Hot Topics: Longshot Darren Clarke Shakes Up Golf Tour

Darren Clarke of Northern Ireland won last weekend's British Open at the age of 42 and 337 days, making him one of the oldest golfers ever to win a major golf championship.

The self-described "normal guy playing golf, having a bit of fun" took home $1.45 million and a $3 million endorsement bonus from Dunlop for his efforts. "It still hasn't sunk in yet," Clarke tells The New York Times. "I've looked at the trophy all night and sort of semi-figured out it's mine. Nice to be, as you say, Open champion."

A resident of Dungannon, Clarke is the third Northern Ireland sportsman in 13 months to win one of golf's four majors, a feat that's helped to solidify the nation's current stature as a golf powerhouse. Clarke ranked No. 111 in pro golf worldwide prior to the tournament and was a 170-to-1 shot to win. The victory means he'll get automatic exemptions to play in all four major championships for the next five years and in the British Open until he's 60.

On the Homefront: Journalist and author Sue Diaz tells the story of her son Roman's first tour in Iraq in Minefields of the Heart: A Mother's Stories of a Son at War. In a blog post on CraigConnects that accompanies a video excerpt of the book, Diaz says she hopes other military families will find their own experiences reflected in her words. "I also wanted to reach readers without a military connection and invite them for a time into the uncertain world of families with a loved one in a war zone." CraigConnects is Craigslist founder Craig Newmark's new website devoted to highlighting veterans, volunteering, community building and other civic and world issues.

TV's Boomer Wasteland: TNT is pulling the plug on Men of a Certain Age after two seasons due to low ratings, despite critical acclaim and an avid, if small, fan base. Best friends Joe (Ray Romano), Owen (Andre Braugher) and Terry (Scott Bakula) resonated with boomers because they "exemplify our conundrum," SecondAct blogger Patrick Kiger wrote about the series. "We can't go back, but we're increasingly uneasy about keeping up, not to mention dealing with what lies ahead." The show, he says, has been a beacon in a wasteland of boomer programming.

Not So Ready for Prime Time: QVC canceled an appearance by Jane Fonda after viewers complained about controversial comments she made during the Vietnam War era. Fonda, 73, had been scheduled to appear on the cable shopping network July 16 to plug her new book, Prime Time: Making the Most of Your Life. The actress says the network didn't contact her before bowing to boycott threats. "I could have pointed out that threats of boycotts are nothing new for me and have never prevented me from having bestselling books and exercise DVDs, films, and a Broadway play," Fonda writes on her blog. QVC confirmed the cancellation but declined to state why, according to this Los Angeles Times report.

The Passing of a Design Pioneer: Before there was the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover with its pastiche of pop icons or Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon cover with its instantly recognizable refracting prism on an ebony background, there was graphic designer Alex Steinweiss. Columbia Records hired Steinweiss in 1939, and he is credited with launching the album cover as an art form, a medium that influenced a generation of boomers who spent hours in their rooms studying the cardboard sleeves while listening to Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison. Steinweiss died this week at 94. "The way records were sold was ridiculous," Steinweiss told The New York Times in a 1990 interview. "The covers were brown, tan or green paper. They were not attractive, and lacked sales appeal." Steinweiss' high-concept designs for recordings of Rodgers and Hart, Gershwin, Bartok and Beethoven changed all that.

Out With the Old? Speaking of albums, personal finance columnist and author Liz Weston says it's time to dump them. Music albums and CDs are among the vestiges of an earlier technology era that Weston suggests have outlived their usefulness but through pure inertia are still hanging around, collecting dust or costing more than you need to spend. Read more: 7 Things You Don't Need Anymore.

Sign of the Times: AARP, the advocacy group for people over 50, has created AARP Pride, a section of its website for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community. The organization will cover news, personal finance, relationships, travel and other topics of concern to older gay Americans and their families and friends.

Website of the Week: RoadScholar.org is the newest incarnation of Elderhostel Inc., the adventure nonprofit that's been around since 1975 and now offers educational trips for people of all ages. The website features programs in 90 countries that can be searched by interest, popularity and activity level and offers last-minute deals.

My Vacation: SecondAct reader Patty Knight snaps photographs and grazes her way through Tuscany, Venice and Florence. English teacher Matt Keighley savors baseball in Hiroshima, Japan. Donna Hull shares a small boat cruise through the wilds of Alaska. These are the first reader posts in SecondAct.com's new "My Vacation" series. Want to share your travel adventures and photos? Read more here.

Last Word: "Catch-22 is a tool to think with, to press into service whenever the cause of political perspicuity demands it. Heller has given us a concept, and a language, with which to lampoon obfuscation." -- Writer Richard King, in The Smart Set, on the 50th anniversary of the publication of Joseph Heller's seminal anti-war satire.