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Sports in America 1920 to 1939 2nd Edition James Digital
Instant Download
Author(s): James, Jr. Buckley, John Walters
ISBN(s): 9781604134490, 1604134496
Edition: 2
File Details: PDF, 7.29 MB
Year: 2010
Language: english
Sports in America
1920–1939
SECOND EDITION
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Photo credits: AP/Wide World: 11, 14, 19, 22, 30, 31, 39, 40, 43, 44, 47, 49, 52, 53, 54, 57, 58, 63, 65, 69, 75, 81, 85,
86, 89, 90, 93, 94, 95, 97, 99, 101; Courtesy Champions of the Ring: 46; Corbis 7, 8, 9, 15, 72, 103; Pat DeLong:
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Park: 12; Library of Congress: 51; National Baseball Library: 20, 21, 32, 41, 43 (inset), 50, 57 (inset), 60, 64, 70,
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(inset), 87; Whitney Museum of Art (painting by George Bellows): 25.
Sports icons by Bob Eckstein.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Foreword 4
Introduction 6
1920 10 1930 56
1921 14 1931 62
1922 18 1932 68
1923 24 1933 74
In this ”Golden Age of Sports,” boxing was one of the biggest attractions.
1924 30 1934 80
Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunny had two famous battles.
1925 34 1935 84
1926 38 1936 88
1927 42 1937 92
1928 48 1938 96
Foreword
BY LARRY KEITH
WHEN THE EDITORS OF SPORTS IN AMERICA epochal event reverberated throughout every part
invited me to write the foreword to this important of American society.
historical series I recalled my experience in the To be sure, black stars from individual sports
1980s as the adjunct professor for a new sports jour- had preceded him (notably Joe Louis in boxing
nalism course in the graduate school of Columbia and Jesse Owens in track), and others would follow
University. Before granting their approval, the fac- (Arthur Ashe in tennis and Tiger Woods in golf),
ulty at that prestigious Ivy League institution asked, but Robinson stood out as an important member of
Do sports matter? Are they relevant? Are they more a team. He wasn’t just playing with the Dodgers, he
than just fun and games? was traveling with them, living with them. He was
The answer—an emphatic yes—is even more a black member of a white athletic family. The ben-
appropriate today than it was then. As an integral efits of integration could be appreciated far beyond
part of American society, sports provide insights to the borough of Brooklyn. In 1997, Major League
our history and culture and, for better or worse, help Baseball retired his “42” jersey number.
define who we are. Sports have always been a laboratory for so-
Sports In America is much more than a com- cial awareness and change. Robinson integrated
pilation of names, dates, and facts. Each volume big league box scores eight years before the U.S.
chronicles accomplishments and expansions of the Supreme Court ordered the integration of public
possible. Not just in the physical ability to perform, schools. The Paralympics (1960) and Special Olym-
but in the ability to create goals and determine pics (1968) easily predate the Americans with Dis-
methods to achieve them. In this way, sports, the abilities Act (1990). The mainstreaming of disabled
sweaty offspring of recreation and competition, athletes was especially apparent in 2007 when
resemble any other field of endeavor. I certainly double amputee Jessica Long, 15, won the AAU
wouldn’t equate the race for a gold medal with the Sullivan Award as America’s top amateur. Women’s
race to the moon, but the building blocks are the official debut in the Olympic Games, though limited
same: the intelligent application of talent, deter- to swimming, occurred in 1912, seven years before
mination, research, practice, and hard work to a they got the right to vote. So even if these sports
meaningful objective. were tardy in opening their doors, in another way,
Sports matter because they show us in high they were ahead of their times. And if it was nec-
definition. They communicate examples of deter- essary to break down some of those doors—Title
mination, courage, and skill. They often embody a IX support for female college athletes comes to
heroic human-interest story, overcoming poverty, mind—so be it. Basketball star Candace Parker
injustice, injury, or disease. The phrase, “Sports is a won’t let anyone keep her from the hoop.
microcosm of life,” could also read “Life is a micro- Another area of importance, particularly as
cosm of sport.” it affects young people, is substance abuse. High
Consider racial issues. When Jackie Robinson of school, college, and professional teams all oppose
the Brooklyn Dodgers broke through major league the illegal use of drugs, tobacco, and alcohol. In most
baseball's “color barrier” in 1947, the significance venues, testing is mandatory, and tolerance is zero.
extended beyond the national pastime. Precisely The confirmed use of performance enhancing drugs
because baseball was the national pastime, this has damaged the reputations of such superstar ath-
4
letes as Olympic sprinters Ben Johnson and Marion outweighs the bad, that many of life’s success stories
Jones, cyclist Floyd Landis, and baseball sluggers took root on an athletic field.
Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez. Some athletes Any serious examination of sports leads to
have lost their careers, or even their lives, to sub- the question of athletes as standards for conduct.
stance abuse. Conversely, other athletes have used Professional basketball star Charles Barkley cre-
their fame to caution young people about submitting ated quite a stir in 1993 when he used a Nike shoe
to peer pressure or making poor choices. commercial to declare, “I am not paid to be a role
Fans care about sports and sports personalities model.” The knee-jerk response argued, “Of course
because they provide entertainment and self-identi- you are, because kids look up to you,” but Barkley
fy—too often at a loss of priorities. One reason sports was right to raise the issue. He was saying that, in
have flourished in this country is their support from making lifestyle choices in language and behavior,
governmental bodies. When a city council votes to young people should look elsewhere for role models,
help underwrite the cost of a sports facility or give ideally to responsible parents or guardians.
financial advantages to the owners of a team, it af- The fact remains, however, that athletes occupy
fects the pocketbook of every taxpayer, not to men- an exalted place in our society, especially when they
tion the local ecosystem. When high schools and are magnified in the mass media, sports talk radio,
colleges allocate significant resources to athletics, and the blogosphere. The athletes we venerate can
administrators believe they are serving the greater be as young as a high school basketball player or as
good, but at what cost? Decisions with implications old as a Hall of Famer. (They can even be dead, as
beyond the sports page merit everyone’s attention. Babe Ruth’s commercial longevity attests.) They are
In World War II, our country’s sporting passion honored and coddled in a way few mortals are. Re-
inspired President Franklin Roosevelt to declare grettably, we can be quick to excuse their excesses
that professional games should not be cancelled. He and ignore their indulgences. They influence the
felt the benefits to the national psyche outweighed way we live and think: Ted Williams inspired pa-
the risk of gathering large crowds at central loca- triotism as a wartime fighter pilot; Muhammad Ali's
tions. In 2001, another generation of Americans opposition to the Vietnam War on religious grounds,
also continued to attend large-scale sports events validated by the Supreme Court, encouraged the
because, to do otherwise, would “let the terrorists peace movement; Magic Johnson’s contraction of
win.” Being there, being a fan, yelling your lungs the HIV/AIDs virus brought better understanding
out, cheering victory and bemoaning defeat, is a to a little-understood disease. No wonder we elect
cleansing, even therapeutic exercise. The security them—track stars, football coaches, baseball pitch-
check at the gate is just part of the price of stepping ers—to represent us in Washington. Meanwhile,
inside. Even before there was a 9/11, there was television networks pay huge sums to sports leagues
a bloody terrorist assault at the Munich Olympic so their teams can pay fortunes for their services.
Games in 1972. Indeed, it has always been this way. If we, as a
The popular notion “Sports build character” nation, love sports, then we, quite naturally, will love
has been better expressed “Sports reveal character.” the men and women who play them best. In return,
We've witnessed too many coaches and athletes they provide entertainment, release and inspiration.
break rules of fair play and good conduct. The con- From the beginning of the 20th century until now,
victions of NBA referee Tim Donaghy for gambling Sports In America is their story-and ours.
and NFL quarterback Michael Vick for operating
a dog-fighting ring are startling recent examples. Larry Keith is the former Assistant Managing Editor
We’ve even seen violence and cheating in youth of Sports Illustrated. He created the editorial concept
sports, often by parents of a (supposed) future for SI Kids and was the editor of the official Olympic
superstar. We’ve watched (at a safe distance) fans programs in 1996, 2000 and 2002. He is a former
“celebrate” championships with destructive behav- adjunct professor of Sports J ournalism at Columbia
ior. I would argue, however, that these flaws are the University and is a member of the North Car olina
exception, not the rule, that the good of sports far Journalism Hall of Fame.
5
Introduction
1920–1939
MORE THAN A NEW DECADE ARRIVED Twenties, everything changed. On January
when the clock struck midnight on De- 3 the New York Yankees, a team that had
cember 31, 1919. A new American era never won a World Series, paid the Bos-
dawned, or at least would begin to dawn, ton Red Sox a substantial amount of cash
just three days later. America woke up in exchange for pitcher and rightfield-
on January 1, 1920, unaware of just how er George Herman “Babe” Ruth. In the
much grandeur and spectacle was on the hindsight of destiny, the $125,000 (plus
horizon. The preceding decade had been a $385,000 loan) the Yanks paid the Red
marred by war and scandal, by the worst Sox, who had won four World Series in the
of what humanity is capable. World War I 1910s, was the bargain of the century.
raged from 1914 to 1919, devastating Eu- Ruth went on to become one of the
rope on a scale never before seen. In the greatest athletes in a team sport in Ameri-
sports world, the conflict forced the can- can history. Ruth was bigger, in size, in
cellation of the Olympics in 1916 and the feats, and in his appetite for life, than
downsizing of the period’s popular team anything anyone had ever seen. He was,
sports, baseball and college football. quite simply, the perfect symbol of the
Major League Baseball, the only one decade. Only 1980s and 1990s basketball
of today’s big three pro sports that existed hero Michael Jordan comes close.
at the time, had been rocked by the 1919 Suddenly, athletes and entertainers
Black Sox scandal. Eight members of the were rich and famous. They became ce-
Chicago White Sox were accused of fixing lebrities. Think quickly: Can you name
the World Series that year, that is, inten- an American actor, musician, or ath-
tionally causing the White Sox to lose so lete from before 1920? Can your dad or
that gamblers would benefit. The integrity mom? There were a handful, at best—Jim
and future of baseball faced a very dire Thorpe, Ty Cobb, Jack Johnson, athletes
threat. Then, just three weeks into what all—whose names come to mind. But
would forever be known as The Roaring that’s about it.
6
A Baseball King Babe Ruth almost single-handedly saved baseball from a scandal.
Before 1920, politicians, generals, and all that. The 1920s introduced the world to
writers were America’s celebrities. The boxer Jack Dempsey, football coach Knute
dawn of Ruth, plus a country that sud- Rockne, football star Red Grange, and
denly had more leisure time, technology, super horse Man O’ War—just a few of the
and wealth than any nation ever, changed heroes readers will meet in this book.
7
SPORTS I N AM ERICA 1920 –1939
Before 1920, there was no radio and son, the Yankees, who shared a stadium
certainly no television. Jazz music was in with the New York Giants because Yankee
its infancy. There were a few films, but Stadium had not yet been built, became
they had no sound until 1927. Before 1920, the first Major League team to draw more
in sports, there was no National Football than 1 million fans. What had always been
League, no Winter Olympics, no Harlem America’s National Pastime suddenly be-
Globetrotters (the National Basketball came one of its biggest entertainment
Association was decades away from being successes, too.
formed), no All-Star Games in any sport That same year a group of men met
and, just in case you were wondering, in an auto showroom in Canton, Ohio,
no X Games. How thin the sports sec- and formed the American Pro Football
tion of the newspaper must have been Association (APFA). Two years later, they
back then! changed the name to the National Foot-
The arrival of Ruth in New York City ball League, beginning that league’s jour-
in 1920 opened the floodgates. That sea- ney to its position today at the top of the
American sports scene.
Later in 1920, Major League Baseball
appointed its first commissioner, a former
judge named Kenesaw Mountain Lan-
dis. The new commissioner would deal
with the Black Sox eight harshly, barring
them from baseball for life. Whether or
not they were guilty was immaterial to
Landis; he was acting to save baseball,
which he did.
Also in 1920, Prohibition, which made
it illegal to manufacture, sell or drink li-
quor, came into effect. The government
may as well have tried to sop up the Great
Lakes with a dish towel. These were fast,
fun and frantic times. Americans wanted
to pop a few champagne corks, both liter-
ally and figuratively. It was a decade when
a song called “Ain’t We Got Fun” became a
hit, and no title better defined the times.
The times were intoxicating. So men
created football leagues and built huge
Down the Drain From 1920 to 1929, it was illegal to make, sell, or stadiums, such as Yankee Stadium and
drink liquor in the United States. Local officials, as here in Chicago, the Los Angeles Coliseum and the Rose
poured out millions of gallons of alcoholic beverages, such as beer. Bowl, to name just a few. They staged
colossal heavyweight fights with $1
8
million in prize money and swam across
the English Channel (actually, a woman
did that, too, and faster than the men!)
and flew airplanes across the Atlantic
Ocean and even won one for the Gipper
(see page 13).
It was left to a writer, the voice of
that age, to sum it up best. “Here was a
new generation,” wrote novelist F. Scott
Fitzgerald, “dedicated more than the last
to the fear of poverty and the worship of
success; grown up to find all gods dead, all
wars fought, all faiths in man shaken.” Singing Out Loud Al Jolson (right) starred in The Jazz Singer, the
Not everyone participated in the first motion picture with sound. It was released in 1927 and marked a
new riches of the sports world. African- new era in American entertainment.
Americans were still banned from playing
professional baseball and none played
pro football. Some colleges offered black few venues where women could earn a
athletes a place to play, but the opportuni- share of the athletic glory.
ties were limited. By the end of the decade, Babe Ruth
Women, too, had only minor roles was earning more than the President of
to play in the wide world of sports in the the United States. “Why not?” said the
era. There were no women’s pro sports Babe. “I had a better year than he did.”
and few colleges offered sports for female Sports, finally and forever, arrived to stake
students. The Olympics were one of the its claim to America’s heart and soul.
9
1920
Ruthian: There was no other word to
Curse of the Bambino
describe the Babe’s extraordinary feats.
The Roaring Twenties flew out of the No other major league team hit as many
starting gate. On January 3 the Bos- homers as Ruth did in 1920. He also had
ton Red Sox sold the best baseball player an .847 slugging percentage (the total
of all time, George Herman “Babe” Ruth number of bases gained on all base hits,
(1895–1948), to the New York Yankees. divided by the number of times a player
In 1920 the Yankees were a 17-year- has been at bat). Ruth’s slugging record
old team that had never won a pennant. lasted until Barry Bonds broke it in 2002.
The Red Sox had won four World Series He was primarily responsible for the Yan-
in the past eight seasons. Ruth, only 24, kees becoming the first Major League ball
had already led the American League in club to draw more than 1 million fans
home runs or tied for the lead in the past (1,289,422) in a single season.
two seasons. But Red Sox owner Harry The only thing Ruth failed to do in
Frazee, who was also a theatrical produc- his first season in New York was lead
er, was riddled with debt. He desperately the Yankees to the league title. Instead,
needed money to finance his new Broad- the Cleveland Indians represented the
way show, No! No! Nanette. In a deal that American League in the World Series. The
has haunted Boston baseball fans ever Indians, aided by second baseman Bill
since, Frazee sold Ruth to New York for Wambsganss’s unassisted triple play (still
$100,000 in cash and a $385,000 loan. the only one in World Series play), beat
The Yankees immediately doubled the Brooklyn Dodgers in seven games.
Ruth’s salary—at his demand—to a then Still, the sale of Ruth became the sin-
unheard-of $20,000 a year. No athlete had gle most important—and infamous—deal
ever been paid so much. But the Babe was in sports history. It dramatically reversed
worth every penny. In his first season with the World Series fortunes of both teams.
the Yankees, Ruth hit 54 home runs. By The Yankees would win 26 World Series
July 19 he had already broken his own through the end of the 2008 season. The
single-season record of 29 homers, set "cursed" Red Sox didn't win a title again
the year before. until 2004.
10
A Heck of a Hitter Baseball cards were already a big part of many fans' experience of
baseball by the time this Babe Ruth card came out in 1920.
11
SPORTS I N AM ERICA 1920 –1939
He won the next six races he entered, as sport in the country, these two magnificent
well, before losing by a half-length to a animals were head and shoulders above
horse ironically named Upset. the rest of the field. But which was better?
Man O’ War entered 1920 as a three No one knew, since they had never raced
year-old with nine victories and one de- against each other.
feat. He would have been a shoo-in to win On October 12 the two legends were
the Triple Crown (the Kentucky Derby, pitted against one another in a match race
Preakness and Belmont Stakes races) ex- (only those two horses were entered) at
cept that his owner disapproved of three- Kenilworth Park in Windsor, Ontario. The
year-olds running the mile-and-a-quarter prize was grand for that time: $80,000.
Kentucky Derby in early May, which is As it turned out, there was no doubt.
early in the racing season. But Man O’ Man O’ War defeated Sir Barton by seven
War did win the Preakness Stakes and the lengths. He was retired afterward, having
Belmont Stakes—by 20 lengths. won 20 of 21 races in his career.
Man O’ War’s lone rival was Sir
Barton, a horse who had won the Triple
A Brand New League
Crown one year earlier. At a time when
horse racing was as popular as any other Full-time professional football was
born in 1920. While there had been
brief attempts to start pro leagues in the
past, this was the one that stuck. A group
of team owners gathered in a Hupmobile
(the Toyota of its day) showroom in Can-
ton, Ohio. They formed the American Pro-
fessional Football Association. Needing a
“name” to attract press attention, they
brought in Olympic champion Jim Thorpe
as the league president. Thorpe actually
didn‘t do much of anything presidential,
but he was still a top player
Fourteen teams took part in that first
season. All but one of the teams was from
Illinois, Ohio, or Indiana. The Akron Pros
were named the first champion of the
new league with an 8–0–3 record. They
were led by Fritz Pollard, the first African-
American coach in the league.
You say you’ve never heard of the ol‘
One in a Million A statue of the great Man O' War stands at Lexing- APFA? Perhaps you know them better by
ton Horse Park in Kentucky, a national horseracing hotbed. the name they took on starting in 1922:
The National Football League (NFL).
12
Other Milestones of 1920
✔ On February 13 in Kansas City, Missouri, ✔ The Summer Olympics returned to the
Rube Foster founded the Negro Nation- sports calendar and were held in Antwerp,
al League. The first financially successful Belgium. The Games of 1916 had been
blacks-only baseball league, the Negro Na- cancelled due to World War I. The Unit-
tional League spawned dozens of similar ed States captured 41 medals. Sprinter
leagues over the next three decades. Charles Paddock was the first to earn the
title “World’s Fastest Human” by winning
✔ Bill Tilden became the first American
the 100-meter race. Hawaiian swimmer
to win a singles tennis title at Wimbledon.
Duke Kahanamoku, also a surfing pioneer
Later that summer, Tilden won the first of
set a world record in the 100-meter free-
six straight U.S. Open singles champion-
style. Italian fencer Nedo Nadi proved un-
ships. “Big” Bill became the first male ten-
beatable, winning five gold medals while
nis star to gain national notice. ”Big” Bill TIlden
dominating every form of the sport.
13
1921
taken by another team; the 1923 ver-
The Original Celtics
sion is shown below), including gritty
On April 16 more than 11,000 basket- 5-foot-10 guard John Beckman, hailed
ball fans jammed the 71st Street Ar- from Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen neigh-
mory in Manhattan. They came to watch a borhood. Beckman was known as “the
one-day, best-of-three basketball “World Babe Ruth of basketball.” He was an out-
Series” between the New York Original standing free throw shooter at a time
Celtics and the New York Whirlwinds. when one player was permitted to at-
Most of the Original Celtics (so-called tempt all of his team’s free throws.
because the name New York Celtics was In the opener, Beckman scored 25
points, 23 on free throws, in a losing effort.
The Whirlwinds won 40–27. In the second
game, Beckman was again the high scorer,
netting 17 points in a 26–24 victory. Fans
were in a frenzy waiting for the third
and deciding game to begin—perhaps
too much of a frenzy. Officials inside the
Armory feared the mood had gone from
enthusiastic to violent, and they canceled
the third game.
The Original Celtics were basketball’s
first great national team. A permanent
professional league was not founded until
1948, and traveling teams like the Celtics
were the class of what was still a very
young sport—basketball had been in-
What a Team! Note the heavy leather knee pads worn by the vented only 30 years earlier.
members of the Original Celtics basketball team. Players also wore The team known today as the Boston
heavy wool jerseys in these days before synthetic materials. Celtics of the NBA took its name from this
barnstorming early club.
14
Ten-Goal Tommy Tommy Hitchcock, the greatest American polo player of all time.
15
SPORTS I N AM ERICA 1920 –1939
Tommy Hitchcock was the United Dempsey KOs Carpentier
States’ top polo player and a war hero as
Jersey City, New Jersey, was home to
well. As a pilot, he had been shot down
the most anticipated heavyweight
over Germany and taken prisoner. Hitch-
championship match in years, pitting the
cock, only 18 at the time, had jumped from
champ, American Jack Dempsey, against
a prisoner-of-war train and walked 100
Frenchman Georges Carpentier.
miles to Switzerland and freedom.
No fight had ever promised such
Now, in London in June, playing
fanfare—or cash. Promoter Tex Rickard
in front of Britain’s King George V and
paid $250,000 for a stadium to be built and
Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Hitch-
promised Dempsey himself $300,000. It
cock was similarly bold and impressive.
was money well spent. When the opening
In the first game in what would be a 2–0
bell rang two months later, on July 2, the
United States sweep, Hitchcock outscored
fight became the first in history to earn $1
the entire British side.
million on ticket sales.
Hitchcock was so well-known among
On the day of the fight, 80,183 spec-
the high-living polo set that author F.
tators filed into the arena. “Did you ever
Scott Fitzgerald supposedly modeled the
see so many millionaires?” asked Rick-
character Tom Buchanan in The Gr eat
ard, who himself was one. The bell saved
Gatsby after Hitchcock.
16
Other Milestones of 1921
✔ Charles Paddock, the reigning Olympic gold medalist in the 100-meter race, was
still a student at the University of Southern California when the track team traveled
north to Berkeley for an April 23 meet. That afternoon, he set four world records,
in the 100-, 200-, and 300-meter races, as well as in the 300-yard sprint.
✔ On the ice, the Ottawa Senators won their second consecutive Stanley Cup and
National Hockey League championship.
✔ Bill Tilden again won both the Wimbledon and U.S. Open singles tennis titles.
✔ The football team from tiny Centre College in Danville, Kentucky, defeated
mighty Harvard 6–0 on October 29, ending Harvard’s 23-game winning streak.
Dempsey in round two and did the same Giants Win Series
for Carpentier in round three (that is, the
The New York Yankees ran away
fighters were knocked down just as the
from the rest of the American
bell rang to end those rounds).
League. Outfielder Babe Ruth set new
In the fourth, Dempsey knocked
marks for home runs (59) and runs batted
the Frenchman to the canvas, and blood
in (170) in a season, while batting .378.
spurted from Carpentier’s mouth.
In the National League, the New
In New York’s Times Square, a loud-
York Giants rode the hitting of infielders
speaker described the live result to an
Frankie Frisch and George Kelly to the
anxious throng of boxing fans: “Carpen-
pennant. New York baseball fans enjoyed
tier makes no effort to rise . . . The fight is
a Polo Grounds World Series. This was the
over! Jack Dempsey remains heavyweight
first time that all the World Series games
champion of the world!”
were played at one stadium.
The following morning The New York
This World Series was the last best-
Times devoted one front-page column to
of-nine series in Major League Baseball
the news that President Warren G. Hard-
history. It was also the first to be broadcast
ing had signed a peace treaty officially
on radio. The Giants, who won the World
ending World War I. On the same page
Series in 1905 before losing their next
the Times devoted five columns and a
four trips to the Fall Classic, rallied from
three-level headline to the Dempsey-
a two-games-to-none deficit to beat the
Carpentier fight.
Yankees five games to three.
17
1922
Mr. DeMar-athon Basketball Barnstormers
On April 19 in Boston, Clarence The New York Original Celtics,
DeMar won his first Boston Mara- the best team of basketball talent
thon in 11 years. The marathon distance the sport had yet seen, took off on a
was then 24.5 miles, and DeMar covered 205-game national tour. Until then, the
the distance in a course-record 2:18.10. Original Celtics, with such future Hall of
Two years later, all marathon courses ad- Famers as John Beckman, Dutch Dehnert,
opted the current standard 26.2-mile and Nat Holman, had played most of their
distance. games at Manhattan’s Central Opera
DeMar, whose first win at Boston House. But this year the Cagers—so called
came in 1911, routinely ran 100 miles per because chicken wire surrounded the
week. “Mr. DeMar-athon” eventually won court to protect spectators from errant
five more Boston Marathons—with his passes—took their act on the road. The
last victory coming in 1930 at the age of Original Celtics dominated, going
41. His record of seven Boston victories is 193–11–1.
unlikely to be equaled. Uptown, in Harlem, another barn-
storming basketball team was being
formed. A Caribbean immigrant named
A Watery Tarzan
Bob Douglas had the idea to form an
On June 23 in Honolulu, swimmer all-black team. He named them the Re-
Johnny Weissmuller (1904–1984) naissance after their home court, the Re-
caused a sensation. Just 17 years old, the naissance Casino and Ballroom, on the
Illinois lad broke four freestyle world corner of 138th Street and 7th Avenue.
swimming records at distances of 300 and The Rens did not play their first game
400 meters and 440 and 500 yards. As until the following year.
great as this day was, the future Olympic Decades later, Douglas, known as “the
gold-medal winner and star of Tarzan Father of Black Basketball,” became the
movies still had his best days in the pool first African American enshrined in the
ahead of him (see page 33). Basketball Hall of Fame.
18
From Pool to Jungle Johnny Weissmuller moved on from being one of the most
successful American swimmers in history to playing Tarzan in a series of movies.
Hornsby and Sisler Like the New York Giants and New
York Yankees, the St. Louis Browns
Light Up St. Louis (American League) and St. Louis Car-
The highlight of the baseball season dinals (National League) occupied the
came in St. Louis, Missouri, where a same stadium, Sportsman’s Park. The
pair of future Hall of Fame players put on Browns had left-handed hitter George
a great batting show. Sisler (1893–1973), most likely the sec-
19
Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
Journalism - Practice Problems
Second 2024 - Institute
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