[Veeck: A Man For Any Season raw #3]

This tape features an interview with Bill Veeck in his Hyde Park, Chicago home. Shot for the documentary "Veeck: A Man For Any Season."

00:00Copy video clip URL This tape begins with color bars and tone.

00:40Copy video clip URL Cut to a shot of Veeck in his home. The camera crew makes a few adjustments before the interview begins. In the meantime, Veeck receives a phone call and continues with his mobile making.

03:30Copy video clip URL Veeck is a little frustrated with the current mobile he’s working on and says it’s not one of his better mornings.

04:27Copy video clip URL One of the videomakers asks Veeck to comment on the word “courage” and what it means to him. Veeck says, “Courage is so many different things under different circumstances. … Probably the greatest to me is one who continues to stay with something that is terribly difficult for him, unpleasant.” Veeck then tells a story about a neighbor from his childhood who had throat cancer. The man had taken out a life insurance policy that needed time before it could mature. A week after his policy had matured, the man shot himself. Veeck explains that he thought it was a very courageous thing for the man to do. Veeck goes on to say, “The heroes are usually surprising. They’re people who react and usually people you don’t anticipate, who react quickly to a situation. … I think courage is a mental attribute rather than a physical one.” Veeck goes on to say that the word “courage” is misused, especially in sports and media. He then talks about his life and states that he doesn’t think he’s ever been really tested on courage.

10:30Copy video clip URL Bill Veeck talks about his personal heroes. He points out Socialist Party leader Norman Thomas as “very courageous.” Veeck talks about Thomas’ perseverance in society. He also cites Paul Robeson as another personal hero and states that Robeson’s picture lays next to the dictionary definition of culture. Veeck also cites Abraham Lincoln as one of his heroes. “I suppose when it comes down to it, most of my heroes are socially inclined because I think that is where the examples are for instances of courage.” Veeck goes on to say that he admires Illinois Governor John Altgeld for pardoning the men convicted during the Haymarket affair. Veeck goes on to say that he is “less enamored with tunnel vision of certain people.” He then goes on to talk about Henry Ford and refers to him as a “dull man.” Veeck continues to talk about Ford and the assembly line until the end of the tape.

18:10Copy video clip URL Tape ends.