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Hobey Baker, American Legend
Created: 3/14/2005 11:17:08 AM
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Historian Emil R. Salvini has written a new biography on the
Princeton, Ivy League, and sports legend, Hobey Baker -- entitled
Hobey Baker, American Legend.
Published by The Hobey Baker
Memorial Foundation, the book captures the story of the man that
fellow Princetonian F. Scott Fitzgerald called, "an ideal worthy of
everything in my enthusiastic admiration, yet consummated, and
expressed in a human being who stood within ten feet of me."
Fitzgerald would later pattern some of his fictional characters after
the dashing, handsome athlete.
Baker rose to prominence at Princeton University in the 1910s, but
his name still resonates in the sports world. Baker is the only
individual enshrined in both the Ice Hockey Hall of Fame and the
College Football Hall of Fame -- he was the first American to enter
the Hockey Hall.
Collegiate ice hockey is reminded of his presence on an annual basis,
as the Hobey Baker Memorial Trophy is awarded. Three Leaguers have
won the Baker Trophy, the most prestigious individual award in
college hockey, since its inception in 1981 -- all were Crimson men.
Brothers Mark and Scott Fusco won the award in 1983 and 1986,
respectively, while Lane MacDonald was awarded the Baker Trophy in
1989.
Candidates for the award must exhibit strength of character both on
and off the ice; contribute to the integrity of the team and display
outstanding skills in all phases of the game; and should be given to
scholastic achievement and sportsmanship -- all qualities that were found in
the trophy's namesake, Hobey Baker.
Despite his incredible feats in athletics, it is not this that makes
Hobey Baker an American legend -- it is his service to his country in
World War I.
Baker enlisted as a pilot in World War I and shot down three German
planes in dogfights so gloriously depicted in the movies "Hell's
Angels" and "Dawn Patrol." After surviving the war and preparing to
return to the States for a hero's welcome, Baker was killed while
testing a repaired aircraft. He was only 26.
The new biography of Baker contains a foreword by Senator Bill
Bradley and an introduction by Charles Scribner III. Scribner writes
of Hobey Baker, American Legend, "...Salvini's magnificent
biography -- the first in forty years here provides a literary feast
and a full-bodied portrait, placing the legendary star in the context
of his age, an era of athletic chivalry we have sadly lost."
In an era when so many major sports figures have been tarnished by
controversy, the story of Hobey Baker provides a refreshing glimpse
of a gifted athlete who played sports for the pure love of the
game.
Hobey Baker, American Legend is available through The
Hobey Baker Foundation, the Princeton
University Store, and in quality book stores this spring. If you
are interested in pre-ordering the book from the Hobey Baker
Foundation, send your contact information to book@hobeybaker.com.
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Related Schools: Princeton
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Related Sports: Ice Hockey
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*This Article has been archived.*
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