I recently picked up at auction an October 1962 Sport Magazine with Willie Mays on the cover.
While listing it, I saw a story cover-featured called 'How Ballplayers Fight for Private Lives.'
I read the article. It was the usual weepy article that I hate- oh woe are the big league ballplayers like Mickey Mantle because they don't have any privacy. They're asked for autographs all the time, and people talk to them when they go out in public! Gasp...
The article started off with a picture of Roger Maris and some quotes from him. He was asked 'How's your private life, Rog?'
He said 'Do you mean what I'm doing in my spare time? Not one darned thing.....I cook my own meals because people are always butting in when I eat in restaurants, asking me fool questions or wanting my autograph...'
How terrible.
After reading the article, I closed the magazine.
The back cover features a full page advertisement for Camel Cigarettes. With a smiling Roger Maris saying 'For a smooth, rich-tasting smoke, you just can't top Camels.'
So Roger complained about his celebrity but wasn't above profiting from it? Really hard to feel sorry for him.
-Zjabs (Rochester's Official Columnist)
© 2012 Zjabs - 6/29/12
