Amazing original program for the New York Baseball Writers Eighth Annual Eating and Oratorical Contest, held in the Grand Ball Room of the Hotel Commodore, on February 1, 1931, 6.5 x 10, two pages. The evening offered a hilarious presentation of several skits, including “On Diamond No. 2 Believe It or Not This too—Solid Flesh, and No Foolin’ featuring Artie McGovern and a certain George H. Ruth,” and “Hats! Hats! Hats! Or Mr. Ruth Goes to Business,” starring several people playing the roles of Babe Ruth, Babe Herman, and Judge Landis. It is noted in one skit that “Bottles courtesy of the Liquor-Sham Commission.” Signed on the back cover in fountain pen by fourteen attendees including Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Knute Rockne, Eddie Collins, Jack Dempsey, Moe Berg, Bill Terry, Mickey Cochrane, Jimmie Dykes, and Daniel M. Daniel. In very good condition, with Ruth’s signature, as well as a few others, over printed credits on reverse, some scattered light creasing and spotting, mild handling wear, and a light vertical crease to all pages.
This unique and exceptional offering features some of the most prolific sports icons of the 1930s, and recalls a night where some 900 guests celebrated the accomplishments of these lauded athletes, enjoying the entertainment of various skits, comical presentations of the players and writers themselves, and a minstrel show. One particularly memorable skit was the ‘Baseball Ballet,’ featuring a number of the writers in dancing roles alongside such Broadway stars as Dan Parker, Bill Hennigan, Parson Bradley, Marshall Hunt, Charlie Segar, and John Drebinger. Babe Ruth, the man of the hour, received a silver plaque from president of the New York chapter, Daniel M. Daniel, honoring him “as the man considered to have rendered outstanding service to baseball during his connection with the game.” The Bambino himself even made an appearance on stage with his trainer Artie McGovern, enacting a quick burlesque of their training routine. This annual night was a heady gathering of heavyweights from all walks of the professional athletic arena, making possible this truly one-of-a-kind sports relic! Pre-certified Steve Grad/PSA/DNA and RR Auction COA.
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