DATE: 1952 ORIGINAL or REPRINT: Type 3 - Second or later-generation photo, printed from a duplicate negative or wire photo process, within about 2 years of when it was shot TEAM: Brooklyn Dodgers SUBJECTS: Phil Rizzuto, Billy Martin ISSUER: United Press International APPROXIMATE SIZE: 9"x5-3/4" NUMBER OF PHOTOS: 1 COMMENTS / CONDITION: This is one of a large accumulation of vintage sports photographs, slides and negatives that we will be listing over the coming months. Wear on these, if any, is mostly confined to minor corner and edge wear, but see scans for further details including condition. We do not deal in stock images or modern reprints, and all scans shown are of the actual vintage photograph, slide or negative being sold. If you have any questions about a particular piece, please ask before the auction ends. BIO: Philip Francis Rizzuto (Scooter) was born in Brooklyn, NY and died in 2007 in West Orange, NJ. He played major league baseball from 1941 to 1956 as shortstop for the New York Yankees, appeared in 9 World Series, was selected 5 times as an All-Star, and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994. In 1950, he also won the Hickok Belt, awarded to the top professional athlete of the year, and was named Major League Player of the Year by The Sporting News. He was voted top major league shortstop by The Sporting News four consecutive years (1949-1952). Rizzuto later enjoyed a 40-year career as a radio and television sports announcer for the Yankees, becoming known for his popular but idiosyncratic style. Rizzuto broadcast Yankee games on radio and television for the next 40 years. His popular catchphrase was ''Holy cow.'' Rizzuto also became known for saying ''Unbelievable!'' ''Oh, man'' or ''Did you see that?'' to describe a great play, and would call somebody a ''huckleberry'' if he did something Rizzuto didn't like. He would frequently wish listeners a happy birthday or anniversary, send get-well wishes to fans in hospitals, and speak well of restaurants he liked, or of the cannoli he ate between innings. He also joked about leaving the game early, saying to his wife, ''I'll be home soon, Cora!'' and ''I gotta get over that bridge'', referring to the nearby George Washington Bridge, which he would use to get back to his home in Hillside. In later years, Rizzuto would announce the first six innings of Yankee games; the TV director would sometimes puckishly show a shot of the bridge (which can be seen from the top of Yankee Stadium) after Rizzuto had departed. Rizzuto was also very phobic about lightning, and sometimes left the booth following violent thunderclaps. Rizzuto was the longtime celebrity spokesman in TV ads for The Money Store. He was their spokesman for nearly 20 years, from the 1970s into the 1990s. He also served for a number of years as the commercial spokesperson for Yoo-Hoo chocolate beverages. Rizzuto did a 5-minute weekday evening sports show (''It's Sports Time with Phil Rizzuto'') from 1957 to 1977. In Rizzuto's obituary, The New York Times recalled a play that had occurred on September 17, 1951, with the Yankees and Cleveland Indians tied for first place and just 12 games left in the season: Rizzuto was at bat (he was righthanded) against Bob Lemon of the Cleveland Indians. It was the bottom of the ninth inning, in the middle of a pennant chase. The score was tied at 1. DiMaggio was on third base. Rizzuto took Lemon’s first pitch, a called strike, and argued the call with the umpire. That gave him time to grab his bat from both ends, the sign to DiMaggio that a squeeze play was on for the next pitch. But DiMaggio broke early, surprising Rizzuto. Lemon, seeing what was happening, threw high, to avoid a bunt, aiming behind Rizzuto. But with Joltin’ Joe bearing down on him, Rizzuto got his bat up in time to lay down a bunt. ''If I didn’t bunt, the pitch would’ve hit me right in the head,'' Rizzuto said. ''I bunted it with both feet off the ground, but I got it off toward first base.'' DiMaggio scored the winning run. Stengel called it ''the greatest play I ever saw.'' As the winning run scored, Lemon angrily threw both the ball and his pitching glove into the stands. Alfred Manuel Martin was born in 1928 in Berkeley, CA and died in 1989 in Johnson City, NY. He played major league baseball from 1950 to 1961 as infielder for the New York Yankees, Kansas City Athletics, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Braves and the Minnesota Twins, appeared in the 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955 and 1956 World Series, and was selected in 1956 as an All-Star. After retiring in 1961, Martin worked as a scout for the Minnesota Twins from 1962 to 1964, and a Twins coach from 1965 to May of 1968. He then replaced Johnny Goryl as manager of the Denver Bears for the rest of 1968, and the Minnesota Twins in 1969. He then went on to manage the 1969 Minnesota Twins, 1971 to 1973 Detroit Tigers, 1973 to 1975 Texas Rangers, 1975 to 1979 New York Yankees (including the 1977 World Champion team), 1980 to 1982 Oakland Athletics, and the 1983, 1985 and 1988 New York Yankees. Martin was killed in a car accident on Christmas 1989. SKU: X03345
Item: X03345
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