Books and articles about Jimmy Powers

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A graduate of Marquette University, Powers worked in Oklahoma, Milwaukee, and Cleveland before joining the New York Daily News in 1928. His column, "The Powerhouse," ran until 1957. He was sports editor of the News, 1935-57. His book Baseball Personalities was published in 1949. (NLM)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » August 18, 1940: The Sunday New York Daily News publishes a shocking article written by its sports editor, Jimmy Powers, suggesting that the 5th place Yankees, had been hit by a "mass polio epidemic." Powers charges that Lou Gehrig's "infantile paralysis" had infected the other Yankees, accounting for the team's uncharacteristic reversal of form. The article immediately causes a sensation among readers and fans. At Gehrig's request, Milton Eisenberg, a Brooklyn attorney, brings suit for $1 million against Powers and newspaper charging that Gehrig's reputation and credit had been hurt and that the article had caused him considerable mental anguish. Other angry Yankees, including Bill Dickey, also file suit against the News, causing the newspaper to issue a public apology on September 26, The three and a half column story appears under the headline "OUR APOLOGIES TO LOU GEHRIG AND THE YANKEES." In his apology, Powers admits he had no business getting 'snarled up in medical controversy," stating "Gehrig has no communicable disease and was not suffering from the mysterious polio germ that supposedly played havoc with the Yankee ball club." Lou is a personal hero, Powers adds. "Hurting his feelings was far from my mind.'