Arts &I Entertainment

A Mentsh For All Seasons

Metro Detroiters recall a genuine American hero.

SUZANNE CHESSLER

Special to the Jewish News

IV

hen Hank Greenberg
joined the Tigers in the
1930s, he didn't just
become a member of the
team. He became a member of the
Detroit Jewish community.
- PeQple who recognized the strong,
handsome star athlete — and who
didn't? — would see him at the Jewish
Community Center, Congregation
Shaarey Zedek, Franklin Hills
Country Club and the homes of
Jewish people who welcomed him into
the social life they enjoyed.
Greenberg's fan-building public per-
sona in many ways was rivaled by his
private presence — the brief, one-on-
one encounters that seemed so natural
for him and meant so much to everyone
he met. In a time of rampant anti-
semitism, the slugger became a role
model who would voice the name
Greenberg with a pride that outran the
anti-Jewish remarks voiced by the likes of
Father Charles Coughlin.

The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg

3/24

2000

82

presents many Detroiters recalling those
one-on-one encounters, but there were
many more. Although occurring in child-
hood, they left an impact that still hits
home.
Max Lapides was quite young when he
met Hammerin' Hank.
"My father was a consummate baseball
fan, and he imbued me with that,"
Lapides, 72, recalls. "I love baseball and
loved it when I was 8, the year I broke
my leg and had to stay in bed for two
months.
"A neighbor was having Greenberg
over for dinner and decided the kids on
the block should meet him. I cried
myself to sleep for nights because I
wouldn't be able to get to that house.
"On the day of the dinner, I kept my
room dark until my father knocked on
the door and said there was someone to
see me. Walking behind my dad was my
hero, who introduced himself and sat

Clockwise from top

Bob Steinberg poses with his "Hank Greenberg"
bat and other memorabilia.

Leonard Trunsky was with a lot of kids who
caught Greenberg balls in practice sessions, and he
keeps an autographed photo in a frame.

Sylvia Serwin holds an autographed picture and
a letter she received from Hank Greenberg when
she was 11 or 12 years old. She had invited .
him to the family seder.

down on the bed. He autographed a
sports book and my cast and produced a
baseball with an autograph.
"Apparently, somebody told him
about me, and Greenberg suggested the
visit.; Before he came to my house, he
asked where he could get a ball, walked
to a store and bought it. We talked about
baseball, and we talked about the team."
After 45 minutes, Greenberg left,
but that wasn't the end of the story. After
the slugger moved on to managing the
Cleveland Indians, many years later,
Lapides spotted him at an airport, where
they would board the same plane.
'As an adult, I was tongue-tied in
his presence," Lapides says. "I wanted to
remind him about what he did, but I
didn't know how to open the dialogue.
When we got on the plane, he sat down
in an aisle seat, and I sat across the aisle.