Hi, this is Fred Wallace with ” Off the Wire “.
Where were you on Monday April 8, 1974 ?
The Great Paul Hill has no recollection, but I remember several details of that date & that era fairly decently.
In Canada, the first Olympic Lottery was just 1 week away and tickets were being purchased in Midland, and across the country, at a rapid pace….somebody was going to win a MILLION dollars, which in 1974 was BIG.
Actually, $ 25,000 was big money in 1974 and that’s what entertainer Sammy Davis Jr offered whoever caught Hank Aaron’s Major League record home run.
On the night of April 8, 1974, an Atlanta Braves record of 53,000 were at Fulton County Stadium, and who knows how many more like me, watched Hank Aaron come to the plate in the 4th inning against pitcher Al Downing & the L.A. Dodgers tied with the immortal Babe Ruth with 714 career home runs….
[CLIP]
Braves pitcher Tom House caught the ball in the Braves bullpen
He ignored Dodgers outfielder Bill Buckner’s plea for the ball and never thought about cashing the $ 25,000 bounty that Sammy Davis Jr had offered.
Instead, House sprinted onto the field and ran towards home plate where Aaron and Aaron’s mother were embracing.
Tom House would observe that he saw tears in Aaron’s eyes, and why not, based on the historical baseball significance of that moment and the endless obstacles and opposition that Hank Aaron overcame to get to that moment.
For catching Aaron’s record setting home run, Tom House got a Magnavox TV from a local dealer.
I’m sure that TV set was terrific & had sentimental value, but I’m also certain the TV wasn’t nearly as enduring as Hank Aaron’s moment and historic legacy that climaxed April 8th, 1974.
I’m Fred Wallace