LOST AND FOUND – 1964 HOLLYWOOD STARS GAME AT DODGER STADIUM

There will probably be a lot of stuff about the Dodgers and Clippers posted here. As my wife likes to say, the only place I ever take her is Dodger Stadium or Staples Center.

I also spend a fair amount of time traipsing around LA flea markets, which is where these photos came from. For as long as I can remember, the Dodgers have had an annual Hollywood Stars game, featuring a game of old fashion hardball between celebrities and sportswriters/sportscasters before one of the Dodger games.

As the definition of “celebrity” has diminished, so has this annual event. Now a softball game played after the Dodgers game to rather sparse crowds, with an occasional exception the game features B – D list personalities and girls who hang out at the Playboy mansion. To get the idea, click here for photos from last years game.

What surprised me about the photos from the flea market find was seeing big time names for the time like Dean Martin, Nat King Cole and James Garner among the participants.

I also didn’t know that the Angels, back in the early 60’s when they shared Dodger Stadium with the Boys in Blue, had also had a Hollywood Stars game. When in Rome, I guess, do as the Romans do.

I think these pictures are from 1964, as Jimmy Piersall appears in one. Piersall was traded to the Angels with only 20 games left in the 1963 season. I doubt this promotion would have been at the end of the year, so likely it is from the 1964 season when he was with the team for the whole year. Anyway, for connoisseurs of baseball and Hollywood history, enjoy.