This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 1/21/2017
Click Here to watch video.
Old-timer’s would tell you that the most magical sights one could see on a ball field was Babe Ruth’s swing. Others have had a smoother motion, others a more powerful stance, but there was something about the Babe’s that has now become ubiquitous with what we perceive a batter to look like. This photograph captures that exact pose one thinks of when the words “home run” is spoken. The photo is a magnificent oversized (10x14) sepia toned shot taken in 1921 showing a svelte Ruth taking his cuts during pre-game batting practice at the Polo Grounds. 1921 was the season Ruth hit .378 and led the league in runs, RBI, walks, on-base percentage, slugging and the record-shattering 59 home runs. Many consider Ruth’s 1921 season his best single-season, and indeed, maybe the best of any ballplayer since. Ruth signed this iconic photograph to Harry Weber, a prominent vaudeville promoter who was Ruth’s theatrical agent.
After the 1921 season Ruth was the biggest star in the game and the country was still anxious to see the man who was revolutionizing the National Pastime. To quench the public’s thirst, Harry Weber arranged for Ruth to embark on a 20 week tour where he would take the stage and tell the audience about baseball and sing a tune or two. At $3,000 a week, Ruth made a fortune that winter and it is only natural that he presented his manager Harry Weber with this stunning photograph. In his flawless script, The Babe inscribed the photo “To Harry Weber Yours for Vaudeville Babe Ruth”. As far a s early inscribed Ruth photos go, this is one of the finest around, made especially significant in that its recipient was his vaudeville manager. This piece was unveiled on PBS’ “Antique Roadshow” in 2013 when it was brought in by a woman whose grandfather obtained it many years earlier when he rented out rooms in Hollywood, California. The photo has been professionally matted and framed to 16 3/4” x 20 1/4”. A stunning signed and inscribed Ruth photo that combines his unrivaled prowess on the ball field with his unrivaled popularity off it.
Includes a full LOA from PSA/DNA.
This lot has a Reserve Price that has not been met.