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Braves fan treasures special memorabilia from Hank Aaron’s record home run
When Hank Aaron blasted home run No. 715 on April 8, 1974, it was one of the greatest moments in baseball history.
The late, great Vin Scully put it best as Aaron circled the bases after breaking Babe Ruth’s all-time home run record.
“What a marvelous moment for baseball, what a marvelous moment for Atlanta and the state of Georgia, what a marvelous moment for the country and the world,” Scully told a national television audience.
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As the wild celebration unfolded at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, Charlie Russo, a 31-year-old fishmonger from Savannah, Ga., grabbed his video camera and followed the exuberant crowd onto the field.
Russo had acquired last-minute tickets to the game with his uncle Dedi. He almost missed the historic home run while grabbing a couple of hot dogs at the concession stand.
Just as he returned to his seat, Aaron stepped to the plate in the fourth inning. As Russo began filming, Aaron blasted a 1-0 pitch from Dodgers left-hander Al Downing over the left-field wall to break the most sacred record in baseball.
“I see him coming up and I’m filming this and, ‘Oh, my Lord, now I’ve got him hitting the home run,’” Russo recalls.
As bedlam erupted, Russo made his way onto the field, where Aaron was surrounded by family, fans and such celebrities as Sammy Davis Jr. and Pearl Bailey. Russo followed the crowd and was standing next to Aaron as he waved to the crowd and celebrated the historic moment.
“They opened the gates and I just sort of meandered with them, and that’s how I got onto the field,” Russo says. “I’m standing down there and Hank is waving to the [crowd] and one of the shots shows me waving, ‘Hey, I’m down here.’”
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Russo wound up next to Sammy Davis Jr., the famous entertainer who promised $25,000 to whoever caught the home run ball so he could present it to Aaron.
“When I zoomed in on the camera, he’s all gloomy and I said, ‘Sammy, what are you so sad about?’” Russo said. “He said, ‘You would be sad too if you just lost $25,000.’ And that’s when he gave that [big] smile.”
As Russo wandered around the field, he practically stumbled over two important artifacts from the historic moment. The rosin bag Aaron used on his hands and the weighted doughnut he placed on his bat while warming up before stepping to the plate were lying in the on-deck circle near home plate. Russo picked them up and stuck them in his pocket.
“I just sort of tripped over them, if you will, and picked them up and put them in my pocket and put them in the suitcase, and we’ve had them treasured ever since,” Russo said.
Later, Aaron visited Savannah and Russo was able to get the rosin bag and doughnut signed by the new home run king.
Now 81, Russo has held onto the special items for the past 50 years.
“They have really meant a lot to me and my family, and we have had so much fun [with them],” he says.
Russo is now looking to pass the historic items along to another collector, a museum or anyone looking to preserve part of the history of one of baseball’s greatest moments.
“I have enjoyed them, my family has enjoyed them, and whoever would come in and take them from here and match them up with the ball and the bat, hopefully they will draw interest for the next 50 years,” he says.
Russo and his family have produced a special YouTube video (“I Was There: A Hank Aaron Story”) about his role in the historic moment. If interested in his Aaron memorabilia, you can reach him at HankAaronMemorabilia@gmail.com.
— Jeff Owens is editor of SCD. You can reach him at jowens@aimmedia.com.
Jeff Owens is the editor of SCD.
