Kelly Slater
Personal information
Born	(1972-02-11) February 11, 1972 (age 40) Cocoa Beach, Florida, U.S.
Residence	Florida, California and Hawaii
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight	160 lb (73 kg)
Surfing career
Years active	1990–present
Best year	Ranked 1st on the ASP World Tour, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011
Career earnings	$3,030,755 (as of 2011)[1]
Sponsors	Quiksilver wetsuits
Major achievements	11 time ASP World Champion Victories: 55 World championship tour (WCT) surfing wins: 48
Surfing specifications
Stance	Regular (natural) foot (left foot forward)
Shaper(s)	Al Merrick
Quiver	5'6", 5'8", 5'10", 6'1", 6'3" and 6'6" boards when on the road
Favorite waves	Kirra and Pipe
Favorite maneuvers	Airs and barrels
Website	kellyslater.com

Robert Kelly Slater (born February 11, 1972, Cocoa Beach, FL, USA) is an American professional surfer known for his competitive prowess and style. He has been crowned ASP World Champion a record 11 times, including 5 consecutive titles from 1994–98. He is the youngest (at age 20) and the oldest (at age 39) to win the title. Upon winning his 5th world title in 1997, Slater passed Australian surfing legend Mark Richards to become the most successful champion in the history of the sport. In 2007 he also became the all-time leader in career event wins by winning the Boost Mobile Pro event at Lower Trestles near San Clemente, California. The previous record was held by Slater's childhood hero, 3-time world champion Tom Curren.^[2]

In addition to the ASP tour, Slater has also competed in the X-Games (in 2003 and 2004). After earlier being awarded the title prematurely as a result of a miscalculation by the ASP, on November 6, 2011 Slater officially won his eleventh ASP world title at the Rip Curl Pro Search San Francisco, by winning his 4th round heat. In May 2005, in the final heat of the Billabong Tahiti Pro contest at Teahupo'o, Slater became the first surfer ever to be awarded two perfect scores for a total 20 out of 20 points under the ASP two-wave scoring system. (The corresponding honor under the previous three-wave system belongs to fellow American Shane Beschen who achieved the feat in 1996.) Since 1990, Slater has been sponsored primarily by surfwear industry giant Quiksilver.^[3] He exclusively rides Channel Islands surfboards equipped with his own signature series of FCS fins.

Biography[link]

Early life and family[link]

Kelly Slater with fellow pro surfers Rob Machado and Christiaan Bailey

Slater was born on February 11, 1972 in Cocoa Beach, Florida, where he continues to reside. He has a teenage daughter named Taylor. He is of Irish and Syrian ancestry. He has an older brother, Sean, and a younger brother, Stephen.

In his spare time Slater enjoys playing the guitar,composing sonnets and spending quality time with longtime girlfriend, Kalani Miller who often travels and supports him on the ASP World Tour. His favorite surf spots are Sandspit in California, Pipeline in Hawaii, Kirra in Australia, Jeffreys Bay in South Africa, Minis in Ireland, Taghazout in Morocco, Soup Bowls in Barbados, Sebastian Inlet near his home in Florida and Bilgola beach in the northern beaches of Sydney, Australia. his three favourite surfing buddys from Bilgola are Ian morrison, James Burfitt and Jose Viera.^[4] He is also an avid golfer, with a +2 handicap. Slater is interested in the sport of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Some of his surfing inspirations are Tom Curren, Tom Carroll, Mark Occhilupo, Martin Potter, Andy Irons, Shane Dorian, Drew Phelps, Ken Wells, Hunter Collins, and Andrew Bloom.^[5]

Other projects[link]

Slater played the recurring character Jimmy Slade on several episodes of the popular TV show Baywatch in the early 1990s .^[6] He appeared in an episode of the reality show The Girls Next Door, and has also starred in many surf films throughout his career.

In the late '90s Slater, along with friends and fellow pro surfers Rob Machado and Peter King, formed a band called The Surfers. The trio released an album in 1998 titled Songs From the Pipe, a reference to the famous surf spot Pipeline on Oahu, Hawaii. Aside from his Love of surfing, Kelly also toured Australia with his band, performing in venues such as the Opera House, and parliament house. He was also given an honourary membership to the Rickson Cricket Club in northwest Sydney.

Slater performed a song with Ben Harper during Harper's concert in Santa Barbara. on August 1, 2006. He also performed "Rockin' in The Free World" with grunge band Pearl Jam on the July 7, 2006 in San Diego. In 1999, he appeared alongside Garbage singer Shirley Manson in the promotional video for the band's single "You Look So Fine". He played a man washed up on a seashore, then rescued by Manson.

A video game named Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer, by Treyarch and published by Activision, was released in 2002. Slater also appeared as a playable character in Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 prior to this, complete with a surfboard.

In 2003 Slater released his autobiography, Pipe Dreams: A Surfer's Journey. In 2008 he released a second book with Phil Jarratt, entitled Kelly Slater: For the Love.

Slater is passionate about preserving oceans globally and protecting temperate reefs in California through his relationship with Reef Check.

On May 8, 2010 the United States House of Representatives honored Slater in H. Res. 792 for his "outstanding and unprecedented achievements in the world of surfing and for being an ambassador of the sport and excellent role model."^[7] This resolution, sponsored by Florida representative Bill Posey and sponsored by 10 representatives, passed without objection by a voice vote.^[8]

Slater is also on the Board of Advisors (the Ocean Advocacy Advisory Board) of ocean conservation organization Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.^[9]

Stats[link]

Slater surfing in the Boost Mobile Pro at Trestles

Slater at Trestles, San Clemente State Beach, California

• WCT victories: 49
• World titles: 11

On 9/15/07, Kelly Slater passed Tom Curren's long standing WCT tour victory record of 33 with his win at the Boost Mobile Pro at Lowers Trestles.

2012 Stats and results[link]

World ranking: Currently 8th
Points: 13,700

Event results in 2012^[10]
Quiksilver Pro presented by Land Rover, Gold Coast (Snapper Rocks, Australia): 5th
Rip Curl Pro presented by Ford Ranger, Bells Beach, (Victoria, Australia): 2nd
Billabong Rio Pro, Brazil: INJ

2011 Stats and results[link]

World ranking: 2011 Champion
Points: 68,100

Event results in 2011^[11]
Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast (Snapper Rocks, Australia): 1st
Rip Curl Pro, Bells Beach, (Victoria, Australia): 5th
Billabong Rio Pro (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil): 1st
Nike Pro US Open (Huntington Beach, California, USA): 1st
Billabong Pro Teahupoo (Teahupoo, Tahiti): 1st
Quiksilver Pro New York (Long Beach, New York, USA): 2nd
Hurley Pro Lower Trestles (Orange County, California, USA): 1st
Quiksilver Pro France (Hossegor, France): 5th
Rip Curl Pro Portugal (Peniche, Portugal): 2nd
Rip Curl Search (Ocean Beach, San Francisco, USA): 5th
Billabong Pipeline Masters (Pipeline, Oahu, Hawaii): 3rd

2010 Stats and results[link]

World ranking: 2010 Champion
Points: 69000

Event results in 2010^[12]
Quiksilver Pro, Gold Coast (Snapper Rocks, Australia): 9th
Rip Curl Pro, Bells Beach (Australia): 1st
Hang Loose Pro (Santa Catarina, Brasil): 2nd
Billabong Pro (Jeffreys Bay, South Africa): 17th
Billabong Pro Teahupoo (Teahupoo, Tahiti): 3rd
Hurley Pro (Lower Trestles, San Clemente, CA): 1st
Quiksilver Pro France (Hossegor, France): 2nd
Rip Curl Pro Portugal (Peniche, Portugal): 1st
Rip Curl Pro Search 2010 (Middles Beach, Isabela, Puerto Rico): 1st
Billabong Pipeline Masters (Pipeline, Oahu, Hawaii): 3rd

2009 Stats and results[link]

World ranking: 6th.
Points: 6136

Event results in 2009^[13]
Quiksilver Pro, Gold Coast (Snapper Rocks, Australia): 17th
Rip Curl Pro, Bells Beach (Australia): 17th
Billabong Pro, Tahiti (Teahupoo, Tahiti): 17th
Hang Loose Pro (Santa Catarina, Brasil): 1st
Billabong Pro (Jeffreys Bay, South Africa): 9th
Hurley Pro (Lower Trestles, San Clemente, CA): 3rd
Quiksilver Pro France (Hossegor, France): 5th
Billabong Pro, Mundaka (Mundaka, Spain): 3rd
Rip Curl Search (Peniche, Portugal): 17th
Billabong Pipeline Masters (Pipeline, Oahu, Hawaii): 2nd

2008 Stats and results[link]

World ranking: 2008 Champion
Points: 8832

Event results
Quiksilver Pro, Gold Coast (Snapper Rocks, Australia): 1st
Rip Curl Pro, Bells Beach (Australia): 1st
Billabong Pro, Tahiti (Teahupoo, Tahiti): 17th
Globe Pro, Fiji (Tavarua, Fiji): 1st
Billabong Pro, J-Bay (Jeffreys Bay, South Africa): 1st
Rip Curl Search (Bali, Indonesia): 17th
Boost Mobile Pro (Lower Trestles, San Clemente, CA): 1st
Quiksilver Pro France (Hossegor, France): 2nd
Billabong Pro, Mundaka (Mundaka, Spain): 9th
Hang Loose Pro (Santa Catarina, Brasil): DNS
Billabong Pipeline Masters (Pipeline, Oahu, Hawaii): 1st

History of wins[link]

2011

• Quiksilver Pro (Gold Coast, Australia)
• Nike US Open (Huntington Beach, CA)
• Billabong Pro Teahupoo (Teahupoo, Tahiti)
• Hurley Pro Trestles (California, USA)

2010

• Rip Curl Pro (Bells Beach, Australia)
• Hurley Pro (Lower Trestles, California, USA)
• Rip Curl Pro (Peniche, Portugal)
• Rip Curl Search (Middles, Isabela, Puerto Rico)

2009

• Hang Loose Pro (Santa Catarina, Brasil)

2008

• Quiksilver Pro (Gold Coast, Australia)
• Rip Curl Pro (Bells Beach, Australia)
• Glove Pro Fiji (Cloudbreak, Restaurants – Tavarua, Fiji)
• Billabong Pro J-Bay (Jeffrey's Bay, South Africa)
• Boost Mobile Pro (Lower Trestles, San Clemente, California)
• Billabong Pipeline Masters (Pipeline, North Shore Oahu, Hawaii)

2007

• Boost Mobile Pro (Lower Trestles, San Clemente, California)

2006

• Quiksilver Pro (Gold Coast, Australia)
• Rip Curl Pro (Bells Beach, Australia)

2005

• Billabong Pro (Teahupoo, Tahiti)
• The Globe WCT (Fiji)
• Billabong Pro (South Africa)
• Boost Mobile Pro (Lower Trestles, San Clemente, California)

2004

• Snickers Australian Open (QS)
• Energy Australia Open (QS)

2003

• Billabong Pro (Teahupoo, Tahiti)
• Billabong Pro (South Africa)
• Billabong Pro (Mundaka, Spain)
• Nova Schin Festival (Brazil)

2002

• The Quiksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau (Specialty-Hawaii)

2000

• Gotcha Tahiti Pro presented by Globe (Tahiti)

1999

• Mountain Dew Pipe Masters (Hawaii)

1997

• Coke Surf Classic (Australia)
• Billabong Pro (Australia)
• Tokushima Pro (Japan)
• Marui Pro (Japan)
• Kaiser Summer Surf WCT (Brazil)
• Grand Slam (Specialty-Australia)
• Typhoon Lagoon Surf Challenge (Specialty-USA)

1996

• Coke Surf Classic (Australia)
• Rip Curl Pro Saint Leu (Reunion Island)
• CSI pres. Billabong Pro (South Africa)
• U.S. Open (California)
• Rip Curl Pro Hossegor (France)
• Quiksilver Surfmasters (France)
• Chiemsee Pipe Masters (Hawaii)
• Sud Ouest Trophee (Specialty-France)
• Da Hui Backdoor Shootout (Specialty-Hawaii)

1995

• Quiksilver Pro (Indonesia)
• Chiemsee Pipe Masters (Hawaii)
• Triple Crown of Surfing (Specialty-Hawaii)

1994

• Rip Curl Pro (Australia)
• Gotcha Lacanau Pro (France)
• Chiemsee Pipe Masters (Hawaii)
• The Bud Surf Tour (WQS-USA)
• The Bud Surf Tour (WQS-USA)
• Sud Ouest Trophee (Specialty-France)

1993

• Marui Pro (Japan)

1992

• Rip Curl Pro Landes (France)
• Marui Pipe Masters (Hawaii)

1990

• Body Glove Surfbout Trestles (California)

Filmography[link]

Films[link]

"Ultimate Wave Tahiti" (2010)
"Bustin Down the Door" (2008)
"One Track Mind" (2008)
"Kelly Slater Letting Go" (2008)
"Waveriders" 2008)
"Surf's Up" (2007)
"Down the Barrel" (2007)
"Surfers – The Movie" (1990)
"Bra Boys" (2007)
"The Ocean" (2008)
"One Night at McCool's" (2001)
"Letting Go" (2006)
"Young Guns 1, 2 & 3" (2004–2008)
"Campaign 2" (2005)
"Doped Youth" 'Groovy Avalon' (2004)
"Kelly Slater in Black and White" (1991)
"Endless Summer II" (1994)
"Wave Warriors 3"
"A Fly in the Champagne" (2009) (featuring Kelly Slater and Andy Irons)
"Cloud 9" (2009)
"Riding Giants" (2004)
"Step into Liquid" (2003)
"Thicker than Water" (2000)
"Fighting Fear" (2011)
"September Sessions" (2002)
"Kelly Slater In Kolor" (1997) <br

Cameo appearance[link]

"Surf's Up" (2007)

Television[link]

Baywatch, 10 episodes

The Girls Next Door, "Surf's Up" 1 episode

Bibliography[link]

• Pipe Dreams: A Surfer's Journey (2003) ISBN 0-06-009629-2
• Kelly Slater: For the Love (2008) ISBN 0-8118-6222-4

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kelly Slater

• Kelly Slater the Official Website
• Kelly Slater Photo Gallery at Outside Online
• Kelly Slater at the Internet Movie Database
• Kelly Slater Pictures & Wallpapers^{[dead link]}
• Kelly Slater Interview
• Interview with Kelly Slater and Eddie Vedder Regarding Surfing and Their Friendship
• Kelly Slater In SPIN's November Issue
• Kelly Slater Shares His Memories of Rival Andy Irons at The Inertia
• Kelly Slater isn't new world champ yet; ASP says it made an error

Philip Andrew "Andy" Irons
Personal information
Born	(1978-07-24)July 24, 1978 Oahu, Hawaii
Died	November 2, 2010(2010-11-02) (aged 32) Grapevine, Texas[1]
Residence	Hanalei, Kauai, Hawaii
Height	6 ft 0.5 in (1.84 m)
Weight	170 lb (77 kg)
Surfing career
Years active	10 years
Best year	Ranked 1st on the ASP World Tour, 2002, 2003 and 2004
Career earnings	$1,495,533 [2]
Sponsors	Billabong, Von Zipper, Nixon Watches, Kustom Footwear, Dakine
Major achievements	ASP World Champion in 2002, 2003 and 2004 Quiksilver Pro France champion (2003, 2004, 2005) Rip Curl Pro Search title (2006 & 2007).
Surfing specifications
Stance	Regular (natural foot)
Website	www.andyirons.com

Philip Andrew "Andy" Irons (July 24, 1978 – November 2, 2010) was a professional surfer. Irons learned to surf on the dangerous and shallow reefs of the North Shore in Kauai, Hawaii. Over the course of his professional career, he won three world titles (2002, 2003, 2004), three Quiksilver Pro France titles (2003, 2004, 2005), two Rip Curl Pro Search titles (2006 and 2007) and 20 elite tour victories including the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing four times from 2002-2006.^[3] On September 3, 2010 he won the Billabong Pro in Tahiti. He and his family hosted the Annual Irons Brothers Pinetrees Classic, a contest for youngsters. The Governor of Hawaii declared February 13 forever "Andy Irons Day". He is the only surfer to have won a title at every venue on the ASP calendar.^[4]

Career[link]

His younger brother, Bruce Irons, is a former competitor on the World Championship Tour of Surfing (WCT). During his childhood Andy regularly lost to Bruce in contests, but that changed once he entered the World Championship Tour.

In 2009, Irons withdrew from doing the full ASP World Tour season for personal reasons, though he did participate in a few events. He requested a wildcard entry for the 2010 ASP World Tour season, which was granted by ASP President Wayne Bartholomew. As a result, Irons did not have to re-qualify in 2010 via the World Qualifying Series (WQS). Irons won the Billabong Pro Tahiti 2010.^[5]

He was inducted into the Surfing Walk of Fame in Huntington Beach, California in 2008.^[6]

Billabong produced an "Andy Irons" line of board shorts.

Death[link]

Irons died on November 2, 2010. He was found lying in bed on his back with the sheets pulled up to his chin, by two hotel staff after he had failed to respond to knock on the door and they went in to investigate.

The Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office concludes that Irons died from a cardiac arrest due to a severe blockage of a main artery of the heart. The official autopsy report lists also a second cause of death as “acute mixed drug ingestion”, listing alprazolam, methadone, benzoylecgonine (a metabolite of cocaine) and traces of methamphetamine as the drugs found in Andy`s body at the time of his death.^[7] Initial press releases cited Dengue fever as the cause of Irons' death; however, the autopsy report conducted by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's office were negative for Dengue and other flavivirus.^[8] It is unclear why rumors that Dengue fever contributed to Irons' death proliferated.^[9]

In response to Irons' death, a World Championship Tour event in Puerto Rico was postponed for two days with competitors holding a "paddle out" memorial service for Irons.^[10] Irons had withdrawn from the event citing ill health and was flying back to his home in Hawaii before dying during a stopover in Grapevine, Texas, near Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.^[10] He had reportedly stopped in Miami after leaving Puerto Rico and early reports said he was put on a saline drip. He was reported to have been vomiting on the Hawaii bound plane before being removed prior to take-off.^[11] In the days immediately following his death it was reported that, in Dallas, an extremely ill Irons had attempted to board his connecting flight to Honolulu at 11:30 a.m. but was turned away at an American Airlines gate—a claim the company denies.^[12][13]

A memorial service was held November 14, 2010 in Hanalei Bay, Kauai. His wife Lyndie and brother Bruce, scattered his ashes outside Hanalei Bay where thousands of family, friends and admirers said their last goodbyes.^[14]

Rival surfer and friend Kelly Slater dedicated his November 6, 2010 victory to Irons. "I just want to send my condolences to Andy's family," Slater said. "I'm a little overwhelmed right now but I want to dedicate this to Andy... It's like exact opposites. This doesn't really offset that, I'd give this title away in a second if Andy could come back."^[15]

Personal life[link]

Irons married Lyndie Dupuis on November 25, 2007 in Princeville, Kauai. She was seven months pregnant with their first child at the time of his death.^[16] Lyndie gave birth to their son, Andy Axel Irons, in Kauai on the opening day of the Pipeline Masters in Memory of Andy Irons, December 8, 2010.^[17]

Lyndie and Axel continue to live on the Island of Kauai where she and Andy shared a home.

Films[link]

The 2004 movie Blue Horizon (directed by surfing filmmaker Jack McCoy), paralleled his life on the WCT tour with that of free surfer, David Rastovich. The film also touched on his long-time rivalry with eleven-time world champion Kelly Slater.^[18] Although the film was created in a documentary-like style, there has been some debate over whether or not the film offered an accurate and fair portrayal of Irons' surfing lifestyle. In addition to "Blue Horizon", Irons was also a subject of many other surf films, including his screen appearance in Trilogy, which starred himself, Joel Parkinson, and Taj Burrow.

Rivalry with Kelly Slater[link]

Irons had a much-publicized, and, according to him, over-hyped, rivalry with fellow professional surfer Kelly Slater.^[19] In an interview, Irons said:

"For me, just being affiliated with Kelly--to be next to him--I mean, that's awesome. He's the ultimate surfer. He's the best surfer in the world. Ever. Best competitive, best free surfer, you name it, and to have my name put next to his everywhere really is flattering. He's the Michael Jordan of our sport. Kelly knows how I feel about him. Despite all the media hype that comes out of a rivalry there's a lot of respect given both ways. People don't realize there are times when we hang out. We'll go check the waves together. We talk about boards. He invited me personally to his contest on Tavarua. There's a ton of respect there."^[19]

Slater himself was quoted in a Surfer Magazine tribute for Irons:

“Andy was an absolutely gifted individual. I’m lucky to have known him and had the times we had together. I feel blessed that we worked through the differences we had and I was able to learn what I’m made of because of Andy. I got to know a happy, funny, innocent kid who was happy to live every second with the people he loved. I’m so sad. My thoughts are with Bruce and Lyndie and their parents and all of his many friends around the world. It’s a huge and far too premature loss for all of us. He was the most intense competitor I’ve ever known and one of the most sensitive people. He had so much life left in him and it hurts to think about. We look forward to his memory living on with our memories of him and his child on the way. There are a lot of uncles awaiting his arrival. I really miss Andy. He had a really good heart."^[20]

References[link]

External links[link]

• History of Andy Irons
• Official site

Dane Reynolds
Personal information
Born	(1985-09-07) September 7, 1985 (age 26) Long Beach, California
Residence	Ventura, California
Height	6 ft 00 in (1.83 m)
Weight	175 lb (79 kg)
Surfing career
Years active	2008-present
Best year	4th - 2010 ASP World Tour
Career earnings	$357,325
Sponsors	Quiksilver, Vans, Monster Energy Drink, Channel Islands, and Boost Mobile
Surfing specifications
Stance	Regular (natural foot)
Website	Marine Layers Productions (his blog)

Dane Reynolds (born September 7, 1985 in Long Beach, California) is a professional surfer from Ventura, California^[1]. He is known for his "go for broke" style of surfing that includes many experimental and aerial maneuvers^[2].

Reynolds started surfing at the age of 10 after he moved from Bakersfield, California to Ventura^[3]. It was here on the point breaks around Santa Barbara and Ventura that he honed his progressive style of surfing. Reynolds first started competing at age 13 and at 16 had dropped out of school to surf^[4].

Reynolds competed in the 2003 and 2004 X-Games and received the highest single wave score both years^[5]. The 2008 ASP World Tour marked his rookie year on the esteemed tour after finishing 2nd on the ASP World Qualifying Series (WQS) behind Jordy Smith. His ranking on the WCT in 2008 was 19th with 4066 points, then he moved up to the coveted "Top Ten" (10th) in 2009 with 5219 points^[1]. In 2010 Reynolds had a breakout year, ending up tied for fourth in the 2010 ASP World Tour with Taj Burrow. His 2011 tour started disappointly missing the first three events due to a knee injury.^[6]

Reynold's first video, "First Chapter", won Best Male Performance in a Video and Video of the Year at the 2006 Surfer Poll Awards^[5].

Major sponsors of Dane Reynolds include Quiksilver, Channel Islands, Vans^[7]

Films[link]

• Damage inc.
• First Chapter
• Young Guns
• Young Guns 2
• Young Guns 3
• Dude Cruise
• Stranger Than Fiction
• Days of the Strange
• The Present
• The Collection
• Modern Collective
• Castles in the Sky
• Thrills Spills And What Not
• Lost Atlas

References[link]

External links[link]

• Reynold's bio page on Quiksilver.com
• Dane's blog: travel, music, art and surfing
• ASP Surfer Profile

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Mike "King" Kelly
200px
Outfielder/Catcher/Manager
Born: (1857-12-31)December 31, 1857 Troy, New York
Died: November 8, 1894(1894-11-08) (aged 36) Boston, Massachusetts
Batted: Right	Threw: Right
MLB debut
May 1, 1878 for the Cincinnati Reds
Last MLB appearance
September 2, 1893 for the New York Giants
Career statistics
Batting average	.308
Home Runs	69
Runs scored	1,357
Runs batted in	950
Hits	1,813
Teams
As player Cincinnati Reds (1878–1879) Chicago White Stockings (1880–1886) Boston Beaneaters (1887–1889) Boston Reds (1890) Cincinnati Kelly's Killers (1891) Boston Reds (1891) Boston Beaneaters (1891–1892) New York Giants (1893) As manager Boston Beaneaters (1887) Boston Reds (1890) Cincinnati Kelly's Killers (1891)
Career highlights and awards
2-time NL batting champion: 1884, 1886 3-time NL runs scored leader 3-time NL doubles leader
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction	1945
Election Method	Veteran's Committee

Michael Joseph "King" Kelly (December 31, 1857 – November 8, 1894) was an American right fielder, catcher, and manager in various professional American baseball leagues including the National League, International Association, Players' League, and the American Association. He spent the majority of his 16-season playing career with the Chicago White Stockings and the Boston Beaneaters. Kelly was a player-manager three times in his career – in 1887 for the Beaneaters, in 1890 leading the Boston Reds to the pennant in the only season of the Players' League's existence, and in 1891 for the Cincinnati Kelly's Killers - before his retirement in 1893. He is also often credited with helping to popularize various strategies as a player such as the hit and run, the hook slide, and the catcher's practice of backing up first base.^[1]

In only the second vote since its creation in 1939 the Old Timers Committee elected Kelly to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945.

In concluding where to truly give Kelly credit as an innovator, a 2004 book devoted to 19th-century rule bending in baseball—and which came close to exhaustively accounting for all contemporary reporting on various subjects—placed stress on the following: "Kelly's hook slide does sound special, and players probably tried to copy it. Also, he seems to have been the first big leaguer to successfully cut a base (when the usually lone umpire wasn't looking), at least according to the newspaper record." And, "Kelly could have been the first to foul off lots of pitches on purpose. Doing so was a top trick of some Baltimore players of the 1890s. At the turn of the century, that trick was defused when all foul balls began counting as strikes."^[2]

Kelly's autobiography Play Ball was published while he was with the Beaneaters in 1888, the first autobiography by a baseball player; it was ghostwritten by Boston baseball writer John J. "Jack" Drohan. Kelly also became a vaudeville performer during his playing career, first performing in Boston where he would recite the now-famous baseball poem "Casey at the Bat," sometimes butchering it. Kelly's baserunning innovations are also the subject of the hit 1889 song entitled "Slide, Kelly, Slide" and a 1927 comedy film of the same name.

Early life[link]

Mike was born in Troy, New York to Michael Kelly Sr. and his wife Catharine, both Irish immigrants. Upon the outbreak of the American Civil War, his father joined the Union Army, and Mike likely learned to play baseball while living with his mother and younger brother James in Washington D.C.. After the war, his ill father moved the family to Paterson, New Jersey. Kelly's parents apparently died within about five years of each other and he was orphaned by age 18. A best guess, based on tracking Paterson city directories, is that his father died around 1871, and his mother around 1876, when Michael was 18. According to the 1870 census, a Michael Kelly of his age was working in a silk mill in Paterson as of that year.^[3]

Early career[link]

By 1873, the fifteen-year-old Kelly was good enough to be invited to play baseball on Blondie Purcell's amateur team in Paterson, which played teams throughout the New York metro area, including the Brooklyn Atlantics from the National Association. From 1875 to 1877, he played three seasons as a semi-pro: in Paterson and then other cities.

In 1877, he was with the Paterson Olympics until around June 10, when he joined the Delawares of Port Jervis, N.Y. In mid-July, a Paterson paper said he had signed with a Springfield, Ohio, team after rejecting a Port Jervis offer of $70 a month. A few weeks later, Port Jervis had not played again when he signed "with the celebrated Buckeye club of Columbus, Ohio."^[4]

He made his big league debut in 1878 with Cincinnati. In 1877, Kelly's friend Jim McCormick was signed to play for the Columbus Buckeyes of the International Association, and he recommended that his Mike be signed to be his catcher. The year after that, Kelly signed to play for Cincinnati Reds, then known as the Red Stockings. Although the concept would come later, Mike Kelly was now a major leaguer.

Career in Chicago[link]

After playing in Cincinnati for two years as an outfielder and backup catcher, Cincinnati and Chicago White Stockings players went on a tour of California. While there, Chicago secured him for 1880, then-Chicago Secretary Albert Spalding doing the signing. Later from San Francisco, Kelly wrote Spalding, who was back in Chicago, "Cincinnati Club has gone back on us. Please send expenses. Am broke." Cincinnati, baseball's first openly professional team and first powerhouse back in 1869, had fallen on hard times by 1879 and released all their players at the end of that season to save having to pay them a last paycheck.^[5]

As of 1879, Chicago was the most important city financially in the National League, as it drew the best attendance for teams taking long train rides from the East Coast.

Kelly was now a young, good-looking man in the big city with money in his pocket. Rather than buying a house, he immediately moved into the Palmer House, the loudest, brashest, most garish and, according to its literature, "fire-proof" hotel in the world.

As a member of the White Stockings, he was annually among the league leaders in most offensive categories, including leading the league in runs from 1884 through 1886 (120, 124 and 155 respectively), and batting in 1884 and 1886 (.354 and .388). One of the best defensive catchers in baseball, he was also one of the first to use a glove and wear a chest protector. Chicago won five pennants while Kelly played for the White Stockings.

Career in Boston[link]

After the 1886 season Spalding sold Kelly to the Boston Beaneaters for a then-record $10,000, after Kelly balked at returning to the club. Right before the sale, Chicago writer Happy Palmer quoted Spalding this way, about what he was going to do with Kelly: "Oh, tie him up, I guess, if he really is averse to playing here. He may have his ugly up, and I guess from the way he is holding out in his refusal to sign that that is the case. All right, though. I am willing, and if he keeps on in that spirit I’ll make him eat hay with his horses before he is much older. He has been mad long enough now, and it is pretty near time somebody was getting mad at this end of the line. One thing I can certainly predict and that is that if Mr. Mike Kelly does not sign a contract with Chicago pretty d--d quick, he will have cause to regret it. That is all."^[6]

As a result of the sale, he became known as the "$10,000 Beauty." In 1881, actress Louise Montague had been so dubbed after winning a $10,000 contest for handsomest woman in the world.^[7]

King Kelly tobacco card (Goodwin & Company, 1888)

It was in Boston that Mike became "King" Kelly, although he was still overwhelmingly referred to as “Mike” or “The Only” in contemporaneous reporting. As a member of the Beaneaters, he continued to be a key run-producer, scoring 120 runs in 1887 and 1889. He continued to play well and was a great box office draw, but Boston didn't win any pennants. Freed from the watchful eye of Spalding and Anson, Kelly became less self-disciplined. One day in 1888, Boston player-manager John Morrill fined him $100 for not reporting to the grounds one day. After dinner the night before, Kelly had told Morrill he was ill, and Morrill said he should still report. The Boston Herald said, "Every man on the team thinks [the $100 fine] was deserved." The Herald also said of Kelly, "At times he goes in and plays with his whole spirit, and he puts life into the team. A sample of that was seen in yesterday’s game, a game that he won for the Bostons. At other times he plays carelessly and indifferently, puts on a spirit of independence, disobeys Morrill on instructions at will, and does as he pleases."^[8]

Kelly managed and played for the Boston Reds in the year-lived Players' League in 1890, and the Reds won the only Players League title.

During the 1890 season, friends bought him a $10,000 house at South Hingham, Massachusetts, about 15 miles southeast of Boston. Contributors included former umpire John Kelly, the owner of their New York bar; Boston fans Arthur "Hi! Hi!" Dixwell and Frank Norton, and Boston Players’ League President Charles A. Prince and Secretary Julian B. Hart. They gave $300 each, about $6,000 today. Others who gave included John Graham, Jim McCormick, and captains Buck Ewing of New York and John Montgomery "Johnny" Ward of Brooklyn. The house, worth $10,000, could not be mortgaged based on the $1,100 in donations, $400 of which went for a horse and carriage, so in the winter of 1890-91, father-in-law John Headifen "came to the rescue of his (Kelly's) [sic] friends and subscribed $1800," the Boston Record said. The Old Colony Savings Bank in Plymouth then gave a matching $2,500 loan, and with that a mortgage was obtained. When he signed with Boston in August 1891, the club's directors gave him a check for $4,300 for "lifting the mortgage on his 'popular subscription' home."^[9]

The house, stable and land would be put up for sale in the spring of 1893 for unpaid taxes of $123, about $2,500 today. It also had a $2,000 mortgage left at five percent interest. In October 1893, the house would be sold.^[10]

In 1898, Boston National League Director William H. Conant would recall having paid, around the time of the 1891 payment, a $200 bar bill for Kelly and friends and being forwarded, on a visit to the bar later that night, another Kelly tab for $140.^[11]

Later career[link]

In 1891, Kelly returned to Cincinnati as the captain of a newly established American Association club there. The team was generally known as the Reds, but were also often called "Kelly's Killers" in the media due to Kelly's strong presence. The team was in seventh place when it folded in mid-August, and Kelly signed with the Boston Reds, who had moved to the Association after the Players' League folded. He spent just four games with the Reds before jumping back across town to the Beaneaters to finish out the season.

After spending the 1892 season with the Beaneaters, batting a career-worst .189, his contract was assigned to the New York Giants for 1893. He played just 20 games for the Giants, batting .269 and driving in 15 runs.

Kelly’s big league career ended after the 1893 season, having compiled 1357 runs, 69 home runs, 950 RBI, and a .308 batting average. Unreliable record-keeping practices of the era prevent an accurate estimate of how many stolen bases Kelly compiled over his career, but statistics kept during his later years indicate he regularly stole 50 or more bases in a season, including a high of 84 in 1887. He also managed to steal six bases in one game.

In 1894, Kelly signed with Albert L. Johnson, the main benefactor of the 1890 Players' League, to play for his new minor league club in Allentown, Pa. Days before signing him, Johnson had assumed control of the Allentown & Lehigh Valley Traction Company, a trolley line.^[12]

In one of the last significant comments about Kelly’s baseball career, financially, while he was still alive, George W. Floyd said the following to the Chicago Herald in March 1894:

"Kelly got the worst of it in every deal he made. When he went from the Boston players' team [in 1890] to the local [association] club [in 1891] he helped that team to make over $100,000 [about $2 million today]. The club at that time was no better than fifth [not sure if that detail is relevant] and his desertion more than anything else gave the finishing blow to the brotherhood [Players’ League]. Mike was popular wherever he played. The trouble with him was that he had no brain as he himself was concerned. He knew enough to make money for others, but never could make anything for himself. I don’t think that his playing days are over yet, but every club in the league seems inclined to turn him down. Mike has a great many friends in every town where baseball is played and it will be bad policy on the magnates’ [owners'] part to retire him from the game which he has adorned so long."^[13]

In mid-August 1894, Allentown left the Pennsylvania State League for the Eastern League and moved to Yonkers, N.Y., where Johnson also had a streetcar line. "The parting may be cruel and mercenary--but regrets--well, hardly any. So au revoir [goodbye], Mike," the Allentown City Item said. Before disbanding, Kelly failed to heed Johnson’s instructions to release the players. By not releasing them, his old league was able to file a complaint with baseball's Board of Control challenging the maneuver. At a meeting in New York, the board ruled that for the next ten days, the Pennsylvania State League could claim Allentown's players. Eastern League President Pat Powers said Kelly was to blame "and President A. L. Johnson of the latter club [Allentown], who was also present, voiced the same sentiments," the New York Sun said.^[14]

^[15]

Slide Kelly, Slide![link]

"$10,000 Kelly" baseball card (N172), ca. 1887-90

The song, "Slide, Kelly, Slide" was America's first "pop hit" record, after its release by Edison Studios, and in 1927 inspired a film version of "Slide, Kelly, Slide." Prior to that song, most recordings (cylinders), were opera, religious or patriotic in nature. Kelly is also considered to have been the first man to popularize autographing, as fans pursued him on his way to the ballpark for his signature in the 1890s. Prints of a painting of him sliding into second hung in most Irish saloons in Boston, and he was among the first athletes to perform on the vaudeville stage. His own autobiography, "Play Ball", was the first written by a baseball player. The book was put together by "Boston Globe" reporter John Drohan.

Howard W. Rosenberg’s 2004 biography of Kelly dispelled any notion that Boston reporter Jake Morse had been the ghostwriter, by quoting Drohan’s involvement with the book at length, including unearthing the following sentence from a biography of Drohan in an 1889 book about the Irish in Boston: "His only literary work outside of his newspaper was the preparation of M. J. Kelly’s book, 'Play Ball.'"^[16]

Vaudeville career[link]

Kelly took up acting soon after his arrival in Boston. Fellow Boston Elk lodge member and actor Nat Goodwin, a writer said around that time, "repeatedly urged Kelly to abandon his diamond affiliations and embrace the fascinations of stage life, Goodwin claiming that Kelly is a natural born comedian." Goodwin, a native of Boston, had been a founder of its Elks lodge in 1878. George W. Floyd, Goodwin's manager and a native of nearby Quincy, was also a charter member of the lodge and one of its early directors. Floyd was arguably the first player agent in baseball history. For example, in 1892, Floyd told the Chicago Herald that he had secured Kelly’s new contract with Boston. It included a percentage of the club’s earnings above $10,000. Floyd also said, "Kelly is taking the best care of himself and is well fixed. The boodle [his money] is in the shape of gilt-edged securities and 'mammy,' as Kel affectionately terms his wife, has charge of it."^[17]

In March 1888, Kelly made his regular play debut, as Dusty Bob in Charles H. "Charley" Hoyt's "A Rag Baby." Hoyt had been a Boston baseball writer and was a Boston Elk. A national fraternal group, the Elks were founded in the 1860s and into the mid-twentieth century had close ties to the theatrical profession.^[18]

As an example of his later vaudeville career, during the offseasons of 1892-93, which extended into the 1893 season: He appeared in January 1893 in New York at the Imperial Music Hall on West 29th Street. He was billed as "King Kelly, the Monarch of the Baseball Field." His trousers and shirt collar were too big and he buttoned his jacket wrong. Also, his straw hat was a size too small. "It was impossible to look at this vaudeville make-up and not laugh," the New York Sun said. "Kelly laughed, too, and shook a roll of music at a lot of friends up in the private boxes." Kelly came on after two French singers of opera. Stage partner William "Billy" Jerome "took off his hat to him, and introduced him as 'Mr. Kelly, the famous $10,000 peach.'" They sang a parody. Later, after reciting "Casey at the Bat," he said, according to the Sun, "I'm right at home with Casey." Also, "It'’s the first time I’ve been in these clothes, and I don’t quite understand them. Besides I’ve been over to Guttenberg [a track in New Jersey] to-day, and that is an excuse for anything that a man may do. Come and see me again. I’m obliged for your welcome."^[19]

In the offseason of 1893-94, Kelly performed with Mark Murphy in "O'Dowd's Neighbors." Of the first city on the tour, Dover, N.J., Murphy said Kelly called it "the very first town I ever played a game of ball in out [sic] of Patsy!" Patsy, Murphy explained, "is Kellyesque for Paterson."^[13]

Casey at the Bat[link]

This article appears to contain unverifiable speculation and unjustified claims. Information must be verifiable and based on reliable published sources. Please remove unverified speculation from the article.

There is an unsettled debate about whether Kelly was the model for the title character in Ernest Lawrence Thayer’s 1888 poem "Casey at the Bat." Thayer, as a baseball reporter for the San Francisco Examiner, had seen Kelly play after the 1887 season, when he was on a playing tour to San Francisco. A "best guess" is to take Thayer at his word that he chose the name "Casey" after a non-player of Irish ancestry he once knew. However, open to debate is who, if anyone, he modeled Casey's baseball situations after. Arguably the best big league candidate is Kelly, the most colorful, top player of the day of Irish ancestry. Thayer, in a 1905 letter, singles out Kelly as showing "impudence" in claiming to have written the poem. If he still felt offended, Thayer may have steered later comments away from connecting Kelly to it. Cap Anson 2, the definitive bio of Kelly, states that it did not find Kelly claiming to have been the poem’s author.^[20]

Controversy and cheating[link]

Kelly was an adept baserunner, leading the National League in runs scored three times and ranking among the league leaders in stolen bases.

His baserunning was legendary in other ways as well. His arguably most frequent brilliant play was always legitimate—a feetfirst hook slide to avoid being tagged. In 1889, Tim Murnane of the Boston Globe said nine times out of ten, Kelly will "throw himself out of the reach of the baseman, and catch the bag from the outside." Also, "Kelly is not a sprinter, but can get a great start, and this counts more than a fine slide, as a catcher is likely to be hurried when he sees the runner well on his way to a base."^[21]

Upon Kelly's death, former teammate Tom Brown said, "He originated the slide which I do now in base running, and which is very generally copied by many ball players. The scheme is to slide to the side and get out of the way of the baseman, and not dash into him in the old way. Owing to the success of Kelly's sliding the topical song [`Slide, Kelly, Slide!' by J. W. Kelly, of no relation,] was written."^[21]

Kelly also became famous for making unusual plays. He seems to have performed most just a few times and probably made a bigger mark with verbal trickery, while catcher or coacher at first or third base. Right after his death, his longtime captain-manager in Chicago, Anson, said he was a "genius" as a coacher. Apparently referring to Kelly's ability to distract opposing fielders, Anson said, "Many a run has been scored through Kelly’s trickiness. He was a rattling all-around man, but his cleverest work was done behind the plate [while catching]. He was full of tricks and was never so happy as when playing a practical joke." A year later, Anson said, "Mike Kelly was the prince of base runners. I've never seen a man equal to him in that line, and he could get away with more sharp tricks than any man who ever wore a baseball uniform."^[20]

Kelly's uniqueness was in making four attempts to cut bases, while the then-lone umpire wasn’t looking, in the apparent first prevalent year of the trick: 1881. A methodical study of trickery in early baseball found Kelly cutting bases just a few more times over the rest of his career, and none at other times through 1886, his last year with Chicago. From 1887 to 1893, four seems to be his number of cuts. One was a success. Twice he was called out. Once he went back after being spotted. From 1881 to 1893, the relevant years to compare, dozens of players cut bases.^[22]

In his day, a much more common tricky play was fouling off pitches to draw a walk. Until the first years of the twentieth century, batters were generally not charged with a strike for fouling off a pitch. Fouled-off bunts started counting as strikes in 1894, when Kelly's big league career was over.^[23]

Some of the wildest stories of his trickery were not reported contemporaneously by reporters. Perhaps the most famous play that has been wrongly credited to Kelly—at least as taking place during a game that mattered—is from around 1890. In his 1994 The Rules of Baseball, David Nemec relates the following "often-told Kelly tale" and is the rare writer to say it is either false or embellished. As cited in Rosenberg's definitive bio of Kelly, Cap Anson 2 (2004), a former teammate of Kelly, Charlie Bennett, did say the following right after Kelly’s death in 1894:

Supposedly, Kelly was not in the game when an opposing batter hit a foul fly. Seeing that catcher Charley Ganzel could not catch the ball, Kelly announced himself in and made the play. The story would have most likely been from 1889, 1891 or 1892, when Ganzel and Kelly were teammates. Bennett said, "During a game one day, [Kelly] sat on the bench and Ganzel was behind the bat [catching]. A foul fly was popped up, out of Ganzel’s reach, when quick as a flash `Kel’ ran forward, ordered Ganzel out of the game, caught the ball, and then ordered the umpire to declare the batter out. [Kelly] maintained with a great deal of force, that he had as much right to order Ganzel out of the game, while a ball was in the air, as at any other time during the progress of the game. However, the decision went against him."^[21]

Rosenberg did not find a contemporaneous account of Kelly having done that, and it is possible he did so in an exhibition game. The closest sounding story to the above appeared right after Kelly’s death, when John D. "Johnny" Foster of the Cleveland Leader wrote, "The nearest that he ever approached to downright malice in playing in Cleveland was during a game between Cleveland and Boston for the national championship when he called a Cleveland player's name as two men were running for a foul fly."^[24]

Death[link]