1.   An era passes quietly.

2.   As quietly as that, an era passed.

3.   But when the United Center in Chicago did not sell out on Tuesday night, an era officially passed.

4.   Mike Buckner, a part-time miller in the Middle Georgia town of Junction City, saw that era pass in a generation.

5.   Now that era is passing.

6.   So this is the way an era passes.

7.   That an era has passed is clear.

8.   The players were cooperative with the league in dire times, but that era has clearly passed.

9.   The Wings are still a top-level team, but their era has probably passed.