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♪ ♪

00:00:22.542 --> 00:00:24.143
BROADCAST ANNOUNCER:
That is hit well.

00:00:24.167 --> 00:00:25.643
(spectators cheering)

00:00:25.667 --> 00:00:28.310
A Clemente home run!

00:00:28.334 --> 00:00:30.268
NARRATOR:
On October 17, 1971,

00:00:30.292 --> 00:00:32.918
the underdog Pittsburgh Pirates
defeated the Baltimore Orioles

00:00:33.125 --> 00:00:36.975 line:20%
in game seven
to win the World Series.

00:00:36.999 --> 00:00:40.518 line:20%
Many players had contributed
to the victory,

00:00:40.542 --> 00:00:43.143 position:20%
but everyone agreed
who was most responsible--

00:00:43.167 --> 00:00:46.643
their veteran right fielder
from Puerto Rico,

00:00:46.667 --> 00:00:49.894
number 21, Roberto Clemente.

00:00:49.918 --> 00:00:52.852
SPORTSCASTER:
And here with me right now,

00:00:52.876 --> 00:00:54.435 position:20%
the greatest right fielder
in the game of baseball...

00:00:54.459 --> 00:00:57.018
NARRATOR:
But it wasn't just his play
on the field that day

00:00:57.042 --> 00:00:59.602
that his admirers
would remember.

00:00:59.626 --> 00:01:01.894
It was what he did afterwards.

00:01:01.918 --> 00:01:03.685 position:80%
And before I say
anything in English,

00:01:03.709 --> 00:01:06.768 position:80%
I would like
to say something

00:01:06.792 --> 00:01:08.894 position:80%
for my mother and
father in Spanish.

00:01:08.918 --> 00:01:11.975 position:80%
En el día más grande
de mi vida,

00:01:11.999 --> 00:01:14.894 position:80%
para los nenes,
la bendición mía

00:01:14.918 --> 00:01:16.810
y que mis padres me echen
la bendición en Puerto Rico.

00:01:16.834 --> 00:01:18.975 position:20%
The Latinos
who were listening to that

00:01:18.999 --> 00:01:21.185
were watching
the English-language TV.

00:01:21.209 --> 00:01:24.226
To have someone suddenly
speak to you in Spanish

00:01:24.250 --> 00:01:27.143
reinforced a pride
in your own language and culture

00:01:27.167 --> 00:01:30.167
and in who Roberto was.

00:01:32.709 --> 00:01:33.975 position:20%
LES BANOS:
I cried when he did this,

00:01:33.999 --> 00:01:36.876
because that was him.

00:01:36.999 --> 00:01:40.852
He loved his family,
he loved his country.

00:01:40.876 --> 00:01:44.268
He loved the United States, but
his love was for Puerto Rico.

00:01:44.292 --> 00:01:48.059
NARRATOR:
He was baseball's
first Latino superstar,

00:01:48.083 --> 00:01:51.999
before America's pastime became
truly international.

00:01:52.584 --> 00:01:56.393
ROBERT RUCK:
Clemente is the first athlete

00:01:56.417 --> 00:01:59.375
to transcend both race
and nation and culture.

00:02:00.250 --> 00:02:04.042
He's also not defined
by commercialism.

00:02:04.918 --> 00:02:08.999
It's about pride; it's about
doing what he believes is right.

00:02:10.125 --> 00:02:13.643
It's about loyalty.

00:02:13.667 --> 00:02:15.935
NARRATOR:
He played with
unparalleled grace

00:02:15.959 --> 00:02:18.768
during turbulent times,

00:02:18.792 --> 00:02:21.626
with passion and pride
that were often misunderstood.

00:02:22.209 --> 00:02:25.975 position:20%
GEORGE WILL:
He was a puzzle, I'm sure,

00:02:25.999 --> 00:02:28.143
to a lot of the sporting press,
and they were

00:02:28.167 --> 00:02:31.500 position:20%
mysterious and somewhat
adversarial, in his view.

00:02:31.999 --> 00:02:35.975
SAMUEL REGALADO:
Clemente was
a complicated individual

00:02:35.999 --> 00:02:37.602
because he stepped into
some very complicated times.

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NARRATOR:
He was larger
than the game he loved

00:02:40.500 --> 00:02:44.542
until his sudden, tragic death
made him larger still.

00:02:46.167 --> 00:02:49.417
♪ ♪

00:03:01.584 --> 00:03:04.834
♪ ♪

00:03:09.834 --> 00:03:11.417
(birds squawking)

00:03:21.417 --> 00:03:25.018
NARRATOR:
"I grew up with people

00:03:25.042 --> 00:03:26.435
that really had
to struggle to live,"

00:03:26.459 --> 00:03:28.852 position:20%
Roberto Clemente recalled.

00:03:28.876 --> 00:03:31.435
"My mother never went to a show.

00:03:31.459 --> 00:03:33.626
She didn't know how to dance."

00:03:35.834 --> 00:03:37.643
Like many others
in rural Puerto Rico,

00:03:37.667 --> 00:03:40.643 position:20%
life for Clemente's family
revolved around sugarcane.

00:03:40.667 --> 00:03:43.626 position:20%
His father, Melchor, worked
as a foreman in the fields

00:03:44.667 --> 00:03:48.167
near the small town of Carolina.

00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:53.560
His mother, Doña Luisa,

00:03:53.584 --> 00:03:55.667
often rose at 1:00 a.m.
to make lunches for the workers.

00:03:56.584 --> 00:04:00.351
Roberto, the youngest
of seven children,

00:04:00.375 --> 00:04:03.375
started working when he was
just eight years old.

00:04:03.959 --> 00:04:07.351 position:20%
Life in Carolina was hard,

00:04:07.375 --> 00:04:10.101
with more than its share
of tragedy,

00:04:10.125 --> 00:04:12.393
but Clemente
remembered it fondly.

00:04:12.417 --> 00:04:15.935
"We used to get together
at night and make jokes

00:04:15.959 --> 00:04:19.727
and eat whatever we had to eat,"
he said later.

00:04:19.751 --> 00:04:23.083
"It was something wonderful
to me."

00:04:23.876 --> 00:04:27.185
Shy, pensive, restless,

00:04:27.209 --> 00:04:29.999
Roberto was devoted
to the island's favorite sport.

00:04:30.792 --> 00:04:34.975
DAVID MARANISS:
Baseball was it for Clemente
from an early age.

00:04:34.999 --> 00:04:37.643
People in his neighborhood
in San Anton said

00:04:37.667 --> 00:04:40.018 line:20%
they always saw him throwing
something against the wall.

00:04:40.042 --> 00:04:42.059 line:20%
It could be a sock
or a bottle cap or something,

00:04:42.083 --> 00:04:44.751 line:20%
but he always had that motion
of throwing.

00:04:45.083 --> 00:04:48.310
♪ ♪

00:04:48.334 --> 00:04:49.727
Baseball captured Roberto
as it did

00:04:49.751 --> 00:04:52.018
thousands and thousands
of young boys in Puerto Rico

00:04:52.042 --> 00:04:55.643
in that era because it was
what was available.

00:04:55.667 --> 00:04:58.975
Puerto Rico
was not a soccer island.

00:04:58.999 --> 00:05:01.999
It was baseball.

00:05:03.083 --> 00:05:05.143
♪ ♪

00:05:05.167 --> 00:05:06.975
JUAN GONZALEZ:
In Puerto Rico,
people argue and fight.

00:05:06.999 --> 00:05:10.268 line:20%
The fanaticism toward baseball
is much greater

00:05:10.292 --> 00:05:12.975 position:20% line:20%
than it is
here in the United States.

00:05:12.999 --> 00:05:14.709
NARRATOR:
As a teenager in the late 1940s,

00:05:14.876 --> 00:05:18.685
Clemente would catch the bus
into San Juan

00:05:18.709 --> 00:05:20.975
to watch
the Puerto Rican winter leagues,

00:05:20.999 --> 00:05:22.751
dreaming
of his own baseball future.

00:05:23.292 --> 00:05:26.685
(crowd cheers)

00:05:26.709 --> 00:05:28.560 position:20%
Already
a talented player himself,

00:05:28.584 --> 00:05:31.226
he watched some
of the game's best,

00:05:31.250 --> 00:05:34.143
including Black players
from America's Negro Leagues,

00:05:34.167 --> 00:05:37.167
attracted by the island's
open racial climate.

00:05:39.999 --> 00:05:41.975
GAME ANNOUNCER:
A high pop-up
back to first base.

00:05:41.999 --> 00:05:44.685
That's second baseman Taylor
scooting over near the line

00:05:44.709 --> 00:05:46.852 position:20%
to make the catch for the out,
and that retires the side.

00:05:46.876 --> 00:05:49.602
MARANISS:
It was so different
in Puerto Rico

00:05:49.626 --> 00:05:51.435
from in the United States
in that period.

00:05:51.459 --> 00:05:54.143
If you were a Black Puerto Rican
or a Black American,

00:05:54.167 --> 00:05:56.768
you could eat
wherever you wanted to,

00:05:56.792 --> 00:05:58.059
you could sleep
wherever you wanted to,

00:05:58.083 --> 00:05:59.560
you could date
whoever you wanted to.

00:05:59.584 --> 00:06:01.975
There wasn't
this constant reminder

00:06:01.999 --> 00:06:03.768 position:20%
of the color of your skin.

00:06:03.792 --> 00:06:05.375
NARRATOR:
Following his favorite team,
the San Juan Senadores,

00:06:05.999 --> 00:06:09.975
Clemente saw top ballplayers,
Black and white,

00:06:09.999 --> 00:06:13.167
play with the Caribbean League's
trademark swashbuckling style.

00:06:17.999 --> 00:06:21.310
For 15 cents,

00:06:21.334 --> 00:06:22.975
Clemente could watch
the outfield play of his idol--

00:06:22.999 --> 00:06:25.876
Negro League veteran
Monte Irvin.

00:06:26.751 --> 00:06:30.476
SAMUEL REGALADO:
For Roberto Clemente,

00:06:30.500 --> 00:06:31.975 line:20%
the Black ballplayers
in many respects represented

00:06:31.999 --> 00:06:34.975 line:20%
a very important time
in his youth.

00:06:34.999 --> 00:06:37.852
They were the standard-bearers
for Roberto Clemente.

00:06:37.876 --> 00:06:40.560
They were the models.

00:06:40.584 --> 00:06:41.975
NARRATOR:
At 18, Clemente got
his first break,

00:06:41.999 --> 00:06:45.876
playing for the Santurce
Cangrejeros for $40 a week.

00:06:46.626 --> 00:06:50.226
Soon, the island's
top baseball men

00:06:50.250 --> 00:06:53.643 position:20%
were talking
about the young outfielder

00:06:53.667 --> 00:06:55.975
with the quick bat
and the rocket arm.

00:06:55.999 --> 00:06:58.500
One called him "the best free
agent athlete I've ever seen."

00:06:59.250 --> 00:07:02.476
♪ ♪

00:07:02.500 --> 00:07:04.101 position:20%
In 1954, Melchor Clemente

00:07:04.125 --> 00:07:05.975
signed a contract
on behalf of his son

00:07:05.999 --> 00:07:09.185
with the Brooklyn Dodger
organization,

00:07:09.209 --> 00:07:11.435
for the unimaginable sum
of $5,000,

00:07:11.459 --> 00:07:14.975
plus a $10,000 signing bonus.

00:07:14.999 --> 00:07:18.768
His stay with the Dodgers
would be short-lived.

00:07:18.792 --> 00:07:21.975 position:20%
He would soon be drafted away
by the Pittsburgh Pirates,

00:07:21.999 --> 00:07:25.560
but Roberto Clemente
was living the dream

00:07:25.584 --> 00:07:28.709
of every Puerto Rican boy
who'd ever swung a bat.

00:07:29.834 --> 00:07:33.143
He was on his way north

00:07:33.167 --> 00:07:34.999
to play baseball
en las grandes ligas.

00:07:35.999 --> 00:07:39.167
♪ ♪

00:07:42.417 --> 00:07:46.018
NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER:
At Fort Myers,

00:07:46.042 --> 00:07:47.768
spring training begins
for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

00:07:47.792 --> 00:07:49.393 position:20%
Manager Danny Murtaugh...

00:07:49.417 --> 00:07:50.935
NARRATOR:
For 20-year-old
Roberto Clemente,

00:07:50.959 --> 00:07:53.167
the annual ritual
of spring training in Florida

00:07:53.500 --> 00:07:56.976
was both familiar and strange.

00:07:57.000 --> 00:07:59.018
He had played baseball
in a warm, sunny climate before,

00:07:59.042 --> 00:08:02.667
but he had never encountered
Jim Crow.

00:08:02.999 --> 00:08:06.852
REGALADO:
They're training in the South,

00:08:06.876 --> 00:08:10.185
and it's in the South
that Roberto Clemente,

00:08:10.209 --> 00:08:12.268
like other
Latin American Blacks,

00:08:12.292 --> 00:08:14.393
are introduced
to the overt racism

00:08:14.417 --> 00:08:16.810
that they had heard about
back in their homeland

00:08:16.834 --> 00:08:19.143
but now actually see
in front of them,

00:08:19.167 --> 00:08:21.810 position:20%
and it's really a concept

00:08:21.834 --> 00:08:23.334
that is very difficult
for them to grasp.

00:08:25.167 --> 00:08:27.185
MARANISS:
The whole team stayed
at the Bradford Hotel downtown,

00:08:27.209 --> 00:08:30.000
except for Clemente and three
other Black and Latino players,

00:08:30.292 --> 00:08:33.975
who had to find
their own lodging

00:08:33.999 --> 00:08:35.810 position:20%
on the other side
of the tracks, literally.

00:08:35.834 --> 00:08:38.351
In every aspect
of his life there,

00:08:38.375 --> 00:08:41.101
he felt segregation strongly

00:08:41.125 --> 00:08:42.975
for, really,
the first time in his life.

00:08:42.999 --> 00:08:45.417
♪ ♪

00:08:46.500 --> 00:08:50.393
GONZALEZ:
He was coming here
as an American,

00:08:50.417 --> 00:08:52.999
playing baseball in his country,

00:08:53.250 --> 00:08:56.810
but he was being treated

00:08:56.834 --> 00:08:58.059
as a Black American,
as a foreigner.

00:08:58.083 --> 00:09:00.975
The way he was being identified

00:09:00.999 --> 00:09:02.667
just didn't jibe
with his reality.

00:09:04.834 --> 00:09:08.935
REGALADO:
You had this combination
of young ballplayer,

00:09:08.959 --> 00:09:11.810 position:20%
anxious to succeed, has...

00:09:11.834 --> 00:09:14.351
to a certain extent
delusions of grandeur,

00:09:14.375 --> 00:09:16.834
and then there's the reality
of his position as a person,

00:09:17.000 --> 00:09:20.975
and in the South,
during the period of the 1950s,

00:09:20.999 --> 00:09:24.018
it didn't matter whether or not

00:09:24.042 --> 00:09:26.852
you're a professional
baseball player;

00:09:26.876 --> 00:09:28.959
you're just Black.

00:09:31.542 --> 00:09:34.975
(machinery squealing)

00:09:34.999 --> 00:09:38.976
NARRATOR:
With the start
of the regular season,

00:09:39.000 --> 00:09:40.894
the team came north
to Pittsburgh,

00:09:40.918 --> 00:09:43.393 position:20%
a tough,
smoke-belching steel town,

00:09:43.417 --> 00:09:46.059 position:20%
where Clemente took a room

00:09:46.083 --> 00:09:47.975
in a middle-class
African-American neighborhood.

00:09:47.999 --> 00:09:52.000
Pittsburgh fans loved their
Bucs, as they called the team,

00:09:52.751 --> 00:09:56.476
but they didn't quite know
what to make

00:09:56.500 --> 00:09:58.351
of their lone Latino player,

00:09:58.375 --> 00:10:00.375
and Clemente didn't quite know
what to make of Pittsburgh.

00:10:00.999 --> 00:10:04.935 line:20%
@You were Black or you were white
in Pittsburgh.

00:10:04.959 --> 00:10:07.727 line:20%
You weren't Latin.

00:10:07.751 --> 00:10:08.727 position:20% line:20%
You weren't Puerto Rican.

00:10:08.751 --> 00:10:09.975
On the other hand, I suspect

00:10:09.999 --> 00:10:12.351
that both Black
and white Pittsburghers

00:10:12.375 --> 00:10:14.268
had a hard time
understanding Clemente.

00:10:14.292 --> 00:10:16.976
They had little experience
with people from Latin America,

00:10:17.000 --> 00:10:20.667
with Latin American culture,
with that sense of Latin pride.

00:10:21.667 --> 00:10:25.101
The Black community saw him,

00:10:25.125 --> 00:10:27.876
and physically he was Black
to them, but not culturally.

00:10:31.999 --> 00:10:33.584
ORLANDO CEPEDA:
He told me that
it was very lonely for him,

00:10:34.667 --> 00:10:38.059 position:20%
because of communication.

00:10:38.083 --> 00:10:39.768
He couldn't communicate.

00:10:39.792 --> 00:10:41.852
That's why, uh,

00:10:41.876 --> 00:10:43.975 line:20%
we had two strikes:

00:10:43.999 --> 00:10:46.768 line:20%
being Black

00:10:46.792 --> 00:10:48.975 line:20%
and being Latin.

00:10:48.999 --> 00:10:50.975
NARRATOR:
Clemente spent little free time

00:10:50.999 --> 00:10:53.975
with his fellow Pirates,

00:10:53.999 --> 00:10:55.999
some of whom found him
guarded and aloof.

00:10:58.834 --> 00:11:00.018
Whatever the reason,
the result was obvious:

00:11:00.042 --> 00:11:03.226
besides baseball,
number 21 and his teammates

00:11:03.250 --> 00:11:06.959
had little in common.

00:11:07.292 --> 00:11:10.975
Clemente, after baseball games,

00:11:10.999 --> 00:11:12.476
has no one, really,
to pal around with

00:11:12.500 --> 00:11:14.768 position:20%
in terms of his teammates.

00:11:14.792 --> 00:11:16.975
He often wanders around
by himself.

00:11:16.999 --> 00:11:18.976
And Clemente, in fact,

00:11:19.000 --> 00:11:20.560
signed autographs till the last
person had his baseball signed,

00:11:20.584 --> 00:11:23.976
in large part because Clemente
had really nothing else

00:11:24.000 --> 00:11:26.935
better to do
that day after games.

00:11:26.959 --> 00:11:28.810
♪ ♪

00:11:28.834 --> 00:11:30.435
NARRATOR:
In the days before publicists
and security guards,

00:11:30.459 --> 00:11:33.918
players and fans could sometimes
have a human encounter.

00:11:37.000 --> 00:11:38.334
One day, a 17-year-old fan
from rural Pennsylvania

00:11:38.792 --> 00:11:42.435
saw Clemente
after a Phillies game.

00:11:42.459 --> 00:11:44.976
CAROL BASS:
I decided to approach him
and I said,

00:11:45.000 --> 00:11:47.975
"May I please have
your autograph?"

00:11:47.999 --> 00:11:49.393 line:20%
And I had just begun
to learn some Spanish,

00:11:49.417 --> 00:11:51.810 line:20%
and so I said,
"Oh, gracias, Señor Clemente."

00:11:51.834 --> 00:11:55.268
And he smiled and he looked up

00:11:55.292 --> 00:11:57.685
and he started to rattle
and go off in Spanish.

00:11:57.709 --> 00:12:01.351
And he just went on and on,
and I was just like,

00:12:01.375 --> 00:12:04.852
um, you know, so nervous inside
and I thought,

00:12:04.876 --> 00:12:07.185
"Oh, my gosh, you know,
how do I, you know,

00:12:07.209 --> 00:12:09.310 position:20%
"what do I do to tell him,

00:12:09.334 --> 00:12:10.935
you know, I don't understand
what he, what he had to say?"

00:12:10.959 --> 00:12:13.351
"Mr. Clemente, I'm so sorry."

00:12:13.375 --> 00:12:15.768
I said, "I'm just beginning
to learn Spanish,

00:12:15.792 --> 00:12:17.685 position:20%
I only know a few words."

00:12:17.709 --> 00:12:18.975
Well, he, you know,
started to laugh.

00:12:18.999 --> 00:12:20.476 position:20%
He said, "You know,
you're never going to get

00:12:20.500 --> 00:12:22.584
a lot of autographs being
so far back."

00:12:25.792 --> 00:12:27.393 position:20%
MARANISS:
An athlete's life
is mostly being uprooted.

00:12:27.417 --> 00:12:30.125 position:20%
And a lot of athletes
deal with that by finding

00:12:30.999 --> 00:12:34.393
superficial outlets.

00:12:34.417 --> 00:12:36.018
Clemente mostly dealt with it

00:12:36.042 --> 00:12:37.975 position:20%
by trying
to find reminders of home

00:12:37.999 --> 00:12:40.685 position:20%
and family wherever he was.

00:12:40.709 --> 00:12:43.810 position:20%
Carol was one part of that,

00:12:43.834 --> 00:12:46.810
and an unlikely white girl
from Philadelphia

00:12:46.834 --> 00:12:50.083
becomes part
of the Clemente family.

00:12:52.083 --> 00:12:54.560 position:20%
NARRATOR:
Over the years, Clemente would
host Carol and her parents

00:12:54.584 --> 00:12:57.542
when they visited him
in Puerto Rico.

00:13:00.000 --> 00:13:01.351
But friendships with individual
fans were one thing;

00:13:01.375 --> 00:13:04.975
relations with Pittsburgh's
hard-bitten press

00:13:04.999 --> 00:13:08.143
were quite another.

00:13:08.167 --> 00:13:10.768 position:20%
Theirs was an awkward dance

00:13:10.792 --> 00:13:13.185 position:20%
of mutual incomprehension

00:13:13.209 --> 00:13:15.975
and often hostility.

00:13:15.999 --> 00:13:17.768
ROY McHUGH:
If Clemente wasn't approached
in the right way,

00:13:17.792 --> 00:13:20.018 line:20%
he would flare up.

00:13:20.042 --> 00:13:22.810 position:20% line:20%
His feelings seemed to be

00:13:22.834 --> 00:13:25.975
right on the surface.

00:13:25.999 --> 00:13:27.975 position:20%
And, uh, the wrong question

00:13:27.999 --> 00:13:30.975
or the wrong word
would set him off.

00:13:30.999 --> 00:13:33.459
I can't say that I enjoyed
talking with him.

00:13:34.584 --> 00:13:38.268 line:20%
What cracked me up
about Roberto was

00:13:38.292 --> 00:13:39.975 position:20% line:20%
in a lot of his interviews,

00:13:39.999 --> 00:13:41.975 line:20%
they would come
and interview him,

00:13:41.999 --> 00:13:43.975
he would start
talking about life.

00:13:43.999 --> 00:13:45.975
And the writers just
wasn't ready for that.

00:13:45.999 --> 00:13:49.083
NARRATOR:
Baseball players were supposed
to be upbeat and uncomplicated.

00:13:51.125 --> 00:13:54.518
Not Clemente.

00:13:54.542 --> 00:13:56.268
The Pirate outfielder
was often moody,

00:13:56.292 --> 00:13:58.975
haunted by chronic insomnia;

00:13:58.999 --> 00:14:01.751
a serious man, ill at ease
in a boisterous locker room.

00:14:03.999 --> 00:14:07.476
An accent didn't help.

00:14:07.500 --> 00:14:09.768
REPORTER:
You think the deals are going
to help the ball club?

00:14:09.792 --> 00:14:12.584
CLEMENTE:
Uh, well, we have lots
of question mark, and, uh...

00:14:13.250 --> 00:14:16.810
I hope the deal help us.

00:14:16.834 --> 00:14:18.852
I know that we have
a young ball club.

00:14:18.876 --> 00:14:21.975
We got lots of speed.

00:14:21.999 --> 00:14:23.226
And we have a better pitching
staff than last year.

00:14:23.250 --> 00:14:26.435
NARRATOR:
For much of
the Pittsburgh press,

00:14:26.459 --> 00:14:28.518
it seemed
a Latino player's background

00:14:28.542 --> 00:14:30.852
was something to be
mocked or ignored.

00:14:30.876 --> 00:14:34.101
GONZALEZ:
There was an attempt to really

00:14:34.125 --> 00:14:36.000
sort of deny the Latino heritage
of these ballplayers.

00:14:36.999 --> 00:14:40.143
♪ ♪

00:14:40.167 --> 00:14:41.975
I was, uh, just a kid then,
but I remember

00:14:41.999 --> 00:14:44.268
he was always
called Bobby Clemente.

00:14:44.292 --> 00:14:46.435
They Americanized the names,

00:14:46.459 --> 00:14:48.500
and always the sportswriters
and the ballplayers

00:14:48.876 --> 00:14:52.667
ridiculed their attempts
to speak English.

00:14:53.292 --> 00:14:56.976
OLIVER:
Bottom line was, there wasn't

00:14:57.000 --> 00:14:58.975
a lot of knowledge
of Puerto Rican players.

00:14:58.999 --> 00:15:01.975
There wasn't a lot of knowledge
of even Black players

00:15:01.999 --> 00:15:05.059
at that particular time.

00:15:05.083 --> 00:15:06.435
And it had a lot
to do with not being around.

00:15:06.459 --> 00:15:08.975 position:20%
If you're not around
a certain group of people,

00:15:08.999 --> 00:15:10.975
then you form opinions.

00:15:10.999 --> 00:15:12.518
NARRATOR:
Clemente repeatedly broke
an unwritten rule

00:15:12.542 --> 00:15:15.685 position:20%
for professional athletes:

00:15:15.709 --> 00:15:17.209
never say what's really
on your mind.

00:15:20.292 --> 00:15:21.792
And another: never complain
about injuries, aches, or pains.

00:15:22.000 --> 00:15:25.727
I wasn't feeling good last year,

00:15:25.751 --> 00:15:28.101
and I hit .312.

00:15:28.125 --> 00:15:29.975
And I hope that with my rest

00:15:29.999 --> 00:15:32.143
and my stomach stop hurting me,
I feel I think

00:15:32.167 --> 00:15:34.602
I can have a better year;
I hope so anyhow.

00:15:34.626 --> 00:15:36.999
I was underweight,
underweight last year.

00:15:37.709 --> 00:15:41.226
I was having
a little trouble...

00:15:41.250 --> 00:15:43.226
NARRATOR:
His stomach, his back,

00:15:43.250 --> 00:15:45.351
his legs, his neck--

00:15:45.375 --> 00:15:47.975
everything seemed
to plague him at some point.

00:15:47.999 --> 00:15:50.876
Before long,
Clemente acquired a reputation

00:15:51.334 --> 00:15:54.975
as an oversensitive
hypochondriac.

00:15:54.999 --> 00:15:58.143
One day after a game,
he was sitting

00:15:58.167 --> 00:15:59.975
in front of his locker
with his uniform off

00:15:59.999 --> 00:16:01.975
and Joe Brown,
the general manager,

00:16:01.999 --> 00:16:04.852
told him to get into the shower
and get dressed.

00:16:04.876 --> 00:16:07.975
He said, "You'll catch cold."

00:16:07.999 --> 00:16:09.185
He said, "I don't want
you to be sick."

00:16:09.209 --> 00:16:11.185
And Clemente said, "I feel
better when I'm sick."

00:16:11.209 --> 00:16:14.810
I don't know
what he meant by that,

00:16:14.834 --> 00:16:16.667 position:20%
but he knew what he meant.

00:16:18.792 --> 00:16:19.976
WILL:
We acquired a national stoicism

00:16:20.000 --> 00:16:22.059
from the '30s and our troubles
in the Depression,

00:16:22.083 --> 00:16:25.768 position:20%
from the '40s from the war.

00:16:25.792 --> 00:16:27.976
Stoicism was identified
with manliness.

00:16:28.000 --> 00:16:31.975 line:20%
And it was thought
somehow less than manly

00:16:31.999 --> 00:16:35.334 line:20%
to complain about ailments,
even though real.

00:16:40.125 --> 00:16:41.894
RUCK:
White ballplayers
and Black ballplayers

00:16:41.918 --> 00:16:44.268 position:20%
were relatively taciturn.

00:16:44.292 --> 00:16:45.975
They chewed tobacco.

00:16:45.999 --> 00:16:47.643
Not too many of them had a great
sense of style or flair.

00:16:47.667 --> 00:16:51.059
Certainly if they asked
these players questions

00:16:51.083 --> 00:16:54.059 position:20%
about how they were feeling

00:16:54.083 --> 00:16:55.685
and the player actually talked
about their feelings,

00:16:55.709 --> 00:16:57.643
that was not something
they were accustomed to.

00:16:57.667 --> 00:16:59.768
Frank, there's a lot
of reasons for it.

00:16:59.792 --> 00:17:02.602
I believe, uh, the biggest one
being, uh, confidence.

00:17:02.626 --> 00:17:06.101 position:20%
Uh, the main thing,
and, uh, swinging the bat.

00:17:06.125 --> 00:17:09.226
♪ ♪

00:17:09.250 --> 00:17:11.018
NARRATOR:
There was a source

00:17:11.042 --> 00:17:12.727
for some of Clemente's pain,

00:17:12.751 --> 00:17:14.727 position:20%
but he seldom spoke of it.

00:17:14.751 --> 00:17:17.000
Back in 1954, he had
been in a serious car accident

00:17:17.959 --> 00:17:21.435
that damaged his spine and neck.

00:17:21.459 --> 00:17:23.643 position:20%
The injuries would plague him
for the rest of his life.

00:17:23.667 --> 00:17:26.792
Stung by what
he saw as unfair criticism,

00:17:26.999 --> 00:17:30.768
Clemente lashed out
at his detractors.

00:17:30.792 --> 00:17:33.975
"Hypochondriacs don't produce,"
he growled.

00:17:33.999 --> 00:17:36.667
"I produce!"

00:17:38.876 --> 00:17:40.018
WILL:
Clemente played
hard all the time.

00:17:40.042 --> 00:17:42.667 position:20%
He played all the time,
but he talked all the time

00:17:42.834 --> 00:17:46.602
about how hard it was
to do what he did.

00:17:46.626 --> 00:17:49.727
And I think it grated on some
people who thought

00:17:49.751 --> 00:17:53.417
that the ideal ballplayer should
be like Gary Cooper:

00:17:53.999 --> 00:17:57.375
tall, silent, stoical.

00:18:00.542 --> 00:18:02.560 position:20%
NARRATOR:
In his first five seasons

00:18:02.584 --> 00:18:03.975
with the Pirates,
Clemente hadn't exactly

00:18:03.999 --> 00:18:07.393
lit up Forbes Field
with his hitting.

00:18:07.417 --> 00:18:10.975
He'd batted over .300 only once,

00:18:10.999 --> 00:18:13.268 position:20%
with seven or less homers.

00:18:13.292 --> 00:18:15.975
ANNOUNCER:
Roberto Clemente
fields the ball...

00:18:15.999 --> 00:18:17.435
NARRATOR:
His play in right field
was something else.

00:18:17.459 --> 00:18:20.476
He'd won over a growing
number of local fans

00:18:20.500 --> 00:18:23.894
with his powerful arm
and remarkable range.

00:18:23.918 --> 00:18:26.999
Still, he was
on a lackluster team

00:18:27.209 --> 00:18:30.975
and the national press
barely noticed.

00:18:30.999 --> 00:18:34.375
Until, that is, 1960.

00:18:37.167 --> 00:18:38.101
(crowd cheering)

00:18:38.125 --> 00:18:39.560
GAME ANNOUNCER:
The Rock sends one
deep to right.

00:18:39.584 --> 00:18:42.000
♪ ♪

00:18:44.500 --> 00:18:46.143
REGALADO:
In 1960, the Pittsburgh Pirates

00:18:46.167 --> 00:18:48.542 position:20%
were no longer the
laughingstock of baseball.

00:18:51.334 --> 00:18:52.975
The Pittsburgh Pirates

00:18:52.999 --> 00:18:54.334
are champions
of the National League.

00:18:56.584 --> 00:18:58.935
ANNOUNCER:
Roberto Clemente,

00:18:58.959 --> 00:19:00.226
one of the outstanding
baseball players...

00:19:00.250 --> 00:19:02.852
NARRATOR:
That year, Clemente led the team
in runs batted in,

00:19:02.876 --> 00:19:05.560
was second in home runs
and game-winning hits,

00:19:05.584 --> 00:19:08.584
and led the league
in outfield assists.

00:19:11.834 --> 00:19:13.602
REGALADO:
By 1960, he is an all-star
player in the National League.

00:19:13.626 --> 00:19:17.542
He is becoming
a real threat to opponents.

00:19:17.959 --> 00:19:21.643
He might not be recognized
by that--

00:19:21.667 --> 00:19:23.976
by the national media--

00:19:24.000 --> 00:19:25.999
but on the baseball diamond,
clearly his opponents recognized

00:19:26.209 --> 00:19:29.935
Roberto Clemente's rising star.

00:19:29.959 --> 00:19:31.935
NARRATOR:
For the first time in 33 years,

00:19:31.959 --> 00:19:35.685
the Pirates found themselves
playing in the World Series.

00:19:35.709 --> 00:19:38.292
Unluckily, they had to face
the New York Yankees,

00:19:39.083 --> 00:19:42.975
winner of five titles
in the past decade

00:19:42.999 --> 00:19:46.226
and a team packed
with superstars

00:19:46.250 --> 00:19:48.375
such as Mickey Mantle,
Yogi Berra, and Whitey Ford.

00:19:52.584 --> 00:19:53.975
RUCK:
The 1960 Series
was David and Goliath.

00:19:53.999 --> 00:19:56.935
The Yankees were the franchise
of professional sport,

00:19:56.959 --> 00:20:00.125
winning more titles
than any team in any sport.

00:20:04.209 --> 00:20:05.975 position:20%
MARANISS:
The Pittsburgh Pirates
came into the World Series

00:20:05.999 --> 00:20:08.810
as massive underdogs.

00:20:08.834 --> 00:20:11.310 position:20%
They have a very good team,

00:20:11.334 --> 00:20:13.334
but no one had really
heard of the Pirates players.

00:20:15.999 --> 00:20:19.059
NARRATOR:
Helped by some timely hitting
from Clemente

00:20:19.083 --> 00:20:22.059
and his outfield play,

00:20:22.083 --> 00:20:24.268
the Pirates managed to win three
of the first six games,

00:20:24.292 --> 00:20:27.999
despite being outscored by
the powerful Yankees, 46 to 17.

00:20:30.292 --> 00:20:34.500
The seventh and deciding game
would be played in Pittsburgh,

00:20:35.584 --> 00:20:39.310
where only the most
diehard Bucs fans

00:20:39.334 --> 00:20:41.876
gave the home team
much of a chance.

00:20:42.000 --> 00:20:45.685 position:20%
In the bottom of the ninth,

00:20:45.709 --> 00:20:47.268
David and Goliath were tied
nine to nine.

00:20:47.292 --> 00:20:50.602
♪ ♪

00:20:50.626 --> 00:20:52.310
As Pittsburgh held
its collective breath,

00:20:52.334 --> 00:20:54.310
Pirate second baseman
Bill Mazeroski

00:20:54.334 --> 00:20:57.310
came to the plate.

00:20:57.334 --> 00:20:58.685 line:20%
(music playing,
spectators cheering)

00:20:58.709 --> 00:21:00.560
ANNOUNCER:
There's the drive,
it's hit deep into left field.

00:21:00.584 --> 00:21:02.975 position:20%
She's going way, way back.

00:21:02.999 --> 00:21:04.518 position:20%
And back goes Yogi Berra,

00:21:04.542 --> 00:21:06.185
and you can kiss it good-bye.

00:21:06.209 --> 00:21:08.602 position:20%
It's gone!
The game-winning home run!

00:21:08.626 --> 00:21:10.602
The Bucs are the champions
of the world.

00:21:10.626 --> 00:21:12.792
(spectators cheering)

00:21:14.334 --> 00:21:16.101
NARRATOR:
When Mazeroski reached home,
Clemente was there,

00:21:16.125 --> 00:21:20.101
celebrating one of the greatest
upsets in baseball history,

00:21:20.125 --> 00:21:23.918
proud of his contribution
to the team's success.

00:21:28.918 --> 00:21:30.042
Once off the field,
he expected to make a quick exit

00:21:30.709 --> 00:21:34.310
and catch a plane
to Puerto Rico.

00:21:34.334 --> 00:21:36.375
But he hadn't counted on the
scene outside the clubhouse.

00:21:36.999 --> 00:21:40.500
(cheering, whooping)

00:21:42.500 --> 00:21:45.975
"There's Clemente!"
someone shouted.

00:21:45.999 --> 00:21:48.975
And the crowd surged forward.

00:21:48.999 --> 00:21:51.459
It took him an hour
to make his way through.

00:21:52.999 --> 00:21:56.018
♪ ♪

00:21:56.042 --> 00:21:57.393
After years of feeling
himself an outsider,

00:21:57.417 --> 00:22:00.417
he had won them over.

00:22:03.417 --> 00:22:05.435
The fans of Pittsburgh,
he said,

00:22:05.459 --> 00:22:07.500 position:20%
had made it all worthwhile.

00:22:11.542 --> 00:22:14.975
(birds squawking)

00:22:14.999 --> 00:22:17.518
Finally back in San Juan
at the airport,

00:22:17.542 --> 00:22:20.792
Clemente received a greeting
befitting a returning hero.

00:22:21.999 --> 00:22:25.975
Proud Puerto Ricans had followed
the Series closely

00:22:25.999 --> 00:22:28.310
on the radio and in the papers.

00:22:28.334 --> 00:22:30.975
A sign in the crowd said

00:22:30.999 --> 00:22:33.250
what everyone felt about
their triumphant native son.

00:22:36.250 --> 00:22:38.476
He had barely touched ground

00:22:38.500 --> 00:22:40.975
when the crowd scooped him up
and carried him away.

00:22:40.999 --> 00:22:43.999
(cheering, applause)

00:22:45.999 --> 00:22:49.435
GONZALEZ:
He was the hero of the island.

00:22:49.459 --> 00:22:51.975
He was like a god.

00:22:51.999 --> 00:22:54.310
The pride
that Puerto Ricans felt

00:22:54.334 --> 00:22:56.975 line:20%
over what he had managed

00:22:56.999 --> 00:22:59.417 line:20%
to accomplish in baseball
was incredible.

00:23:02.500 --> 00:23:04.518
NARRATOR:
The celebration went on
for weeks.

00:23:04.542 --> 00:23:07.518
During the day, dressed
in his major league uniform,

00:23:07.542 --> 00:23:11.167
he led clinics for groups of
worshipful Puerto Rican kids.

00:23:11.667 --> 00:23:15.709
Most nights, he attended
banquets held in his honor.

00:23:19.667 --> 00:23:20.975
But Clemente had a different
kind of honor in mind--

00:23:20.999 --> 00:23:24.268 position:20%
the National League's
Most Valuable Player Award

00:23:24.292 --> 00:23:27.685
for the 1960 season.

00:23:27.709 --> 00:23:30.268
On November 17, the results were
finally announced.

00:23:30.292 --> 00:23:34.268
In the vote of the nation's
baseball writers

00:23:34.292 --> 00:23:36.894
for the league's top player,

00:23:36.918 --> 00:23:39.083 position:20%
Clemente finished eighth.

00:23:41.918 --> 00:23:43.626
He took it hard.

00:23:45.083 --> 00:23:47.417
BANOS:
He felt that he did the best
performance in his life

00:23:48.959 --> 00:23:52.351 position:20%
in the 1960 World Series.

00:23:52.375 --> 00:23:54.975 line:20%
And personally, he felt this,

00:23:54.999 --> 00:23:57.999 line:20%
he should deserve the
Most Valuable Player for this,

00:23:58.334 --> 00:24:01.894
but he didn't get it.

00:24:01.918 --> 00:24:03.351
And he felt, you know,
a certain amount of prejudice

00:24:03.375 --> 00:24:06.975 position:20%
was involved at the time.

00:24:06.999 --> 00:24:08.975
WILL:
He was very sensitive to slights

00:24:08.999 --> 00:24:12.250
and to the sense
that he was not noticed.

00:24:12.417 --> 00:24:16.417
Clemente's resentment arose
from, first, his pride;

00:24:16.876 --> 00:24:20.602
second, from the injustice
of the vote.

00:24:20.626 --> 00:24:23.185
You can't say absolutely

00:24:23.209 --> 00:24:25.143
that Clemente should
have been the MVP,

00:24:25.167 --> 00:24:27.560
but there weren't seven
more valuable players

00:24:27.584 --> 00:24:29.626
in the National League
than Clemente that year.

00:24:31.667 --> 00:24:33.685
MARANISS:
I've heard that he never wore
his World Series ring after that

00:24:33.709 --> 00:24:36.685
because he was so upset.

00:24:36.709 --> 00:24:38.268
Whether that's
apocryphal or not,

00:24:38.292 --> 00:24:40.059
it represents accurately
the way he felt.

00:24:40.083 --> 00:24:43.083
He felt that he had
been done in by racism.

00:24:47.083 --> 00:24:48.768 position:20% line:20%
It was sort of a reminder

00:24:48.792 --> 00:24:50.560 line:20%
that life in America
was different

00:24:50.584 --> 00:24:52.351 line:20%
from his life in Puerto Rico,

00:24:52.375 --> 00:24:54.810
that the way he was regarded
was different, and worse...

00:24:54.834 --> 00:24:58.334
and that he would not allow
that to happen again.

00:25:03.292 --> 00:25:05.250
♪ ♪

00:25:08.125 --> 00:25:12.459
NARRATOR:
Roberto Clemente arrived
for spring training in 1961

00:25:13.292 --> 00:25:16.975
with a new contract
worth $35,000

00:25:16.999 --> 00:25:20.143
and something to prove.

00:25:20.167 --> 00:25:22.560
♪ ♪

00:25:22.584 --> 00:25:23.975
Fueled by his anger
at being overlooked,

00:25:23.999 --> 00:25:26.685
the 27-year-old Pirate
outfielder

00:25:26.709 --> 00:25:29.975
lifted his play to a new level.

00:25:29.999 --> 00:25:32.792
That year he would hit
a league-leading .351,

00:25:33.667 --> 00:25:37.143
while playing stellar defense.

00:25:37.167 --> 00:25:39.852
Even as the Pirates returned
to their losing ways,

00:25:39.876 --> 00:25:42.751
Clemente was emerging as one
of the greatest right fielders

00:25:43.459 --> 00:25:46.975
in the game of baseball.

00:25:46.999 --> 00:25:49.975
Over 50 years,

00:25:49.999 --> 00:25:51.310
I've watched many, many baseball
games in my lifetime.

00:25:51.334 --> 00:25:54.185 position:20%
I can never remember anyone

00:25:54.209 --> 00:25:56.042
who threw a ball better
than Roberto Clemente

00:25:56.999 --> 00:26:00.852
when there was a baserunner
heading to third

00:26:00.876 --> 00:26:03.602
or a baserunner
trying to score at home.

00:26:03.626 --> 00:26:05.975
It was a rifle;

00:26:05.999 --> 00:26:07.602
it was an incredible arm
that he had

00:26:07.626 --> 00:26:09.643
and incredibly accurate.

00:26:09.667 --> 00:26:11.975
And so, there were some ways

00:26:11.999 --> 00:26:13.602
that he was so superior
to all the other ballplayers

00:26:13.626 --> 00:26:16.626
that all of the issues of race
and, and nationality,

00:26:16.999 --> 00:26:20.975
and language and, uh,
all fell by the wayside

00:26:20.999 --> 00:26:24.435
once the game started.

00:26:24.459 --> 00:26:26.709 position:20%
He would gesture and move
his shoulders and his neck

00:26:27.375 --> 00:26:31.226
as though we were trying
to work the kinks out.

00:26:31.250 --> 00:26:33.334
Then, he would settle himself
in the batter's box,

00:26:33.959 --> 00:26:37.459
and all hell would break loose.

00:26:39.459 --> 00:26:40.042
♪ ♪

00:26:42.167 --> 00:26:45.894 line:20%
Clemente played with abandon.

00:26:45.918 --> 00:26:47.685 line:20%
He was like a horse galloping
around the bases,

00:26:47.709 --> 00:26:50.018 line:20%
you know, arms flailing.

00:26:50.042 --> 00:26:51.185 line:20%
The way he handled his body
was incredible.

00:26:51.209 --> 00:26:53.059 line:20%
I mean, just incredible.

00:26:53.083 --> 00:26:54.727
It looks like he was galloping.

00:26:54.751 --> 00:26:56.727
Looked like he was all arms,
but got there quickly.

00:26:56.751 --> 00:26:59.975
His body was a baseball machine.

00:26:59.999 --> 00:27:01.310
WILL:
In every facet of the game--

00:27:01.334 --> 00:27:04.560
hitting, catching,

00:27:04.584 --> 00:27:06.602
hitting with power,
throwing the ball--

00:27:06.626 --> 00:27:08.768
the classic five-tool player,

00:27:08.792 --> 00:27:11.975 position:20%
that was Roberto Clemente.

00:27:11.999 --> 00:27:14.975
(spectators cheering)

00:27:14.999 --> 00:27:16.185
NARRATOR:
Across the U.S.,

00:27:16.209 --> 00:27:18.810
the Pirates' talented right
fielder was now being cheered

00:27:18.834 --> 00:27:21.976
by a growing number
of Latino fans.

00:27:22.000 --> 00:27:24.518
Through the 1960s,
a surge in immigration

00:27:24.542 --> 00:27:28.310
from Latin America
and the Caribbean

00:27:28.334 --> 00:27:30.310
brought new faces
to U.S. cities

00:27:30.334 --> 00:27:32.975
and to baseball dugouts as well.

00:27:32.999 --> 00:27:36.209 position:20%
When Clemente first entered
the major leagues in 1955,

00:27:37.042 --> 00:27:40.976
there had only been a handful
of Latino players;

00:27:41.000 --> 00:27:43.976
now, nearly a decade later,
there were dozens.

00:27:44.000 --> 00:27:47.999
But not everyone in baseball
welcomed the trend.

00:27:48.375 --> 00:27:52.560
WILL:
Alvin Dark, the manager
of the San Francisco Giants,

00:27:52.584 --> 00:27:56.185
forbade the speaking of Spanish
in the clubhouse.

00:27:56.209 --> 00:27:59.999
He thought that Hispanic players
were somehow an alien presence

00:28:00.375 --> 00:28:03.975 position:20%
and a threat to cohesion.

00:28:03.999 --> 00:28:05.975
I don't know
what the thinking was.

00:28:05.999 --> 00:28:07.351
Orlando, you think you're
going to beat this guy out?

00:28:07.375 --> 00:28:09.185 position:80%
It's going to be tough
because he always hit, uh,

00:28:09.209 --> 00:28:11.226 position:80%
he never hit
below .350.

00:28:11.250 --> 00:28:12.975
NARRATOR:
Number 21 soon realized

00:28:12.999 --> 00:28:14.975 position:20%
that he had become something
more than a right fielder.

00:28:14.999 --> 00:28:17.975
Whether he wanted it or not,

00:28:17.999 --> 00:28:20.226 position:20%
he had become a role model.

00:28:20.250 --> 00:28:21.975 position:80%
I watch him
every day,

00:28:21.999 --> 00:28:22.975 position:80%
and I try to learn
stuff from him,

00:28:22.999 --> 00:28:24.768 position:80%
because he's the best
hitter in baseball.

00:28:24.792 --> 00:28:26.059
And he's the best
that ever lived.

00:28:26.083 --> 00:28:29.059
BANOS:
He was very careful always,
his appearance,

00:28:29.083 --> 00:28:32.602 position:20%
because he felt the first
impression very important,

00:28:32.626 --> 00:28:35.975
especially from him,

00:28:35.999 --> 00:28:38.018
because he felt
he not representing

00:28:38.042 --> 00:28:41.310
Roberto Clemente alone.

00:28:41.334 --> 00:28:43.518
He always told me,

00:28:43.542 --> 00:28:44.975
"I'm representing the people
of Puerto Rico."

00:28:44.999 --> 00:28:47.810 position:20%
WILL:
He represented impatience.

00:28:47.834 --> 00:28:50.185
He was a cauldron of energy,

00:28:50.209 --> 00:28:52.226
representing
the upward mobility

00:28:52.250 --> 00:28:55.393
of people who had hitherto
been excluded.

00:28:55.417 --> 00:28:57.602
(lively Latin jazz
melody playing)

00:28:57.626 --> 00:29:01.602
NARRATOR:
Each October, after the end
of the baseball season,

00:29:01.626 --> 00:29:04.976
Roberto would return
to Puerto Rico.

00:29:05.000 --> 00:29:07.834
Driving the streets of San Juan
in his white Cadillac,

00:29:08.751 --> 00:29:12.667
he attracted attention worthy
of a movie star.

00:29:15.709 --> 00:29:17.727
Still in his 20s,

00:29:17.751 --> 00:29:20.125
he was handsome,
famous, and single.

00:29:20.999 --> 00:29:24.602
MARANISS:
He was magnetic.

00:29:24.626 --> 00:29:27.643 position:20%
There were always women
writing him love letters,

00:29:27.667 --> 00:29:30.393
trying to be near him and, uh,

00:29:30.417 --> 00:29:32.685
it wasn't that
he was just walking around,

00:29:32.709 --> 00:29:35.268
proudly, as a hunk,
he was a very soft guy

00:29:35.292 --> 00:29:38.894
who wanted to hear
other people's stories

00:29:38.918 --> 00:29:40.685
and so that added
to his magnetism.

00:29:40.709 --> 00:29:44.560
NARRATOR:
After a decade on the road,

00:29:44.584 --> 00:29:46.768
Clemente was eager
to settle down.

00:29:46.792 --> 00:29:49.768 position:20%
Vera Zabala was striking--

00:29:49.792 --> 00:29:52.143
a 22-year-old college graduate
who worked in a bank.

00:29:52.167 --> 00:29:55.810 position:20%
And she was from Carolina,

00:29:55.834 --> 00:29:57.976
Clemente's beloved
childhood home,

00:29:58.000 --> 00:30:00.975 position:20%
where her father, like his,

00:30:00.999 --> 00:30:03.143
worked in the sugarcane fields.

00:30:03.167 --> 00:30:05.685
MARANISS:
She didn't even know

00:30:05.709 --> 00:30:07.476
that Roberto Clemente
was a ballplayer.

00:30:07.500 --> 00:30:09.476
He started calling her at work,

00:30:09.500 --> 00:30:11.685
asking her for dates, and, uh,

00:30:11.709 --> 00:30:13.975
eventually, Clemente
got up the nerve

00:30:13.999 --> 00:30:15.975
to sort of deal with the father.

00:30:15.999 --> 00:30:18.542 line:20%
(speaking Spanish)

00:30:42.999 --> 00:30:46.542
NARRATOR:
November 14, 1964,

00:30:46.999 --> 00:30:50.999
the couple married
and settled down in Carolina.

00:30:52.542 --> 00:30:56.292 position:20%
The next year,
Vera gave birth to a son.

00:31:01.292 --> 00:31:02.334 position:20%
Two more boys would follow.

00:31:02.918 --> 00:31:06.185
Vera soon discovered

00:31:06.209 --> 00:31:08.975
that her husband had
some eccentricities.

00:31:08.999 --> 00:31:11.975 position:20%
MARANISS:
Clemente was kind of New Age
before there was New Age.

00:31:11.999 --> 00:31:14.975
He was an incredible masseuse,

00:31:14.999 --> 00:31:17.935
he was constantly taking
different proteins

00:31:17.959 --> 00:31:21.626
and odd concoctions of shakes
to try to stay healthy.

00:31:21.999 --> 00:31:25.834
He believed in
mystical connections

00:31:25.999 --> 00:31:29.435
between life and death

00:31:29.459 --> 00:31:31.459 position:20%
and people
who were no longer around.

00:31:34.459 --> 00:31:36.185
♪ ♪

00:31:36.209 --> 00:31:38.975 position:20%
NARRATOR:
His connection to the dead

00:31:38.999 --> 00:31:40.975
centered on
a childhood tragedy--

00:31:40.999 --> 00:31:43.435
the loss of his sister Anairis,

00:31:43.459 --> 00:31:45.975
burned to death
in a cooking accident

00:31:45.999 --> 00:31:48.143
when Roberto was just an infant.

00:31:48.167 --> 00:31:52.083 line:20%
For the rest of his life,
he would be haunted by fire,

00:31:52.500 --> 00:31:56.209 line:20%
and by thoughts
of his own mortality.

00:31:59.292 --> 00:32:00.810 line:20%
MARANISS:
He talked for
the rest of his life

00:32:00.834 --> 00:32:04.435
about feeling this sister
at his side.

00:32:04.459 --> 00:32:07.643
He had
a certain melancholy to him.

00:32:07.667 --> 00:32:10.500
You see it in his eyes.

00:32:12.999 --> 00:32:14.626 line:20%
VERA CLEMENTE:

00:32:34.999 --> 00:32:38.310
(siren blaring)

00:32:38.334 --> 00:32:41.852
(crowd clamoring)

00:32:41.876 --> 00:32:44.976
NARRATOR:
In the mid-1960s,
Clemente found himself

00:32:45.000 --> 00:32:48.667
engaged by events
beyond the ballpark

00:32:48.999 --> 00:32:52.999 position:20%
as America entered a time
of unprecedented change.

00:32:53.834 --> 00:32:57.143
(protesters chanting)

00:32:57.167 --> 00:32:58.975
NARRATOR:
As Clemente watched
and read about the protesters

00:32:58.999 --> 00:33:01.476
pouring into
the nation's streets,

00:33:01.500 --> 00:33:03.685
he identified closely

00:33:03.709 --> 00:33:05.685
with the growing movement
for civil rights.

00:33:05.709 --> 00:33:07.975
(protesters shouting)

00:33:07.999 --> 00:33:09.976
MARANISS:
Clemente was interested
in more than sports.

00:33:10.000 --> 00:33:12.560
He was very political.

00:33:12.584 --> 00:33:14.560
And one of the people
he admired most in the world

00:33:14.584 --> 00:33:17.476
was Martin Luther King.

00:33:17.500 --> 00:33:19.018
The one time we know

00:33:19.042 --> 00:33:20.518
that Dr. King went down
to Puerto Rico,

00:33:20.542 --> 00:33:24.560
Clemente sought him out and
spent most of a day with him;

00:33:24.584 --> 00:33:27.059
took him to his farm.

00:33:27.083 --> 00:33:28.542
RUCK:
Because he's
in the Black community,

00:33:28.792 --> 00:33:32.435
and because
he's traveling around,

00:33:32.459 --> 00:33:34.435
it's clear at that time
that this is a guy

00:33:34.459 --> 00:33:36.768
that's interested
in what's going on around him

00:33:36.792 --> 00:33:39.918
and has opinions about that.

00:33:40.083 --> 00:33:43.727 position:20%
He's not only an observer.

00:33:43.751 --> 00:33:45.351
He's somebody
who's passionately connected

00:33:45.375 --> 00:33:48.852
to what's going on.

00:33:48.876 --> 00:33:50.852
He's talking about those things.

00:33:50.876 --> 00:33:52.560
He's arguing
about those things.

00:33:52.584 --> 00:33:55.518
MARANISS:
It goes back to the way

00:33:55.542 --> 00:33:57.685
they were treated
in spring training

00:33:57.709 --> 00:33:59.185
when they were on those buses
going from one town to another,

00:33:59.209 --> 00:34:02.351
and the white guys would go
into a restaurant

00:34:02.375 --> 00:34:04.810
and bring back sandwiches
to the...

00:34:04.834 --> 00:34:06.351
Clemente and the few Blacks
and Latinos.

00:34:06.375 --> 00:34:08.143
That was not going to fly
with Clemente.

00:34:08.167 --> 00:34:10.476
Now we are in Florida,
not too far from Puerto Rico,

00:34:10.500 --> 00:34:13.310
and you see the white players
go to a restaurant and, uh...

00:34:13.334 --> 00:34:16.435
and they said, "Fellas,
do you want anything to eat?"

00:34:16.459 --> 00:34:18.975
Now, we are sitting
in the back of the...

00:34:18.999 --> 00:34:21.268 position:20%
We are sitting in the bus.

00:34:21.292 --> 00:34:22.602
We weren't sitting
in the back of the bus,

00:34:22.626 --> 00:34:24.935
but we were sitting
inside the bus and, uh,

00:34:24.959 --> 00:34:26.976
I remember, I told a fellow,
one of the players, I said,

00:34:27.000 --> 00:34:29.976
"Look, if you will
accept anything

00:34:30.000 --> 00:34:31.975
"from anybody
from that restaurant,

00:34:31.999 --> 00:34:33.975
"you and me, we're going at it.

00:34:33.999 --> 00:34:35.975
"We are going to have a fight,
because I think it's unfair.

00:34:35.999 --> 00:34:38.975
"If, uh, this is the way
it's going to be,

00:34:38.999 --> 00:34:41.351
"this is the way
we're going to suffer.

00:34:41.375 --> 00:34:43.685
"So now, I don't want you to...

00:34:43.709 --> 00:34:45.268
none of you fellas
to eat anything."

00:34:45.292 --> 00:34:46.975
NARRATOR:
Celebrity did little

00:34:46.999 --> 00:34:49.643
to dull his sensitivity
to injustice.

00:34:49.667 --> 00:34:51.975
If anything,
it only sharpened it.

00:34:51.999 --> 00:34:54.560
Once, out shopping with Vera

00:34:54.584 --> 00:34:57.852
in a New York department store,
the couple was ignored

00:34:57.876 --> 00:35:01.018
until someone recognized
the famous ballplayer.

00:35:01.042 --> 00:35:04.125
When the salespeople suddenly
lavished them with attention,

00:35:04.834 --> 00:35:08.334
Clemente would have none of it.

00:35:22.709 --> 00:35:26.393 position:20%
NARRATOR:
By the end of the decade,

00:35:26.417 --> 00:35:28.975
increased Latino immigration

00:35:28.999 --> 00:35:30.975
and a galvanized
civil rights movement

00:35:30.999 --> 00:35:33.476
were transforming the country.

00:35:33.500 --> 00:35:36.393 position:20%
Baseball was changing, too,

00:35:36.417 --> 00:35:38.417
with the unlikely Pirates
leading the way.

00:35:41.375 --> 00:35:42.999
In 1971, Clemente found himself
leader of a team

00:35:43.584 --> 00:35:47.226
unlike any other
in baseball history.

00:35:47.250 --> 00:35:49.975
BLASS:
It's almost Latin,
Black and white.

00:35:49.999 --> 00:35:53.310
It sounds so trite
and so contrived.

00:35:53.334 --> 00:35:55.918
We had a bunch of guys
who could play.

00:35:57.000 --> 00:35:58.125 line:20%
MANNY SANGUILLEÉN
(speaking Spanish):

00:36:04.959 --> 00:36:08.975
MARANISS:
It was a time of change
and transformation

00:36:08.999 --> 00:36:11.643
that scared a lot of people,

00:36:11.667 --> 00:36:13.810
and one of the manifestations
of that was that the Pirates,

00:36:13.834 --> 00:36:15.975
as they became more Black
and Latino,

00:36:15.999 --> 00:36:17.768
became less popular in the city.

00:36:17.792 --> 00:36:19.626
RUCK:
Roberto is the guy
they look up to--

00:36:20.042 --> 00:36:23.602
white, Black and Latin.

00:36:23.626 --> 00:36:25.709 position:20%
They look up to him because
he delivers on the field,

00:36:26.209 --> 00:36:30.226
but he's the guy that holds them
together off the field.

00:36:30.250 --> 00:36:33.393
And he's much more of a leader,

00:36:33.417 --> 00:36:35.268
much more
of a clubhouse presence by 1971,

00:36:35.292 --> 00:36:38.417
which, in many ways, is his
coming-out party to the world.

00:36:38.792 --> 00:36:42.268
(spectators cheering, whistling)

00:36:42.292 --> 00:36:44.143
ANNOUNCER:
The 1971 World Series
being brought to you

00:36:44.167 --> 00:36:47.059
from Memorial Stadium
in Baltimore.

00:36:47.083 --> 00:36:49.059
NARRATOR:
In 1971, Pittsburgh managed

00:36:49.083 --> 00:36:51.975
to reach the World Series
once again.

00:36:51.999 --> 00:36:55.226
At 37, the oldest player
in the Series,

00:36:55.250 --> 00:36:58.975
Clemente had battled injuries
all season.

00:36:58.999 --> 00:37:01.975
But his intensity
hadn't diminished,

00:37:01.999 --> 00:37:04.894 position:20%
nor his competitive drive.

00:37:04.918 --> 00:37:06.435
BANOS:
He pulled me aside, he said,
"I guarantee you,

00:37:06.459 --> 00:37:09.185
we're going to win."

00:37:09.209 --> 00:37:10.476 line:20%
And I told him,

00:37:10.500 --> 00:37:11.975 line:20%
"Roberto, you cannot say
anything like it,

00:37:11.999 --> 00:37:14.226
"because if it don't
turn out to be,

00:37:14.250 --> 00:37:17.059 position:20%
"you'll be a laughingstock,

00:37:17.083 --> 00:37:18.935
everybody make a joke
out of it."

00:37:18.959 --> 00:37:21.999 line:20%
MATINO CLEMENTE:

00:37:30.959 --> 00:37:34.894
STADIUM ANNOUNCER (over P.A.):
Roberto Clemente!

00:37:34.918 --> 00:37:36.518
(crowd cheering, applauding)

00:37:36.542 --> 00:37:38.185 line:20%
MARANISS:
He came up to Jose Pagan, one
of his teammates, and said,

00:37:38.209 --> 00:37:41.351 line:20%
"You guys just get on my back,
and I'll carry you."

00:37:41.375 --> 00:37:43.727
(crowd cheering)

00:37:43.751 --> 00:37:45.976
NARRATOR:
The Baltimore Orioles
had four 20-game winners

00:37:46.000 --> 00:37:48.768
on their pitching staff

00:37:48.792 --> 00:37:50.727
and were hands-down favorites
in the Series.

00:37:50.751 --> 00:37:53.999 position:20%
That didn't faze number 21.

00:37:55.751 --> 00:37:59.310
MARANISS:
There was one moment

00:37:59.334 --> 00:38:00.975
that overwhelmed
everything else,

00:38:00.999 --> 00:38:02.518
and it wasn't a throw
or a great hit.

00:38:02.542 --> 00:38:04.976
It was a dribbler
that Clemente hit back

00:38:05.000 --> 00:38:07.125
to the Baltimore pitcher
Mike Cuellar.

00:38:09.459 --> 00:38:12.542
RUCK:
That caused the pitcher
to throw wildly.

00:38:13.417 --> 00:38:16.975
He wasn't just going to assume

00:38:16.999 --> 00:38:18.975
that the pitcher was going
to throw him out.

00:38:18.999 --> 00:38:21.852
And it was his hustle
that did it.

00:38:21.876 --> 00:38:24.185
BROADCAST ANNOUNCER:
He does it all;
he runs, he throws...

00:38:24.209 --> 00:38:26.101
MARANISS:
Everybody I've talked to
on both teams said

00:38:26.125 --> 00:38:28.852 position:20%
that they could just feel

00:38:28.876 --> 00:38:30.351
Clemente's overwhelming
will to win

00:38:30.375 --> 00:38:33.602
dominating that Series.

00:38:33.626 --> 00:38:35.727
BROADCAST ANNOUNCER:
And he's going to beat
Frank's throw.

00:38:35.751 --> 00:38:37.976
NARRATOR:
After the two teams traded wins,
forcing a seventh game,

00:38:38.000 --> 00:38:41.876
Clemente reassured
his teammates.

00:38:44.834 --> 00:38:46.560
BROADCAST ANNOUNCER:
That is hit well!

00:38:46.584 --> 00:38:48.059
NARRATOR:
In the fourth inning,
he blasted a towering home run,

00:38:48.083 --> 00:38:50.975 position:20%
breaking a scoreless tie.

00:38:50.999 --> 00:38:53.268
Five innings later,

00:38:53.292 --> 00:38:55.435
the Pirates
were World Champions.

00:38:55.459 --> 00:38:57.975
(cheering and whooping)

00:38:57.999 --> 00:38:59.560
MARANISS:
Clemente was brilliant
in that World Series.

00:38:59.584 --> 00:39:02.417
He batted .414,
he got a hit in every game,

00:39:02.999 --> 00:39:06.476
he was terrific in right field,

00:39:06.500 --> 00:39:09.476
but it was more
than any of that.

00:39:09.500 --> 00:39:12.375
ANNOUNCER:
Boy, how that man can run
for 37 years old!

00:39:12.542 --> 00:39:16.018
(crowd cheering and whistling)

00:39:16.042 --> 00:39:18.643
WILL:
His performance was a jewel.

00:39:18.667 --> 00:39:20.602 line:20%
One of the greatest
performances--

00:39:20.626 --> 00:39:21.999 line:20%
five or six or seven--
in World Series history.

00:39:22.751 --> 00:39:26.059
(spectators cheering)

00:39:26.083 --> 00:39:28.975
NARRATOR:
In the jubilant
Pirate locker room,

00:39:28.999 --> 00:39:32.268
Clemente took the opportunity
to speak directly

00:39:32.292 --> 00:39:35.435 position:20%
to those
who mattered most to him.

00:39:35.459 --> 00:39:37.975
The greatest right fielder
in the game of baseball,

00:39:37.999 --> 00:39:40.185
Roberto Clemente.

00:39:40.209 --> 00:39:41.727
Bobby, congratulations
on a great World Series.

00:39:41.751 --> 00:39:44.935
Thank you, Bob,
and before, uh...

00:39:44.959 --> 00:39:47.975
I say anything in English, I
would... I would like to say

00:39:47.999 --> 00:39:51.459 position:80%
something for my mother
and father in Spanish.

00:39:58.500 --> 00:40:02.268 line:20%
GONZALEZ:
Roberto was breaking the mold

00:40:02.292 --> 00:40:04.727 line:20%
and saying, "Yes, I will talk
to you, but first,

00:40:04.751 --> 00:40:07.226 line:20%
let me talk to my family
and my community."

00:40:07.250 --> 00:40:09.999
I think that was
enormously important,

00:40:10.334 --> 00:40:14.459 position:20%
certainly for those Latino fans
here in the United States,

00:40:16.083 --> 00:40:19.810
as well as for those, you know,

00:40:19.834 --> 00:40:21.727
in Puerto Rico
and throughout Latin America

00:40:21.751 --> 00:40:23.727
who were also listening to that.

00:40:23.751 --> 00:40:25.999
(Roberto Clemente speaking
in Spanish over TV)

00:40:28.125 --> 00:40:31.626 line:20%
(speaking Spanish)

00:40:44.999 --> 00:40:48.250
(cheering)

00:40:51.209 --> 00:40:53.975
♪ ♪

00:40:53.999 --> 00:40:57.935
BLASS:
It's still chaotic
and everything.

00:40:57.959 --> 00:40:59.435
We get on the airplane,

00:40:59.459 --> 00:41:01.935 position:20% line:20%
and before we take off,
I'm sitting by the window,

00:41:01.959 --> 00:41:04.435 position:20% line:20%
Karen's in the middle seat.

00:41:04.459 --> 00:41:06.685 line:20%
Roberto Clemente comes up
the aisle,

00:41:06.709 --> 00:41:09.476
and looks at me,
and I'm sitting there,

00:41:09.500 --> 00:41:12.143
he says, "Come here, Blass,
let me embrace you."

00:41:12.167 --> 00:41:15.768
And I walked up,
and he gave me this big hug,

00:41:15.792 --> 00:41:18.976
and I get goose bumps now,
thinking about it.

00:41:19.000 --> 00:41:21.143
Here's Roberto Clemente
getting up out of his seat,

00:41:21.167 --> 00:41:24.602
coming up and wanting
to give me a hug, and I just...

00:41:24.626 --> 00:41:27.727
it validated everything
that I ever thought

00:41:27.751 --> 00:41:31.727
that could happen to me
in the game of baseball.

00:41:31.751 --> 00:41:34.101
♪ ♪

00:41:34.125 --> 00:41:37.935 position:20%
NARRATOR:
Over a remarkable career,

00:41:37.959 --> 00:41:40.351
Clemente had converted
even the skeptics:

00:41:40.375 --> 00:41:43.999
four batting titles,
National League MVP.

00:41:44.626 --> 00:41:48.459
The next season, 1972,
would see him reach

00:41:48.999 --> 00:41:52.999
one of baseball's
most prestigious milestones--

00:41:53.209 --> 00:41:56.709
3,000 career hits.

00:41:59.751 --> 00:42:03.351
But the game's
best right fielder

00:42:03.375 --> 00:42:05.975
had other things on his mind.

00:42:05.999 --> 00:42:09.101
RUCK:
There's something
going on with Clemente

00:42:09.125 --> 00:42:11.101
in the later years,
where he's making a transition

00:42:11.125 --> 00:42:14.852
from ballplayer to a statesman;

00:42:14.876 --> 00:42:16.976 line:20%
you know, from somebody

00:42:17.000 --> 00:42:18.560 line:20%
who is putting up Hall of Fame
numbers on the field,

00:42:18.584 --> 00:42:21.852 line:20%
but to somebody
who you can just see

00:42:21.876 --> 00:42:23.975
what he's becoming
off the field.

00:42:23.999 --> 00:42:26.059
(indistinct chattering)

00:42:26.083 --> 00:42:28.000
He's spending a lot of his time
thinking about things,

00:42:28.459 --> 00:42:31.852
planning things,

00:42:31.876 --> 00:42:33.709
beginning projects
which he hoped to accomplish

00:42:33.918 --> 00:42:37.667
once he left the ball field
for good.

00:42:40.083 --> 00:42:43.310
♪ ♪

00:42:43.334 --> 00:42:45.975
NARRATOR:
That winter, Clemente found
corporate sponsors

00:42:45.999 --> 00:42:49.101
for baseball clinics
across Puerto Rico

00:42:49.125 --> 00:42:52.101
and worked on plans
for his passion--

00:42:52.125 --> 00:42:54.292 position:20%
an ambitious sports city
for underprivileged kids.

00:42:59.292 --> 00:43:01.310
He traveled more widely
throughout Latin America

00:43:01.334 --> 00:43:04.250
and even coached an amateur team
in Nicaragua.

00:43:16.459 --> 00:43:20.626
RUCK:
I think that Nicaragua in 1972
did remind Roberto

00:43:21.334 --> 00:43:24.975
of what Puerto Rico was like

00:43:24.999 --> 00:43:26.476 position:20%
when he was a boy
in the '30s and the '40s.

00:43:26.500 --> 00:43:28.975
He approached kids
and kids approached him

00:43:28.999 --> 00:43:31.975
and he talked to them
and he went into their homes

00:43:31.999 --> 00:43:34.310
and he found out
about their lives

00:43:34.334 --> 00:43:35.976
and... he identified with them.

00:43:36.000 --> 00:43:39.209
♪ ♪

00:43:39.999 --> 00:43:43.768
NARRATOR:
On December 23, 1972,

00:43:43.792 --> 00:43:46.935 position:20%
the Clementes awoke
in Puerto Rico to the news

00:43:46.959 --> 00:43:49.876
of a massive earthquake
in Nicaragua.

00:43:52.500 --> 00:43:55.268
Roberto quickly located
a ham radio operator

00:43:55.292 --> 00:43:58.393
who could provide details
of the damage

00:43:58.417 --> 00:44:00.959
and asked what help
people needed on the ground.

00:44:04.167 --> 00:44:06.334
The reply was immediate and,
for Clemente, heart-wrenching:

00:44:07.209 --> 00:44:11.125
"Food, clothing,
medical supplies-- everything."

00:44:13.375 --> 00:44:17.500
He threw himself into the
relief effort, body and soul.

00:44:18.167 --> 00:44:21.975
MARANISS:
It became his passion.

00:44:21.999 --> 00:44:23.435
For the next week or so,
he was...

00:44:23.459 --> 00:44:26.393
that's all he was doing,
day and night,

00:44:26.417 --> 00:44:28.083 position:20%
was trying to round up aid
for the people of Managua.

00:44:32.999 --> 00:44:34.975 position:20%
NARRATOR:
When he heard the news
of corruption and looting,

00:44:34.999 --> 00:44:37.935 position:20%
of relief supplies stolen,

00:44:37.959 --> 00:44:40.810
Clemente decided
to intervene personally.

00:44:40.834 --> 00:44:43.393
He would accompany a planeload

00:44:43.417 --> 00:44:45.292
of emergency supplies
to Nicaragua.

00:44:45.709 --> 00:44:49.226
RUCK:
The people on the ground

00:44:49.250 --> 00:44:51.935
in Managua are calling Roberto.

00:44:51.959 --> 00:44:55.393 position:20%
"Roberto, you have to come.

00:44:55.417 --> 00:44:57.209
If you come here,
it'll get where it needs to go."

00:45:00.083 --> 00:45:01.101
NARRATOR:
Clemente wasted no time.

00:45:01.125 --> 00:45:03.976
At San Juan's
International Airport,

00:45:04.000 --> 00:45:06.667
he chartered the first plane
and pilot he could find.

00:45:07.083 --> 00:45:10.975
After some frantic hours
of repairs,

00:45:10.999 --> 00:45:13.584
the DC-7 was finally
cleared for takeoff.

00:45:14.417 --> 00:45:18.101
It was a few minutes after
9:00 p.m.,

00:45:18.125 --> 00:45:21.584
December 31, 1972.

00:45:46.999 --> 00:45:50.852 line:20%
The plane was
sort of tipping wrong

00:45:50.876 --> 00:45:54.226 line:20%
and the front wheel was aúlittle... almost off the ground

00:45:54.250 --> 00:45:57.268
and the back wheel was smashed,

00:45:57.292 --> 00:46:00.250
and said something,
something's wrong here.

00:46:02.999 --> 00:46:04.999
But Clemente was so determined
to get to Nicaragua

00:46:05.876 --> 00:46:09.518
to do what he thought
he had to do

00:46:09.542 --> 00:46:11.959
that he wasn't really
paying attention

00:46:11.999 --> 00:46:15.435
to any of that stuff.

00:46:15.459 --> 00:46:18.292
It barely got off the ground,
just over the trees,

00:46:18.918 --> 00:46:22.876
over the ocean about a mile,
and it disappeared.

00:46:27.042 --> 00:46:30.975
NARRATOR:
Just as Clemente's
plane departed,

00:46:30.999 --> 00:46:33.792
Carol Brezovec and her mother
were arriving on the island.

00:46:37.999 --> 00:46:39.999
Vera had gone
to the terminal to meet them.

00:46:40.042 --> 00:46:44.310
BASS:
She was explaining to us,
you know, what had happened

00:46:44.334 --> 00:46:47.209 position:20%
and how she had taken Roberto
to the airport and that...

00:46:47.626 --> 00:46:51.101 line:20%
he was on his way to Nicaragua

00:46:51.125 --> 00:46:52.959 line:20%
and that he would call
as soon as he got there.

00:46:55.918 --> 00:46:59.250
NARRATOR:
But the phone call never came.

00:47:00.209 --> 00:47:04.125
Late that night,
Clemente's niece called Vera.

00:47:04.751 --> 00:47:08.185
She had heard a radio report

00:47:08.209 --> 00:47:09.999
that a plane had crashed into
the ocean just after takeoff.

00:47:14.250 --> 00:47:17.292
BASS:
Things just became much more
serious and much more quiet.

00:47:17.500 --> 00:47:21.602 position:20%
By then, there should have been
a phone call from Roberto

00:47:21.626 --> 00:47:24.768
to say he was okay,

00:47:24.792 --> 00:47:26.643
you know, "I'm here, I'll be,
you know, right back."

00:47:26.667 --> 00:47:28.999
♪ ♪

00:47:33.999 --> 00:47:35.143
NARRATOR:
The following day,
a rescue fleet

00:47:35.167 --> 00:47:37.626 position:20%
surveyed the waters
off San Juan to no avail,

00:47:37.999 --> 00:47:41.999
as a disbelieving crowd
gathered on the beach,

00:47:42.334 --> 00:47:45.918
praying for a miracle.

00:47:48.709 --> 00:47:50.685
BASS:
You know,
the reality became more clear

00:47:50.709 --> 00:47:52.975
as we would see more and more...

00:47:52.999 --> 00:47:54.975
(voice quavering):
...medical supplies wash up...

00:47:54.999 --> 00:47:58.975 position:20%
and signs that, in fact,
this was the cargo plane,

00:47:58.999 --> 00:48:02.250
and this was the plane
that, um... he was on.

00:48:06.959 --> 00:48:09.959
NARRATOR:
Pittsburgh teammates waited
anxiously for news.

00:48:10.500 --> 00:48:14.209
One even joined
in the rescue effort.

00:48:17.999 --> 00:48:19.999
But Roberto Clemente's body
would never be found.

00:48:20.626 --> 00:48:24.125
(Sanguillén speaking Spanish)

00:48:31.292 --> 00:48:34.542
♪ ♪

00:48:37.292 --> 00:48:40.975 position:20%
OLIVER:
It knocked me off my feet.

00:48:40.999 --> 00:48:43.292
You looked at Roberto
as someone who was invincible.

00:48:44.000 --> 00:48:47.918 line:20%
We knew that
we had lost our leader.

00:48:49.542 --> 00:48:52.792
♪ ♪

00:48:59.876 --> 00:49:03.792
(train clattering on tracks,
brakes squealing)

00:49:07.209 --> 00:49:09.768
GONZALEZ:
It was two days after his death,

00:49:09.792 --> 00:49:12.709
and I come out of my apartment
in the South Bronx

00:49:12.999 --> 00:49:16.918
and people are pouring out
with cans of food

00:49:18.334 --> 00:49:22.334
and blankets and other supplies
to give to the victims

00:49:23.999 --> 00:49:27.518
of the earthquake in Nicaragua.

00:49:27.542 --> 00:49:30.975
Here were
all of these Puerto Ricans,

00:49:30.999 --> 00:49:32.935
all of them
impoverished themselves,

00:49:32.959 --> 00:49:36.059 position:20%
and, to some degree, it seemed
to me their way of, like,

00:49:36.083 --> 00:49:39.894
expressing not only their sense
of loss over Clemente,

00:49:39.918 --> 00:49:43.834 position:20%
but their sense of continuing
what he was trying to do.

00:49:44.375 --> 00:49:48.250
And that truck filled up
in... in half an hour.

00:49:52.542 --> 00:49:54.542
Great athletes compress
life's trajectory unnaturally--

00:49:54.999 --> 00:49:58.918
rapid ascent, glamorous apogee,
slow decline.

00:50:01.083 --> 00:50:04.643
Most great athletes...

00:50:04.667 --> 00:50:07.975
live most of their life
after their life, as it were.

00:50:07.999 --> 00:50:11.518
"Didn't you use to be
a ballplayer?"

00:50:11.542 --> 00:50:14.042
Clemente was great
and gorgeous to watch;

00:50:15.918 --> 00:50:19.999 position:20%
elegant, noble, right until
this horribly abrupt end.

00:50:49.375 --> 00:50:52.999
(applause, whistling fade in)

00:50:53.209 --> 00:50:56.435
♪ ♪

00:50:56.459 --> 00:50:59.727
(applause, whistling fade out)

00:50:59.751 --> 00:51:02.999
♪ ♪

00:51:21.918 --> 00:51:24.999
♪ ♪

00:51:45.626 --> 00:51:48.876
♪ ♪

00:52:09.292 --> 00:52:12.542
♪ ♪