Ghanima Atreides (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
atreideslioness) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2013-02-18 11:19 am
atreideslioness) wrote in fandomhigh2013-02-18 11:19 am
Entry tags:
History of American Feminism, Monday, 2nd Period.
"We talked a bit earlier about Title IX, but women had a long history in sport before that," Ghanima said once everyone had arrived. "The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League became the first professional baseball league for female players in 1943."
"Women had been playing professional baseball for decades: Starting in the 1890s, gender-integrated “Bloomer Girls” teams -- named after the feminist Amelia Bloomer -- traveled around the country, challenging men’s teams to games--and frequently winning. As the men’s minor leagues expanded, however, playing opportunities for Bloomer Girls decreased, and the last of the teams called it quits in 1934. But by 1943, so many major-league stars had joined the armed services and gone off to war that stadium owners and baseball executives worried that the game would never recover. The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was the solution to this problem: It would keep ballparks filled and fans entertained until the war was over. For 12 seasons, more than 600 women played for the league’s teams, including the Racine Belles of Wisconsin, the Rockford Peaches of Illinois, the Grand Rapids Chicks from Michigan, and the Fort Wayne Daisies of Indiana."
"The name of the league is something of a misnomer, as the AAGPBL never played regulation baseball. In the first season, the league played a game that was a hybrid of baseball and softball. The ball was 12 inches in circumference, the size of a regulation softball. The pitcher's mound was only forty feet from home plate, closer even than in regulation softball and much closer than the baseball distance of 60 feet, 6 inches. Pitchers threw underhand windmill, like in softball, and the distance between bases was 65 feet, five feet longer than in softball but 25 feet shorter than in baseball. Major similarities between the AAGPBL and baseball included nine player teams and the use of a pitcher's mound. Over the history of the league, the rules were gradually modified to more closely resemble baseball. The ball shrank from season to season until it was regulation baseball size, the mound was moved back to 60 feet, the basepaths were extended to 85 feet, and overhand pitching was allowed."
"During spring training the girls were required to attend Helena Rubinstein's evening charm school classes. The proper etiquette for every situation was taught, and every aspect of personal hygiene, mannerisms and dress code was presented to all the players. In an effort to make each player as physically attractive as possible, each player received a beauty kit and instructions on how to use it. As a part of the leagues 'Rules of Conduct', the girls were not permitted to have short hair, smoke or drink in public places, and they were required to wear lipstick at all times. Fines for not following the leagues rules of conduct were five dollars for the first offense, ten for the second, and suspension for the third. Salaries were high for many of these young players, some as young as 15. In many cases they were making more than their parents who had skilled occupations. Salaries ranged from $45 to $85 a week plus, and as high as $125 a week."
"At the end of the 1950 season, team directors voted to purchase the AAGBBL from Arthur Meyerhoff and operate their teams independently. Max Carey resigned as League President and was replaced by his assistant, Fred Leo. With no centralized control of publicity, promotion, player procurement, and equalization of player talent, the League began to break down. Individual team owners' financial circumstances declined and hindered their ability to operate on deficit spending resulting from declining attendance. The shrinking of the local fan base resulted in part from the rise of other forms of recreation and entertainment and the advent of televised major league games in the early 1950s. In addition, by this time the All-American game was purely baseball and talented women baseball players were not easy to find. Talented softball players needed training and experience for success in the All-American baseball game with its longer infield distances, smaller ball, and overhand pitching. As revenues fell, individual teams were no longer able to support rookie training teams like the Colleens and Sallies, and funds were limited to advertise nationally as a way of recruiting scattered baseball talent. By 1952, only six teams remained in the league after Kenosha and Peoria were disbanded. In 1953, the Battle Creek team was relocated to Muskegon, and by the end of the season, it too, folded. The 1954 season ended with only five teams remaining: Fort Wayne, South Bend, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Rockford."
"The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League gave over 600 women athletes the opportunity to play professional baseball and to play it at a level never before attained. The League operated from 1943 to 1954 and represents one of the most unique aspects of our nation's baseball history," Ghanima said, "--and today we're going to watch a movie about it."
[OOC: OCD UP. MOVIE DAAAAAAAAY.]
"Women had been playing professional baseball for decades: Starting in the 1890s, gender-integrated “Bloomer Girls” teams -- named after the feminist Amelia Bloomer -- traveled around the country, challenging men’s teams to games--and frequently winning. As the men’s minor leagues expanded, however, playing opportunities for Bloomer Girls decreased, and the last of the teams called it quits in 1934. But by 1943, so many major-league stars had joined the armed services and gone off to war that stadium owners and baseball executives worried that the game would never recover. The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was the solution to this problem: It would keep ballparks filled and fans entertained until the war was over. For 12 seasons, more than 600 women played for the league’s teams, including the Racine Belles of Wisconsin, the Rockford Peaches of Illinois, the Grand Rapids Chicks from Michigan, and the Fort Wayne Daisies of Indiana."
"The name of the league is something of a misnomer, as the AAGPBL never played regulation baseball. In the first season, the league played a game that was a hybrid of baseball and softball. The ball was 12 inches in circumference, the size of a regulation softball. The pitcher's mound was only forty feet from home plate, closer even than in regulation softball and much closer than the baseball distance of 60 feet, 6 inches. Pitchers threw underhand windmill, like in softball, and the distance between bases was 65 feet, five feet longer than in softball but 25 feet shorter than in baseball. Major similarities between the AAGPBL and baseball included nine player teams and the use of a pitcher's mound. Over the history of the league, the rules were gradually modified to more closely resemble baseball. The ball shrank from season to season until it was regulation baseball size, the mound was moved back to 60 feet, the basepaths were extended to 85 feet, and overhand pitching was allowed."
"During spring training the girls were required to attend Helena Rubinstein's evening charm school classes. The proper etiquette for every situation was taught, and every aspect of personal hygiene, mannerisms and dress code was presented to all the players. In an effort to make each player as physically attractive as possible, each player received a beauty kit and instructions on how to use it. As a part of the leagues 'Rules of Conduct', the girls were not permitted to have short hair, smoke or drink in public places, and they were required to wear lipstick at all times. Fines for not following the leagues rules of conduct were five dollars for the first offense, ten for the second, and suspension for the third. Salaries were high for many of these young players, some as young as 15. In many cases they were making more than their parents who had skilled occupations. Salaries ranged from $45 to $85 a week plus, and as high as $125 a week."
"At the end of the 1950 season, team directors voted to purchase the AAGBBL from Arthur Meyerhoff and operate their teams independently. Max Carey resigned as League President and was replaced by his assistant, Fred Leo. With no centralized control of publicity, promotion, player procurement, and equalization of player talent, the League began to break down. Individual team owners' financial circumstances declined and hindered their ability to operate on deficit spending resulting from declining attendance. The shrinking of the local fan base resulted in part from the rise of other forms of recreation and entertainment and the advent of televised major league games in the early 1950s. In addition, by this time the All-American game was purely baseball and talented women baseball players were not easy to find. Talented softball players needed training and experience for success in the All-American baseball game with its longer infield distances, smaller ball, and overhand pitching. As revenues fell, individual teams were no longer able to support rookie training teams like the Colleens and Sallies, and funds were limited to advertise nationally as a way of recruiting scattered baseball talent. By 1952, only six teams remained in the league after Kenosha and Peoria were disbanded. In 1953, the Battle Creek team was relocated to Muskegon, and by the end of the season, it too, folded. The 1954 season ended with only five teams remaining: Fort Wayne, South Bend, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Rockford."
"The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League gave over 600 women athletes the opportunity to play professional baseball and to play it at a level never before attained. The League operated from 1943 to 1954 and represents one of the most unique aspects of our nation's baseball history," Ghanima said, "--and today we're going to watch a movie about it."
[OOC: OCD UP. MOVIE DAAAAAAAAY.]
Sign-In
During the Lecture
Watch the Movie
Talk to the TA or the Teacher
OOC
Re: Sign-In
Re: Watch the Movie
Re: Sign-In
Re: Sign-In
Re: Sign-In
Re: Sign-In
Re: Sign-In
Re: Sign-In