Hogan’s Unheralded Heroes

baseball, sports 2 Minutes

Last Saturday I had the pleasure and privilege of meeting Dr. Lawrence D. Hogan at the Local Author Fair in the Fanwood Memorial Library.

Dr. Hogan is Professor of History Emeritus from Union County College in New Jersey where he taught African American History for 37 years. He is the author of A Black National News Service: Claude Barnett and the Associated Negro Press, and The Forgotten History of African American Baseball, and principal author and editor of Shades Of Glory, published by National Geographic.

He is a delightful man to speak with and shared some interesting stories about his life studying baseball, particularly Black Baseball. He talked about the charms of long-forgotten Ruppert Stadium in Newark where the Newark Eagles played in the Negro National League and his long friendship with Eagle star Monte Irvin who eventually played for the New York Giants and Chicago Cubs. He told me about an interview he had with Yankee shortstop Tony Kubek for his latest book So Many Seasons in the Sun. He was gracious enough to buy a copy of my book Mickey Mantle’s Last Home Run and after reading the first few pages warmed my heart when he commented on his appreciation of the iconic Pulaski Skyway which is mentioned on page four.

circa 1950: Outfielder Monte Irvin #20 of the New York Giants poses for a portrait, crouching and holding a baseball bat, 1950s. Irvin played for the Giants from 1949-1955. He also played for the Negro National League before his eight years in the Majors. (Photo by Photo File/Getty Images)

Dr. Hogan is also the executive producer of Before You Can Say Jackie Robinson: Black Baseball in America in the Era of the Color Line a documentary that is now available on You Tube. This engrossing and entertaining documentary features veteran Negro League players, places where they played, and fans who saw them play. It includes interviews with Max Manning, Larry Doby and a moving tribute to Ray Dandridge as he is finally recognized for his immense talent and is inducted into Baseball’s Hall of Fame. The documentary is part of a program that Dr. Hogan along with his friend Kevin Kane, offer to museums, libraries, historical societies, colleges and other venues.

Ray Dandridge was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987

Here is the You Tube link.

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Dr. Hogan, (I guess I can call him Larry since we are neighbors and he lives only a few blocks away) is quite a guy.

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Published by Steven A. Falco

I have been a writer all my life and recently started blogging. I have published two books. My latest book is a coming-of-age novel entitled Mickey Mantle's Last Home Run which follows the exploits of a fifteen-year-old playing baseball back in 1968. It is a book about the friendship of a black kid and a white kid trying to navigate teenage life in that tumultuous time when our country seemed to be coming apart. My first book, Grandpa Gordy’s Greatest World Series Games, is geared to middle-grade readers. In it, Grandpa Gordy, a retired sportswriter, relates his versions of the great games of our national pastime in a hilarious and entertaining fashion. My love of baseball shows through in my books as I try to convey many of life’s lessons in an enjoyable lighthearted way. I grew up writing and playing baseball in the New Jersey suburbs of New York City. I majored in English at Montclair State University where I studied Steinbeck, Dylan, and Berra.

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