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Title: Joe DiMaggio : The Hero's Life by Richard Ben Cramer ISBN: 0-684-85391-4 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Pub. Date: 17 October, 2000 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $28.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.49 (102 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: An excellent account of the famed/mysterious Yankee Clipper
Comment: I am a big Yankee, Joe Dimaggio fan and so I read this book mainly because I didn't know that much about the man that I have grown to admire. From my boyhood I always knew the statistics he acquired and contributions he made to baseball, but I didn't know about the man, since he was the ultimate baseball enigma.
This book by Richard Ben Cramer answered alot of my questions about Joe Dimaggio, such as why was he so quiet and mysterious and out of the public eye quite a bit. This book may have been criticized because of an unflattering view of Dimaggio, yet it was very honest about the man. Joe Dimaggio had a spectacular baseball career and moved the game forward to a new level that all baseball fans should appreciate, yet he decided to stay away from his admirers and fans, so he could always maintain that mysterious and unapproachable status that few ever encounter in public life.
This book needed to be written because in fact since Dimaggio was so standoffish in life and because he chose to remain in the "shadows" of those who were his fans, that many questions remained about the man. I do not believe his privacy, intimate thoughts and relationships were violated, as pertained by some who have read this. Dimaggio must have known that sooner or later during his lifetime or after his death, that a book that revealed more of his personal side would be written.
This is a very interesting account of his life, his respect but maybe not "love" of the game of baseball, his outstanding playing and work ethic of baseball, his family and personal life and loves, his ultimate love of Marilyn Monroe is revealed with honesty and actual accounts. Cramer didn't have to dig deep into research about Dimaggio, all he had to do is read police reports, talk to friends of Dimaggio who were willing to talk to him, and read other accounts of Dimaggio's life.
I still have great respect and admiration of Joe Dimaggio. I feel sorry for Mr. Dimaggio and the life he chose to live outside the baseball field. His fans truely admired and loved him, yet I believe he truely feared the way he was viewed and thus decided not to reveal himself to much to anyone. I respect that, and I also respect Mr. Cramer's work on Joe Dimaggio.
This book is highly recommended to all Yankee fans and fans of the Great "Joltin" Joe Dimaggio.
Rating: 5
Summary: Life vs. Joltin' Joe.
Comment: The private life of the man behind the public image can be a stark contrast. Regardless of Joe DiMaggio's wholesome image of grace, style, and manly courage, doubts and fears plagued him. He needed constant reassurance that he was the best. Author Richard Ben Cramer quickly gets on a first name basis with his subject, and writes as if he knows exactly what went on in Joe's head. Cramer's description of Joe's career as the Yankee Clipper is great baseball history. Cramer also writes honestly of Joe's dark side. To DiMaggio, money was the ultimate yardstick of success. His great fear was that someone was unfairly trying to make a buck by exploiting him, both on and off the field. Frequently, Joe's fears were right on target. These inner demons made DiMaggio personally unapproachable, and even downright hateful. But, heck, that didn't bother Joe. That was exactly the way he wanted it, as long as he was paid top dollar. Cramer's narrative includes juicy insider details and wry humor. Beyond baseball, the book examines DiMaggio's relationship with friends, family, and wives, most particularly Marilyn Monroe. Joe's need to be controlling doomed his marriage to Marilyn. Ironically, they were well on the road to reconciliation when she died. After Marilyn is gone, the narrative fast-forwards from her funeral in 1962 to 1989. This unexplained gap is the only weakness of this otherwise fascinating book. The last ten years of DiMaggio's life are presented as the final decade of a miserly crank who profits from baseball memorabilia events, for which he insisted on his own unforgiving rules and regulations. Considering the walls Joe DiMaggio built around himself the author's ability to dig out details is impressive. Cramer handles a difficult subject very well. This is highly recommended reading. ;-)
Rating: 1
Summary: Bitter, angry, jealous - and that's just the author
Comment: This is a bitter, self-indulgent attempt by the author to attack DiMaggio. Period. He was a bad guy... so what? He liked money? Last time I checked, the author wasn't giving his book away. The main problem isn't with the book or DiMaggio, but with the people who make guys like DiMaggio the heroes they can never be. The bar is set way too high for these individuals. No one can reach it. Our solution: write about it. Consider this: I seriously doubt anyone will write a book about the author, because while he may have received accolades for his work as a reporter, all he has really done in his life is write about what other people have done in their lives. Seems like an empty accomplishment to me, and might be the reason for the high level of bitterness and, perhaps, jealousy that came through in this book.
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Title: What Do You Think of Ted Williams Now? : A Remembrance by Richard Ben Cramer ISBN: 0743246489 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Pub. Date: 02 October, 2002 List Price(USD): $18.00 |
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Title: Sandy Koufax : A Lefty's Legacy by Jane Leavy ISBN: 0060933291 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 02 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: BABE: THE LEGEND COMES TO LIFE by Robert Creamer ISBN: 067176070X Publisher: Fireside Pub. Date: 15 April, 1992 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: Iron Horse: Lou Gehrig in His Time by Ray Robinson ISBN: 0060974087 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 19 June, 1991 List Price(USD): $13.50 |
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Title: Ted Williams : The Biography of an American Hero by Leigh Montville ISBN: 0385507488 Publisher: Doubleday Pub. Date: 13 April, 2004 List Price(USD): $26.95 |
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