The Kid: The Immortal Life of Ted Williams (118 page)

Thank you to my agent, the formidable Bob Barnett.

Geoff Shandler of Little, Brown is a brilliant editor. I want to thank him for acquiring the book; for being patient and supportive with me, as the research and writing took me far longer than I had originally thought; and for using his red pencil so effectively. I must admit it was daunting to see so many red marks in the returned first draft. But he cut out the fat, improved the organization, and sharpened the prose. If Geoff thought even a single sentence in the back of the book worked better toward the front, he didn’t hesitate to recommend the change, and he made sure that the transitions worked as a result. But it was never his way or nothing. He was always willing to work with me if he knew I felt a certain passage was important. Thanks also to Geoff’s able assistants, Brandon Coward and Allie Sommer; crack Little, Brown publicist
Michelle Aielli; and Hachette Book Group CEO Michael Pietsch, a skilled editor in his own right. Senior production editor Karen Landry, eagle-eyed copyeditor Barbara Clark, and fact-checker Jeffrey Gantz were all fantastic. The Boston-based Little, Brown copyediting operation is second to none.

Finally, I’d like to thank my wife, Jan, for maintaining her support and enthusiasm for this project throughout the decade that it took me. She read portions of the manuscript and, as a public relations pro, helped me think about marketing the book when I finished it. Thanks also to my three terrific children—Greta, Joe, and Anna—who often asked how the book was progressing, even though I rarely had a satisfactory answer. It was coming along was about all I could ever say!

My apologies to anyone I’ve inadvertently forgotten.

May Williams, young Salvationist. (May Williams Collection)

Young Ted. (May Williams Collection)

Young Sam Williams. (May Williams Collection)

Ted’s childhood home at 4121 Utah Street. (San Diego Hall of Champions Sports Museum)

May with her two boys, Ted (left) and Danny (right). (May Williams Collection)

May, second guitarist from right (with glasses), and the Salvation Army band. (May Williams Collection)

Ted’s uncles, from left to right: Pete, Saul, and Paul Venzor, with their mother, Natalia, in Santa Barbara, circa 1954. (Courtesy of Rosalie Larson)

With his prom date, Alberta Camus, January 1937. (May Williams Collection)

At age seventeen. (May Williams Collection)

Pitching for Herbert Hoover High School, circa 1935. (May Williams Collection)

With Red Sox general manager Eddie Collins and San Diego Padres owner Bill Lane after signing his contract with the Padres on June 25, 1936. (San Diego History Center)

With the Padres, 1937. (San Diego Hall of Champions Sports Museum)