Mickey and Willie: The Parallel Lives of the Golden Age of Baseball in New York

• History

Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays were two of the greatest players to grace New York City’s major leagues and both players proudly claimed the city as their adopted home. But they had much more than that in common: they were both born in the same year, 1931; they were southerners by birth (Mickey’s father was an Oklahoma zinc miner, Willie’s an Alabama steel worker); and both were rookies in New York in the same year (1951) when they played against each other in the World Series. For nearly the next two decades, their names dominated not just baseball but all of American sports. Come hear sportswriter Allen Barra discuss Mantle’s and Mays’s parallel lives, share little-seen images of their New York years, and sign copies of his new book, Mickey and Willie (Crown, 2013). Peanuts, Cracker Jack, and root beer will be served!