In the Summer 1993 issue of POINTers (V7, N2, P7), Tom Militello asked for POINTers who had had a Celebrity Italian Brush to write and tell him about it.  My brush with a celebrity of Italian origin appeared in the Winter 1993 issue of POINTers (V7, N4, Pg. 34-35).

A Celebrity Italian Brush

In the early 1950's, I was a typical baseball crazed 7-12 year old growing up in, first the predominantly Italian neighborhood of Rosebank and then the League of Nations neighborhood of Port Richmond on Staten Island in New York City. We played baseball or softball in sandlots, stickball or punch ball in the street, and for want of anything else to do, curb ball or stoop ball. I began as a fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers, but in 1950 I switched to the New York Giants and reveled in their World Series exploits in 1951 and 1954. The New York Yankees just were not my team. I can not ever remember feeling any positive thoughts about them at all.

A few years later, near the end of 1967, I was serving in the U.S. Army as a First Lieutenant in An Khe and Qui Nhon in the central highlands of Vietnam. I had only been in country about 6 months when I came down with hepatitis. I had a particularly severe case and wound up being hospitalized, first, in the 85th Evacuation Hospital in Qui Nhon, and then, in the 6th Convalescent Center in Cam Ranh Bay.

One day, as I was lying in my bed in the 85th Evac, the door opened and in came two visitors. The shorter and older of the two introduced himself as Jerry Coleman and his partner as Tony Conigliaro. Just as soon as he finished the introductions, Jerry Coleman asked me to identify my favorite team. To this day I'll never know why, but I blurted out the New York Yankees, whereupon he handed me a baseball autographed by both him and Tony. I was vaguely aware of Tony's reputation as a fine slugging outfielder (with the Boston Red Sox) and, of course, I knew all about former second baseman Jerry Coleman's career with the Yankees.

I still have a polaroid of Tony on one side of the bed and Jerry on the other (see photograph below), Tony leaning on the bed, with head slightly turned toward the camera, while I lay there holding the baseball Jerry had given me. I had been feeling kind of down, being in the hospital in the hepatitis ward, and their visit and friendly chat for a few minutes made me feel better. A touch of the good old U.S.A. brought to me by this friendly visit from two baseball heroes.

A few years ago I read that Tony was fighting a valiant fight against a fatal disease and I remembered his visit to me and the way he helped cheer me up. I thought about trying to get in touch with him and remind him of how he had visited me in the hospital in Vietnam. I couldn't bring myself to intrude on what must have been an excruciating experience for his family.

I don't know whether it would have helped or not, but I wish I had done it, or at least tried.

In the end, I said a small prayer for him.

Note:  "Tony C." was born on 7 January 1945 and died on 24 February 1990.  During the 1965 season, he became the youngest player ever to win the home run title and in 1967, he became the youngest player ever to hit 100 career home runs.  During the 1967 season, he was hit by a pitch that fractured his face and his career was never the same.  A heart attack in 1982 left him severely debilitated and eventually led to his death in 1990.

Jerry Coleman for many years has been the voice of the San Diego Padres.