Famous For: First African American major league baseball player in the modern era.
Jersey Number: 42
Famous Quote: "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives."
20 Interesting Facts
1. Jackie was born January 31, 1919 in Cairo Georgia. 2. His full name is Jack Roosevelt Robinson. His middle name was named after President Roosevelt. 3. Jackie had 4 siblings. He was the youngest of all. 4. Jackie's older brother Matthew was a silver medalist in the 200 meter sprint in the 1936 Olympics in Germany. 5. Jackie went to college at UCLA. He was played baseball, basketball, football and track. 6. Jackie got drafted into the Army in 1942. 7. Branch Rickey discovered Jackie and signed him to a professional baseball contract. 8. Jackie broke the color barrier in baseball on April 15, 1947 when he became the first African American to play in the Major League. 9. Jackie played for the Brooklyn Dodgers. 10. Jackie was an All Star for 6 consecutive seasons from 1949 to 1954. 11. Jackie won the Most Valuable Player award in 1949. 12. Jackie won a World Series title in 1955. 13. Jackie married a woman named Rachel and has 3 children named Jackie Robinson Jr, Sharon, and David. 14. Jackie went into the baseball Hall of Fame in 1962. 15. Jackie's number 42 is retired throughout major league baseball. This was the first and only time a jersey number had been retired across an entire professional sports league. 16. April 15th is Jackie Robinson Day in baseball. All players wear the number 42 in honor of Jackie Robinson. 17. Jackie died at the age of 53 of a heart attack in 1972. 18. There is an asteroid named after Jackie Robinson. 19. Jackie starred in a Hollywood movie based on his life story in 1950. 20. Jackie became the nation's first black baseball announcer when he joined ABC-TV Sports in 1965.