Kerry Yo Nakagawa, director of the Nisei Baseball Research Project, will discuss the history of Japanese American baseball at a Friends of the Madden Library program April 8.
His talk will cover the genesis of baseball in Japan, immigrant teams, baseball behind barbed wire, resettlement after the war and the 1960s up to the present, with particular emphasis on the local Hall of Fame Nisei pioneers.
Nakagawa’s uncles competed with Major League Baseball icons Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson, and the all-stars of the Negro League. Nisei Fresno Athletic Club members served as ambassadors for the American way of life on tours to Japan, Korea and China between the world wars.
Nakagawa, an author, filmmaker and historian, will share his behind-the-scenes perspective on the award-winning motion picture “American Pastime.”
The evening in the Henry Madden Library begins at 6 p.m. with a reception, followed at 6:30 by Nakagawa’s presentation.
The event is open to the public, but reservations are required by April 6.
For more information and reservations, call 559.278.5790.
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