History UsefulNotes / JackieRobinson

Robinson, who was a four-sport star at UCLA,[[note]]baseball, basketball, football, track[[/note]] actually began his professional sports career in football, which had already started to integrate at its lower levels. However, UsefulNotes/WorldWarII intervened; Robinson was drafted into the Army, and because he was college educated[[note]]He had technically dropped out of UCLA, but only just short of graduation[[/note]] subsequently qualified to enter Officer Candidate School -- one of several Black draftees who fought for and won this right in 1942–43. He was eventually commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 761st Tank Battalion (the "Black Panthers"). He never saw combat, however, due to an [[OlderThanTheyThink an incident where he had nonviolently resisted a racist bus driver's instruction to send him to the back of the bus]]. This led to a court-martial for insubordination; he was acquitted (by an all-white jury, no less), but not before he missed the chance to join the Black Panthers on the Western Front.

Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson (January 31, 1919 — October 24, 1972) was an American UsefulNotes/{{baseball}} player who was a second baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947 to 1956. While an amazing athlete in many respects, he is most remembered for being the first African-American player to break the color barrier in [[UsefulNotes/{{Baseball}} Major League Baseball]].

* ''Jackie Robinson'' (2016), a biographical documentary created for Creator/{{PBS}} by ''Creator/KenBurns'', featuring Creator/JamieFoxx as the voice of Robinson.

On top of being a skilled, versatile fielder capable of playing practically anywhere on the infield and outfield, Robinson defied the pure-slugging approach of his contemporaries, instead combining power with incredible speed and plate discipline for a more well-rounded offensive approach, setting a template that generations of ballplayers have followed since. He was the inaugural Rookie of the Year, racked up six All-Star appearances and an NL MVP award, and made an iconic home-plate steal in the 1955 World Series to help the Dodgers ''finally'' win their first World Series after 40 years of coming up short. His impact was so great that his jersey number, 42, is retired across ''all of MLB''.

TropeNamer for JackieRobinsonStory.

Robinson, who was a four-sport star at UCLA,[[note]]baseball, basketball, football, track[[/note]] actually began his professional sports career in football, which had already started to integrate at its lower levels. However, UsefulNotes/WorldWarII promptly intervened; Robinson was drafted, and because he was educated[[note]]He had technically dropped out of UCLA, but only just short of graduation[[/note]] he eventually qualified to enter Officer Candidate School--one of several Black draftees who fought for this right in 1942–43. He was eventually commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 761st Tank Battalion (the "Black Panthers"). He never saw combat, however, due to an [[OlderThanTheyThink an incident where he had nonviolently resisted a racist bus driver's instruction to send him to the back of the bus]]. This led to a court-martial for insubordination; he was acquitted (by an all-white jury, no less), but not before he missed the chance to join the Black Panthers on the Western Front.