Jim Thorpe gives back his medals
 

98 years ago today he gave up his 1912 Olympic medals for being paid $25 to play in a semi-pro baseball game.

I remember reading about this as a child, in a Thorpe biography, and being astounded that grown-ups would do something like this (make him give up his medals). Maybe the first adult fvck-up I can remember finding out about.

Scott, here is the only known (at least to my knowledge) photo of Thorpe w/ baseball teammate from his time with the Rocky Mount baseball team.

The funny thing about that whole story is that he didn't play "semi-pro" he played played full-on professional baseball for Rocky Mount, NC and Fayetteville, AR.

This RPPC came from the estate of David Creagan (his teammate on Rocky Mount) and it features Jim w/ their other teammate A. J. Dussault (and for good measure also attached is Dussault's T210 card--you can't mistake that head of hair for anyone else!). And the two signed it on the back (this would have likely been the "smoking gun" in the Thorpe investigation if they had found it back 98 years ago...)

http://starsofthediamond.com/thorpe1.JPG http://starsofthediamond.com/thorpe2.JPG http://starsofthediamond.com/thorpe3.JPG http://starsofthediamond.com/t210dussault7.jpg

Great stuff, Rhett.