Stockbridge, MA, May 21, 2015—Norman Rockwell Museum will present Home Run! An All American Baseball Day on Saturday, May 30, from 1 to 5 p.m. Celebrate the start of summer with a tribute to our national pastime, which has also inspired America’s most popular illustrators.
Meet former Major League Baseball pitcher and current North Adams Steeple Cats General Manager, Johan Bayliss, as well as members of the Pittsfield Suns, lead by General Manager, Kevin McGuire. At 1:30 p.m., meet Tom Swyers, the author of “Saving Babe Ruth,” a controversial new thriller the world of youth sports. At 2 p.m., learn more about the game from Larry Moore, educational consultant at the National Baseball Hall of Fame, followed by a visit from Casey O’Donnell, wood baseball bat maker for Pittsfield’s ODO Bat Company at 2:30 p.m. Starting at 3 p.m., learn about the rich history of baseball in Massachusetts with Kevin Larkin, author of “Baseball in the Bay State.” At 3:30 p.m., meet Cooperstown Mayor Jeff Katz, author of the new book, “Split Season,” which looks at the memorable year that was the 1981 baseball season. The afternoon concludes with a visit from “Casey at the Bat,” portrayed by Tim Wiles, author, baseball historian, and Executive Director of the Guilderland Public Library.
Bring your mitt to enjoy baseball on the Museum grounds, and create your own baseball card as a memory of the day. Baseball-related objects and photos will also be on display during this family festival. Admission to the event is free for Museum members, or with regular admission.
About Norman Rockwell Museum
Norman Rockwell Museum holds the largest and most significant collection of art and archival materials relating to the life and work of Norman Rockwell. The Museum also preserves, interprets, and exhibits a growing collection of original illustration art by noted American illustrators, from historical to contemporary. The Norman Rockwell Museum Art Collection and Norman Rockwell Archive inspire a vibrant year-round exhibition program, national traveling exhibitions, and arts and humanities programs that engage diverse audiences. The collections, which are made accessible worldwide, are a comprehensive resource relating to Norman Rockwell and the art of illustration, the role of published imagery in society, and the American twentieth century.
Since its inception, Norman Rockwell Museum has explored the impact of illustrated images and their role in shaping and reflecting our world through changing exhibitions, publications, and programs. Dedication to a deepened understanding of the art of illustration has led to the formation of the Rockwell Center for American Visual Studies. The first of its kind in the nation, this research institute supports sustained scholarship and establishes Norman Rockwell Museum’s leadership in the vanguard of preservation and interpretation relating to this important aspect of American visual culture.
Norman Rockwell Museum is located on 36 park-like acres in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, Rockwell’s hometown for the last 25 years of his life. The Museum is open year-round; closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. From May through October, hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; from November through April, hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends and holidays. The Museum will be open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursdays during the month of August. Rockwell’s studio is open May through October, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Museum admission is $18, $17 for seniors, $10 for students, $6 for kids and teens 6 to 18, and free for Museum members and children 5 and under. Visit the Museum online at www.nrm.org.
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Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), “Four Sporting Boys: Baseball,” 1951. Collection of Williams High School Alumni Association on permanent loan to Norman Rockwell Museum. ©Norman Rockwell Family Agency. All rights reserved.