Wilcox

Monday, October 20, 1997

Surprised by

a brush with greatness at Kerckhoff Hall

COLUMN Alumna Rachel Robinson showed up to promote new
biography

I was there, where were you? Yeah, something of great historical
significance happened on Thursday evening, and I only saw a handful
of students in the room. And it even had something to do with
sports, can you believe it? Would you like to know what happened?
Okay, I’ll tell you, only because I try to be a nice person. Rachel
Robinson’s life with her husband came full circle on the UCLA
campus Thursday when she made a guest appearance at Arnold
Rampersad’s book signing.

Three years ago, Mrs. Robinson began preparations for this year,
the fiftieth anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s season as the first
African American in the major leagues. She commissioned Rampersad
to write a biography about her husband, giving the biographer
unprecedented access to the family’s private papers and to those
belonging to the Jackie Robinson Foundation, a non-profit
organization founded in 1973 by Mrs. Robinson to benefit
African-American scholars.

With the biography complete, the two set out to publicize it.
They made a stop in Westwood at the Charles Young Grand Salon on
Thursday. I showed up, a book-signing novice. Sure, I had been to
plenty of athlete autograph sessions in my time, so I expected it
to be quite similar to one of those events. Just set the book down
in front of Rampersad, chit-chat while he signs it, and I’ll be on
my way! But something even more exciting happened before the
signing festivities began.

There I sat, leafing through my new book, when a side door
opened, and a very familiar woman walked into the room and sat in a
chair not 10 feet away from me. "My God, is that Rachel Robinson?"
I asked myself. "Why didn’t I know she was coming?" Well, that’s
because her appearance was not advertised. All of the flyers talked
about Mr. Rampersad, but not about Mrs. Robinson. No offense to the
Princeton professor, but I was more ecstatic to see Mrs. Robinson
enter the room than him. This woman is Jackie’s widow! Meeting
someone of her national stature does not happen every day. So I was
in a state of awe for the next one-and-a-half hours as a trio of
speakers talked about the new biography.

Rampersad primarily focused on Robinson’s two years as a UCLA
student because they were "virtually all sweetness," highlighted by
his relationship with Miss Rachel Isum, Mr. Robinson’s future
wife.

It was quite fitting to have this event in Kerckhoff Hall
because it was in that building where Jackie’s teammate, Ray
Bartlett, introduced the future couple to each other.

"There’s a continuity today, a full circle," Mrs. Robinson said,
referring to her feelings that previous biographies of her husband
depicted him inaccurately. Rampersad had suggested earlier that
other biographers emphasized Jackie Robinson’s athleticism,
victimization, or vengeance, not the larger humanness about
him.

Flipping through the pages, one can see how seriously Rampersad
took his job in depicting Jackie Robinson in a new light. For one
thing, there are no photographs! So if you want a pictorial history
of the man, you should pick up Rachel Robinson’s tribute to her
late husband at your local bookstore to supplement Rampersad’s
work. It is very engrossing. Last spring, the Daily Bruin sports
section ran a series of articles (like most other newspapers in the
country) about Jackie Robinson, and it was during my research for a
couple of these articles that I was introduced to this lovely book.
Unable to afford the $30 price at the time, I sat down in one of
those cozy chairs at the BookZone in Ackerman Student Union and
read a store copy of the book for two hours. Yup, I completely lost
track of time because the book was so absorbing.

But enough with that advertising, I just wanted to express to
you all what a truly great experience I had on Thursday when I saw
these two important figures on this very campus. I’m wondering,
sports fans, where were you? Alright, so it’s midterm time. I have
tests too! By golly, I’m so far behind in my assigned readings that
I probably won’t have the chance to read the biography till next
summer. I had not even planned on writing this column, as I told
Mrs. Robinson when she asked if I was writing an article about the
event. But heck, I found the time. You say that you did not know
about it? Read the "What’s Brewing" in the Daily Bruin. That’s how
I first learned of the signing. There were plenty of adults there,
so they must have heard about the event somehow. In a way, I’m
encouraging everyone to get more involved with the special events
that happen every day on our campus. You don’t know what you are
missing, like an unexpected brush with greatness.

Wilcox is a consummate fan of baseball history. She can be
reached at [email protected]

Kristina Wilcox