DATE: 1939-42 ORIGINAL or REPRINT: Type 2 Original - Printed from the original negative, but in a later period TEAM: Detroit Tigers SUBJECT: Schoolboy Rowe PHOTOGRAPHER: George Burke APPROXIMATE SIZE: 3-1/2"x5-1/2" MARKS / STAMPING: Handwritten identification of photo's subject. Has standard postcard back but remains postally unused. NUMBER OF PHOTOS: 1 COMMENTS / CONDITION: Offered is an approximately 3-1/2"x5-1/2" real photo postcard of Schoolboy Rowe, pictured in his Detroit Tigers uniform circa 1939-42. The original photo was taken by George Burke in 1939-42, but this card was produced some time later (no earlier than the 1950's judging by the standard Kodak back). Comes from a large collection of such postcards that we will be listing over the coming months, all having standard postcard backs but being postally unused. Wear on these, if any, is mostly confined to minor corner and edge wear, but see scans for further details including condition. We do not deal in stock images or modern reprints, and all scans shown are of the actual item being sold. If you have any questions about a particular piece, please ask before the auction ends. BIO: Lynwood Thomas Rowe was born in 1910 in Waco, TX and died in 1961 in El Dorado, AR of a heart attack at age 50. He played major league baseball from 1933 to 1949 as pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, Brooklyn Dodgers, and the Philadelphia Phillies, appeared in the 1934, 1935 and 1940 World Series, and was selected 3 times as an All-Star. He received his nickname, "Schoolboy," while playing on a men's team as a 15-year-old because he was still a high school student. With his southern charm and eccentricities, Schoolboy Rowe became a fan favorite in Detroit. He was known as a superstitious player who carried amulets, talismans, and charms in his pockets, always picked up his glove with his left hand and even talked to the ball. Rowe was loved particularly by female fans for his good looks and public devotion to his high school sweetheart, Edna Mary Skinner. During a September 13, 1934 nationally broadcast interview on the Eddie Cantor radio show, Rowe asked his fiancee, "How'm I doing, Edna honey?" The line became famous, as Cantor recycled the line over and over on his broadcasts. The incident endeared Schoolboy to women across the country, but led to relentless heckling from fans and opposing players, who enjoyed taunting him with his own words: "How'm I doing, Edna?" During his 16-game win streak in 1934, a reporter asked him for his secret, and Schoolboy responded that he would "just eat a lot of vittles, climb on that mound, wrap my fingers around the ball and say to it, 'Edna, honey, let's go.'" Prior to the 1934 World Series, the Detroit News brought Edna to Detroit to write about baseball, Schoolboy, cooking or whatever she pleased. [6] Pictures of Edna and Schoolboy or Edna posing with Babe Ruth were published in the newspapers, as the nation became caught up in the courtship of Schoolboy and Edna. The couple married shortly after the 1934 World Series. Schoolboy missed the 1944 and 1945 seasons to wartime service in the U.S. Navy. He was assigned to the Great Lakes Naval Training Station where his former manager, Mickey Cochrane put together an All Star baseball team that included Schoolboy, Bob Feller, Johnny Mize and Billy Herman. The 1944 Great Lakes team compiled a 48-2 record, including an 11-1 record against major league teams. Schoolboy played as an outfielder as well as a pitcher and led the Great Lakes team with a .446 batting average. After serving two years in World War II, the 36-year-old "Schoolboy" returned to the Phillies in top form. In 1946, Rowe was 11-4, led the league in winning percentage, and had a career-low earned run average of 2.12. Rowe followed with another strong season in 1947, earning a final All-Star nod. He was released by the Phillies after the 1949 season and finished his pitching career in 1950, with San Diego in the Pacific Coast League. SKU: GB12830
Item: GB12830
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