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BASEBALL: FOURTH INNING: A NATIONAL HEIRLOOM (TV)

Summary

Part four of this nine-part documentary series by filmmaker Ken Burns about the history of baseball in America, narrated by John Chancellor. Each part or "inning" represents an era of the sport's history. The story is told through archival photos and film footage, as well as the words of those who contributed to the game as read by various actors and writers. A select group of writers, historians, players, baseball personnel, and fans offer opinions on specific events and the significance of the game in America's history. The fourth inning, entitled "A National Heirloom," is divided into thirteen subtitled segments and covers the years 1920 to 1930, when baseball's emphasis shifted from pitching to hitting. The first subtitled segment, "That Big Son of a Bitch," offers opinions on slugger Babe Ruth from his sister Mamie Ruth Moberly, Yankee teammate Milt Gaston, and writer Robert Creamer; and retells the story of Ruth's formative years in a Baltimore orphanage. "Beethoven and Cezanne" follows Ruth's early career from his brief tenure in the Baltimore Orioles organization; to his trade to the Boston Red Sox and his development into a star pitcher; his marriage to Helen Woodford; the reasons for the trade that sent him to the New York Yankees; the revolutionary effect his power hitting had on the game when he was made an everyday player; footage of Ruth on and off the field; and assessments of his skill and impact by editor Daniel Okrent, Kansas City Monarch Buck O'Neil, sportswriter Roger Angell, sportscaster Red Barber, and paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould. "I Fear Nobody" covers the establishment of the Negro National League by former star pitcher and minority entrepreneur Andrew "Rube" Foster; the rival Eastern Colored League operated by white businessmen; the first Negro World Series between the two leagues; the pressures of running the Negro National League, which drove Foster to paranoia and institutionalization; the collapse of the Eastern Colored League; and writer Gerald Early's opinion about why baseball was particularly important to black people during this era. "An Everest In Kansas" describes the "gaudy pinnacle" of sportswriting in the 1920s as practiced by writers such as Damon Runyon and Shirley Povich; reveals Ty Cobb's disdain for Ruth for turning the game from one of "science" to one dominated by "power"; examines how Ruth's presence caused Yankee attendance to soar; looks at the "Bambino's" reckless indulgence in food, alcohol, and women; includes comments by Shirley Povich and Studs Terkel on early sportswriting; columnist George Will expounding on Ruth's explosive emergence into the game; fellow Yankee Jimmie Reese remembering the "Wazir of Wallop's" tireless lifestyle; and historian Manuel Marquez Sterling recalling his letters to American ballplayers during his boyhood in Cuba. "House of David" examines a religious commune in Michigan that fielded a talented semi-pro baseball team; includes footage of the team playing pepper games; covers the first baseball game broadcast on radio on August 5, 1921 on KDKA in Pittsburgh; and concludes with journalist Charley McDowell considering the connection between baseball and barber shops. "Bottom of the Fourth" finds broadcaster Bob Costas discussing how the game of baseball focuses on the individual within the group. "A Tough Epoch for Kings" focuses on Ruth's erratic and disappointing behavior on and off the field in 1922 and his determination to return his full attention to the game; discusses the Supreme Court's decision to uphold baseball's anti-trust exemption; and includes Povich relating a story about Walter Johnson comparing Ruth to his fellow hitters. "Some Ball Yard" covers the building of Yankee Stadium; Ruth's return to prominence; Rogers Hornsby's stellar hitting; and the surprising play of the 1924 Washington Senators. "Their Greatest Asset" describes Ruth's near-fatal 1925 stomach ailment; the emergence of "Iron Horse" Lou Gehrig; and the death of Christy Mathewson. "A Dollar Sign on the Muscle" features former player Buck O'Neil's recollections of the Negro Leagues; Branch Rickey's invention of the farm system; and scout Clyde Sukeforth's comments on the art of scouting. "I Can See Him Yet" focuses on the last great triumph of aging, troubled pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander in the 1926 World Series. "Murderer's Row" considers the prodigious 1927 Yankee lineup. "Rueful Memories" recalls the waning days of Ty Cobb's career; Ruth's estranged wife Helen's death in a fire; and his subsequent remarriage. The fourth inning concludes with the nation and baseball in an economic struggle as the Great Depression begins. (This program is closed-captioned.)

Acquisition and cataloging of this program was made possible by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Details

  • NETWORK: PBS WNET New York, NY
  • DATE: September 21, 1994 8:00 PM
  • RUNNING TIME: 1:55:16
  • COLOR/B&W: Color
  • CATALOG ID: T:34369
  • GENRE: Public affairs/Documentaries
  • SUBJECT HEADING: Baseball; Blacks - Sports; Sports; African-American Collection - News/Talk; African-American Collection - Sports
  • SERIES RUN: PBS - TV series, 1994
  • COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

  • Ken Burns … Executive Producer, Writer
  • Bruce Alfred … Coordinating Producer
  • Mike Hill … Coordinating Producer
  • Lynn Novick … Producer
  • David Schaye … Associate Producer
  • Susanna Steisel … Associate Producer
  • Stephen Ives … Consulting Producer
  • Geoffrey C. Ward … Writer
  • John Chancellor … Narrator
  • Dodworth Saxhorn Band … Music Group
  • Naomi Gertz … Singer
  • Jaqueline Schwab … Instrumentalist, Pianist
  • Jay Ungar … Instrumentalist
  • Matt Glaser … Instrumentalist
  • Molly Mason … Instrumentalist
  • Jesse Carr … Instrumentalist
  • Bobby Horton … Instrumentalist, Music (Misc. Credits), Studio Arrangements
  • Paul Mayberry … Music (Misc. Credits), Arranger
  • John Chancellor … Narrator
  • Adam Arkin … Voice
  • Mike Barnicle … Voice
  • Philip Bosco … Voice
  • Keith Carradine … Voice
  • John Cusack … Voice
  • Ossie Davis … Voice
  • Loren Dean … Voice
  • Anthony Hopkins … Voice
  • Garrison Keillor … Voice
  • Delroy Lindo … Voice
  • Amy Madigan … Voice
  • Charley McDowell … Voice, Guest
  • Arthur Miller … Voice
  • Michael Moriarty … Voice
  • Gregory Peck … Voice
  • Jody Powell … Voice
  • Robards, Jason (See also: Robards, Jason, Jr.) … Voice
  • Paul Roebling … Voice
  • Jerry Stiller … Voice
  • Studs Terkel … Voice, Guest
  • Eli Wallach … Voice
  • Mamie Ruth Moberly … Guest
  • Milt Gaston … Guest
  • Robert Creamer … Guest
  • Daniel Okrent … Guest
  • Buck O'Neil … Guest
  • Roger Angell … Guest
  • Barber, Red (Walter Barber) … Guest
  • Stephen Jay Gould … Guest
  • Gerald Early … Guest
  • Shirley Povich … Guest
  • George Will … Guest
  • Jimmie Reese … Guest
  • Manuel Marquez Sterling … Guest
  • Bob Costas … Guest
  • Clyde Sukeforth … Guest
  • Grover Cleveland Alexander
  • Cobb, Ty (Tyrus Raymond Cobb)
  • Foster, Rube (Andrew Foster)
  • Ford Frick
  • Lou Gehrig
  • Rogers Hornsby
  • Walter Johnson
  • Christy Mathewson
  • Shirley Povich
  • Branch Rickey
  • Damon Runyon
  • Ruth, Babe (George Herman Ruth)
  • Claire Ruth
  • Helen Ruth