Larry King Interviews Leon Day
Baseball America, September 1995
Silhouettes, Spring 1995
Beckett, August 1993
Larry King Interviews Leon Day
On March 3, 1992, after much behind-the-scenes negotiating, Leon Day was the live featured guest on the popular "Larry King Live" radio program from Washington, DC. When Dr. Bob Hieronimus first proposed the idea to the producers of Larry King, they were warm to the concept, but concerned by Leon's lack of name recognition (at the time -- since then Day has been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and his name is approaching the legendary status it always deserved). So true to his manner, Dr. Bob began an intensive educational campaign to demonstrate why Leon was the only player left alive who deserved Hall of Fame recognition, but had not yet received it. Just a glance at his stats was enough to convince King's producer, and to cause him to wonder (as so many have before him) why this man's great accomplishments were not automatically included as part of American baseball history. Day's winning percentage of .708 in league play, for example, is the highest of any pitcher currently in the Hall of Fame.
Dr. Bob and Zoh hired a limo to chauffeur the 72-year old Leon to and from the nationwide broadcast, so he could enjoy some of the perks of celebrity that his skin color had prohibited him while in his prime. As can be seen in the photos below, both Mr. King and Mr. Day thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Tapes of this broadcast are available for sale (click here for ordering information), proceeds from which are used exclusively to further promote Negro Leagues education and to assist widows and children of deceased players.
Leon Day (HOF '95) and Larry King
Zoh Hieronimus, Larry King, Dr. Bob Hieronimus, March 1992
Baseball America, September 1995
Excerpt from Baseball America, September 17, 1995
Leon Day Inspired Those Around Him
by Jerry Crasnick
Dr. Bob Hieronimus, who has developed a passion for the Negro Leagues through years of research, thinks Day and his peers should be rewarded for their personal travails as well as their ballplaying skills.
"Many of these players were impoverished," said Hieronimus, who, along with his wife Zohara, championed Day's candidacy for Cooperstown through their Baltimore radio talk show. "They lived in places with no heat or no food. When I first met Leon he was in a little better economic state, but it was horrendous what be had to do to eke out a living. I said to myself. 'Major League Baseball owes these guys for preventing them from earning a living for 40 years.'
"The amazing thing is, Leon had no remorse or anger. It was the same with all the other players I met. I couldn't understand why they weren't furious about what had happened. It had wrecked their lives. But they have a certain nobility borne of hard times that's almost unheard-of today."
To quote from [Baltimore Mayor Kurt] Schmoke at Day's funeral: "In an age when baseball only seems to be about money and replacement players, Leon Day's life was about dignity, class and talent and so much more."
Silhouettes, Spring 1995
Excerpt from Silhouettes: The Official Newsletter of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, Vol. 4, No. 1, Spring, 1995
The Hall Sees Day Light
Hip, hip, hooray for Leon Day! On March 7, 22-year veteran Leon Day was selected to baseball's most coveted honor, the Hall of Fame. Due to an ever increasing concern faced annually by the Baseball Hall of Fame's Veterans Committee, the Hall of Fame's Board of Directors recently revised the rules for election to enhance the possibility of electing qualified 19th century personnel and Negro League players into the Hall.
The Veterans Committee formed an advisory staff, through the efforts of Vice President Bill Guilfoile, to identify a master list of candidates for possible election. The advisory staff, chaired by Lloyd Johnson, was called the Blue Ribbon Committee. In addition, Todd Bolton of Smithsburg, Maryland, and Dr. Bob and Zohara Hieronimus of 21st Century Media in Baltimore were instrumental through their media campaign to get Day elected.
Beckett, August 1993
Excerpt from Beckett Baseball Card Monthly, August 1993
They Remember
Thanks to baseball fans Dr. Robert Hieronimus and his wife, Zohara, the Negro Leagues are being remembered in a unique fashion in the Baltimore area.
Dr. Hieronimus and his wife helped secure foundation grants to outfit four Little League teams in the uniforms of former Negro Leagues teams such as the Baltimore Elite Giants and Baltimore Black Sox.
To further raise funds, the couple is selling balls, bats and uniforms signed by a handful of Negro Leaguers.
The Hieronimuses took their love for the old Negro Leagues a step further. Appalled by Major League Baseball's lack of providing Negro Leagues with pensions, the duo -- through their Hieronimus & Co. media firm -- produced a baseball card for former Negro Leagues Great Leon Day, a right handed pitcher with the Baltimore Black Sox, Baltimore Elite Giants and Newark Eagles.
All proceeds from the sale of the card go to Day's family. Leon Day was finally elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY on March 7, 1995. He died six days later on March 13, 1995, living long enough to be conscious of his honor, but too soon to appreciate any of the fame and fortune the distinction almost always brings to ballplayers.
