Special to the AmNews
In 1966, a memorable Western film was released in theaters with a rather interesting title: “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.”
For avid baseball fans who grew up in the 1970s, former All-Star pitcher and 1971 World Series champion Dock Ellis was synonymous with “Black Power” for his outspokenness on racial inequalities. He was a flamboyant dresser who wore hair curlers under his baseball cap, and as an ultra-competitive ballplayer, he would throw at any opposing batter.
Just ask Reggie Jackson or the first five batters of the “Big Red Machine” in 1974.
And then there’s the story about how Ellis claimed to have thrown a no-hitter under the influence of LSD June 12, 1970. As he infamously stated, he was “high as a Georgia pine.”
In an uncensored look at Ellis and his personal journey of redemption from his childhood in California, playing for the Pittsburgh Pirates and to finally recovering from alcohol and drugs, first-time director Jeffrey Radice’s “No No: A Dockumentary” could also include the above movie title in describing Ellis’s life.
With all his frailties, Ellis grew up to become a very good man, and I personally got to meet him. After losing his supportive father, the tragic death of his teammate and close friend Roberto Clemente in airplane crash, divorce and a downward spiral resulting from substance abuse, Ellis eventually faced his demons to become a counselor for addicts.
In his 12 years as a right-handed pitcher that included brief stints with the Yankees and Mets, Ellis was part of a historic MLB game when, for the first time in baseball history, the Pirates fielded an entirely Black team Sept. 1, 1971.
Nicknamed the “Muhammad Ali of Baseball,” also Ellis, was known not only to mimic the fighter’s boxing style but also to similarly voice his displeasure with the baseball establishment’s treatment of Black players. Ali himself would eventually meet Ellis. Throughout Ellis’ trials and tribulations, there was one venerable former player who followed his career and wrote a heartwarming letter of support. That piece of stationary, displaying his personal letterhead, came from Jackie Robinson.
In the end, Ellis may have even told you, “I lived a wonderful life.”
“No No: A Dockumentary” is currently playing at Village East Cinema, 189 Second Ave, New York City.
