Two programs to remember Holocaust, Jewish baseball star
A documentary about baseball’s first Jewish superstar and a one-man drama will commemorate the Holocaust and Jewish heritage in two Wichita State-sponsored events in April. Both events are free and open to the public.
Video of ‘Hammerin’ Hank Greenberg to be shown April 2
The 95-minute documentary "The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg" will be shown in the CAC Theater at 7:30 p.m. Monday, April 2. Professor John Dreifort, who teaches a baseball history course at WSU, will give a talk before the film is shown.
Greenberg, America’s first Jewish baseball star, achieved tremendous fame in 1938 when he made a run at Babe Ruth’s record of 60 home runs in a single season; he fell two short. In 1937 he was one short of matching Lou Gehrig’s record of 184 runs batted in.
Known as "Hammerin’ Hank," Greenberg’s career with the Detroit Tigers and one year with the Pittsburgh Pirates was highlighted by several firsts, including being the first man to win most valuable player awards at two positions (first base and left field) and baseball’s first $100,000 player.
His playing career, from 1933-47, coincided with Hitler’s rise to power and World War II. A future Hall of Famer, he often faced anti-Semitism in major league baseball.
In 1934, a drama unfolded when Greenberg was forced to choose between his religion and his career with the Detroit Tigers when he faced playing games on two Jewish holidays. With the blessing of a rabbi, he decided to play on Rosh Hashanah, but chose not to play on Yom Kippur, the most sacred of all Jewish holidays, during the pennant race.
WSU’s Student Activities Council and the Mid-Kansas Jewish Federation sponsor the film’s showing.
One-man play ‘Remnants’ to be performed April 19
Henry Greenspan will perform the one-man play "Remnants" in this year’s Holocaust commemoration program co-sponsored by WSU.
The play will be presented in the Jabara Flexible Theater in Newman University’s De Mattias Hall at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 19. The evening’s program includes an interfaith memorial service.
"Remnants" is an award-winning play that is the fruit of two decades of conversations with Greenspan, who wrote the play, and Holocaust survivors. Greenspan is also a psychologist.
The play explores the human experience of living after the Holocaust, attempting to find meaning in such destruction.
It was first produced for radio in 1992 and aired on National Public Radio. It’s been presented in the United States, Canada, Israel, Britain, France, Belgium and Switzerland.
The program’s co-sponsors are WSU’s Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the Mid-Kansas Jewish Federation, Newman University, the National Conference for Community and Justice, and Inter-Faith Ministries.
