| Revision as of 22:08, 22 November 2007 editTonyTheTiger (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, File movers, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers400,839 edits →Move to Los Angeles: add {{Convert}}← Previous edit | Revision as of 03:46, 23 November 2007 edit undoTonyTheTiger (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, File movers, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers400,839 edits missed a couple conjunctions in earlier ceNext edit → | ||
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| ===Move to Los Angeles=== | ===Move to Los Angeles=== | ||
| Following the ]<!--May be redlink now, but will probably be forthcoming-->, he moved the Dodgers to Los Angeles. Also, he was influential in getting the rival ] to move west to become the San Francisco Giants. He needed another team to go with him, for had he moved out west alone, The ] - {{convert|1600|mi|km|1|lk=on|abbr=on}} away{{fact|date=November 2007}} - would have been the closest National League team if the Giants had not also moved west. O'Malley met with Giants owner ] - who was considering moving the Giants to Minnesota - and convinced Stoneham to join him on the west coast at the end of the '57 campaign. The moves broke the hearts of New York's fans but ultimately were successful for both franchises - and for Major League Baseball as a whole. In the years following the move of the New York clubs, Major League Baseball expanded to include three other California based teams, two in Texas, Minnesota, Colorado, Arizona and Seattle. O'Malley was given {{convert|352|acre|sqkm|2|lk=on|abbr=on}} in ] by the Los Angeles city government and built the 56,000 capacity ] for ]12 million. The Dodgers temporarily took up residence in the ] while they awaited the completion of Dodger Stadium |
Following the ]<!--May be redlink now, but will probably be forthcoming-->, he moved the Dodgers to Los Angeles. Also, he was influential in getting the rival ] to move west to become the San Francisco Giants. He needed another team to go with him, for had he moved out west alone, The ] - {{convert|1600|mi|km|1|lk=on|abbr=on}} away{{fact|date=November 2007}} - would have been the closest National League team if the Giants had not also moved west. O'Malley met with Giants owner ] - who was considering moving the Giants to Minnesota - and convinced Stoneham to join him on the west coast at the end of the '57 campaign. The moves broke the hearts of New York's fans but ultimately were successful for both franchises - and for Major League Baseball as a whole. In the years following the move of the New York clubs, Major League Baseball expanded to include three other California based teams, two in Texas, Minnesota, Colorado, Arizona and Seattle. O'Malley was given {{convert|352|acre|sqkm|2|lk=on|abbr=on}} in ] by the Los Angeles city government and built the 56,000 capacity ] for ]12 million. The Dodgers temporarily took up residence in the ], while they awaited the completion of Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers were soon drawing more than two-million fans a year. They remained successful on the field as well, winning the World Series in ], ], and ]. The ] also played in ] from 1962 to 1965.<ref>{{cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Mayor Is Blamed For Dodger Move; City Administration Scored By G.O.P. O'Malley Tie To Transit Unit Cited Authority Defends Contract. Republican spokesmen yesterday blamed Mayor Wagner for the loss of the Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles. |url= |work= |publisher=] |date=], ] |accessdate=2007-02-14 }}</ref> | ||
| ===Retire from presidency=== | ===Retire from presidency=== | ||
| Line 64: | Line 64: | ||
| ==Death== | ==Death== | ||
| Walter O'Malley was diagnosed with ], and sought treatment at the ]. He died of ] on ], ] and was buried at ] in ].<ref name=nytobit>{{cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Walter F. O'Malley, Leader of Dodgers' Move to Los Angeles, Dies at 75. |url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30E16F63C5410728DDDA90994D0405B898BF1D3 |quote=Walter F. O'Malley, the man who took the Dodgers out of Brooklyn and opened the West Coast to major league baseball, died yesterday in ]. He was 75 years old. The son of a commissioner of public markets, he attended Jamaica High School in Queens and Culver Military Academy on Indiana, where he played on the baseball team until a broken nose finished his playing career. ...|publisher=] |date=], ] |accessdate=2007-02-14 }}</ref><ref name=latobit/> His wife Kay died a few weeks later.<ref>{{cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Walter O'Malley, chairman of the board of the Los Angeles Dodgers, was admitted to Methodist Hospital in Rochester. |url= |work= |publisher=] |date=], ] |accessdate=2007-02-14 }}</ref> | Walter O'Malley was diagnosed with ], and he sought treatment at the ]. He died of ] on ], ] and was buried at ] in ].<ref name=nytobit>{{cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Walter F. O'Malley, Leader of Dodgers' Move to Los Angeles, Dies at 75. |url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30E16F63C5410728DDDA90994D0405B898BF1D3 |quote=Walter F. O'Malley, the man who took the Dodgers out of Brooklyn and opened the West Coast to major league baseball, died yesterday in ]. He was 75 years old. The son of a commissioner of public markets, he attended Jamaica High School in Queens and Culver Military Academy on Indiana, where he played on the baseball team until a broken nose finished his playing career. ...|publisher=] |date=], ] |accessdate=2007-02-14 }}</ref><ref name=latobit/> His wife Kay died a few weeks later.<ref>{{cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Walter O'Malley, chairman of the board of the Los Angeles Dodgers, was admitted to Methodist Hospital in Rochester. |url= |work= |publisher=] |date=], ] |accessdate=2007-02-14 }}</ref> | ||
| ==Popular culture== | ==Popular culture== | ||
Revision as of 03:46, 23 November 2007
| Walter Francis O'Malley | |
|---|---|
| File:5262 1062164538.jpgO'Malley circa 1940-1950 | |
| Born | (1903-10-09)October 9, 1903 Bronx |
| Died | August 9, 1979(1979-08-09) (aged 75) Mayo Clinic |
| Cause of death | Congestive heart failure with cancer |
| Resting place | Holy Cross Cemetery |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Culver Academy, University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University, Fordham University |
| Occupation | Owner of Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers |
| Known for | Moving the Dodgers to Los Angeles from New York City |
| Spouse | Katherine Elizabeth Hanson (1907-1979) |
| Children | Theresa O'Malley Seidler Peter O'Malley |
| Parent(s) | Edwin Joseph O'Malley Alma Feltner (1882-1940) |
| Website | http://walteromalley.com |
Walter Francis O'Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979. In 1958 he brought major league baseball to the West Coast, moving the Dodgers from Brooklyn to Los Angeles.
O'Malley’s Irish father was politically connected and O’Malley was well-educated. O'Malley, who was born and raised in Template:City-state, leveraged the combination of his family connections, his personal contacts, and both his educational and vocational skills to rise to prominence. First, he became an entrepreneur involved in public works contracting and then he became an executive with the Dodgers. He progressed from team lawyer to team owner and president, and he eventually made the business decision to relocate the Dodger franchise. He eventually passed control of the team to his son.
Early years
Walter O'Malley was the only child of Edwin Joseph O'Malley (1883-1955), who worked as a cotton goods salesman in the Bronx in 1903. Edwin O’Malley would later become the Commissioner of Public Markets for New York City. Walter's mother was Alma Feltner (1882-1940).
O'Malley attended the Jamaica High School in Queens and then the Culver Academy in Indiana. Then, he attended the University of Pennsylvania and graduated in 1926. O’Malley originaly enrolled at Columbia University in New York City, but after his family lost their money in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, he switched to night school at Fordham University. He completed his law degree in 1930 at Fordham Law, and then worked as an assistant engineer for the New York City Subway. He then worked for Thomas F. Riley who owned the Riley Drilling Company, and they formed the partnership of Riley and O'Malley. With the help of Walter's father's political connections, the company received contracts from the New York Telephone Company and the New York City Board of Education to perform geological surveys. Subsequently, Walter started the Walter F. O'Malley Engineering Company and published the Subcontractors Register with his uncle, Joseph O'Malley (1893-1985).
On September 5, 1931, he married Katherine Elizabeth Hanson (1907-1979), whom he had dated since high school, at Saint Malachy's Roman Catholic Church in Manhattan. They had two children: Theresa O'Malley Seidler (1933- ) and Peter O'Malley (1937- ). Kay had been diagnosed with laryngeal cancer in 1927 before the engagement and had to have her larynx removed. She was unable to speak above a whisper the rest of her life.
Dodgers
In 1933, Walter met George V. McLaughlin, president of the Brooklyn Trust Company. It was through George that Walter was brought into the financial arrangements for Ebbets Field in 1940. In 1942, he was appointed the attorney for the Brooklyn Dodgers, and he became the president and chief stockholder (owner) on October 26, 1950. O’Malley assumed the title of president from Branch Rickey, who is considered a trailblazer in baseball both for instituting the farm system and for breaking the racial barrier with Jackie Robinson.
After the ownership transfer, the Dodgers remained successful under O'Malley: they won the National League pennants in 1952, 1953, 1955, and 1956. In 1955, the team won the World Series for the first time in their history. Attendance declined from a peak of 1.7 million in 1946 and 1947 to just over one-million per year in the mid 1950s. O'Malley tried to raise money and get the political backing to build a new ballpark elsewhere in Brooklyn. The one person whose backing he needed was Robert Moses. Moses influenced development in New York through the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority. O'Malley had wanted to build a new Brooklyn Dodger stadium at Flatbush and Atlantic Avenue, but Moses wanted the Dodgers to move to Queens and play in Flushing Meadows Park, which is the stadium where the New York Mets play today. Ultimately, O'Malley decided to leave Brooklyn for Los Angeles.
Move to Los Angeles
Following the 1957 Major League Baseball season, he moved the Dodgers to Los Angeles. Also, he was influential in getting the rival New York Giants to move west to become the San Francisco Giants. He needed another team to go with him, for had he moved out west alone, The St. Louis Cardinals - 1,600 mi (2,575.0 km) away - would have been the closest National League team if the Giants had not also moved west. O'Malley met with Giants owner Horace Stoneham - who was considering moving the Giants to Minnesota - and convinced Stoneham to join him on the west coast at the end of the '57 campaign. The moves broke the hearts of New York's fans but ultimately were successful for both franchises - and for Major League Baseball as a whole. In the years following the move of the New York clubs, Major League Baseball expanded to include three other California based teams, two in Texas, Minnesota, Colorado, Arizona and Seattle. O'Malley was given 352 acres (1.42 km) in Chavez Ravine by the Los Angeles city government and built the 56,000 capacity Dodger Stadium for $12 million. The Dodgers temporarily took up residence in the Los Angeles Coliseum, while they awaited the completion of Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers were soon drawing more than two-million fans a year. They remained successful on the field as well, winning the World Series in 1959, 1963, and 1965. The Los Angeles Angels also played in Dodger Stadium from 1962 to 1965.
Retire from presidency
On March 17, 1970, Walter turned over the presidency of the team to his son Peter, remaining as Chairman until his death in 1979. Peter O'Malley held the position until 1998 when the team was sold to Rupert Murdoch.
Death
Walter O'Malley was diagnosed with cancer, and he sought treatment at the Mayo Clinic. He died of congestive heart failure on August 9, 1979 and was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California. His wife Kay died a few weeks later.
Popular culture
O'Malley was mentioned several times in Danny Kaye's 1962 song tribute, "The D-O-D-G-E-R-S Song (Oh, Really? No, O'Malley!)," which spins a tale of a fantasy game between the Dodgers and the Giants. At one point, the umpire's call goes against the home team:
- Down in the dugout, Alston glowers
- Up in the booth, Vin Scully frowns;
- Out in the stands, O'Malley grins...
- Attendance 50,000!
- So ....what does O'Malley do? CHARGE!!
Just before the St. Louis Cardinals began a series of games against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium, in 1963, the Los Angeles Times published a large cartoon, drawn by artist Pete Bentovoja, modeled on the movies about the German submarine captain. The captain is Cards' manager Johnny Keane; his "lieutenant" is Stan Musial. They wear Cardinal uniforms with naval officers' caps bearing the "St.L" emblem. While Keane and Musial are speaking, other crew members load bats, like torpedoes, into torpedo tubes; the bats have players' faces (and names and batting averages) drawn on them. Keane looks through the periscope; the inset shows a battleship with a large head of O'Malley, wearing a naval officers cap bearing the "LA" emblem and puffing a cigar. Keane: "Achtung Shtan ! I zought ve sunk sem last year?" Musial: "Yavohl, Mein Kommander, Ve vill blast zem vit bigger und better torpedoes zis zeazon!" (The Cards made a terrific drive for the pennant but finished the season six games back of the Dodgers.)
O'Malley was featured prominently in the HBO documentary film, Ghosts of Flatbush, which Chronicled his executive management of the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers,.
Timeline
- 1903 Birth in New York City on October 9
- 1926 Graduation from University of Pennsylvania
- 1929 Stock Market Crash
- 1930 Law degree from Fordham University
- 1931 Marriage to Katherine Elizabeth Hanson, aka Kay Hanson on September 5
- 1933 Birth of Theresa O'Malley, his daughter, on May 23
- 1937 Birth of Peter O'Malley, his son
- 1940 Death of Alma Feltner, his mother, on June 1
- 1942 Appointed attorney for the Brooklyn Dodgers
- 1950 President and chief stockholder of Dodgers on October 26
- 1955 Death of Edwin Joseph O'Malley, his father, on April 10
- 1955 Dodgers win World Series
- 1957 Team moved to Los Angeles, California
- 1959 Dodgers win World Series
- 1963 Dodgers win World Series
- 1965 Dodgers win World Series
- 1970 Peter O'Malley, his son, becomes President of Dodgers on March 17
- 1975 O'Malley owns 100% of Dodgers stock
- 1977 "Chest surgery" in Los Angeles on June 9
- 1979 Death of Kay, his wife, in Los Angeles on July 12
- 1979 Treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota
- 1979 Death of Walter O'Malley at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota on August 9
Notes
- "Walter O'Malley". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
Walter Francis O'Malley, American lawyer who was the principal owner of the National League Brooklyn Dodgers professional baseball team (from 1958 the Los Angeles Dodgers). As owner of the Dodgers, he played a role in two of the key events in the history of both the club and the major leagues: Jackie Robinson's breaking of the colour barrier in 1947 and the expansion of the major leagues to the West Coast.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "Walter O'Malley". Retrieved 2007-02-14.
Walter Francis O'Malley, son of Edwin Joseph and Alma Feltner O'Malley, was born in the Bronx, New York on October 9, 1903. Although he was an only child, he had many cousins nearby because his mother was one of eight sisters and brothers and because the O'Malley family, originally from County Mayo, Ireland, numbered 14. Ed O'Malley was the third oldest, became a dry goods merchant and later was appointed the New York City Commissioner of Public Markets. Walter was a baseball fan of the New York Giants as a youngster, frequenting the old Polo Grounds with his uncle Clarence Feltner.
- ^ "Baseball Club Holds Edge in Chavez Ravine Test". New York Times. June 4, 1958, Wednesday.
The proposal to give the Dodgers a 300-acre baseball stadium site in Chavez Ravine appeared to be winning in Los Angeles' municipal election tonight.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Walter in Wonderland". Time (magazine). Retrieved 2007-02-14.
The man with the ample jowls swiveled happily in his seat. Cigar ash dribbled over his shirt front, and his several chins bobbled as his tight little mouth widened into a smile. Everywhere he looked he saw money. There in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum were 78,672 paying customers for the first home game of the Los Angeles Dodgers; no larger crowd had ever watched a single regular-season baseball game anywhere. So far as the Dodgers' President Walter Francis O'Malley was concerned, his team had already conquered Southern California.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "Walter F. O'Malley, Leader of Dodgers' Move to Los Angeles, Dies at 75". New York Times. August 10, 1979. Retrieved 2007-02-14.
Walter F. O'Malley, the man who took the Dodgers out of Brooklyn and opened the West Coast to major league baseball, died yesterday in Rochester, Minnesota. He was 75 years old. The son of a commissioner of public markets, he attended Jamaica High School in Queens and Culver Military Academy on Indiana, where he played on the baseball team until a broken nose finished his playing career. ...
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Daughter to Mrs. W.F. O'Malley". New York Times. May 24, 1933.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Terry O'Malley Seidler. Mother of 10, She Manages to Get By". Los Angeles Times. April 15, 1981.
Terry O'Malley Seidler, mother of 10, is a transplanted Brooklyn woman who owns half of the Dodgers. She is known in the National League as the other O'Malley. Her brother Peter, who also owns half, is the president of the club and runs it.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Son Born to Walter O'Malleys". New York Times. December 25, 1937, Saturday.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Kay O'Malley, 72, Wife of Dodgers Owner, Dies". Los Angeles Times. July 14, 1979.
Kay O'Malley, wife of board chairman Walter F. O'Malley of the Los Angeles Dodgers, died at her Hancock Park home Thursday evening of acute cardiorespiratory arrest.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "O'Malley Elected To Succeed Rickey As Dodger President. Rickey Congratulates His Successor". New York Times. October 27, 1950.
Branch Rickey, baseball's 69 year-old wizard, "resigned" the presidency of the Brooklyn Dodgers yesterday and Walter F. O'Malley, 47-year-old Brooklyn lawyer, was elected to succeed him.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "The Dodgers Settle Down at Last in Chavez Ravine". New York Times. April 10, 1962, Tuesday.
Los Angeles, April 9, 1962 (United Press International) Eager citizens, proud civic leaders and jubilant baseball dignitaries today joined to dedicate the Los Angeles Dodgers' new multimillion-dollar 56,000-seat stadium in Chavez Ravine.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Mayor Is Blamed For Dodger Move; City Administration Scored By G.O.P. O'Malley Tie To Transit Unit Cited Authority Defends Contract. Republican spokesmen yesterday blamed Mayor Wagner for the loss of the Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles". New York Times. October 10, 1957.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Peter O'Malley, 30-year old son of the president, Walter F. O'Malley, was promoted today to the post of executive vice president of the Los Angeles Dodgers". New York Times. December 19, 1968.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Baseball's Blue Sale". Time (magazine). Monday, January 20, 1997. Retrieved 2007-08-21.
There were tears in Los Angeles and cackles in a certain New York City borough on Jan. 6. Forty years after his father removed the family business to L.A. from Brooklyn, Peter O'Malley announced that he was selling the firm -- namely, the Dodgers. By transplanting the beloved Bums to California in 1958, the unsentimental Walter O'Malley had ushered the era of Big Business into baseball; last week Peter claimed that the current game's corporate-scale economics were forcing him to sell. Something about the sins of the father leaped to the minds of people whose hearts are still in Brooklyn.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "Walter O'Malley, Owner of Dodgers, Dies at 75. Considered One of Baseball's Most Powerful Men, He Brought His Team to Los Angeles in 1958". Los Angeles Times. August 9, 1979.
Walter Francis O'Malley, the man who brought the Dodgers to Los Angeles, died Thursday of congestive heart failure. He was 75.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - "Walter O'Malley, chairman of the board of the Los Angeles Dodgers, was admitted to Methodist Hospital in Rochester". New York Times. February 24, 1978.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help)
External links
- Walter O'Malley at the Encyclopædia Britannica
- Walter O'Malley at Findagrave
- Walter O'Malley at SABR
- Walter O'Malley at Baseball Hall of Fame
- Walter O'Malley at Baseball Library
- Official Website: Walter O'Malley
- Findagrave: Walter's mother: Alma Feltner
- Findagrave: Walter's father: Edwin O'Malley
- Findagrave: Walter's uncle: Joseph O'Malley
- Wikia Genealogy: Walter O'Malley
| Preceded byBranch Rickey | President of the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers 1950-1970 |
Succeeded byPeter O'Malley |
| Preceded bynone | Chairman of the Los Angeles Dodgers 1970-1979 |
Succeeded byPeter O'Malley |
- Baseball executives
- 1903 births
- 1979 deaths
- American businesspeople
- American Roman Catholics
- Brooklyn Dodgers
- Burials at Holy Cross Cemetery
- Deaths from cardiovascular disease
- Fordham University School of Law alumni
- Irish-American sportspeople
- Los Angeles Dodgers
- O'Malley family
- University of Pennsylvania alumni