Richard Ben Cramer Quotes

I'm the guy that made Joe DiMaggio famous.

We strove for more than 60 years to give Joe DiMaggio the hero's life. From his debut at Yankee Stadium in 1936 until his death in 1999, DiMaggio was, at every turn, one man we could look at who made us feel good.

He knew he was Joe DiMaggio, and he knew what that meant to the country.

Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

Clint Eastwood has always been a hero.

Everyone has someone they looked up to. Mine was Mickey Mantle. For Alex Rodriguez to idolize me coming up, that makes me feel very good.

Roger Maris was as good a man and as good a ballplayer as there ever was.

Babe Ruth is an icon, in sports and in our society.

Five World Series rings, 3000-plus hits, the fame, the fortune and playing for the second most historic franchise in baseball... These are just some of the reasons kids would always say they want to grow up to be just like Derek Jeter.

Since I've been five, people asked me if we're related. It is usually the third question in the line of questions. What's your name? Sue Bird. Oh, what do you do? I play basketball. Are you related to Larry Bird? That's how it goes. I guess it could be worse, though, since he is a legend and all.

If you die and enough people are watching, then you become a martyr, you become a hero, you become well-known.

An American Idol is someone that has all the qualities that America thinks is positive, attractive and alluring.

No hero is mortal till he dies.

Babe Ruth was great. I'm just lucky.

I want to interview the most important people in the world and have everyone in America the next day going, 'Did you see that?'

As one of nine men, DiMaggio is the best player that ever lived.

When you are thrown onto the stage at 17 in such an enormous way, it becomes living on the edge because every step you take, every word you speak, every action you do becomes headline news. And it became, for me, life or death.

In the spring of 1957, Mickey Mantle was the king of New York. He had the Triple Crown to prove it, having become only the 12th player in history to earn baseball's gaudiest jewel. In 1956, he had finally fulfilled the promise of his promise, batting .353, with 52 homers and 130 RBIs. Everybody loved Mickey.

He was a very private person, but then, you know, he belonged to the whole United States. The United States thought they owned Johnny Carson.

Jerry Coleman was the kind of player who made me proud to wear the pinstripes.

Babe Ruth made a baseball fan of me. I used to go to Yankee Stadium just to see him come to bat.

They invented the All-Star game for Willie Mays.

Every hero becomes a bore at last.