The Great Depression was arguably the worst economic period this country has faced in its history. People who were well off financially on Monday October 28, 1929 were now broke after Tuesday October 29, 1929, the day the stock market lost $15 billion, and subsequently crashed, setting off the worst 10 year economic period in United States history. People struggled to find food, a place to live, as well as jobs (Watkins, T.H. The Great Depression. Boston: Little Brown and Co, 1993. page 40).
With the Depression going on, people needed an outlet. A lot of people wanted to rid themselves of the problems facing their families and the country as a whole, even if it was for a short time. Therefore, some used the entertainment industry as an outlet. Movies, plays and sports were outlets for people facing hard times. Even though some things closed or stopped during the depression, the entertainment industry prevailed (Beaver, Frank. The 1930's. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2000. page 280).
Sports were still the biggest outlet for people. People liked sports for the same reasons they do today, the entertainment value, the competition, and the chance to root on individual players or teams. In baseball and football, a new type of athlete emerged, tough, feisty, and aggressive. Sports provided the basis for the ongoing American myth of individual success and competition during a period of stagnation and paralysis. Sports were huge in the depression because they provided a diversion and interest that could be followed cheaply. Athletic activity, which had an emphasis on exertion and winning, stood in sharp contrast to the helplessness many people felt. Sports were a great way to be involved in a part of society that was not screwed up (Noverr, Douglas; Ziewacz, Lawrence. The Games they Played. Sports in American History, 1865-1980. Chicago: Nelson-Hall, 1983. page 99).
Sports were a popular thing in the 1920's. Attendance records were shattered in the '20's in most sports, and things were looking up for sports heading into 1929. That all changed after the Stock Market Crash of 1929, and subsequent Depression. Sports were faced with tough questions: How do we prevail in hard economic times? Can people afford to support our teams? Will the sports industry lose money? All of these questions led to a bigger question: How will (did) the Great Depression affect sports?
One thing was for sure. Sports could not sit back and take a "business as usual approach," during a time like the Depression. Sports were forced to adjust to new circumstances during the Depression as the "Golden Age of Sport" quickly became the "Lean Age of Survival." The athletes were promised their jobs would remain safe, but a pay cut seemed imminent. The reason for their jobs being so secure was due to the fact they did not undergo massive cuts or loss of work time like the rest of the country had, and therefore there was no movement to organize against their employers. With that being said, there was not a threat of a strike or a lock-out in any sport, due to the country's economic situation (Noverr, Ziewacz, 98-99).
The owners had the players in a no-win situation because of these hard times the country was facing. The owners knew they were going to lose revenue because they would have to lower prices on seating and lower concession prices. This would cause a ripple down effect, with the owners cutting players salaries. Pro sports were not unionized at the time. Therefore, the players could not strike. Even if they wanted to, it would have been stupid of them to, considering they would have been right where millions of other Americans were at the time: on the street, unemployed, and uncertain of their future. To the owner's credit, the reduced salaries were not that low. The average major league salary during the Depression was higher than the regular worker's salary before the Depression (Gerdes 23).
Baseball was especially popular heading into the depression. Fans had stars, and idols in Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. It just so happened they played on the same team, the New York Yankees. The Yankees were by far the leagues most popular team, and showed in the fact they led all of sports in attendance.
Baseball was not impacted as much by the Depression initially, as one might think. The 1930 season was one of the best ever. Attendance soared to record numbers. The American and National leagues both set records in attendance that season, drawing 4.7 million and 5 million respectively. This had as much to do with the exciting play as anything. Six of the eight National League teams hit over .300. To put that in perspective, not one team in either league has done it since. There was also some great play from individual players that season. Bill Terry hit .401. That has only been done once since then, and it hasn't been done since 1941. Fred Lindstrom hit .379 and had 196 RBI's. The 196 RBI's is a record that still stands today. Hack Wilson had a great year for the Chicago Cubs as well. He hit .356 with 56 home runs and 190 RBI's. Six players hit over .380 in 1930. To further illustrate the offensive production in 1930, the Philadelphia Phillies, who finished dead last and lost 102 games, hit .315 as a team. To hit .315 as a team in today's game, a team would win at least 102 games. The offensive explosion may have been caused by player's who wanted to justify their large salaries during the dark economic times (Noverr, Ziewacz 100).
However, like all good things before the Depression, baseball would soon too feel the economic woes of the Depression. In response to the offensive explosion in 1930, the National League would implement changes in the game to cut down on the offensive productivity. The biggest change was to the ball itself. The League put in to play "dead balls" which did not travel as far and hard as the balls used for play in 1930. The new ball featured a heavier cover, and were less wound. The stitches were also raised. This caused the ball to have less ...
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However, like all good things before the Depression, baseball would soon too feel the economic woes of the Depression. In response to the offensive explosion in 1930, the National League would implement changes in the game to cut down on the offensive productivity. The biggest change was to the ball itself. The League put in to play "dead balls" which did not travel as far and hard as the balls used for play in 1930. The new ball featured a heavier cover, and were less wound. The stitches were also raised. This caused the ball to have less wind resistance. Fences were also pushed back in most parks, cutting down on the number of home runs hit. The offensive numbers declined heavily in 1931. Only five players collected 200 hits, compared with 24 the year before; the league leader in hits had only 214 hits, 40 shy of Bill Terry's mark the previous year. Only four players had 100 RBI's in 1931, compared with 17 in 1930. Chick Hafey won the batting title in 1931 with a .349 average. That mark would not have placed him in the top 30 the previous year. Home runs dropped by almost half from 1930 to 1931. There were 892 home runs in 1930 to 492 in 1931. The American League saw a sharp decline in numbers as well, but not as drastic as the Nation League's, but this was because the ball was different in each league. Lou Gehrig hit .370 in 1930, and Babe Ruth hit .359 in 1930, in the American League (Noverr, Ziewicz 101).
The lack of offensive production, and the economic status of our country contributed to the sharp decline in baseball attendance. In 1931, attendance dropped by one million, and by 1933, attendance was down to 3.2 million, in the National League. The American League dropped one million in attendance in 1931, and would plummet to 2.7 million in 1933. This would lead to significant cuts in players salaries. The managers and stars saw their salaries cut considerably, although they were under no circumstances poverty stricken like the 13 million unemployed people in this country in 1933. In 1931, Babe Ruth was paid $80,000, John Mcgraw earned $50,000, as did Connie Mack, and Rogers Hornsby pulled down 40,000. Top sluggers like Hack Wilson, Al Simmons, Bill Terry, and Lou Gehrig made $25,00 or more. But by 1936, the top manager, Joe McCarthey of the Yankees made $35,000, and Sluggers like Jimmy Foxx and Lou Gehrig suffered modest pay cuts in salary. In 1931 more than two-dozen players and managers received more than $20,000 a year, but by 1936 less than a dozen were in this group. In the 1932 season, the Major League salary lists were cut by over $1 million. The Great Depression brought an end to excessively higher salaries for stars, although salaries were decidedly inequitable because of the range of financial resources and attendance among the 16 clubs (Noverr, Ziewacz 103).
Baseball was definitely in a period of decline, although it was not catastrophic. However, baseball was in a period of decline, and something needed to be done. Their were some radical ideas proposed by owners. For instance, the Boston Braves were in deep economic trouble. Their losses for the 1933 season were $330,000. The league was not worried about the debt of the club, but about the possibility of the club folding. Once one club folded, owners feared, more clubs would do the same. Braves Owner Emil Fuchs wanted to convert his ballpark to a greyhound racing track, and then move his Braves to Fenway Park, home of the cross-town Red Sox for the remainder of the season. This caused a big controversy among league administrators and team owners. There was a rule stating that gambling was not allowed in baseball stadiums. What made the owners so upset was the 1919 Black Sox scandal in which members of the White Sox lost the World Series on purpose. From that point on Gambling was highly frowned upon in baseball. With that memory still fresh in owners' minds, they quickly kicked Fuchs out of the game, and the league itself took control of that franchise (Noverr, Ziewacz 104). Another step baseball took was banning radio broadcasts of games, starting with the 1932 season. Owners did not know if banning radio broadcasts was a good or bad idea. Their thought was if people could not listen to the games, they would come to the games. When actually happened was fans lost connection with their team, and attendance dropped even more. As it turned out, radio spurred fan interest, and games were put back on the air in 1934 (Noverr, Ziewacz 104). Prohibition was repealed in 1933, and Owners looked at it as a big money maker. The league left it up to individual teams, as to whether or not to serve alcohol or not. Most clubs let the courts and local ordinances figure it out.
Since baseball was already struggling from staggering attendance, they had to be careful of not pricing people out of tickets. Even with the sales of tickets down, baseball decided not to lower ticket prices. Instead, they raised them. Owners argued that ticket prices had not been raised in 20 years, and it was time for an increase. The National League announced in 1932 it would institute a 10% federal tax on all tickets. All but two teams, Cleveland and Cincinnati increased their prices. It came down to which owners could withstand the losses and which ones could not. The teams that were successful in the 1930's were the ones with money. Because of this, some teams traded the players with the highest salaries to other teams who could afford them. (This sounds like the same way it is today!) It came down to winning and losing money, or losing and breaking even. The New York Yankees spent $1 million on salaries each year during the Depression and won five pennants. The Philadelphia Athletics, winners of three straight Pennants from 1929-1931, sold all their best players during the Depression, and finished near the bottom of the standings every year (Gipe, George. The Great American Sports Book. New York: Doubleday Inc., 1978. page 170.)
Baseball did other things to "spice up" the game. One of those was playing night baseball. In May of 1939, President Roosevelt was on hand to turn the lights on at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Other teams would soon follow, and by 1940, all but two of the 16 teams had lights. The Detroit Tigers held out until 1945, while the Chicago Cubs did not acquire lights until 1989 (www.sportingnews.com/archives).
Another significant moneymaker was the construction of Cleveland Municipal stadium in 1932. The park held 78,000 people, and was sold out for the 1935 all-star game. New Stadiums would be the wave of the future. Even the WPA got involved and helped construct some stadiums. The only problem was, some teams would not build new stadiums, and they were losing money. So, if new stadiums were not built, teams were often forced to move to remain competitive. Such was the case of the Brooklyn Dodgers being moved from Brooklyn. to Los Angeles, and the Giants being moved from New York to San Francisco ("All Star Library."www.sportingnews.com/archives/allstar.html).
The most fan friendly thing baseball ever did was to host charity games in which money from tickets was donated to work relief funds. Baseball routinely gave $80,000 a year to such funds, which were raised through charity games. That not only brought people to the gates, but it also gave baseball a good name, one that which people would support (Gipe 28).
Through the Depression, baseball survived, and would once again prosper after World War II. There were five things that aided the recovery of baseball during this time period. 1) Fan loyalty and the continuing high popularity of the game. The fans were always there, and by the end of the Depression, it was clear, that America's favorite sport was baseball. 2) There was strong economic leadership among the owners. These were businessmen, and successful ones at that. 3) The league was quick to rectify mistakes, such as the ban of radio broadcasts, and a stupid rule, which outlawed player and fan interaction. They also brought back the livelier ball, which created more excitement. 4) The shrewd use of promotional devices such as the all-star game and the opening of the Baseball Hall of Fame at Cooperstown NY, and the use of films to promote interest in the sport. 5) The handling of the Boston Braves franchise when economic disaster for the team and the league seemed imminent (Noverr, Ziewacz 109).
Football, both at the college and professional level, was not nearly as successful as baseball. College football programs suffered a lot because of the economic situation. Football is not cheap to begin with, and with the Depression, funding a football program was not easy. Yet in 1931, seventy thousand fans turned out to see the Rose Bowl as Alabama downed Washington 24-0. However, rising costs and violence threatened college football. Over 60 people died in 1934-35 seasons. This was the result of faulty equipment and not enough equipment. At the NCAA meeting in 1931, most Ivy League schools such as Yale and Princeton, called for the end of college football. They argued it was too unsafe because the schools could not afford to buy the necessary equipment to protect the players. As we all know, college football prevailed but, the Depression was hard for it. New rules were put in requiring safer and more equipment, and eventually, college football survived. The biggest problem was getting people in the seats. At the beginning of the season, when the weather was warm, attendance was good. By the end of the season, stadiums were half empty due to the cold. Some people could not afford to buy coats, and therefore could not attend games during the Depression. Big names eventually got college football through the hard times. Knute Rockne and the four Horsemen from Notre Dame are still legendary to this day. Other dynasties were built at Southern Cal and Minnesota. To many, college football was a godsend during the Depression, offering the security of an education, and usually an on-campus job. Colleges and Universities were among the wealthier places during the Depression, because people knew jobs were scarce and companies would only hire people with a solid education. What also helped college football was people were willing to pay big bucks for big games. People paid as much as $50 to watch Ohio State and Notre Dame play in 1935. The same was true in other places as well. This gave the Universities money, and that is why many colleges could fund athletic programs (Noverr, Ziewacz 114-117).
Pro football was far worse off compared to college football. Pro football took a harder fall than any sport during the Depression. Entering the 1929 season, the NFL had 26 teams. By 1932, the league was down to eight. This was the direct result of bad management and the economic collapse of the country. Like College football, pro football suffered from staggering attendance in the cold months. Attendance dropped 50% during the depression, forcing teams to fold. Surprisingly, teams from colder climates like Green Bay, Detroit and Chicago survived the Depression, while teams from warmer climates did not. Some teams did not disband totally, they simply forfeited all of their games or moved their franchises, and vowed to start after the Depression ended. Like many other sports that suffered during the Depression, football would revive itself shortly after World War II (Noverr, Ziewacz 118-120).
There was no such thing as the NBA in the 1930's, (it was created in 1945) so there was no professional basketball during the Depression. High school and college basketball were big during this time, with most of the good high school teams in Indiana, and the good college teams in New York. The biggest problem facing college basketball during the depression was travel. Teams played each other in their region all of the time, and fans got sick of that. So in 1931, New York Mayor Jimmy Walker came up with an idea that could benefit both the game and the city. He wanted to hire someone that could recruit teams from all over the country to play in the newly built Madison Square Garden. The proceeds of these games would go to work relief funds. 15,000 fans showed up for a triple-header comprised of New York area teams in January 1931. 20,000 people showed up in February of 1931. Many promoters turned up at these events looking to bring in teams from around the nation. Finally, Walker selected Ned Irish, who worked part time as a media director for the New York Giants, to serve as a promoter of the games at Madison Square Garden. He guaranteed the Garden $4,000 in profit, plus a percentage of the profits over $4,000. His strategy was to pit local schools against teams from all over the country. His first game put Notre Dame against St. John's and it attracted 16,000 fans. He continued this over the remaining years of the Depression, and it continued through World War II. Irish was the main reason, along with the formation of the NCAA tournament, why college basketball flourished during the Depression.
High School basketball was unaffected by the Depression. In fact, High School attendance figures rose during the Depression. Indiana was the hot spot for high school hoops. People latched on to the idea of cheap, often times free entertainment, especially during a time when people had no money. The quality was very good too. It was said 20% of the best basketball player's nation wide were from Indiana ("Indiana Hoops" www.iiac.com/hoops/depression.htm).
Perhaps no single athlete was more popular during the Depression than boxer Joe Louis. Louis was the first African American Athlete that both whites and blacks liked. During the Depression, boxing routinely drew 50,000+ fans for big bouts. Louis fought first as an amateur, where he compiled a record of 50-1. His step-father told him to give up boxing and find a job just like the rest of the country was trying to do. But his mother insisted he go on. She even agreed to work two jobs to pay for his expenses. As a pro, Louis won 27 straight fights before running into German champion Max Schmelling. Louis lost in 12 rounds but came back strong. He won a few fights before fighting James Braddock, the champion of the world. He fought Braddock at Comiskey Park in Chicago, on June 22, 1937, before 45,000 fans. He did not disappoint the crowd either, as he knocked out Braddock in eight rounds. Louis would soon get his rematch with Schmelling. This was more than a boxing match however. In the late 30's Adolf Hitler rose to power, and drew the ire of many Americans. Americans were heavily against the Nazi movement. So the whole country took an interest in the Nazi- Schmelling and the American- Louis fight. 70,000 people crammed into Yankee stadium on June 22, 1938 to see Louis-Schmelling II. The gate drew $1 million, which was not uncommon for a fight of this caliber. Louis did not disappoint this time as he knocked down Schmelling three times, the last at 3;04 of the first round to secure the TKO, and World Championship. This fight was not just about boxing, it was a bout beating the hated Nazis, and it also brought the country, black and white alike, together. It also gave support to millions of impoverished black youth, who now had an icon and role model to look up to. The fight was just as much about politics as it was about winning a title (Noverr, Ziewacz 135-137).
As one can see, sports varied in their individual success during the Great Depression. But as a whole, sports made a difference in people's lives during the worst economic period in American History. Sports gave people just what they needed: an outlet to make them forget about their own problems, and the country's problems, even if it was for a few short hours. Americans latched onto their sport heroes more than ever during this period, because athletes had something the average American did not have at the time: a well paying job, success, and fame. Athletes were people to look up to in this time of great distress.
Sports played the role of morale booster and it was a reprive from what was going on in society. The owners and businessmen made their teams/clubs/sports survive through innovation, experimentation and tight economics. Athletes were looked at as survivors, so people wanted to emulate them.
As far as the impact of sports caused by the Great Depression, it varied from sport to sport. All sports were affected, but Boxing made the most money, and pro football lost the most, and baseball was everyone's favorite. It could be argued that college basketball was born during the Depression, and pro basketball was created on the success of college basketball during the Depression. Salaries were cut in all pro sports, attendance dropped, but in the end all survived. Each sport came up with different ways to sell its product to the American people. The organization and leadership of sports was huge, in keeping the games going. It is without question that sports played a big role in boosting morale of the country and it brought people together. Although the Depression tried its best to derail sports, it did not succeed in doing so, and it helped shape sports into what they are today: good entertainment, and something that people can come together and enjoy.
How Sports Survived the Great Depression
Steve Goes
Great Depression
December 5, 2001
Dr. Wixon
Bibliography
"All Star Library." www.sportingnews.com/archives/allstar.html
Beaver, Frank. The 1930's. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2000.
Gipe, George. The Great American Sports Book. New York: Doubleday Inc., 1978.
Noverr, Douglas; Ziewacz, Lawrence. The Games they Played. Sports in American History, 1865-1980. Chicago: Nelson-Hall, 1983.
Watkins, T.H. The Great Depression. Boston: Little Brown and Co, 1993.
www.grolier.com/baseball/archives
"Indiana Hoops"
www.iiac.com/hoops/depression.htm
Outline
I. Introduction
a. Sports in 1920's
b. A National Crisis
II. Baseball during the Depression
a. 1930 season
b. 1931 season
c. attendance figures
d. player salaries
e. steps taken to bring back the game
f. ticket prices
g. reasons the game survived
h.
III. Football
a. College football
1. equipment problems
2. financial problems
3. Famous teams/ people
b. Pro football
. teams disbanding
2. attendance problems
IV. College Basketball
a. Development of the game
b. Madison Square Garden
c. Ned Irish
V. Boxing
a. Joe Louis
b. Louis-Schmelling
c. Louis-Braddock
d. Louis-Schmelling II
e. Louis' effect on the country
f.
VI. Conclusion
