While I was sent an advance review copy of this book to be reviewed as a "sports" book, it is much more than just about sports, in this case college football. Playing together at UCLA is the common bond among these five men, whose post-college football lives were even more important. Here is my review of "The Black Bruins"
Title/Author:
“The Black Bruins: The
Remarkable Lives of UCLA’s Jackie Robinson, Woody Strode, Tom Bradley, Kenny
Washington, and Ray Bartlett”
by James W. Johnson
Tags:
Football (American), baseball, college,
professional, UCLA, Dodgers, Rams, politics
Publish date:
February 1, 2018
Length:
312 pages
Rating:
4 of 5 stars (Very good)
Review:
During an era in which
there were “gentleman” agreements between schools to not sign African-Americans
to football scholarships, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) broke
that agreement in spectacular style, having five black players on the team in
1938 and 1939. The stories of these five men, whose impact would be felt much
further than just in college football, is told in this well-researched book by
James W. Johnson.
The five men, whose
names are in the title, all had good playing careers for the Bruins and each left
UCLA on good terms, but little did they realize that every one of them would be
leaving their marks as ground-breaking pioneers in various industries.
Of course, the best
known of these is Jackie Robinson, who broke major league baseball’s color
barrier in 1947 when he suited up for the Brooklyn Dodgers. His story and the
many tribulations he went through during his time with first the Montreal
Royals and then the Dodgers is well known and has been the subject of several
books and even movies. Therefore, readers who have read other works on Robinson
may not find anything new about him in this book, but because Robinson is such
an important figure in not only sports, but in the civil rights movement, his
story is worth reading. Whether it was
the meetings with Branch Rickey before appearing on the field, the way Jackie
kept quiet when other players and managers were heaping abuse upon him, or his
later distrust of Dodger owner Walter O’Malley; the author does a good job of
writing about Robinson in a relatively limited amount of pages dedicated to his
story.
The reason I say “relatively
limited amount” is that Johnson also gives well-deserved pages and tributes to
the other four men as well. Kenny
Washington and Woody Strode became the first black players to be signed by the
NFL after World War II, each signing with the Rams. Washington had several good years for the
Rams, although it was believed that he was not signed right away not because of
his race, but because he wasn’t as good on defense as many players in the
league. Remember, this was during the era
of players who played both offense and defense.
One other note about Washington – many feel that he was a good enough
baseball player that if he chose that route; he, not Robinson, would have been
the man to break the baseball color barrier.
And conversely, many also felt Robinson would have made a fine NFL
player had he chosen football instead of baseball.
Strode, on the other hand, appeared in few games and had little playing time
during his stint with the Rams. However,
he made his mark in another sport – professional wrestling, where he was often
cast as the opponent of Gorgeous George.
This exposure, during which he opened the doors to black performers in wrestling,
led Strode to a very successful acting career, appearing in over 50 full-length
feature films. More importantly, Strode landed mostly parts that broke the
stereotype of roles that had previously been played by black actors, such as
servants. Again, Johnson writes about these advancements for African-Americans
in this industry with excellent detail and research.
Tom Bradley also broke
barriers for blacks after his college football career was done, but not in
sports or entertainment. Instead, he
became an officer in the Los Angeles Police Department. Then after transitioning to politics, he
became the first black mayor of Los Angeles. Elected in 1973, he went on to
serve five terms in the office and dabbled in national politics as well. Bradley attributed to his successful
political career to his time at UCLA and playing sports – not just football but
also his success in track running the 440-yard dash. Ray Bartlett, the least known of the five,
also had a successful career in the police force, becoming the second black
officer for the Pasadena Police Department and also donating much time and
energy to civil rights causes.
The book tells the stories and accomplishments of these five men in great
detail, making sure the reader understands the contributions made about the
men. Of course, their college football
careers are well chronicled as well, as that comprises the first quarter or so
of the book. But what happens after UCLA
is what makes this book an important one to read for those readers who are
interested in the civil rights movement and the integration of sports and
entertainment.
I wish to thank
University of Nebraska Press for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley in
exchange for an honest review.
Book Format Read:
E-book (Kindle)
Buying Links:
