The King and His Court played more than 10,000 games and won approximately 9,400, softball's version of . Round it out afterward with a look at his website, where the keepers of his legacy are working to get a documentary made about him. In a 1964 exhibition at Dodger Stadium, Feigner faced a lineup of six major league players, five of whom were later elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics: How big was the crowd in Williamsport for the Little League World Series? The information on this website is taken from records made available by state and local law enforcement departments, courts, city and town halls, and other public and private sources. Most people dont know his first name, but he is the most recognized person in East Tennessee. At his peak in the 1960s, he made $100,000 a month.In 2000, Mr. Feigner threw out the first pitch before the women's softball competition at the Olympic Games in Sydney. The fastest documented pitch ever thrown by a major league pitcher is 103 mph. He was 56 at the time.He was thrown out of school in his teens and joined the Marine Corps during World War II but was discharged after a nervous breakdown. I spent a lot of time by myself. Program was taped in 2005.#EddieFeigner #KingandhisCourt #Softball #ProSoftballLearn more about him here- http://www.kingandhiscourt.com/ Feigner had an exaggerated windup and he would do things like pitch blindfolded, or pitch an inning from behind second base. As the town gathers around the burning satellite, they see the MLB logo on it and realize that, wow, Major League Baseball was spying on them for market research. . He discovered that his birth mother was living nearby and took her last name. Mr. Feigner (pronounced FAY-ner) was, beyond dispute, the greatest softball pitcher who ever lived. He was as safe as being behind a brick wall. Don't add another wild card and a hokey one-game playoff -- just eliminate the wild card. 14. For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab. He made millions, and was generous to a fault.. Over the years, the Court played everywhere, with Feigner firing his 100-plus mph heater (once measured at 112 mph) from behind his back, through his legs, from second base and even while blindfolded. The trial court granted the unopposed motion in limine. Think of the King and his Court as sort of like the Harlem Globetrotters but for softball. For strikes? As manager of this memorial you can add or update the memorial using the Edit button below. He came up with the name Eddie from a friend. "It's like being a world-champion noseblower.". Rogers Centre, Toronto: 75 Eddie Feigner: King and His Court - YouTube 0:00 / 29:30 Eddie Feigner: King and His Court allendale101 5.05K subscribers 546K views 4 years ago Video on the story of the famed. Our Terms of Service prohibit the use of CourtCaseFinder.com to determine an individual's eligibility for personal credit or employment, tenant screening, or other business transactions, or for any unlawful purposes such as stalking or harassing others. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. He WAS a true phenomenonhed tell you himself. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. Box 18450 Phoenix, AZ 85005 (602) 2232222; Center for Missing & Exploited Children Quick search for missing children, sex offenders, Amber alerts, records and more public information. His son, Eddie Jr., played alongside him for 25 years. He is known for putting together a four-man softball team during the 1940s. Feigner not only threw more than 1,000 doubleheaders, he tossed more than 200 tripleheaders. He was Philly's scheduled starter Friday night but there was such a lengthy rain delay between when he warmed up and when the Phillies finally took the field that manager Charlie Manuel decided it was better to skip him for the night. It's absolutely like your life is flashing in front of you," Hoppe said. "We can't compete with modern entertainment," Hoppe said. The Marlins will be hard-pressed to equal their two World Series championship at their new ballpark that opens next season. Thurman played city-league ball against the King and His Court during the teams early days. He was a hard-boiled egg. 7. This is a story on sports legend Eddie Feigner" a.k.a. The King and His Court were a novelty from the beginning: a four-man softball team that toured the world and took on all comers. One of the newspaper boys said it best many years ago. There was no way to get the bat off my shoulder before the ball got there. ", "If you did one tour with the Court, you've been tested. Four years later, at the Olympics in Sydney, Feigner threw out the honorary first pitch before the first game of the womens softball tournament. In 1946, after beating an Oregon team 33-0, he responded to a taunt by saying, "I would play you with only my catcher. Feigner and his Court developed into a regional phenomenon over the next four years, rarely traveling east of Idaho. He knew no one could get the bat around on Jarflys pitching. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. A guy asked me if I ever pitched against Sinatra. His team won all four games and Scotty Bunton caught all four games. He just made me better," Hoppe said. He was thrown out of school in his teens and joined the Marine Corps during World War II but was discharged after a nervous breakdown. I had a lot of fun with her, Jarfly said. He struck out all six -- Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, Brooks Robinson, Willie McCovey, Maury Wills, and Harmon Killebrew all in succession.His records include 9, 743 victories, 141,517 strikeouts, 930 no-hitters, and 238 perfect games. By that time, he had a new name. You know, there was a time when communities built stadiums to efficiently serve multiple teams and sports, and the fans were perfectly content as long as the team, you know, won. His underhand fastball was once timed at 104 mph -- or, according to some accounts, 114 mph. Almost every weekend they were playing in a tournament somewhere. He previously worked for publications in Washington, New York, North Carolina and Florida. The fastest documented pitch thrown by a major league pitcher is 103 miles per hour.Pitching in hundreds of games each year against local all-star teams, he won 95 percent of the time. While that was Jarflys softball career, he also shined at his job at United Telephone. "He threw a couple of pitches to Willie (Mays) from second base and got strikes on them. Florida starter Ricky Nolasco had an atrocious game Wednesday when he allowed 11 runs in three innings (3 IP, 11 H, 11 R, 11 ER, 1 BB, 2 K). When he died, barnstorming went with him. In 2000, Mr. Feigner threw out the first pitch before the women's softball competition at the Olympic Games in Sydney. He often appeared on television and once knocked a cigar out of Johnny Carson's mouth with a pitch -- while wearing a blindfold. For the next few years, Feigner continued to barnstorm with His Court, serving as an emcee. But Feigner, intrigued by the concept hed proposed, selected three players a catcher, first baseman and shortstop that hed known since fourth grade and scheduled a game against a nine-man contingent of convicts on a field inside the Walla Walla state pen. The games werent fixed, but Feigner and his squad nearly always won. Every person on the creek that had a landline phone had Jarflys name written in the back of the phone book with his personal phone number. He even pitched blindfolded from second base for one inning. Ken was a very smart player. The King and His Court came to Davenport in the Summer of 1965. 3. My favorite was Land Shark Stadium, which it was called for one year after a deal with Jimmy Buffet. He had a curveball that would dip 18 inches. He was just phenomenal. The trial court held a pre-trial hearing on Appellant's motion in limine regarding punishment evidence. Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. My in-drop and in-raise are super pitches and unique. Season Record. Usually they played against local teams that were simply overmatched. Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? Jar is the real deal as a teammate and a friend, Bunton said. One of the qualifications of being in the hall of fame is to be a resident of South Carolina; thats how good he was. "I know the hurt and rejection that comes when you don't know who your folks were. He and "his court", which included only a catcher, first-baseman. At his peak in the 1960s, he made $100,000 a month. The King and His Court\" and his visit to Dunedin, Florida in 2005. One day Feigner never could recall the date his team obliterated a club from Pendleton, OR., 33-0, after which players from both squads repaired to a watering hole, where the Pendleton manager, seething at the days humiliation, tossed a snide remark in Feigners direction. Jarfly went on to play in Shelby, North Carolina, where he won 76 games in five years, pitching against the best teams in five states. 1. Pitching in hundreds of games each year against local all-star teams, Mr. Feigner won 95 percent of the time. The King and His Court. The team started by traveling around the United States, Canada, and Mexico to play local softball teams. Still, Feigner pleased fans and baffled batters everywhere. Please reset your password. Anyone? It will end where it should. I just (foul) tipped one off. She and Brittney were two of the best hitters I have ever seen, he said. If your phone was torn up, you called Jarfly. And off the field, he was one tough son of a gun. Yet Mr. Feigner had the misfortune to be supremely talented at a sport, men's fast-pitch fastball, that has all but disappeared. He even pitched on the Great Wall of China. This account has been disabled. Try again. Jarfly doesnt remember all the girls he has worked with but its well over a hundred. PNC Park, Pittsburgh: 98 Thats when it really hit me, a career of 35 years was coming to an end. Miller Park, Milwaukee 77 During the 1981 Major League Baseball strike, before 16,000 fans at the Silverdome in Pontiac, Mich., Mr. Feigner and his Court beat a nine-man team that included several major league players. I have perfect control. The whole thing is a trip: Eric Nusbaum (words) is a writer based in Tacoma, Washington. For reasons that require footnotes, which we eschew, Seventh Day Adventists didnt play baseball, so King took up softball as a grade schooler. Mr. Feigner kept meticulous records of his victories (9,743), strikeouts (141,517), no-hitters (930) and perfect games (238). I was also an uncouth, uneducated, arrogant, belligerent, no-good, miserable excuse for a human being. But Feigner eventually rustled up some games, essentially after auditioning the Courts act and showing local promoters what it could do. "I just wanted to return the van keys to Walla Walla where it all came out of," said Rich Hoppe, who has been pitching with the Court for decades. The very week he met his mother, he changed his name to Eddie Feigner Eddie in honor of an orphan named Eddie Colts, who had been one of Eddies best friends until he died in a knife fight and Naomi Feigner. He pitched a perfect game, striking out 19 of 21 batters.In 1950, he dubbed his traveling team The King and His Court, and they became the Harlem Globetrotters of softball, complete with gaudy red-white-and-blue uniforms. According to The Washington Post, which published an extensive profile following his death, Feigner could strike out players while blindfolded (8,698 times) or while pitching behind his back or between his legs. Failed to remove flower. Sadly, I'm talking about the King and His Court, the barnstorming softball team started by the late Eddie Feigner some 65 years ago. Adam Villacin (pictures) is an illustrator based in Joshua Tree, California. His fastball was officially timed at 104 mph and unofficially at 114. Jarfly was inaugurated on Sunday, June 15, 1980, during a baseball game that raised money for the Carter County Boys Club and the Johnson City Girls Club. GREAT NEWS! In 1949 and 1950, the King and His Court beat the world champion softball team. At his peak, in the 1950s and 1960s, he threw a softball harder than any major league pitcher ever threw a baseball. He proceeds to strike out Willie Mays, Harmon Killebrew, Willie McCovey, Roberto Clemente, Maury Wills, and Brooks Robinson. There have been only three or four arms like mine ever in history. For example, in 1969, a club in Bradford, Pennsylvania defeated the King and His Court 1-0 in front of a crowd of 1,200 people. Sports Illustrated once called Feigner the last true American barnstormer and the most underrated athlete of his time, but Feigner didnt entirely accept the endorsement. "I've made more money at this than any other ballplayer at any other sport," he told The Washington Post in 1976. 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