If you don’t know about Jackie Robinson, you better go make Google your best friend and look him up! Today MLB will honor Jackie Robinson with Jackie Robinson Day (April 15th was Opening Day in 1947, Robinson’s first season in the Major Leagues). Appropriately, The Jackie Robinson biopic “42” hit it out of the box-office ballpark this weekend. Its $27 million debut is the best any baseball film has ever managed.
Jackie Robinson was the first African-American to play major league baseball. Throughout his decade-long career with the Brooklyn Dodgers, he made advancements in the cause of civil rights for black athletes.
More details after the jump…
Via MLB.com:
Major League Baseball will celebrate Jackie Robinson Day on Monday, April 15, 2013 to honor the legacy of the legendary Hall of Famer and, for the fifth consecutive year, all players and on-field personnel will wear Number 42. The annual celebration to commemorate the 66th anniversary of Robinson breaking Baseball’s color barrier in 1947 will feature youth-focused events and on-field, pre-game ceremonies in ballparks throughout the League, including a special celebration featuring the Robinson family at Dodger Stadium. Any Clubs with off-days on April 15th will celebrate Jackie Robinson Day on Tuesday, April 16th. Additionally, MLB Network will air a special episode of Studio 42 with Bob Costas featuring Dodgers Legend Don Newcombe and the stars of “42,” Chadwick Boseman and Harrison Ford. The film opens nationwide on Friday, April 12th.
MLB will hold two clinics for Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) for youth from the Greater Los Angeles area, at Angel Stadium of Anaheim (Saturday, April 13th) and Dodger Stadium (Sunday, April 14th), featuring Angels and Dodgers alumni. Sharon Robinson (Jackie’s daughter, author, MLB Educational Programming Consultant and Vice Chair of the Jackie Robinson Foundation) also will visit students at a school attended by her father – Washington Middle School in Pasadena – on the morning of April 15th to discuss her new book and the Breaking Barriers: In Sports, In Life program.
“Jackie Robinson running onto Ebbets Field is not only the most important and powerful moment in Baseball history, but it also changed the course of American history,” said Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig. “Jackie’s courage and perseverance made it possible for African Americans and players of all races and ethnicities to compete on the same field.”
“We are delighted once again to take part in the commemoration recognizing my husband’s barrier breaking achievements made some 66 years ago,” said Rachel Robinson, wife of Jackie Robinson. “We are particularly proud that through the efforts of MLB and the movie “42,” a new generation will not only learn about Jack, but it will also spark them to think about what they can do in their lives to make significant differences in their own communities.”
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