November 2016 Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 11/19/2016
Benny Friedman (D. 1982) was an American football quarterback who played for the University of Michigan (1924–1926), Cleveland Bulldogs (1927), Detroit Wolverines (1928), New York Giants (1929–1931), and Brooklyn Dodgers (1932–1934). He is generally considered the first great passer in professional football. In 1926, Friedman earned the Chicago Tribune Silver Football Award as the Big Ten MVP. In 2005, Friedman was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He also is a member of the College Football HOF and was a coach for the NY Giants, Brooklyn Dodgers (NFL), and Brandeis University. Despite his impressive numbers, Friedman was not chosen for the Hall of Fame until 2005. Some people attributed this to his relentless self-promotion and campaigning for induction, which was considered bad form, while others attribute it to latent prejudice against him for his ethnic background. Friedman suffered from heart disease and diabetes in his later years, requiring a leg amputation in 1978. Despondent over his health and inability to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he took his own life in 1982.
We offer an extremely rare typed letter signed on Brandeis University letterhead from 1951 in his first year as the head coach of the football team to a very young and future famous sportswriter, Dick Schaap. He writes to Dick regarding the possibility of him attaining a scholarship, but doesn’t know if there would be any available for sports publicity. He then almost scolds Schaap by asking, “Let me ask you why you haven’t played on your high school teams. You write that you acted as captain of the Freeport Barons and the basketball team in the Freeport summer league. How come you did not play varsity high school baseball and basketball?” Very rare early autograph and almost never found in letter format. Very tough to obtain!!!
This lot has a Reserve Price that has not been met.