Eleanor Grace Gehrig (née Twitchell; March 6, 1904 – March 6, 1984) was an American philanthropist, socialite, and memoirist, known as the wife of American baseball player

Lou Gehrig Henry Louis Gehrig (born Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig ; June 19, 1903June 2, 1941) was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1923–1939). Gehrig was renowned f ...

. After Gehrig's death she continued to promote his legacy and contribute to

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most comm ...

(Lou Gehrig disease) research. In 1976 she released her autobiography, ''My Luke and I''. She was born March 6, 1904, in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, the daughter of Nellie (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Mulvaney 1884–1968) and Frank Twitchell. She had one brother, Frank. Eleanor stated in her memoir she was a product of the

roaring twenties The Roaring Twenties, sometimes stylized as Roaring '20s, refers to the 1920s decade in music and fashion, as it happened in Western society and Western culture. It was a period of economic prosperity with a distinctive cultural edge in the U ...

and during this time in Chicago she led a party-girl lifestyle while climbing Chicago's social ladder, eventually meeting Gehrig at party while he was in town for a game. At the height of a storied career, her husband was forced to retire in 1939 due to his diagnoses with a little known disease at that time called

(ALS), which would eventually become known also as Lou Gehrigs' Disease. Gehrig died in 1941 from the illness at the age of 37. Eleanor traveled around the country with him during his baseball career and in his final years took care of him. In 1935, Eleanor produced a song with

Fred Fisher Fred Fisher (born Alfred Breitenbach, September 30, 1875 – January 14, 1942) was a German-born American songwriter and Tin Pan Alley music publisher. Biography Fisher was born in Cologne, Germany. His parents were Max and Theodora Breitenba ...

titled "I Can't Get to First Base With You". She took control of Gehrig's estate after his death. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

she raised money for the cause by auctioning off some of her husband’s memorabilia, raising six million dollars. She also registered to work with the

American Red Cross Motor Corps American Red Cross Motor Corps (also known as American Red Cross motor service) was founded in 1917 by the American Red Cross (ARC). The service was composed of women and it was developed to render supplementary aid to the U.S. Army and Navy in tr ...

. Then president

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

heralded her for her efforts and summoned her to meet with him at the

Little White House The Little White House was the personal retreat of Franklin D. Roosevelt, the List of Presidents of the United States, 32nd President of the United States, located in the Warm Springs Historic District, Historic District of Warm Springs, Georgia ...

. Eleanor was sued by Lou Gehrig's parents, believing she had withheld income generated from his life insurance policy. The case was settled out of court. In the 1960s, she stopped an alcohol brand from using Gehrig's image for an advertisement, only wanting her husband's image to be used for the public good. Gehrig served as National Campaign Chair on the board of the

Muscular Dystrophy Association The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) is an American 501(c)(3) umbrella organization that works to support people with neuromuscular diseases. Founded in 1950 by Paul Cohen, who lived with muscular dystrophy, it works to combat neuromuscular di ...

. Gehrig petitioned congress to provide funding for research on the disease and the creation and funding for a national institute on multiple sclerosis. She was 80 when she died in 1984, never having remarried, and left no survivors, spending her life devoted to her husband and his legacy. She donated $100,000 to the Rip Van Winkle Foundation, which in turned formed The Lou Gehrig Society, whose mission is to support research for ALS and the legacy of the Gehrigs. She also donated $100,000 to

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, which then established the Eleanor and Lou Gehrig ALS Center on the schools campus. Gehrig donated the remaining memorabilia in her possession to the

National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

. In 2003, journalist Sean Kirst published an essay titled "The Ashes of Lou Gehrig" which discusses Eleanor's concern over Gehrig's grave due to vandalism and her wishes to have her ashes mixed with his after her death.The Ashes of Lou Gehrig
The Ashes of Lou Gehrig"] accessed 2-25-2022 Lou Gehrig best 800

Portrayal in media

Eleanor was portrayed by

Teresa Wright Muriel Teresa Wright (October 27, 1918 – March 6, 2005) was an American actress. She was nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress: in 1941 for her debut work in ''The Little Foxes'', and in 1942 for ''Mrs. Miniver'', ...

in the 1942 film ''

The Pride of the Yankees ''The Pride of the Yankees'' is a 1942 American film produced by Samuel Goldwyn, directed by Sam Wood, and starring Gary Cooper, Teresa Wright, and Walter Brennan. It is a tribute to the legendary New York Yankees first baseman Lou Gehrig, who die ...

''. The film was a hit at the box-office and was nominated for eleven

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

. Eleanor served as consultant to the film and was paid $30,000 for her life rights. Teresa Wright was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Actress The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role in a film released that year. ...

for her performance. She has been portrayed on television in a 1943

Lux Radio Theatre ''Lux Radio Theatre'', sometimes spelled ''Lux Radio Theater'', a classic radio anthology series, was broadcast on the NBC Blue Network (1934–35) (owned by the National Broadcasting Company, later predecessor of American Broadcasting Company ...

production by

Virginia Bruce Virginia Bruce (born Helen Virginia Briggs; September 29, 1910 – February 24, 1982) was an American actress and singer. Early life Bruce was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As an infant she moved with her parents, Earil and Margaret Briggs, ...

and a 1949

Screen Directors Playhouse ''Screen Directors Playhouse'' (sometimes written as ''Screen Directors' Playhouse'') is an American radio and television anthology series which brought leading Hollywood actors to the NBC microphones beginning in 1949. The radio program broadcas ...

production by

Lurene Tuttle Lurene Tuttle (August 29, 1907 – May 28, 1986) was an American actress and acting coach, who made the transition from vaudeville to radio, and later films and television. Her most enduring impact was as one of network radio's more versatile a ...

. In 1976, her autobiography was turned into a television film titled ''A Love Affair: The Eleanor and Lou Gehrig Story'', with herself portrayed by

Blythe Danner Blythe Katherine Danner (born February 3, 1943) is an American actress. Accolades she has received include two Primetime Emmy Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Izzy Huffstodt on '' Huff'' (2004–2006), and a ...

. The film was nominated for two

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

Works

* '' My Luke and I '',

Thomas Y. Crowell Co. Thomas Y. Crowell Co. was a publishing company founded by Thomas Y. Crowell. The company began as a bookbindery founded by Benjamin Bradley in 1834. Crowell operated the business after Bradley's death in 1862 and eventually purchased the compan ...

,1976

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gehrig, Eleanor 1904 births 1984 deaths American philanthropists 20th-century American philanthropists Businesspeople from Chicago 20th-century American memoirists American socialites People from Chicago Burials at Kensico Cemetery