[Download pdf] Munson: The Life and Death of a Yankee Captain Munson: The Life and Death of a Yankee Captain

XMeVISroo Munson: The Life and Death of a Yankee Captain KO3ghyoNf AO-24644 KII1e2RYb USmix/Data/US-2009 3GRQT1Ag5 4.5/5 From 779 Reviews RA8hvtFTi Marty Appel g2WUMPE6j ebooks | Download PDF | *ePub | DOC | audiobook Cf3t3NrEq 58AA8h5KS e70BLQ3Uv qslDbPMc1 mB772fze5 8DcJ0GTRo jPNkiImtR wpUiXoceW 2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. I Now Admire Him Even iJtHwsmmI MoreBy Fritz R. Ward"That's your hero?" my mom said with more than a touch fBPi7FO6G of concern in her voice as I showed her my 1976 Topps card of the Yankee kAEZxK4ql captain. "He's fat and clearly doesn't shave regularly." It's hard to explain to WqlFclTIw moms when you aren't quite a teen yet that what really mattered is that Munson UVHjJs4ff "plays hard." Moms aren't quite sure what the phrase "plays hard" means PG8MiAo3K anyway, unless of course they are baseball fans and my mother emphatically GXvs3em0n was not. Following his death in 1979 (I saved the issue of Time Magazine with SFBf33o0V his corner cover story for over a decade) I read Munson's biography co-written bgjhUFoOJ by Appel. It confirmed what I already knew: that Munson did play hard and lMWwiLMxC loved baseball and his family. I did not, however, recognize how much was chcjN485l missing from that biography. Munson the man was more than simply the most DTB2H4EVv feared clutch hitter in baseball (according to a SI poll of managers in the hSEvXrqHg 1970s); he was a man who struggled through a horribly abusive childhood, was QW3mUHHEO determined to break the cycle, and in the process helped others in ways that cannot be measured. This book, published on the 30th anniversary of his death, tells the full story.It is not always a pretty story. Appel chronicles Munson's moodiness and sometimes abrasive relationship with the press. His relationship with rival Carlton Fisk bordered on outright hostility. But Munson was also very conscious of his role as a ballplayer and a leader on the Yankees. He had immense talent, but his body was not that of a natural athlete and he worked very hard to become a top competitor. This same determination made him successful outside of sports as well. He was a solid real estate investor and a talented pilot, a skill and passion that ultimately led to his demise in a tragic accident. These skills and his own personal determination are part of the reason Munson was able to escape the damaging effects of his own childhood, but they are only part of the reason.What this book reveals (and the older Munson biography does not) is the extent to which Thurman was really saved by the love of his wife, Diana, whom he met when he was only 12. Her family was a lot more stable than the Munson family and they and Thurman adopted each other even before the marriage. The story of "Diane" (as Thurman called her) and Munson is one of the great love stories in baseball, and Thurman was able to use Diane's support to stop the multi generation cycle of abuse that went on in his own family. He was a loving father and also extended that love to others. Unknown to the press (and deliberately so) he would attend local schools on reading days and work with children. He supported little league ball and gave far more of himself to his youngest fans than most people knew. I suspect I and literally thousands of other kids sensed that in the 1970s, even if our mothers did not see it. Munson will never be inducted to the Hall of Fame. His career was cut short and the numbers seem rather small in the modern steroid era. But,as this masterful biography makes clear, he is still a worthy hero.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. A True Yankee HeroBy William CapodannoI was born in 1970 and my first lasting memories were rooting for the Yankees in 1976. Thurman Munson was the player who became my instant favorite and my first Yankee shirt, bought at Game 3 of the 1978 World Series in Yankee Stadium was of #15. I can vividly recall being in my parents bedroom on 8/2/1979 when the local NY ABC News came on and the news about Munson's plane crash and death was announced.Marty Appel's second book on Munson, the first was an authorized biography written with Munson before he died, is eminently readable and provides a thorough look at Munson, from his childhood in Canton to his days leading a Yankee franchise back to prominence after the lean years following their 1964 World Series loss to the Cardinals.Some of the most interesting parts of the book were those I was least familiar. The childhood of Munson and his strained relationship with his father were quite revealing. It was quite clear his father was an SOB and his reaction to Thurman's death and subsequent interview with a local Tucson, AZ reporter contrast with what an utterly different father and husband Thurman ultimately became. While Appel certainly doesn't suggest that Thurman's early experiences resulted in him becoming such a family man, the implication is clear.Appel covers the plane crash in detail and every page is depressing, not just because you know the tragic outcome, but because Appel (1) makes a convincing argument that Munson should not have been flying the powerful Cessna jet so soon after beginning flying lessons and getting his pilot's license and (2) reveals all the errors Munson made during his final flight that led to his untimely death, errors that were preventable and likely driven by Munson's inexperience as a pilot and with his new jet. It is pretty harrowing to read the interviews from the two survivor's of the crash -- many folks assume Munson was flying alone that day -- and their intimate sharing of what it was like to go through the crash, the last seconds with Munson and how they have lived with the tragedy over the course of their lives.My main reason for giving the book four stars and not five is because Appel made some assertions that were patently incorrect and reflected his bias (he served as a Yankee PR man during much of Munson's Yankee tenure) for his time with the Yankee's. Specifically, Appel mentions that there was not much of a Yankee/Red Sox rivalry until the early 1970's, fueled by the catching All-Star's from each team, Munson and Fisk. From a non-baseball insider, this might be excusable, but Appel certainly should have brushed up on the deep and bitter rivalry that existed in the 40's and 50's between Dimaggio and Mantle's Yankees and William's Red Sox. These types of assertions left me always second-guessing Appel and while I finally got over it, it does prevent me from ranking this at 5 stars.If you are a Yankee fan, and certainly one who followed them in the 1970's, this is definitely a must read.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. An Infamous 30th AnniversaryBy Bill EmblomAuthor Marty Appel worked in the front office of the New York Yankees during most of Thurman Munson's career and has done a masterful job in covering the career of the former great catcher. The author delves into the difficult home life the Munson children lived with while growing up in a home with a difficult father. Thurman found his escape in the family of his future wife's parents. Munson often displayed a crusty personality to those around him, but hid a more sensitive side. Later in his career Munson expressed a desire to play for the Cleveland Indians so he could remain closer to his Canton, Ohio, home. In addition to enabling him to spend more time at home flying an airplane made it possible for him to be free of questions from annoying reporters and other distractions a baseball player had to deal with.The part of the book dealing with the crash of Munson's new jet airplane is unique in that Jerry Anderson, one of the survivors, was able to give a thorough explanation of the details of the crash of the jet plane during the practice sessions of landings and takeoffs. Had the plane not been caught on a stump the other two occupants may have been able to remove Munson from the plane who survived the initial crash. Thurman suffered a broken neck and would have spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair had he lived.I well remember the Monday Night Baseball game between the Orioles and Yankees after the team returned from Munson's funeral in which close friend and teammate Bobby Murcer led the Yankees to victory.I found two typos the author may want to correct for a paperback edition. Near the top of page 120 the words "double-knit plaid plants" is used when it should read "double-knit plaid pants." Also, on Page 342 there is a misspelling of the word captain in quoting the words on Munson's plaque in Monument Park in Yankee Stadium. In quoting the words on the plaque are "Our Captian and Leader Has Left Us." I assume the word on the plaque is spelled "Captain."This is an outstanding biography of one of the premier baseball players of the 1970s who died on my 36th birthday 30 years ago today.

Our captain and leader has not left us, today, tomorrow, this year, next Our endeavors will reflect our love and admiration for him.Honorary plaque to Munson in Yankee StadiumThurman Munson is remembered by fans as the fiercely competitive, tough, andmost of allinspiring Yankee captain and champion from the wild Bronx Zoo years. He is also remembered for his tragic death, at age thirty-two, when the private plane he was piloting crashed in Canton, Ohio, on August 2, 1979.Munson is the intimate ...