Home Base: Memories of the Brooklyn Dodgers

One of the first acts I ever presented with my American Vaudeville Theatre back in 1997 was an outfit of old-timers known as the Brooklyn Dodgers Sym-phony Band. This was back before even my Surf Reality tenure, when we were still based at the Charleston on Bedford Avenue (which back then was under its original ownership, at once more hip and less "hip" than it is today). The band in question were a bunch of Dodgers fans who had played their marching band instruments at games starting in the 1930s. When the Dodgers left town in 1956, the guys stayed together, and were still together when I booked them four decades after that! (Part of this movie was shot at my show).

The gentlemen were called to mind a few days ago when I saw them mentioned in the excellent exhibition now at the Brooklyn Historical Society entitled Home Base: Memories of the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field. It is not an exaggeration to say that the departure of the Dodgers was a traumatic experience for Brooklyn, akin to having your heart or your head removed. Recovering from this blow has been slow and remains far from complete, although recovery is finally occurring. Still, the ghost of the Dodgers lingers in people's minds -- even people born long after the departure refuse to let go.

That hold on the imagination is palpable in this small, but extremely thorough exhibition. Some of it is the standard fan memorabilia -- uniforms, autographed balls, programs, tickets, photographs and the like, many connected with greats like Jackie Robinson, PeeWee Reese, Roy Campanella, etc etc.  More educational, however is the audio and video testimony of former fans expressing their devotion. (One of them is the late Danny Kaye, whose first date with his-wife-to-be Sylvia Fine was at Ebbets Field.) Most illuminating of all are samples of the correspondence between team owner Walter O'Malley and others documenting efforts to keep the Dodgers in Brooklyn, as well the "bring back the Dodgers" movement that started in the 1980s, eventually resulting in a consolation prize: the Brooklyn Cyclones.

As I say, the exhibition is small but well worth your time if you are a baseball fan, a Brooklyn history buff, or both. It runs until April, 2011. For more info, go here.