Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Commemoration Day 16mm film (Nov. 6, 1961)

Item Information

Title:
Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Commemoration Day 16mm film (Nov. 6, 1961)
Description:
This is a two-part black and white film taken during the Springfield College Naismith Hall of Fame Commemoration Day celebrations held on November 6, 1961 in the Memorial Field House on the campus of Springfield College. The film is silent. Both parts of the film are around 11 minutes, for a total run time of 22 minutes. A highlight of the film is that it shows the first inductees into the Basketball Hall of Fame, sixteen of whom attended the ceremony. The inductees consist of players, members of inducted teams, and coaches, attended the ceremony. Those that appear in the film are Chuck Hyatt, Frank Keaney, Bob Kurland, Ed Macauley, Branch McCracken, Ralph Morgan, Stretch Murphy, John O'Brien, Ray Kaighn, Dave Walsh, Oswald Tower, Dave Tobey, A. A. Schabinger, John Roosma, Andy Phillip and Ed Wachter. The first film seems to focus on the introduction and speeches given by numerous people. At about the 40 second mark of the film, all sixteen of the players listed are shown standing in two lines on a stage. These speeches were led by Glen Olds, the president of Springfield College at the time. The film ends with filling the cornerstone with items to commemorate the history of the Hall of Fame and the semblance of laying the cornerstone. The four people who participated in the corner stone laying ceremony were Dr. Charles Weckwerth (the speaker), Roy Chapin (Chairman of the Business Committee), Edward Hickox (who received the honoary degree of Doctor of Humanics during the ceremony), and Raymond Kaighn, who was the sole surviving member of the original 1891 basketball scrimmage. The second part of the film sees the honored players and coaches sitting at a long table for a luncheon, where those who were elected last April receive their hall of fame certificates and are officially inducted into the Hall of Fame. Clifford Carlson, an author on many basketball books, was the main speaker during the luncheon, and William Mokray, representing the Honors Committee, was the one who presented the Hall of Fame certificates to some of the members sitting at the table for the luncheon. Carlson was also inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1959. Mokray was elected to the hall of fame as a contributor four years later in 1965. The purpose of the film is to honor all of the first inductees into the Basketball Hall of Fame at Springfield College and to lay the cornerstone for the building commemoration. The first members of the Hall of Fame were inducted in 1959. However, there was not enough funds generated for the building, and because of this, the cornerstone laying ceremony did not occur until 1961. Because of this, players and coaches from the first three years of induction are being honored in this 1961 commemoration video. The original inductees into the Hall of Fame in 1959 were Luther Guilick, Ed Hickox, Ralph Morgan, James Naismith, Harold Olsen, and Alonzo Stagg, Oswald Tower, referee Matthew Kennedy, and the Original Celtics team. The original Celtics team was the first team to sign exclusive player contracts, and they also introduced some of the first key techniques like man to man defense to the game of basketball. There were over 2000 people in attendance at the event, including two sons and three daughters of James Naismith, the original founder of basketball. The original construction plan for the hall of fame was to have general offices on the first floor, the library and historical room on the second floor, and the basement wing which would contain the auditorium and replica of the old gym in which basketball was invented by Dr. James Naismith 70 years ago. The honors court would be in the Hall of Fame wing whose construction would await further funds, and this led to the actual hall of fame not opening until 1968 due to funding, which was seven years later. The Hall of Fame would remain at Springfield College until 1985 when the building was moved to downtown Springfield. In 2002, the building was moved south about 100 yards, and had serious renovations done. Technician notes. "Good condition. Exposure problems head/tail. Flash frames." Quality Control technician notes, "some shots blown out."
Date:
November 6, 1961
Format:
Film/Video
Genre:
Black and White; Silent; 16mm
Location:
Springfield College Archives and Special Collections
Collection (local):
College Archives Digital Collections
Subjects:
Basketball Hall of Fame
Basketball--History
Springfield College
Springfield College--Buildings
Memorial Field House
Hyatt, Charles D
Keaney, Frank William
Kurland Robert A
Macauley, Charles Edward
McCracken, Emmett
Morgan, Ralph
Murphy, Charles
O’Brien, John J.
Kaighn, Raymond P.
Walsh, David H
Tower, Oswald
Tobey, David
Schanbinger, Arthur August
Roosma, John S
Phillip, Andrew Michael
Olds, Glenn A. (Glenn Alvero), 1921-2006
Naismith, James, 1861-1939
Hickox, Edward J.
Carlson, Henry Clifford
Mokray, William G
DeBernardi, Forrest
Trester, Arthur
Wachter, Edward A
Basketball Hall of Fame (Springfield, Mass.)
Springfield (Mass.)
Basketball
Basketball players
Awards
Places:
Massachusetts > Hampden (county) > Springfield
Extent:
00:22:12
Link to Item:
http://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15370coll2/id/23265
Terms of Use:
Text and images are owned, held, or licensed by Springfield College and are available for personal, non-commercial, and educational use, provided that ownership is properly cited. A credit line is required and should read: Courtesy of Springfield College, Archives and Special Collections. Any commercial use without written permission from Springfield College is strictly prohibited. Other individuals or entities other than, and in addition to, Springfield College may also own copyrights and other propriety rights. The publishing, exhibiting, or broadcasting party assumes all responsibility for clearing reproduction rights and for any infringement of United States copyright law.
Contact host institution for more information.
Publisher:
Springfield College
Language:
English
Identifier:
rg147-02-21-001