Lou gehrig full speech video
Lou Gehrig’s Farewell Speech: July 4, 1939
A packed crowd of 61,808 fans heard Lou Gehrig make his “Luckiest Man” speech between games of a doubleheader against Washington. (SABR-Rucker Archive)
Lou Gehrig played his final game for the New York Yankees on April 30, 1939. Though only 35 years old, the Iron Horse, who played in 2,130 consecutive games, had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).1 To honor their stricken star, the Yankees held Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day on July 4, 1939.
The Independence Day doubleheader pitted the sixth-place Washington Senators, who entered play with a 28-42 record, 24½ games off the pace, and the three-time defending World Series champion New York Yankees, who were 51-16, 12½ games clear of the second-place Boston Red Sox. The games were overshadowed by the ceremony that took place between them. It was Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day and 61,808 fans jammed into Yankee Stadium to pay homage to the Yankees’ ailing s Lou gehrig biography 1939 rnlg!