That was the summer of the Berlin Wall. Having recently finished up a so-so career as a high school athlete, graduating in June of 61, I was less interested in Checkpoint Charlie than the frenzied pursuit of Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris for Babe Ruth s home run record; that, and the great SF Giants team of Willie Mays, Orlando Cepeda, Willie McCovey and Juan Marichal, destined somehow to lose the pennant race to Cincinnati (even as Cincinnati would lose the World Series to the New York Yankees four games to one). |