Eliot Asinof and the Truth of the Game

The late Eliot Asinof (1919–2008), renowned author of Eight Men Out, on which the movie version was later based, also wrote 14 other full length books, including 4 more on baseball. In addition, he produced countless articles, interviews, short stories, and screenplays in a writing career spanning over half a century. This is the first detailed critical study for both his baseball and non-baseball output. His entire oeuvre is explored, as well as pertinent themes, major characters and the current status of his literary reputation. A major addition to the scholarly work on this minor-league baseball player turned author.

William Farina is a retired real estate consultant for the federal government, now living in Evanston, Illinois. He has written books on Arthurian legend, early Christianity, the American Civil War, Shakespeare and baseball.

William Farina
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 250
Bibliographic Info: 11 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2012
pISBN: 978-0-7864-6302-2
eISBN: 978-0-7864-8821-6
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents


Acknowledgments vi

Introduction 1

Part I: Man on Spikes (1955)

 1. An Egalitarian Battle Cry 11

 2. No One Ever Got Rich 21

 3. A Purist Baseball Outlook 30

 4. A Preference for Anti-Heroes Over Heroes 40

Part II: Eight Men Out (1963)

 5. The Unwelcome Truth, Everyman Style 49

 6. Not Unlike the Black Sox Themselves 59

 7. Nothing Left to Prove in Terms of Winning 69

 8. “More Than a Game” 78

Part III: The Bedfellow (1967)

 9. “A Big Free Bubbly Show” 87

10. “The Quintessence of All Our Self-Destructive Tendencies” 98

11. In Need of a Pick-Me-Up 107

12. Like an Ancient Chinese Curse 116

Part IV: Strike Zone (1994)

13. A Kind of Belated Redemption 125

14. “A Routine Complimentary Nod from One Pro to Another” 134

15. The Anatomy of a Slump 143

16. Outside the Bounds of Respectability 152

Part V: Off-Season (2000)

17. A Grotesque Compilation of Lies, Corruption, and Greed 161

18. “Then History Turned Sour” 170

19. A Few More Parting Shots 179

20. “The Heart and Soul of Racist America” 188

Conclusion 197

Appendix: A Timeline of the Life and Works of Eloit Asinof 203

Chapter Notes 209

Asinof Bibliography 235

Index 237