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Perfect Game, Imperfect Lives: A Memoir Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Don Larsen’s Perfect Game

The year 1956 defined a generation. The polarized mood of the country created an atmosphere like no other. Eisenhower was president, and World War II was ten years past. The economy was booming, and television shows like “Ozzie and Harriet” depicted conservative values. On the surface, this golden age appeared perfect. But just below, tensions brewed.  Americans were shadowed with constant anxiety about the Russians, and the Civil Rights movement was gaining momentum. Pressure to conform to the image of the perfect suburban family was high, and juvenile delinquency was on the rise.Uprooted from his secure South Carolina home, 11-yr-old Albert Bell Jr. and family moved to Cincinnati. Bell had difficulty adjusting and reflects on his pain being the “new kid,” and the confusion of adolescence.  Through baseball, Bell gains a new friend – another devotee of the game and recent transplant from Brooklyn. Their lives center around baseball — playing it, talking about it, and collecting baseball cards and autographs. On October 8, the two skip school to watch the fifth game of the World Series on TV.  Little did they know they were about to witness the most spectacular game in baseball history.

When Don Larsen, pitcher for the NY Yankees, retired every batter in Game 5 of the World Series, the country stood in awe. Had it really happened? The “Perfect Game”? Author Albert Bell Jr. releases Perfect Game, Imperfect Lives:  A Memoir Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Don Larsen’s Perfect Game to coincide with the half-century anniversary of this pivotal day in sports history.  Bell’s unique account is a dedication to unlikely hero Don Larsen, a tribute to the beloved New York Yankees, and a revealing memoir depicting his own personal coming-of-age story.
Listen to interview with Albert Bell Jr.