Teaching a class about the Brooklyn Dodgers

[Paulmcall]

I have the honor of giving a two hour class about the Dodgers and Ebbets Field in a couple of weeks to a coffee and conversation class for seniors at our local community college.
What would you mention if you had the chance ?
I already have 32 people signed up. I have a half hour power point presentation about Ebbets Field and then I will wing it.
I suppose just talking about the standout individual players could fill up the rest of the time. It should be one of the more interesting classes they will ever attend.

[LouGehrig]

An important area deals with the intense loyalty players, especially Brooklyn players, had to their team, and how that contrasts to modern players.

Frank Sinatra's, "There Used to be a Ballpark Here" says it all.

Today's fans are so different from Brooklyn fans as well as fans of other teams from those days.

Today, some Yankees fans root for the Mets, and some Mets fans root for the Yankees. I am certain you have read some of their posts.

Can you imagine a Yankees fans rooting for the Dodgers or a Dodgers fan rooting for the Yankees? I don't think so.

[Yankeebiscuitfan]

Why don't you tell them something about these guys as well?

And how the Dodgers were a huge part of your lives.

Just my two cents.

[kramer_47]

An important area deals with the intense loyalty players, especially Brooklyn players, had to their team, and how that contrasts to modern players.

Frank Sinatra's, "There Used to be a Ballpark Here" says it all.

Today's fans are so different from Brooklyn fans as well as fans of other teams from those days.

Today, some Yankees fans root for the Mets, and some Mets fans root for the Yankees. I am certain you have read some of their posts.

Can you imagine a Yankees fans rooting for the Dodgers or a Dodgers fan rooting for the Yankees? I don't think so.

I think it was the loyalty of the Dodgers fans and the event that took place when you went to a ball game at Ebbets Field. It was a special day when we went to the ball game, from getting there 2 hours before and talking and getting autographs from the players to the after game dinner. Today they let you in an hour before so you miss just about all of pregame and they don't let you anywhere near the field if you aren't sitting there so forget about talking to the players. If you want autographs you have to go to a show and pay big bucks for them, and you can't even see your team on cable because there is a dispute between the teams cable network and your cable company. What ashame and this was all started by that O'Malley guy who had $ signs in his eyes when he said people would pay to watch his Dodgers play. We thought he was crazy but look at where we are today, we basically have to pay for cable to see our team play if our cable company which is a monopoly sees fit to agree to show it. I'd love to go back to the simple days of the 50's when you just turn on your Muntz TV and the Dodgers were on WOR-9.

[Bklyn Boy since 1936]

I have the honor of giving a two hour class about the Dodgers and Ebbets Field in a couple of weeks to a coffee and conversation class for seniors at our local community college.
What would you mention if you had the chance ?
I already have 32 people signed up. I have a half hour power point presentation about Ebbets Field and then I will wing it.
I suppose just talking about the standout individual players could fill up the rest of the time. It should be one of the more interesting classes they will ever attend.

I've seen you in action, Joe, and I'm convinced ... you'll have no problem filling up two hours. Particularly if you use your great book "Ebbets Field: Brooklyn's Baseball Shrine" as a Text for your class.

[Robb Schwartz]

no advice

But....I envy you.

Enjoy!

[MATHA531]

While it shouldn't be a major part of the presentation, make sure you explain that the reason the Brooklyn franchise was stolen was the greed of an individual named O'Malley who wasn't happy making a mint in Brooklyn and wanted even more...and emphasize that despite a recent push to transfer the blame to Robert Moses it was O'Malley's greed and only O'Malley's greed, not a failure on the part of the fans in Brooklyn, that led to the fact the Brooklyn Dodgers no longer exist and the franchise playing on the left coast is not the Dodgers we knew.

[LouGehrig]

I'd love to go back to the simple days of the 50's when you just turn on your Muntz TV and the Dodgers were on WOR-9.

How about a FADA or a CROSLEY?

And what is so crazy is that the Yankees (and Giants) were (are) always associated with WPIX, channel 11, while the Dodgers, and then the Mets, were on WOR, channel 9.

Two seasons ago, the Yankees were on channel 9 a few times, while the Mets were on channel 11.

We have met the enemy and it is us.

[DODGER DEB]

How about a FADA or a CROSLEY?

And what is so crazy is that the Yankees (and Giants) were (are) always associated with WPIX, channel 11, while the Dodgers, and then the Mets, were on WOR, channel 9.

Two seasons ago, the Yankees were on channel 9 a few times, while the Mets were on channel 11.

We have met the enemy and it is us.

Funny you should mention a FADA, Lou! I am sitting here laughing as I remember when my Dad bought our first TV, a 12 1/2 inch FADA!

Thanks for the memory!

c.

[kramer_47]

Teaching a class about the Brooklyn Dodgers

Funny you should mention a FADA, Lou! I am sitting here laughing as I remember when my Dad bought our first TV, a 12 1/2 inch FADA!

Thanks for the memory!

c.

I still have the 15 inch Muntz my Father bought around 1950, I found it in his attic after he passed away, it is still in pretty good shape but i won't play it. I asked the cable guy if he could hook it up for me, of course I was kidding around, and he looked at me like I was crazy.

[Paulmcall]

Thanks so much for the great ideas guys.
Of course, the Dodgers moving out west set into motion trends that are continuing to this day.
Owners still threaten to move their franchises if they don't get a new stadium.
It was amazing to see Milwaukee get abandoned by the Braves after their initial success there and they really started the whole franchise upheaval. Baseball hadn't moved a team in 50 years before then.
Once that happened, owners were lining up (with leverage) to get a new park or better new city for their team
Who would imagine that Washington would leave the nation's capital?
After being the birthplace of baseball, who could understand Brooklyn being abandoned?
I guess it really blew up the myth that baseball was just a game. Free agency added another wake up call to fans who got comfortable seeing their favorite players year after year.
Baseball moved teams and stadiums around from the city core to the suburbs.
The intimacy of places like Ebbets Field were gone forever.
A lot of this coincided with our growing up and loss of innocence. Talk about a double whammy.
It was bad enough that there was no Santa Claus but no Brooklyn Dodgers too?
The only problem was ... the Dodgers were real and like family!

[zman]

I still have the 15 inch Muntz my Father bought around 1950, I found it in his attic after he passed away, it is still in pretty good shape but i won't play it. I asked the cable guy if he could hook it up for me, of course I was kidding around, and he looked at me like I was crazy.

That's just awesome. I'd love to watch some of those partial game broadcast DVD's on that. Preceded by the Happy Felton DVD, of course. Got any Schaeffers in the ice box?

[kramer_47]

Teaching a class about the Brooklyn Dodgers

That's just awesome. I'd love to watch some of those partial game broadcast DVD's on that. Preceded by the Happy Felton DVD, of course. Got any Schaeffers in the ice box?

I have some VHS tapes of all the Dodgers World Series I bought years ago and I just bought a Happy Felton tape off Ebay we could watch those with either a Schaefers or Rheingold. The wood on the set was protected because my mother put contact paper on it which I took off, the screen and the dials were exposed for 50 years so they are a little bit beat up but still in wonderful shape. Too bad my baseball cards weren't still there in the corner with the TV set. Anyway the icebox is full with Schaefers and Rheingold and the vcr and tv are ready to go.

[tonypug]

I have the honor of giving a two hour class about the Dodgers and Ebbets Field in a couple of weeks to a coffee and conversation class for seniors at our local community college.
What would you mention if you had the chance ?
I already have 32 people signed up. I have a half hour power point presentation about Ebbets Field and then I will wing it.
I suppose just talking about the standout individual players could fill up the rest of the time. It should be one of the more interesting classes they will ever attend.

The hardest thing is to explain what the neighborhood meant to the team, and the team to the neighborhood. There is no comparison that exists today.

[zman]

I have the honor of giving a two hour class about the Dodgers and Ebbets Field in a couple of weeks to a coffee and conversation class for seniors at our local community college.
What would you mention if you had the chance ?
I already have 32 people signed up. I have a half hour power point presentation about Ebbets Field and then I will wing it.
I suppose just talking about the standout individual players could fill up the rest of the time. It should be one of the more interesting classes they will ever attend.

I know. You should invite a guest author. How about Joe McCauley? I heard he's pretty good. Seriously.....Will you be taping any of the classes?