— By Jenny Wilson |
Glenn Burke
On the heel of World Series fever here in San Francisco, a different look at the game is being screened tonight in the Castro Theatre. Out: The Glenn Burke Story is a film about a man who made two major marks on major league baseball history way back in 1977. At the end of the season in '77, after former Giants coach and then teammate Dusty Baker hit a homerun, Burke gave Baker a high-five. Later when Burke hit his first homerun, Baker returned the high-five favor, cementing Burke as the creator of the now universal sign of recognition, triumph, and comradery— the high-five. Also in 1977 (1977 people!) Burke became the first openly gay baseball player in MLB history when he disclosed to teammates and the managerial staff at the Los Angeles Dodgers that he was a homosexual. At the time, one of the most conservative teams in baseball, the Dodgers went so far as to offer Burke a bonus to get married to a woman to keep his homosexuality a secret, which he declined. He later dated Dodgers Manager Tony Lasorda's estranged gay son before being traded to the Oakland Athletics, despite helping the Dodgers make it to the World Series. As if we needed another reason to hate the Dodgers…
To this day, Burke is the only openly gay baseball player in MLB history. Go see his story tonight.
More Info: Movie trailer. Order tickets.
Comments (4)
Billy Bean also came out, but a few years after retiring.
Also, my grandfather started a company in the late 70’s called “High Five” that was all kinds of men’s products (cologne, jheri curl, etc.) with pictures of basketball players high fiving each other on the labels. It never really took off but in his garage he has a bunch of old shaving cream cans and such that he kept as keepsakes.
I guess I should have rephrased to make it clear that Burke has been the only openly gay baseball player to come out while in the MLB (and at the height of his career).
Your grandpas company sounds awesome. Give him a high-five for me.
Its also showing one-time on Direct TV/Cable. Monday the 16th at 8 pm.
Tommy Lasorda or Tony LaRussa, pick one….