Roy Campanella

A lot of people didn’t know the man for what he was. He stood by me every minute after my accident, helping me to see my way through. No one knows that after that wonderful night he had for me in the Coliseum when 93,000 showed up, he gave me a check for $50,000. And he continued my salary, which was more than $50,000 a year, for years after that. He was a great pioneer in integrating baseball. He was the attorney and part owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers when Jackie Robinson, Dan Bankhead, Don Newcombe and Roy Campanella were signed. If we had more people like Walter O’Malley, this world would be a much better place. When Bobby Thomson hit that homer off Ralph Branca, the one that cost us the pennant in 1951, Mr. O’Malley went over to Ralph in the clubhouse, patted him on the shoulder and told him everything was all right. Baseball has lost a tremendous person.