Leo Ernest Durocher (1905 - 1991)

Born 27 Jul 1905 in West Springfield, Hampden, Massachusetts, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Mabel Cutting — married about 1924 in Likely never actually married [uncertain]

Husband of Ruby M Hartley — married 5 Nov 1930 (to about 1934) in Hamilton, Ohio, United States

Husband of Grace (Dozier) Durocher — married 26 Sep 1934 (to 1943) in St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Husband of Laraine Johnson — married Jan 1947 (to 1960) in El Paso, El Paso, Texas, United States

Husband of Lynn House (Walker) Goldblatt — married 1969 (to 1976) in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, United States

Died 7 Oct 1991 at age 86 in Palm Springs, Riverside, California, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Bob Hanrahan [send private message]

Biography

Leo Durocher is Notable.

Leo was born in West Springfield Massachusetts in 1905, the son of French- Canadian parents George Durocher and Clarinda Provost. The 1920 US Census lists him and brother Armond as plumber's apprentices^[1] .

He probably acquired "The Lip" or "Lippy" nickname from his boyhood cross town hero Walter "Rabbit" Maranville who played short stop for the Boston Braves at 155 lb and 5' 5". Maranville told his young admirer, "Never back up- the first backward step a little man takes is the one that’s going to kill him." While he was talking about fielding a ball, Durocher applied it to his other interactions- especially with ball players, managers, owners and umpires^[2].

He broke into the major leagues with the NY Yankees in 1928, and with the help of Babe Ruth and Lou Gherig, they won the world series. Leo's competitive spirit and hustle, (but poor batting average) led to Babe Ruth calling him the "All American Out"^[3]. (Photo of Leo and Babe Ruth)[1] He won another world series as captain of the "Gashouse Gang" St. Louis Cardinals in 1934.^[3]

Leo was manager of the Dodgers for the Spring Season of 1947 when Branch Rickey wanted to break the color barrier and bring Jackie Robinson up to the major leagues. He admired Jackie for his competitiveness and hustle and called him, "a Durocher with talent".^[4]. There was a petition circulated by the players objecting to this. Leo in his usual colorful way told them, "I don't care if the guy is yellow or black, or if he has stripes like a f****n' zebra. I'm the manager of this team, and I say he plays. What's more, I say he can make us all rich. And if any of you cannot use the money, I will see that you are all traded." [2]^[4][5] While the Dodgers went on to win the World Series that year, Leo wasn't manager at the end of the season, since he was suspended by Commissioner Happy Chandler for his unsavory off the field antics, including womanizing and his association with professional gamblers.

The following season he shocked his Dodger fans by becoming manager of the New York Giants, about whom he once famously remarked, "Nice Guys Finish Last!"^[6][3]. Three years later (1951), his Giants came back from a 13 1/2 game deficit late in the season when Bobby Thompson hit his "Shot Heard Round the World" homer to win the National League pennant. In 1954 they won the World Series in a sweep over the heavily favored Cleveland Indians. ^[3]

When Leo finally retired in 1973, he finished his managerial career with a 2,008–1,709 record for a .540 winning percentage- the fifth best record in baseball history at that time. He posted a winning record with each of the four teams he led, and was the first manager to win 500 games with three different clubs.^[3][4](Photo of Leo circa 1953 as Giants manager)[3].

An abstract from the NY Times 22 Jan 1947 documented his marriage with Laraine Day: ^[7](Laraine Day Wikipedia)[4]. His fourth marriage was to Chicago Socialite, Lynn Walker Goldblatt in 1969 which lasted until 1976^[8][9].

In the week prior to 18 Apr 1955, Leo Durocher was appointed to the personal military staff of Gov. James E. Folsom as Aide-de-Camp with the rank of Hon. Lieutenant Colonel in the Alabama State Militia.^[10]

Leo was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994, three years after his death in 1991^[3][11] He was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles California^[12]

Sources

1. ↑ 1920 United States Federal Census https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6061/images/4301096_01073?treeid=&personid=&hintid=&usePUB=true&usePUBJs=true&_ga=2.38591011.1812285319.1600524906-92270327.1600115860&_gac=1.205218340.1600746994.EAIaIQobChMI3--VhYqy6AIVgp-zCh08zg40EAAYASAAEgI5kfD_BwE&pId=68296810
2. ↑ The Team That Forever Changed Baseball and America: The 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers; Lyle Spatz Ed. Google Books; https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Team_that_Forever_Changed_Baseball_a/enov_kWX5qUC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%E2%80%9CNever+back+up,%E2%80%9D+because+%E2%80%9Cthe+first+backward+step+a+little+man+takes+is+the+one+that%E2%80%99s+going+to+kill+him.%E2%80%9D&pg=PA23&printsec=frontcover
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5} https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/durocher-leo
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Durocher
5. ↑ https://www.alamy.com/brooklyn-dodger-manager-leo-durocher-shakes-hands-with-jackie-robinson-then-with-the-dodgers-minor-league-team-the-montreal-royals-before-being-called-up-to-the-major-leagues-in-1947-image260282377.html
6. ↑ https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/62774/where-does-phrase-nice-guys-finish-last-come
7. ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/1947/01/22/archives/laraine-day-and-durocher-are-married-in-el-paso-after-she-gets.html
8. ↑ Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=62116&h=65285750&indiv=try&o_vc=Record:OtherRecord&rhSource=2190
9. ↑ California, Divorce Index, 1966-1984 https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1141/images/vdvusaca1966_0027_03_b-0032?treeid=&personid=&hintid=&usePUB=true&usePUBJs=true&_ga=2.31290815.1812285319.1600524906-92270327.1600115860&_gac=1.217787810.1600718673.EAIaIQobChMI3--VhYqy6AIVgp-zCh08zg40EAAYASAAEgI5kfD_BwE&pId=4812705
10. ↑ "A Roundup of The Week's News." Sports Illustrated Vault. Apr 18, 1955. https://www.si.com/vault/1955/04/18/621608/a-roundup-of-the-weeks-news (accessed Aug 04, 2022).
11. ↑ California Death Index 1991 https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=5180&h=2030005&tid=&pid=&queryId=d97f2b76c2533d9213490a886e8c4327&usePUB=true&_phsrc=PhD1&_phstart=successSource
12. ↑ US Find A Grave Index https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=60525&h=1372618&indiv=try&o_vc=Record:OtherRecord&rhSource=5180