WHAT IS IN A NAME? Wow! My very famous 2nd cousin has a name that's (in my opinion) one of the strongest and longest names out there! Calvin Coolidge Julius Caesar Tuskahoma McLish. The only part of his name that I can't quite put my head around at this point is the Tuskahoma, but I'm sure his daddy or his mom had a reason for it. He was born in Anadarko, Oklahoma - 1925, just 18 years following Theodore Roosevelt's declaration of Oklahoma Territory's merging with Indian Territory to make the great state of Oklahoma (#46 out of 50) on November 16, 1907.
Calvin was always known as Buster McLish, so when you ask someone about him in the golden years of baseball they are just as likely to say Buster rather than Cal. (and you thought Ripkin was the first Cal!) Well, to be perfectly honest with you, I have been very negligent in meeting my world famous and most handsome cousin - and in doing so I have completely missed out of some great years of talking. The boy can talk! His beautiful wife of nearly 57 years is Ruthie, a glamorous and energetic woman who still to this day dotes on her honey-man, never missing an opportunity to squeeze in a little kiss or hug.
Something REALLY cool that I discovered today, besides taking in all the memoriabilia of his fabulous professional baseball career - is that my 2nd cousin is a poet, just like me! He and I even have the very same writing style; writing in structured stanza form more often than not, and having 4 lines per stanza for about 10-14 stanzas. Who knew? Some of his works are quite personal, and I had to tease him a little about it - I'm going to see if I can talk him into publishing his works in a bonafide book for the sake of prosperity...he's great.
His mom is my grandpa's sister. He was raised just far enough away from my mother Becky to be too far to visit. He was just enough older than she too, it was just the amount of distance necessary to keep them from being too close as she was growing up - however, she did enjoy telling everyone who her famous cousin was because he was always being written about, talked about, and when television came onto the scene his games were televised and he was personally interviewed. Keith Olbermann will certainly know who my sweet cousin is - I hope you will take the time to look up a few stats about him for yourself. Not too many players can say they've been where he's been, played with legends the way he has, and actually, he's too modest to say it, but he was pretty damn good himself.
Love to Buster and Ruthie! (and Gracie, their poor sweet little dog who had to put up with Faith being in HER house this morning.)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Interestingly, I had breakfast with Cal and his son in 1959 or so when I was 11. I was staying with my Aunt and Uncle who lived in Sheffield Lake, Ohio, a couple of streets over from Cal and his wife.
It was the night after he pitched a 2 or 3 hit shutout against the Yankees. I wanted to meet him so over I went. He couldn't have been nicer and invited me in for breakfast. I am STILL awestruck to this day, and I'm 60 now.
If you happen to talk with him, please tell him meeting him was the biggest thrill and 11 year old could have.
Best,
ADS
Post a Comment