January 4, 2007: Closing thoughts from the BMTG
January 3, 2007: Update - Kathryn Gemme, dead at 112
June 28, 2005: Dear BMTG letter from retirement
home photographer Sarah Brezinsky
May 15, 2005: An Open Letter to the Boston Globe
May 13, 2005
Boston Globe
P.O. Box 55819
Boston, MA 02205-5819
Attn: Boston Globe Ombudsman
The BMTG believes that an opportunistic Centenarian known as Kathryn Gemme
has duped Red Sox Nation and the Boston Globe. While her advanced age may
cause some to blindly disregard our findings, it should be considered: if
she were 70 years younger would the world be as forgiving? The answer, of
course, is no. Miss Gemme falsely claims in your online article (At
110, Red Sox fan finds thrill in trophy) that she listened to the 1918
World Series on radio. That is impossible, as the first professional baseball
game ever broadcast on radio took place on August 5, 1921 on KDKA out of Pittsburgh.
On that day and in the span of one hour and fifty-seven minutes, Harold Arlin
broadcast the 8 to 5 victory by Pittsburgh over Philadelphia. To further illustrate
the impossibility of Miss G’s claims, in 1917, when the United States
entered World War I, amateur radio transmitters were shut down and the Navy
controlled the radio. It was not until 1919 that the amateur radio transmitters
returned.
It would be easy to simply discount her errant recollection as a natural byproduct of 86 years of separation. The BMTG, however, suspects that Miss Gemme’s motives are much more nefarious than she would like anyone at the Nemasket Healthcare Center, and now the world, to believe. The BMTG Big Four theorize that, as Miss Gemme found herself enjoying the luxuries of her newfound celebrity, her thirst for more fame overtook her better judgment. Miss Gemme probably deduced that by enriching the details of her recollection, it allowed her a more intimate relationship with the 1918 and 2004 champions by further solidifying her already impressive resume of team loyalty and perseverance. While the BMTG does not support taking drastic measures against Miss G, it does believe the following actions would be an appropriate remedy to this issue:
Naturally, Miss Gemme may file an appeal at a cost of $3.00 if she disagrees with this decision. See the BMTG’s website at usesoap.com for instructions on how to file and how long until her appeal is denied. Remember that the BMTG are the people you depend on. We cook your meals, we haul your trash, we connect your calls, we drive your ambulances, we guard you while you sleep, and we dance if we want to.
It should be noted that the Globe correspondent responsible for the story, Michael Naughton, appears to have aspirations to become the Dan Rather of the Boston Globe. Not only did Mr. Naughton pass on the false radio claims, he additionally reported that the first World Series was between Pittsburgh and the Boston Americans, when it was really the Boston Pilgrims.
Sincerely,
(SIGNED BY THE BMTG BIG FOUR)
CC:
Sharon Gosling, Activities Director, Nemasket Healthcare Center
Michael Naughton, Correspondent, Boston Globe
Martin Baron, Editor, Boston Globe
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January 4, 2007: Closing thoughts from the BMTG
The Diesel:
If Ms Gemme's statements from 2004 were any indication of her life, then she
spent 112 years attempting to rewrite history and attach herself to successful
sports figures in a failed attempt to gain from their efforts. In 2004 it
was the BMTG who brought out her lies about the invention of radio. I hope
that there were similar discoveries over her 112 year lifespan and that our
children are not being taught Gemme's version of world history. We must remain
vigilant in discovering her well hidden deceptions and look for the one tell
tale clue that a "fact" is of her own making. The fact being that
Ms Gemme will be front and center basking in the spoils of someone else's
victory. Maybe she would like us to believe that she helped fuel the Enola
Gay for its historic run or scored the winning touchdown in Superbowl I. Goodbye
old-timer, you've been Jacked!!
Albuquerque Tom:
Johnny Pesky...visited her in 2004 when he was 84.
There is a quote of his that I like.
He says something like, "Even to this day people still look at me like
I am a piece of crap."
You know those unforgiving Red Sox fans.
Kill their dream and they won't let it go.
White Russian:
He probably said that to old lady Gemme:
Gemme: How old are you?
Pesky: 84.
Gemme: Ah, Johnny, you're just a kid.
Pesky: Even to this day people still look at me like I am a piece of crap.
Gemme (patting his knee): That's nice, Johnny.
White Russian:
More lies could have saved her life. According to the article in the Boston
Globe she held on until after Christmas:
As Christmas approached, Mrs. Gemme kept asking if the holiday had arrived.
"I believe she didn't want to let go until after that," said Sharon Gosling, activities director at Nemasket. "I'd tell her when Christmas was, then she'd smile and close her eyes."
Last week, her health failing, Mrs. Gemme said goodbye to Gosling on Thursday. She died the next day. "She knew the time was here. She went very peacefully," Gosling said.
All they had to do every day was tell her that Christmas was the next day and she would have kept on living. Their lies could have saved her, just like her lies propelled her into the spotlight. On the other hand, they could have gotten rid of her long ago by telling her that Christmas was over...
The Diesel:
Lies were her soylent green. I heard she was a big fan of the Boise State
Broncos.
Albuquerque Tom:
I read a story where Mrs Gemme explained that the activities director at Nemasket,
Sharon "Goose" Gosling, was actually the inspiration behind Goose
Gossage's nickname and his trademark mustache.
When Rich Gossage was born in 1951, Mrs Gemme was surfing the internet with
Sharon "goose" Gosling. They heard the news of Sam and Elly Gossage's
baby boy being born and raced down to the hospital in the Toyota Forerunner
that her grandfather had given her in 1948.
When Goose's father Sam saw Sharon's mustache and noticed the similarity of
their last names, he saw it as a strange sign from the gods and vowed to urge
his son to grow similar facial hair and adopt Sharon's nickname.
Then they all laughed as they drank the first cup of Starbucks coffee ever
served and floated to the moon with their lunar rockets.
and that's the rest of the story.
The Diesel:
Floating to the moon is much more pleasant than being thrust towards it at
25,000 mph. I the secret didn't die peacefully along with Gemme, please send
me any information you have on how to trademark my mustache.
Albuquerque Tom:
www.trademarkyourmustache.com
There's a $50 filing fee and you have to be able to prove that three out of
ten people associate your mustache with you and not someone else.
I filed and three out of ten people associated my mustache with Wayne Newton
(who incidentally has not filed for a trademark). They keep your $50.
Good luck.
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January 3, 2007: Update - Kathryn Gemme, dead at 112
At 112, a Sox fan to the end
State's oldest person dies having shared team's triumph
By Bryan Marquard, Globe Staff | January 3, 2007
At 109, Kathryn Gemme had been a Red Sox fan longer than anyone in Fenway Park when Johnny Pesky stopped by to chat in May 2004.
"Kate asked Pesky how old he was," said state Senator Marc R. Pacheco, a Taunton Democrat who had arranged her trip to the game and was close by. The former Red Sox shortstop was 84 at the time.
"She said, 'Ah, Johnny, you're just a kid.' "
The oldest person in the state, Mrs. Gemme had of late become the eighth-eldest in the United States and the 20th in the world.
When she turned 112 in November, she listened to the longevity statistics tabulated by Gerontology Research Group, which keeps track of supercentenarians worldwide, then exclaimed, "Imagine that!"
Mrs. Gemme had cheered on Babe Ruth when he played for the Red Sox and attended her first game in Fenway as a teenager, shortly after the park opened in 1912. She died Friday in Nemasket Healthcare Center in Middleborough.
As the oldest Red Sox fan, she found that age had its perks. While many people traveled far to see the 2004 World Series trophy in person, team representatives brought it to Mrs. Gemme for her 111th birthday, on Nov. 9, 2005.
"She had her picture taken with the trophy," said her daughter, Lucille Findley of Jacksonville, Ill. "That was a treasure. That was a big day of her life."
"It was remarkable for us to visit someone who was actually a true testament to what a lifelong Red Sox fan really means, someone who stuck with us the entirety of those 86 years," said Marty Ray of the team's public relations department, who was with Mrs. Gemme that day.
"She was an eternal Red Sox fan in the truest sense of the word," Ray said.
Long before any of today's players were alive, Mrs. Gemme used to sit next to a crystal radio set summer after summer and listen to the games, filling page after page with notes about each at-bat.
"She always had a yellow legal pad in her lap and she would write every play -- runs, hits, errors, she kept everything," her daughter said. "She knew all the team members, she knew their batting averages. She'd yell at them, 'Do it, do it! You can do it!' "
When her husband, Ovella, returned home from work, "we'd sit down at the table and she would read it to him," her daughter said.
Born in Chicopee on Nov. 9, 1894, Kathryn R. Moreau graduated from Chicopee High School in 1913.
"When I spoke with her last summer, she was remembering that she and her sister, Lillian, had a combo and used to play for barn dances," said a granddaughter, Diane McLaughlin, of Fort Collins, Colo. "Her sister played the mandolin."
She attended secretarial school, and married Ovella Gemme. They moved to Stoughton during the Depression, when one of his friends opened a factory. During World War II, Mrs. Gemme worked in a factory, too, helping to prepare parachutes to slow the descent of bombs.
"I can remember her going there -- it was her patriotic duty, she just had to go," her daughter said. "Poor mother, she came home with no fingernails. She learned to tie knots on the string for the parachutes."
The Gemmes raised two daughters, Lucille and Lillian. Mrs. Gemme outlived her husband, who died in the 1960s, and Lillian. Paul Findley, her son-in-law, attributed her longevity to "a simple, quiet life" -- and neither smoking nor drinking.
After Ovella Gemme died, Daniel Costello, a neighbor whose family lived upstairs, helped Mrs. Gemme continue to live at home, her family said. Through the years, she spent considerable time with her close friend, Bernadette Hemingway, who was with Mrs. Gemme when the World Series trophy was brought by.
"It's a great fulfillment in her life to see the trophy," Hemingway said at the time.
"She was great fun to be around," McLaughlin said. "I wish I could have been the same age and lived next door. I would have loved to be her best friend if I wasn't her granddaughter."
As Christmas approached, Mrs. Gemme kept asking if the holiday had arrived.
"I believe she didn't want to let go until after that," said Sharon Gosling, activities director at Nemasket. "I'd tell her when Christmas was, then she'd smile and close her eyes."
Last week, her health failing, Mrs. Gemme said goodbye to Gosling on Thursday. She died the next day. "She knew the time was here. She went very peacefully," Gosling said.
In addition to her daughter and granddaughter, Mrs. Gemme leaves another granddaughter; two grandsons; and seven great-grandchildren.
A funeral Mass will be said at 10 a.m. tomorrow in Sacred Heart Church in Middleborough. Burial will be in St. Patrick Cemetery in Chicopee.
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|
Kathryn Gemme, who recalled listening to the 1918 World Series on the radio and was able to attend a Red Sox game at Fenway Park last season, got the thrill of a lifetime last week when she held the World Series trophy. |
At 110, Red Sox fan finds thrill in trophy
By Michael Naughton, Globe Correspondent | May 12, 2005
Kathryn Gemme has seen a lot in her lifetime.
She has lived through two World Wars, the moon landing, and all of the Red Sox World Series victories. But last Thursday, the 110-year-old Gemme was able to see -- and feel -- something she had not before: the World Series trophy.
Cameras flashed as the trophy was placed in front of Gemme, who was seated in her wheelchair with an afghan on her lap. The ceremony took place in the dining hall of Nemasket Healthcare Center in Middleborough, which was filled with Red Sox World Series pennants, peanuts, and Cracker Jacks. Gemme carefully reached in front of her and touched one of the gold flag posts on the trophy.
''She's just a treat, and so full of Red Sox Nation pride," said state Senator Marc Pacheco, a Democrat from Middleborough, who helped bring the 2004 World Series trophy to Nemasket, where Gemme lives. Last May, Pacheco took Gemme to a game at Fenway Park, where she met Red Sox personalities such as Johnny Pesky.
Gemme was born in Chicopee Falls in 1894, nine years before the first World Series was played between the then-Boston Americans and the Pittsburgh Pirates at the Huntington Avenue Grounds, now the site of Northeastern University. As she's grown older, Gemme's eyesight has faded, although she can still make out defined images, said Sharon Gosling, activities director at the Nemasket Healthcare Center.
Gosling said Gemme follows almost every Red Sox game, with the help of some friends who tell her the play-by-play.
Bernadette Hemingway, a Carver selectwoman and Gemme's ''adopted granddaughter," said she watches the game with her ''grandmother" every time she is visiting and it is on.
''It's a great fulfillment in her life to see the trophy," Hemingway said. ''She has so much knowledge about the Red Sox."
Not only does Gemme have countless memories of her beloved team, but she also has a collection of Red Sox memorabilia, which includes Red Sox banners and pennants, a jacket, an autographed ball from David Ortiz, and an autographed hat from Jason Varitek, one of her favorite players.
''They're all my favorites, but in degrees," she said.
Gemme said she still likes former Sox shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, even though he plays for the Chicago Cubs now, and her all-time favorites include ''The Splendid Splinter," Ted Williams.
As a line of residents of the healthcare center and their family members formed across the length of the dining hall, Gemme recalled the days when she would watch Babe Ruth and Walter (Rabbit) Maranville play.
She said she has always enjoyed the game, but did not really know all of the ''ins and outs" until later in her life.
Gemme was listening to her radio when the Red Sox captured the World Series in 1918, when she was 23 years old, and last fall, when she was 109.
This year, she hopes to be hearing about another Red Sox World Series.
''They've got to win," she said.
