It’s Not Easy Living Behind Enemy Lines

Ellen Rooney is the Boston city commissioner of liquor licensing, but she’s a die-hard Green Bay Packer fan, so she has to be careful not to offend New England Patriot backers before the Super Bowl.

“To find myself surrounded by Pats fans, it’s just unfortunate,” she said. “Hey, I don’t want to go out on a limb and saw it off.”

So how does she demonstrate her feelings toward Green Bay? She uses a green-and-gold Packer pen in her job.

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Trivia time: Who coached four Heisman Trophy winners in college?

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First again: Cross-dressing Dennis Rodman of the Chicago Bulls has been named “worst dressed woman” of 1996 by fashion guru Mr. Blackwell, beating out Glenn Close, Helen Hunt and Goldie Hawn.

“In fishnet and feathers, he’s a unisex wreck,” Mr. Blackwell said.

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Looking ahead: From Michael Henderson of the Times of London on 16-year-old Martina Hingis of Switzerland, who was born in Czechoslovakia:

“Despite her Swiss domicile, her cheekbones testify to a Slavic ancestry and, in years to come, with a fur collar wrapped round her, she could make a smashing Anna Karenina.”

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Here’s hoping: From the Chicago Sun-Times’ Lacy J. Banks on the Cedric Ceballos-Robert Horry trade:

“It was a case of two teams swapping talented rotten apples and hoping the mere change of scenery can revive good performances out of them.”

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Perish the thought: Former Patriot offensive lineman John Hannah is concerned that his old team might move out of Massachusetts, perhaps to Rhode Island--or the Coliseum.

“I just want the Patriots to stay in southern New England,” he said, “and not in southern Los Angeles.”

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Family matter: Former heavyweight champion Jersey Joe Walcott knocked out Phil Johnson in the third round in Philadelphia on June 22, 1936, and knocked out Johnson’s son, Harold, in the third round in Philadelphia on Feb. 8, 1950.

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Believe it or not: San Francisco 49er quarterback Steve Young is 0-6 against Green Bay, 0-4 when he was with Tampa Bay and 0-2 with the 49ers. In those six games, he has thrown two touchdown passes and has been intercepted eight times.

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What it means: Orlando Magic center Rony Seikaly, on the return of teammates Penny Hardaway and Nick Anderson to the team after being out with injuries:

“Penny and Nick mean to this team what Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen mean to the Bulls. Getting them back is as much an impact on this team as it would have on the Bulls getting Michael and Scottie back from injuries. It’s not even about scoring, it’s about their presence on the court.”

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Trivia answer: Frank Leahy of Notre Dame, who had Angelo Bertelli, Johnny Lujack, Leon Hart and Johnny Lattner.

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And finally: The Yankees and the Mets will play June 16-18 in Yankee Stadium, and baseball writer Mike Phillips of the Miami Herald says, “If the Yankees don’t start Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry, then they should check the marketing director for substance abuse.”