Wilde, the 19th century foppish English playwright made two visits to the US city, rejecting its art and architecture with a snort, dismissively declaring: "Must we go to Chicago to be educated?"

Bellamy, the Melbourne Storm coach, went to Chicago to learn, spending a week in camp with the All Blacks during their shock loss to Ireland.

"I can't reveal what I learnt from the All Blacks because it was all in-house but it was certainly an education," he said.

Bellamy and Storm football manager Frank Ponissi were also in Chicago when the Cubs won the baseball World Series after an agonising 108-year wait.

"We witnessed one of the greatest gatherings of people in history ... perhaps five million people welcoming them home," Bellamy said.

The Storm pair moved to Ohio on US election day and were invited to the Republican party's state headquarters hotel for the vote count.  The Republican faithful expected the local candidate, whose election night function was in another hotel – reflecting the deep divisions in the party - to win.

But few expected Donald Trump to triumph, including Bellamy and Ponissi, although they were surprised at the vitriol directed at Hillary Clinton.

The Storm's defeat in the 2016 NRL grand final, together with the shock losses by the All Blacks and Clinton, produced a stream of text messages from Australian mates of Bellamy and Ponissi, declaring them vessels of voodoo.

"They reckon we were some kind of jinx," said Bellamy. "Losing the grand final and then putting the mock on the All Blacks and Hillary.

"It's not true, as some of the messages said, that we were in camp with the Cleveland Indians [who lost to the Cubs], or on the Clinton campaign bus."

However, if not a mock, "Bellyache" may be a carrier of the curse.

He caught up with one of his former players, Ryan Hoffman, now with the New Zealand Warriors. Hoffman was on a similar fact-finding mission, perhaps looking to the day he, too, may be a coach.

Bellamy and Ponissi flew to Florida to meet with Bill Parcells, the former NFL coach who won two Super Bowls with the Giants, leaving Hoffman to visit a US college in Alliance, Ohio.

The University of Mount Union team was once coached by Larry Kehres, who has the highest winning percentage in US college football history.

He was succeeded two years ago by his son, Vince, whose record stood at 112 consecutive victories, bettering the incredible winning streaks of Larry.

You guessed it. The Purple Raiders, with a former Melbourne Purple jinx in town, lost.

Bellamy and Ponissi's meeting with Parcells did not correspond with a hurricane for which Florida is famous and the two coaches settled into a long chat identifying the many common factors in the NRL and NFL.

"I think our footballers have a better chance of making it over in the US, than their athletes coming here to play in the NRL," Bellamy said in response to the possibility of recruiting American footballers.

After all, if the NFL can invite NRL stars Jason Taumalolo and Valentine Holmes to trial, why can't the NRL scout the 98.4 per cent of American high school footballers who don't make it to the NFL?

"Given the stop-start nature of American football, the only ones who would be a chance in the NRL are those who had also played some rugby union," he said.

One of Parcells' long-term assistants was Bill Belichick, now head coach of the New England Patriots where he has won four Super Bowls from six attempts.

"The one thing which most interested me about what Belichick does is his hiring of assistants," Bellamy said.

"He encourages young coaches to come into the organisation as work experience guys. Then, when someone leaves, he promotes from this group.

"In other words, he doesn't hire from outside. It's something I've been trying to do here in Melbourne. When Justin Morgan left to go to the Warriors, I looked at former Storm players, Matt King and Brett White before appointing Jason Ryles as forwards coach."

Bellamy and Ponissi also visited the Brooklyn Nets basketball team where they observed the reverse.

Of their 20 players, 15 were new to the club and of their 40 staff, 36 had just been appointed, including the head coach.

While the Melbourne pair can't be accused of causing the disaster which led to such a massive upheaval, they didn't stay in New York for long.

As Oscar said: "Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go."