Lou Gehrig’s Farewell to Baseball
Speaker: | Lou Gehrig |
Delivered On: | 7/4/1939 |
Place: | Yankee Stadium, New York |
Subject: | Lou Gehrig’s Disease, baseball |
Audio/Video Available: | |
Description: |
On July 4, 1939, Yankee Stadium held the first Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day. They had a special celebration in his honor; he gave his official “farewell” speech. After ending his streak of more than 2000 consecutive games played, Gehrig announced he would no longer be playing the game. He stated that, although many people felt sorry for him and believed he caught “a bad break,” he still considered himself “the luckiest man alive.” He refused to feel sorry for himself, or to allow others to feel sorry for him. He highlighted the best points of his career and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to work with as many amazing people as he did. Here, we’re presenting the video of what many consider to be the most famous speech in all of baseball’s history. |
References: | |
Transcript/Log: |
Narrator: On May 2nd, 1939 after playing in 2130 straight games the Iron Horse,
Shirley Povich: The day was advertised as a tribute to Lou and was such an outpouring
Lou Gehrig: Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth.
Narrator: Two years after his speech at age 37, Gehrig succumbs to his illness. |