Black Sox Scandal in Song

After reading Rothstein by Joseph Pietrusza and learning the in depth story of the Black Sox scandal of 1919 I had to share an interesting song (another one of my boyfriend’s) about just this subject.

Jonathan Coulton performs this song, Kennisaw Mountain Landis, which is a very tongue-in-cheek story of the Black Sox scandal – some historical truth, some pure fiction, but very entertaining. Pass a listen to the song before I set fact from fiction – fyi, there is one foul word I think.

 

Ok, now the facts:

• The Black Sox scandal involves the 1919 World Series game between the Chicago White Sox and the Cincinnati Reds
• 8 players accepted bribes, or were in some way party to, the White Sox throwing the games to the Reds
• The players involved – who were banned for life – Eddie Cicotte, Oscar Felsch, Arnold Gandil, Joe Jackson, Fred McMullin, Charles Risberg, George Weaver, Claude Williams
• Joe Jackson in the song is described as going into pop music – this is most certainly not true
• Arnold Rothstein was most assuredly the big bankroll behind the job
• Kennisaw Mountain Landis was the commissioner of baseball who sorted all of this out and banned the players from baseball

Hope you enjoyed this little foray into sports and gangster history.

 

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