia
76ers during a Boston Celtics home game in May, 1982.(AP/
Wide World Photos)