great stuff: football and international politics

[Paul Johnston]

I played this game too.  It was referred to as kickball in New Jersey (1960s), but as soccer baseball in Illinois (1950s-60s).

Paul Johnston
On Mar 16, 2012, at 1:29 PM, Larry Sheldon wrote:

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> Poster:       Larry Sheldon <LarrySheldon at COX.NET>
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> Subject:      Re: great stuff: football and international politics
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> On 3/16/2012 12:16 PM, Laurence Horn wrote:
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>> Society<ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> Poster:       Laurence
>> Horn<laurence.horn at YALE.EDU> Subject:      Re: great stuff: football
>> and international politics
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> On Mar 16, 2012, at 12:43 PM, Larry Sheldon wrote:
>>
>>> On 3/16/2012 3:47 AM, W Brewer wrote:
>>>
>>>> <<<   still a debate over whether the Chinese or the English
>>>> invented the game>>>
>>>>
>>>> WB:  We also invented the game at St James Elementary School, Mt
>>>> Ranier MD, circa 1955. We called it kickball, and rules were
>>>> determined by the biggest kid in the parking lot.
>>>
>>> We played kickball at Chevy Chase elementary in Toonerville
>>> (Atwater district, Los Angeles) in the late 1940s -- rules similar
>>> to softball, as modified by circumstances,
>>
>> In all the versions of kickball I remember playing (early-mid 1950s,
>> NYC), you can retire a runner by hitting them with the ball (between
>> bases).  Such throws are frowned upon in softball.
>
> True and true that and I started to mention it.  Just for the curiosity,
> I think a runner is out in softball if touched by a batted (but not
> thrown) ball.  Keeps runners from deflecting a batted ball away from a
> fielder.  (being hit by a thrown ball might in some cases be
> "interference").
>
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