On April 15, 1947 Jackie Robinson became the first black major league player, ending racial segregation in professional baseball. April 15, 2024 marks the 20th year that Major League Baseball celebrates Jackie Robinson Day, remembering and honoring his career as an athlete and activist. Starting as a first baseman Robinson played 10 seasons for the … Continue reading Celebrating Jackie Robinson Day with Universal Newsreels
Tag: Baseball
Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Title IX with Archival Footage of Sporting Legends
June 23, 2022 is the 50th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, the landmark federal bill designed to guarantee equal opportunities for women in education and sports by prohibiting sex-based discrimination in federally funded schools. Title IX was passed as part of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, U.S. federal legislation under public law … Continue reading Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Title IX with Archival Footage of Sporting Legends
Subject Finding Aid Project (Update 2)
I'm back again with another update regarding the progress of the Subject Finding Aid Project in the Still Picture Branch. Harnessing the momentum gained with Batches 2 and 3, I'm happy to announce that roughly 3500 descriptions for Batches 4 and 5 are LIVE in the NARA Catalog! The Finding Aids in these batches cover … Continue reading Subject Finding Aid Project (Update 2)
Spotlight: Universal Newsreel Highlights Female Baseball Players
Note: This post was originally meant to highlight opening day of MLB baseball for the 2020 season while commemorating the role women play in the sport. While baseball may be on hold during this difficult time, we still wanted to highlight the achievements of women in the sport and hope this post helps get you … Continue reading Spotlight: Universal Newsreel Highlights Female Baseball Players
Spotlight: Last Minute Holiday Gifts!
Co-Authored by Beth Fortson and Corbin Apkin. You wake up in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve and realize that you have forgotten to get a gift for your sister's brand new "He's Totally The One" boyfriend. You get a text from your old college roommate two days before your New Years Party … Continue reading Spotlight: Last Minute Holiday Gifts!
Universal News: The Chicago Cubs vs. the Detroit Tigers in the 1945 World Series
The Cubs are in the playoffs and could make it to the World Series. Is this their year? They haven’t won the World Series since 1908 and haven’t played in a World Series since 1945. Some people have attributed the World Series drought to a curse by Billy Sianis, who was ejected from Wrigley Field for … Continue reading Universal News: The Chicago Cubs vs. the Detroit Tigers in the 1945 World Series
Batter Up: World War I Amputees Play Ball
Long before Pete Gray or Jim Abbott stepped up to the plate, veterans of World War I recovering at military hospitals throughout the United States formed amputee baseball teams. Elbert K. Fretwell, Director of Recreation in Hospitals in the Department of Military Relief with the American Red Cross, insisted that the best recreation for recovering soldiers was their traditional … Continue reading Batter Up: World War I Amputees Play Ball
Play Ball!
In honor of the Major League Baseball playoffs, the Cartographic and Architectural Branch has pulled together a few records featuring the national past-time.
“An Awful Lot to Live For”: Lou Gehrig’s Final Season in the News
In 1939, the Fourth of July coincided with Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium. A day usually reserved for parades and fireworks was transformed into one of the most solemn, heart-wrenching, and inspiring moments in the history of sports. It was here, before 62,000 fans, that Gehrig proclaimed he was the “Luckiest man on the … Continue reading “An Awful Lot to Live For”: Lou Gehrig’s Final Season in the News
This Week in Universal News: The All-American Girl Baseball League, 1951
This week in Universal News, the All-American Girl Baseball League plays a pre-season game in Alexandria, Virginia. The league operated from 1943 to 1954, and was created to fill stadiums that were left empty when professional baseball players went to war. You probably know about these women baseball players from the 1992 film A League of … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: The All-American Girl Baseball League, 1951