Blog 14 – ‘The Fight to Live’

Al Stump (1916-1995) was an author and sports writer. He graduated from the University of Washington, was an apprentice at the Portland Orgonian, and built a successful freelance career for which he was a regular at “True” magazine.  In 1961, Stump was the ghostwriter for Cobb’s (arguably sugarcoated) memoir, “My Life in Baseball” and he also wrote Cobb’s biography titled “Cobb: A Biography.” Stump later wrote a more critical biography of Cobb in 1994 titled: Cobb: The Life and Times of the Meanest Man Who Ever Played Baseball.” For this story (and for the memoir/biographies), Stump lived with Cobb for 10 months, first in his luxurious hunting lodge on the crest of Lake Tahoe and then a variety of places, from seedy hotels to his (electricity deprived) San Francisco mansion. Stump, without a doubt, practices immersion for this article, and, appears to have gotten relatively close to Cobb, praying with him and, at times, calling himself Cobb’s only friend.

Ty Cobb in his legendary days.

The purpose of this story, in my opinion, is 1) to demystify a public legend (much like that of Bob Greene’s “So We Meet at Last Mr. Bond”), and, 2) to offer up the stark reality that death is immanent for all, even those like Cobb who seem superhuman and untouchable.  “The Fight to Live,” was published in True magazine in 1961. The scenes vary in timing but are entirely centered around Stump and Cobb – mostly with Stump following him around, trying to keep him complacent. The story is not about sports or baseball, but about a miserly, rebellious man at the end of his life. According to “Art of Fact, Stump “dramatizes the psychopathic ferocity that made Cobb such a great individual performer, while evoking the universal struggle of an old man raging against the dying of the light.”

The story follows “True” magazine’s rapid, narrative pace – the tempo of which also acts as the double purpose of capturing Cobb’s restless energy. Stump uses scene-by-scene construction connected with dialogue that aims to delve deeper into the character. The entire story is written in first-person narration and historical present tense. The author uses his own account in addition to others’ voices (Cobb’s family, former associates, etc.) and Cobb’s own voice to help describe the man. For example, the text states:

“He carried a gun in the big league and scared the hell out of us. He’s mean, tricky and dangerous. Look out he doesn’t blow up some night and clip you with a bottle. He specializes in throwing bottles.”

Or:

“Nobody can live with Ty. Nobody ever has. That includes two wives, who left him, butlers, housekeepers, chauffeurs, nurses, and a few mistresses. He drove off all his friends long ago.”

Stump is also is constantly using nicknames as a way to dramatize and give bigger-than-life greatness to the legend. For example, some include: “old king of ball players,” “Tyrus the Terrible,” “the legendary Georgian,” “the one and only Ty Cobb.” Throughout the story, Stump makes clear that he is, in fact, afraid of Cobb and makes no subtlety about depicting him as a rage-filled loose cannon who will throw a (violent) fit if he doesn’t get his way in practically any situation. More than that though, it appears that Stump is seeking the man behind the front, the one who donates scholarships to children and sends anonymous funding to former players in need. It’s as if Stump doesn’t really like Cobb, but he would like to.

Discussion question:

I had a difficult time answering Dr. Rodgers’ question of “what is the writer’s purpose” of this story? Do you agree with my analysis, or is there something else going on here? (Even more befuddling for me is Stump’s re-writing of Cobb’s biography years later in a more negative light.)