Visits: 13
Lots of tourists who visit the Los Angeles area might explore Hollywood, do Disney, tour the movie studios and check out the beaches. That’s what I did my first time out here. And some poor souls might take one of those bus tours that specialize in drive-bys of movie star homes. That I didn’t do. This year is also a good time to check out a Dodger game. With the team in the tank, tickets are plentiful and cheap and it seems that, every other game, Dodger Dogs are only a buck. The bottom line is, there are all kinds of places to go and things to see out here. It’s almost too much for some tourists.
Last year, I ran into a dog lover from Nebraska on Hollywood Boulevard. The guy was almost in tears because he had waited too long to locate Lassie’s star on the Walk of Fame. Now he had to catch a plane home and still had no clue where Lassie’s paw prints might be embedded in the pavement. Lucky for him, Superman and Wonder Woman came to his rescue. The not-very-dynamic duo was hanging around outside the Kodak Center posing for pictures with other tourists for a buck or two a shot. For forty bucks, they personally escorted the guy to Lassie’s shrine and better yet, for another sawbuck, took a photo of the guy placing a Milk Bone Big Dog Biscuit in the center of Lassie’s star. The point is, there is so much to see and do out here you can run out of time or money or both and there won’t necessarily be a superhero or two to bail you out. But despite all that, I’m here to add another must-see attraction to Southern California’s already-long list. And this one is especially for baseball fans and it’s free.
So, how would you like to see:
- a box of baseballs signed by Mother Teresa,
- the original costume head of the San Diego Chicken, and
- a mask used by one-eyed umpire Max McLeary with a baseball still embedded in the face guard?
All this and much more is available for viewing — all in the same day and same location.
Those items are only a small sample of the unique and often bizarre collection of memorabilia featured in the exhibition, “Not Exactly Cooperstown,” currently on display at the Burbank Central Library. The collection will be featured in the library’s entrance lobby until September 29.
This is one hairy exhibit. Literally.
Some of the other items in the collection include:
- Pitcher Dock Ellis’ hair curlers, which he wore during pregame workouts,
- Joe Pepitone’s 1960s Chic model blow dryer which is believed to be the first blow dryer to appear in a major league locker room.
- Ron Santo’s partially burned toupee.
- A psychedelic, peace-and-love jersey worn in 2010 by the Stockton Ports for a Salute to the Beatles Night.
- Memorabilia from the House of David team. Those guys sported some serious facial hair.
All of the items in the exhibition are provided by the Baseball Reliquary, a Pasadena-based nonprofit organization. Priding itself as “a museum without walls,” the Baseball Reliquary traverses the Southern California landscape, presenting exhibitions and programs in a variety of public settings. According to Terry Cannon, the executive director of the Baseball Reliquary, when the Reliquary shows a collection it isn’t just a hodgepodge of random items. As Cannon told the Glendale News-Press, “Everything that we do collect, like these items, I like to make sure it’s representative of an interesting story related to the game.”
So most of the items displayed in the “Not Exactly Cooperstown” display have separate signage cards that give information and background about the memorabilia piece. My favorite is the story of how Ron Santo’s hairpiece caught fire from an overhead heater in Shea Stadium while broadcasting a Cub game on a cold night in April 2003.
“All of a sudden, I heard something sizzling like bacon on a stove,” said Pat Hughes, Santo’s friend and broadcast partner of 15 years. “I quickly grabbed a cup of water and poured it on his head.” But Santo, Hughes went on, was only concerned about how he looked. “I lied. ‘Ronny, it doesn’t look that bad to me.’ Actually, it looked like a big divot was taken right on top of his head.”
It’s a funny story and Hughes’ description of the charred toupee is right on but it still strikes me as sad that Ron’s rug is on display in “Not Exactly Cooperstown” in the Burbank Library lobby when the man himself should be in Cooperstown. Why he isn’t in the Hall of Fame is not only a baseball mystery, it’s a cruel joke.
“To me, it is clear and unequivocal that Santo is a Hall of Famer,” said Bill James, the master of baseball sabermetrics. “Putting guys like George Kell, Freddy Lindstrom and Tony Lazzeri in the Hall of Fame while you leave out Ron Santo is like putting Dalmatians, Palominos, and Siamese in the zoo while you let the lions roam the streets.”
I also believe Santo should be included in The Shrine of the Eternals, the Reliquary’s alternative, anti-establishment Hall of fame concept, honoring many pioneering, visionary and controversial figures associated with the game. Since its inception in 1999, a total of 39 individuals have been inducted into the Shrine of the Eternals, and plaques for several of the inductees including Dick Allen, Joe Jackson, Curt Flood , Marvin Miller and Jimmy Piersall are on display in Burbank, too.
Perhaps the oddest item on display is a humanitarian award given to Ty Cobb. I won’t tell you the story behind that one. Better you go check it out yourself. You won’t be sorry.
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