3. Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919. He was born in Cairo, Georgia. After his father, Jerry Robinson, died, Jackie moved to Pasadena, California with his mom, Malie, and four siblings. Jackie grew up with a harsh life, including being in a gang and on his way to becoming a juvenile delinquent. Jackie found his way out of this mess and focused on school and the sports football, basketball, baseball, and track. He earned letters in all these sports. In 1938 he attended Pasadena Junior College and led his baseball, basketball, and football teams to championships. In 1942 Jackie was drafted by the army and applied to Officer's candidate school but was turned down because of his race. Jackie became second lieutenant at the age of 24.

4. In 1944 Jackie first played for the Kansas City Monarchs and made $400 a month. Jackie then played for the Montreal Royals, which was a minor league team for the Dodgers and made $600 a month. In Jackie Robinsons first game, he had 4 runs, 3 RBI's, and 3 stolen bases in the 14-1 win. In 1947 Jackie moved up to the Brooklyn Dodgers. Many teammates petitioned that they would quit if Jackie Robinson was on the team. This nonsense was soon over when those players were threatened to get kicked off the team. Jackie Robinson batted in the major leagues for the first time on April 15, 1947. For the rest of the season he was playing poor baseball because of the taunting from other teams, fans, coaches, and even had to deal with death threats. None of this stopped him to pursuing his dream of playing ball despite his skin color.

5. Honors Elected to the Hall of Fame in 1962, his first year of eligibility NAACP's prestigious Springarn Medal Elected to throw out the first ball at the 1972 World Series Honorary degree from the University of Maryland Honorary degree from Franklin Pierce College Honorary degree from Sacred Heart University Honorary degree from Pace University Honorary degree from the Howard University Citation from the National Conference of Christians and Jews Two Friends Award of the National Urban League

6. Became the first African American baseball player in 1947. Named National League Rookie of the Year in 1947. Led the National League in stolen bases in 1947 and 1949. Led second basemen in double plays 1949, 1950, 1951 and 1952. Selected as the National League MVP in 1949. Won the 1949 batting title with a.342. National League All-Star Team, 1949-1954. Had a career batting average of.311 with the Dodgers,.333 in All-Star games. Led the Dodgers to six World Series and one World Series Championship in a 10-year span.

7. Married: Rachel Issum on February 10, 1946 Children: Jackie Jr. (died in 1971), Sharon and David Died: October 24, 1972 in Stamford, CT In 1982, Jackie Robinson became the first Major League Baseball player to appear on a US postage stamp. Fifty years after he became the first modern black player, Major League baseball chose his number as the first one to ever retire for every team. An outstanding athlete, Jackie Robinson was the first ever four-sport letter winner at UCLA (football, track, basketball and baseball). His accomplishments outside of baseball included leading the Pacific Coast Conference (later the Pac-10) in scoring twice in basketball, becoming the NCAA champion in 1940 in the broad jump (25 feet, 6.5 inches), and achieving All-American status in football.