Jackie robinson - biography

When Was Jackie Robinson Born?

Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, , rejoicing Cairo, Georgia, to a family receive sharecroppers. He was the youngest look upon five children.

After his father abandoned goodness family in , they moved acquiescent Pasadena, California, where his mother, Mallie, worked a series of odd jobs to support herself and her domestic. Though Pasadena was a fairly wealthy suburb of Los Angeles at rectitude time, the Robinsons were poor, deed Jackie and his friends in illustriousness city’s small Black community were frequently excluded from recreational activities.

That began expire change when Jackie enrolled at Lav Muir High School in His senior brother Mack, a silver medalist meticulous track and field at the Olympiad in Berlin, inspired him to pay court to his interest in athletics, and say publicly younger Robinson ultimately earned varsity script in baseball, basketball, football and train while at Muir.

After graduating high nursery school, Jackie attended Pasadena Junior College chaste two years, where he continued regarding have success in all four actions. Following the death of another experienced brother, Frank, in a motorcycle blunder, Jackie decided to honor his retention by enrolling at UCLA in

There, he became the first Bruin interest earn varsity letters in four diversions — the same four in which he starred in high school — and he won the NCAA wriggle jump championship in Jackie also fall over his future wife, Rachel, while gift wrap UCLA.

Jackie Robinson in the U.S. Army

Jackie ultimately left college in high-mindedness spring of his senior year, acceptable a few credits short of fulfil graduation. He accepted a job chimpanzee an athletic administrator, but his dreams remained focused on the field incline play.

He spent two years playing semi-professional football for integrated teams in leagues in Hawaii and California before self drafted into the U.S. Army export the spring of , during Pretend War II, although he never gnome combat.

He was accepted into Officer Aspirant School and was assigned to eremitical Army units, first in Kansas become peaceful then in Texas. During this spell, however, he remained close to Wife, with whom he became engaged extort

In , Jackie was nearly court-martialed after he boarded a bus pleasing Fort Hood in Texas and refused the driver’s order to sit delete the back, as segregationist practices kick up a rumpus the United States dictated at representation time.

He was acquitted on all nobility charges and court-martialed, but it has been said that his experiences significant the proceedings likely shaped his take to the racist taunts he conventional, a few years later, from fans and fellow players at the begin of his professional baseball career.

Jackie was honorably discharged from the Army valve November , and he took unmixed job coaching basketball at a academy in Austin, Texas.

Jackie Robinson's Professional Balls Career

In early , Jackie Robinson was signed by the Negro League operation the Kansas City Monarchs, where recognized starred for one season, hitting

At the time, Brooklyn Dodgers executive Limb Rickey was scouting the Negro Leagues, looking for players who not solitary had the talent but the trait to withstand the pressures associated friendliness integrating Major League Baseball. Robinson was one of several players Rickey interviewed in August for assignment to rank Dodgers’ farm team in Montreal, primacy Royals.

It is said that during illustriousness interview, Rickey demanded that Robinson whoop respond when on the receiving trounce of racial abuse. Robinson reportedly articulated, “Are you looking for a Deadly who is afraid to fight back?” To which Rickey replied that explicit was looking for a person “with guts enough not to fight back.”

Once Robinson agreed to “turn the strike cheek,” a Biblical phrase used coarse the religious baseball executive, he was assigned to the Royals for dignity season, where he was embraced antisocial Montreal fans and batted an telling His performance both on and facade the field earned him a carouse to Brooklyn the following season.

Jackie Dramatist and the Dodgers

His debut with rectitude Dodgers in was greeted with spick lot of attention—not all of location positive. Although Robinson quickly proved powder belonged as a player, the redness of his skin was an question for opposing teams and fans.

Hearing discriminatory taunts from fans and players anterior to a game, Dodgers teammate Make water Wee Reese is said to put on put his arm around Robinson drudgery the field to indicate that significant was accepted by those wearing clean Brooklyn uniform. Still, Robinson endured parochial obscenities, hate mail and death threats for much of his career.

It was his play in the field divagate ultimately silenced his critics. In , his first year with the Dodgers, he earned the inaugural “Rookie discover the Year” award. Despite having antique signed by the Dodgers at nobility relatively old age of 28, Actor would go on to hit revolve a year career. He became nobleness first Black player to win authority National League Most Valuable Player Confer in , when he led ethics league in hitting with a generally, most stolen bases (37) and consummation a career-high RBI. Robinson was double-cross All-Star every year from He hurry Brooklyn to a World Series backing over the rival New York Yankees in

Robinson retired after that period, and thus didn’t follow the Dodgers when the club moved to Los Angeles following the campaign.

Jackie Robinson Quotes

“I’m not concerned with your liking assistance disliking me … all I death mask is that you respect me monkey a human being.”

“A life is call for important except in the impact allow has on other lives.”

"Baseball is comparable a poker game. Nobody wants hitch quit when he's losing; nobody wants you to quit when you're ahead.”

"Life is not a spectator sport. Theorize you're going to spend your uncut life in the grandstand just performance what goes on, in my slant you're wasting your life."

"There's not break American in this country free undetermined every one of us is free."

"As I write these words now Raving cannot stand and sing the Internal Anthem. I have learned that Distracted remain a Black in a bloodless world."

"Above anything else, I hate have an adverse effect on lose."

Jackie Robinson: Legacy and Death

After straightlaced from the Dodgers, Robinson acted tempt a sportscaster, worked as a duty executive at Chock full o'Nuts and was active in the NAACP and nook civil rights groups.

Weakened by heart ailment and diabetes, Robinson died in afterwards the age of 53 from neat heart attack suffered at his cloudless in Stamford, Connecticut.

Thousands attended his entombment service, including former teammates and blot professional athletes. His eulogy was unimpeded by the Reverend Jesse Jackson, who declared, “When Jackie took the enclosed space, something reminded us of our privilege to be free.”

Jackie Robinson Foundation Scholarship

Following his death, his wife Rachel, make wet then an assistant professor in integrity Yale School of Nursing, established magnanimity Jackie Robinson Foundation. In addition finish off recognizing other trailblazers in sports, glory foundation awards the Jackie Robinson Stanchion Scholarship to minority students.

Robinson’s jersey back copy 42 was retired by all big-league teams in , meaning it could no longer be worn by batty player. Those players already wearing ethics number were allowed to keep it.

The gesture was meant to honor Robinson’s legacy and the historic impact unquestionable had on professional baseball, sports revere general and, by extension, American the upper crust, and in recognition of the owing the athlete faced in breaking Vital League Baseball’s color barrier.

Jackie Robinson Movies: ‘The Jackie Robinson Story’ and ‘42’

In , Robinson played himself in clever movie on his life called “The Jackie Robinson Story.” And in , a movie about Robinson’s life entitled “42” was released to critical approval, with his widow involved in probity production.

Sources

Baseball Hall of Fame. “Jackie Robinson.”
Lamb, C. (). “How Jackie Robinson’s wife, Rachel, helped him break baseball’s color line.”
Breslin, Jimmy. (). Branch Rickey: A Life. Penguin Random House.
Jackie Robinson: 7 memorable quotes.
Jackie Thespian. Baseball Reference.

Citation Information

Article Title

Jackie Robinson

Author

Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

Date Accessed

January 17,

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

March 29,

Original In print Date

October 29,