Earlier this evening I watched PBS' American Masters documentary Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived.
The most notable thing about the documentary was the inclusion of previously unreleased Super 8 color film of Williams' final big league home run on September 28, 1960 which inspired John Updike's famous New Yorker essay "Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu". There is a fascinating article in The New York Times about how the film came to light.
Naturally, the documentary featured the likes of Ben Bradlee, Jr., author of The Kid: The Immortal Life of Ted Williams (who I met at the Boston Public Library when the book came out in 2013), Bob Costas, the late Dick Enberg, Wade Boggs, current Cincinnati Reds superstar Joey Votto and Willie McCovey. Williams and McCovey finished their careers with 521 home runs. There was also interesting archival footage such as Williams appearance on What's My Line?
I have only a single complaint. It was too short.
There wasn't much new that I hadn't known previously. But this is a splendid work for those who don't know much about The Splendid Splinter.
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