Everybody knows the story. He sold Babe Ruth, that’s right the guy sold Babe Ruth! He’s been vilified, denounced and reviled. He’s been “slandered, libeled, he heard words he never heard in the Bible.” But ya know, he sold Babe Ruth!
Harry Herbert Frazee, that’s him, the guy who, you know. A theatrical producer and a very successful one at that; he purchased the World Champion Boston Red Sox from Joseph Lannin on December 4, 1916. The purchase price varies according to source but it was for somewhere in the $675,000 range.
I’m jumping ahead, but the story goes that Harry wanted to finance this play called “No No Nanette” (sounds pretty sexy doesn’t it?) Well as myth would have it, he needed the cash to do so, so he sold Babe Ruth! YIKES! Thus capturing the capital for this great venture. He received a cool 125K for the “Colossus”, the “Mauler”, the “Burley Baterer”, the “Babe”(all nicknames he garnered with the Red Sox, well not Babe.) But, on top of that old Harry got a nifty $350,000 loan from dear old Mr. Ruppert and guess what he used for collateral? Yup, Fenway Park! Can you imagine, the owner of the freaking Yankees actually owned Fenway Park too. I’m not sure, but I think that might be a mortal sin.
Truth is, there’s way more to the story, way more. Some good things about Mr. Harry Herbert Frazee. First, upon purchasing the Boston Red Sox, one of his first orders of business was to call Mr. Clark Griffith, the owner of the Washington Senators and offer him $60, 000 for Walter Johnson! Sixty K, more than anyone had ever offered anyone else for a baseball player! Griffith said nope, too bad, but a noble try. Another thing he did was proffer the idea that the 1918 World Series should be taken to France and played there so our troops fighting the Great War could be a part of it! Pretty innovative thinking if you ask me.
Anyway, back to the No No Nanette thing. It opened in Chicago in 1924 and never hit Broadway until 1925. Oh and Harry Frazee, sold the Red Sox to Bob Quinn in 1923. Babe was sold in January of 1920. Doesn’t add up does it?
If you want the whole story check out “The Babe in Red Stockings“.
No not that one…………………………………………………………………………
This one………….
http://www.amazon.com/Babe-Red-Stockings-Chronicle-1914-1919/dp/1571671129
I promise, you’ll get the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth on the sale of Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees.
And so it was on this date in Fenway Park history, December 4, 1916
About fenwaypark100
Hello and welcome, my name is Raymond Sinibaldi. A retired history teacher, after 26 years in the classroom, a baseball fan for three score and five, I have authored 13 books. Eight about baseball and her glorious history; most recently Yankees in the Hall of Fame and Dodgers in the Hall of Fame. An aficionado of the Kennedy Administration, I have written four books in that realm and also co-authored a book of motivational stories for coaches. The first, The Babe in Red Stockings which was co-authored with Kerry Keene and David Hickey and released in 1997. It is a chronicle of Babe's days with the Red Sox. We also penned a screenplay about Babe's Red Sox days so if any of you are Hollywood inclined or would like to represent us in forwarding that effort feel free to contact me. In 2012 we three amigos published Images of Fenway Park in honor of the 100th birthday of Fenway Park. That led to the creation of this blog. The following year, 2013 came my first solo venture, Spring Training in Bradenton and Sarasota. This is a pictorial history of spring training in those two Florida cities. The spring of 2014 brought forth the 1967 Red Sox, The Impossible Dream Season. The title speaks for itself, and it also is a pictorial history. Many of the photos in this book were never published before. The spring of 2015 brought 1975 Red Sox, American League Champions. Another pictorial effort, this will be about the Red Sox championship season of 1975 and the World Series that restored baseball in America. The spring of 2016 brought 61 Motivational Stories for Every Coach of Every Sport. My first JFK effort was in 2017 with John F Kennedy in New England, which was followed by JFK From Florida to the Moon (2019) and JFK At Rest in Arlington (2020). Jackie's Newport came about in 2019 and in 2023 came both Yankees in the Hall of Fame and Dodgers in the Hall of Fame. I was fortunate enough to consult with sculptor Franc Talarico on the “Jimmy Fund” statue of Ted Williams which stands outside both Fenway Park and Jet Blue Park Fenway South, in Fort Myers Florida. That story is contained in the near 300 posts which are contained herein. Throughout the years this blog has morphed from an exclusive Red Sox focus, to a broader baseball perspective to a blog about life, with baseball a large portion of it. This year, 2024, I have reactivated this blog which lay dormant for quite some time. Welcome aboard, pass the word and feel free to contact me about anything you read or ideas you may have for a topic. Email me at fenwaypark100@gmail.com.
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