Lou Gehrig's record for consecutive games played stood for decades until Cal Ripken Jr. broke it in 1995. Most people remember Gehrig for this record, or for the disease that claimed his life (and now bears his name). But what many forget is how prolific a hitter he was. The son of German immigrants, Gehrig rose from inauspicious beginnings to become a scholar-athlete at Columbia University, and then moved to Major League Baseball, where he knocked in almost 2,000 runs and helped his team win six world championships. William Kashatus recounts the perserverance and poise of a life which ended tragically, yet heroically. Written in cooperation with George Pollack, the lawyer for the Gehrig estate, this biography provides a valuable addition to the study of an enduring American sports legend. The final chapters analyze the creation of the player's legend through literature and film and also update the reader on the on-going fight against ALS.

A biography on the legendary Lou Gehrig that presents the life of the Iron Horse within a cultural context, while adding inside information on the Gehrig legend.

About the Author
WILLIAM C. KASHATUS is a professional historian and educator who holds a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania. Kashatus has written for the New York Times, Philadelphia Daily News, and St. Louis Post-Dispatch, among other publications. His previous baseball books include September Swoon: Richie Allen, the '64 Phillies and Racial Integration, Mike Schmidt, Connie Mack's '29 Triumph, and One-Armed Wonder: Pete Gray, Wartime Baseball and the American Dream.


Book Information
ISBN 9780313328664
Author William C. Kashatus
Format Hardback
Page Count 176
Imprint Greenwood Press
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Weight(grams) 397g