Jackie Robinson

1919 – 1972 · died at about 53^[1][2]

Sports

Fun Facts About Jackie Robinson

• Jackie Robinson's worst sport at UCLA was baseball: he hit just .097 in his only season, though he was the school's first athlete to letter in four sports.^[1]
• Robinson played himself in the 1950 film The Jackie Robinson Story, with actress Ruby Dee as his wife Rachel.^[1]
• Robinson's older brother Mack won the silver medal in the 200 meters at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, finishing behind Jesse Owens.^[1][3][4]
• Robinson's middle name, Roosevelt, honored former President Theodore Roosevelt, who died 25 days before Jackie was born.^[1][5][6]
• In 1944 Robinson refused to move to the back of an Army bus and was court-martialed. One charge was public drunkenness, though he did not drink, and an all-white panel acquitted him.^[1]
• The Dodgers traded Robinson to the rival Giants, but the deal was never completed: he had already agreed to quit baseball and become an executive at Chock full o'Nuts.^[1]
• Jackie Robinson was alive at the same time as Woodrow Wilson — their lives overlapped for 5 years (1919–1924).^[1][2][7][8]
• Jackie Robinson shares a birthday with Franz Schubert: both were born on January 31.^{[1][2][9][10]}

Jack Roosevelt Robinson was an American professional baseball player who was the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the color line when he started at first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. The Dodgers signing Robinson heralded the end of racial segregation in professional baseball, which had relegated black players to the Negro leagues since the 1880s.^[1]

Contemporaries

Pablo Picasso

53 yr overlap

Georgia O'Keeffe

53 yr overlap

Charlie Chaplin

53 yr overlap

Agatha Christie

53 yr overlap

Haile Selassie

53 yr overlap

J.R.R. Tolkien

53 yr overlap

Mao Zedong

53 yr overlap

Golda Meir

53 yr overlap

Duke Ellington

53 yr overlap

Jorge Luis Borges

53 yr overlap

Werner Heisenberg

53 yr overlap

Alfred Hitchcock

53 yr overlap

Their World

Questions About Jackie Robinson

When was Jackie Robinson born?

Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, 1919, and died on October 24, 1972.

How old was Jackie Robinson at death?

Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, 1919, and died on October 24, 1972, at age 53.

What was Jackie Robinson known for?

Jackie Robinson was known for: Broke baseball's color barrier. Jack Roosevelt Robinson was an American professional baseball player who was the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the color line when he started at first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. The Dodgers signing Robinson heralded the end of racial segregation in professional baseball, which had relegated black players to the Negro leagues since the 1880s.

Who was alive at the same time as Jackie Robinson?

Jackie Robinson's closest contemporary was Pablo Picasso. Their lives overlapped for 53 years.