Roger Maris, Roberto Clemente, and Branch Rickey
The New York Times digs up (forgive the pun) a few more "classic" obits from its files.
December 15, 1985
Roger Maris is Dead at 51, Set Record Home Runs
By JOSEPH DURSO
During the early 1960's when the New York Yankees reigned for five
straight pennant-winning seasons, Roger Maris was all things to all
people. But baseball history will remember him as the home-run twin to
Mickey Mantle, and generations of fans will remember him as the man
with the asterisk in the record books: *Hit 61 home runs in 1961 in a
162-game season.
---
January 2, 1971
Clemente, Pirates' Star, Dies in Crash Of Plane Carrying Aid to Nicaragua
Roberto Clemente, star outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates,
died late last night in the crash of a cargo plane carrying relief supplies to the victims of
the earthquake in Managua.
Three days of national mourning for Mr. Clemente were proclaimed in his native Puerto
Rico, where he was the most popular sports figure in the island's history. He is a
certainty to be enshrined in Baseball's Hall of Fame.
---
December 10, 1965
Branch Rickey, 83, Dies in Missouri
Branch Rickey, a dominant figure in baseball for half a century,
died tonight in Boone County Memorial Hospital at the age of 83. He broke the color barrier in the major leagues and developed the farm system.
...
The cigar chomping Mr. Rickey, who throughout his career declined to attend Sunday baseball games because of a promise to his mother and who was seldom known to say anything stronger than his famous "Judas Priest," remained in the hospital's intensive-care ward until his death, continuously receiving oxygen.
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