Remembering CARL FURILLO....

[DODGER DEB]

Today, March 8th, would have been CARL FURILLO'S 84th birthday! WE remember him with nothing but good memories!

Skoonj was such an important part of OUR DODGERS. WE never could have won all WE did without his bat or his arm.

If anyone has any special stories about Skoonj, please share them with US!

From Baseball Almanac.


c.

[Brownie31]

Carl "Skoonj" Furillo was not only a rock solid, dependable player, but he was also a rock solid, dependable man-a true blue collar hero. He will also be long remembered and honored for not taking anything off Leo Durocher! One question: The lead character on the old 1980s hit, Hill Street Blues, was named Frank Furillo. Steven Bochco, the producer, was born in 1943 and grew up in New York during Furillo's heyday. Could this have been a tribute to Skoonj? Brownie31

[DODGER DEB]

Originally Posted by Brownie31

Carl "Skoonj" Furillo was not only a rock solid, dependable player, but he was also a rock solid, dependable man-a true blue collar hero. He will also be long remembered and honored for not taking anything off Leo Durocher! One question: The lead character on the old 1980s hit, Hill Street Blues, was named Frank Furillo. Steven Bochco, the producer, was born in 1943 and grew up in New York during Furillo's heyday. Could this have been a tribute to Skoonj? Brownie31

I never thought about that! You could be right, Brownie31!

c.

[Mattingly]

HAPPY B-DAY, SKOONJ!

[DODGER DEB]

THIS is how WE remembered SKOONJ in 2005, here on OUR Forum....

http://www.baseball-fever.com/showth...225#post262225

I also need to correct an oversight on my part. Today, March 8th would also have been the 84th birthday of AL GIONFRIDDO, OUR hero of one game during the 1947 World Series with that incredible catch.

c.

[jaykay]

Originally Posted by DODGER DEB

Today, March 8th, would have been CARL FURILLO'S 84th birthday! WE remember him with nothing but good memories!

Skoonj was such an important part of OUR DODGERS. WE never could have won all WE did without his bat or his arm.

If anyone has any special stories about Skoonj, please share them with US!

c.

Okay, I'll bite.
As everyone knows, Carl Furillo threw right-handed. In the trick photograph posted by Dodger Deb (uncredited, I might add), the player wearing #6 will throw left-handed when he catches the forthcoming ball, leading me to believe that we are not looking at Carl Furillo. In addition, the player in the photo does not have the facial appearance of Carl Furillo, and - if you were to ask me - I would claim that the signature arguably reads Al Gionfriddo, rather than Carl Furillo. Of course, the facial appearance does not suggest Gionfriddo either, and Gionfriddo did not wear #6 for Brooklyn. Therefore, we have a plethora of conundrums to unravel, should anyone wish to go further with one of the most challenging mysteries to appear on this forum in many a moon.
Any takers?

[DODGER DEB]

Originally Posted by jaykay

Okay, I'll bite.
As everyone knows, Carl Furillo threw right-handed. In the trick photograph posted by Dodger Deb (uncredited, I might add), the player wearing #6 will throw left-handed when he catches the forthcoming ball, leading me to believe that we are not looking at Carl Furillo. In addition, the player in the photo does not have the facial appearance of Carl Furillo, and - if you were to ask me - I would claim that the signature arguably reads Al Gionfriddo, rather than Carl Furillo. Of course, the facial appearance does not suggest Gionfriddo either, and Gionfriddo did not wear #6 for Brooklyn. Therefore, we have a plethora of conundrums to unravel, should anyone wish to go further with one of the most challenging mysteries to appear on this forum in many a moon.
Any takers?

YOU are right, jaykay, I neglected to credit the source...it was our own Baseball Almanac.

As for the righthand/lefthand thing.....could that be the 1953 cast on Carl's lefthand, complements of Leo?

Other than that possibility the photo looks OK to me, albeit a posed shot. I don't think Gionfriddo was as tall as Carl. As for facial appearance, other than both of them being Italian, they each had distinct features.

Noting the signature...it sure looks like Furillo's.

As for unraveling your conundrum further, let's see if any other loyal and true BROOKLYN fan could "solve the puzzle".

c.

[kramer_47]

Carl was one of the nicest Dodgers I ever met. I told the story where Carl signed both my yearbooks when I had bought only one ticket, great guy.

[zman]

"No suit for you!"




(photo from ebbetsfield.com)

[Paulmcall]

I remember reading a story about that photo but I can't remember who's glove he borrowed for that photo. It was obviously a gag.
Anyone know who he got the glove from?

[zman]

Originally Posted by DODGER DEB

Today, March 8th would also have been the 84th birthday of AL GIONFRIDDO, OUR hero of one game during the 1947 World Series with that incredible catch.
c.

"Swing -- and belted to deep left-center. Back goes Gionfriddo. Back, back, back, back, back, back. He makes a one-handed catch against the bullpen. Whoaaahhhh, doctor."










(photo from grandstandsports.com)

[zman]

Originally Posted by kramer_47

I told the story where Carl signed both my yearbooks when I had bought only one ticket, great guy.

Well, I've never heard it. A good story bears repeated tellings. (hint, hint)

[kramer_47]

Originally Posted by zman

Well, I've never heard it. A good story bears repeated tellings. (hint, hint)

I heard Carl was going to be signing autographs and auctioning some of his memorabilia for charity at a church near Flatbush Ave in 1983 so I decided to go to this show. I grabbed 2 yearbooks the 1954 and 1956 and I headed for the show, I don't know why I brought 2 yearbooks because I only wanted 1 autograph. When I got there I bought 1 ticket for $3 and waited on line to meet Carl. When I got up to Carl I looked for his picture in the 1954 yearbook and there was Carl hugging O'Malley I said you don't want to sign this one and he said "why not" and tried to grab it I said no and handed him the 1956 which he signed. Then he demanded I give him the 1954 to sign, which he signed for free, he got a good laugh when he saw why I wouldn't give it to him. For those that don't know O'Malley released Carl in 1960 while he was injured, after 15 years with the Dodgers, that shows you what a bum O'Malley was. The players in those days didn't make alot of money so Carl went on to be a construction worker on the World Trade Center and a police officer back home in Reading Pa because he was basically blackballed from baseball by O'Malley. I originally met Carl at Ebbets field through Gil Hodges and he was always nice to me so what he did on that day in 1983 was no surprise.

[zman]

Thanks, Kramer47. That's hilarious how he reacted to the photo of him and O'Malley. Makes me smile to think of him laughing it off. Some witers make it sound like he was dark and bitter in his old age but your story gives me hope that he worked his way through the disappointments and gained some measure of enjoyment and contentment in his life.

[KCGHOST]

Furillo was simply a class act and a childhood favorite of mine.

[Mattingly]

Originally Posted by jaykay

Okay, I'll bite.
As everyone knows, Carl Furillo threw right-handed. In the trick photograph posted by Dodger Deb (uncredited, I might add), the player wearing #6 will throw left-handed when he catches the forthcoming ball, leading me to believe that we are not looking at Carl Furillo. In addition, the player in the photo does not have the facial appearance of Carl Furillo, and - if you were to ask me - I would claim that the signature arguably reads Al Gionfriddo, rather than Carl Furillo. Of course, the facial appearance does not suggest Gionfriddo either, and Gionfriddo did not wear #6 for Brooklyn. Therefore, we have a plethora of conundrums to unravel, should anyone wish to go further with one of the most challenging mysteries to appear on this forum in many a moon.
Any takers?

I hadn't even noticed the cast. I've also never checked pictures for whether they threw or caught lefty-righty, so good looking out.

I'm sure there must be a story, because I hadn't even noticed the cast before. How does one catch with one's throwing right hand and wear a cast on one's catching left hand? How do you throw the ball back? I remember when I was 11 or so at PS 181 in Brooklyn, a kid did this by fielding the ball, dropping the "lefty" glove from his right hand and throwing the ball with his right hand, when the "lefty" glove was the only spare one available.

As to the face, I won't pretend to know Carl Furillo anywhere as well as you folks, but from the various pictures I'm seeing of him here and Deb's long shot in the original post, it looks like the same person's face.

Thoughts on this?

[zman]

As you said, Mattingly, others here would know better than me but it sure looks like Furillo to me. It's almost certainly not Gionfriddo because Game 7 of the 1947 World Series was his last big league appearance and the numbers on the front of the Dodgers uniform didn't appear until 1952. I found a slightly larger copy of the same photo but I still couldn't tell for sure if that's a cast on the left hand and forearm. The left hand looks very large and square which suggests it might be a cast. Also, the left hand and forearm appear lighter in color than the face. I don't think a shadow cast by the bill of his cap can account for the face being darker than the left hand and forearm given the angle of the light which can be discerned by the shadow cast by his other arm. I'll bet somebody with an 8x10 print could tell for sure.

[zman]

Why do I get the feeling that Carl is looking down at us from heaven just shaking his head and laughing?

[Flatbush Flock]

Originally Posted by Mattingly

I hadn't even noticed the cast. I've also never checked pictures for whether they threw or caught lefty-righty, so good looking out.

I'm sure there must be a story, because I hadn't even noticed the cast before. How does one catch with one's throwing right hand and wear a cast on one's catching left hand? How do you throw the ball back? I remember when I was 11 or so at PS 181 in Brooklyn, a kid did this by fielding the ball, dropping the "lefty" glove from his right hand and throwing the ball with his right hand, when the "lefty" glove was the only spare one available.

As to the face, I won't pretend to know Carl Furillo anywhere as well as you folks, but from the various pictures I'm seeing of him here and Deb's long shot in the original post, it looks like the same person's face.

Thoughts on this?

I read recently, but forgot where, that Furillo wanted to keep his fielding in shape before the 1953 series while recovering from the broken hand. Thus he caught with his right hand. I don't know whether this picture was posed or not or if he could throw the ball. But I remember his 2-run homer in the
9th inning of the 6th game to tie the score.