Following up on several vintage Dodger newsletters I've shared over the past several weeks, here is a 1943 issue to take a look at. Go here to check out all my past "Dodger Doings" post. Click on any pic to embiggen. Furthermore, I'd like to extend thanks to fellow Dodger collector Doug for passing this along.
Dated June 20, 1943, this newsletter reminds us of the important link between Baseball and World War II. As you know, several notable ballplayers signed up to fight. One of which is highlighted on the front page of the featured newsletter. Check out what was written about former Dodger center fielder Harold "Pete" Reiser.
Despite the fine play of Augie Galan in centerfield for the Dodgers this season, Brooklyn fans will always remember the kid who came from "nowhere" to win acclaim and fame as the youngest player ever to wear the National League batting championship crown.It should also be noted that executives within the game almost suspended play, indefinitely, due to the war. Some had thought it disrespectful to host ballgames when fellow Americans were dying overseas. Others had concerns of military attack on the eastern shores of America. Thankfully, reasoned heads prevailed and the game played on. And, as we find out in the newsletter, our fighting men in battle was just as happy about that then anybody else. They eagerly sought out news on their favorite clubs.
When they think of "Pete" Reiser they will think of home runs smashed to win crucial games... they will think of a sturdy young man racing, jumping, diving to make brilliant defensive plays as he roamed his position in centerfield. And they will think of that waning afternoon in St. Louis in 1942 when that fighting Reiser spirit... that will to win... led him to crash into a concrete wall in a valiant attempt to thwart the "enemy."
Truly, if Pete Reiser is representative of the young American men in uniform, victory must certainly be ours.
A recent visitor to the Dodger and Giant press boxes, (War Corespondent Bob Brumby of International News) had this to say:There are several more anecdotes about war and Baseball in the newsletter, so I encourage you to check it all out.
"Sports and movies must be continued at all cost. They provide a welcome relief from the tremendous pressures of foxhole warfare. Many a boy, with whom I have squatted in a dirty, cramped foxhole has been more interested in how Herman, Ott or Keller are hitting than in anything else. The boys want baseball to continue and they certainly deserve everything we can give them."
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