View source for Goose Tatum

{{short description|American basketball and baseball player (1921–1967)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| honorific_prefix = 
| name             = Goose Tatum
| honorific_suffix = 
| image            = Goose Tatum Coca-Cola ad.jpg
| alt              = 
| caption          = Tatum on a [[Coca-Cola]] advertisement, 1954 
| headercolor      = orange
| textcolor        = 
| birth_name       = Reece Tatum
| birth_date       = {{birth date|1921|5|31}}{{ref label|birth date and age|a|a}}
| birth_place      = [[El Dorado, Arkansas]], U.S.{{ref label|birth date and age|a|a}}
| death_date       = {{death date and age|1967|1|18|1921|5|31}}
| death_place      = [[El Paso]], Texas, U.S.
| resting_place    = [[Fort Bliss National Cemetery]]
| resting_place_coordinates = 
| education        = [[Booker T. Washington High School (El Dorado, Arkansas)]]
| alma_mater       = 
| occupation       = {{hlist|Sportsman|entertainer}}
| years_active     = 1937–1943, 1946–1966
| height           = <!-- X cm, X m, or X ft Y in (automatic conversion) plus optional year and reference -->
| weight           = <!-- X kg, X lb, or X st Y lb (automatic conversion) plus optional year and reference -->
| sport            = {{ubl}}[[Baseball]] (1937–1943, 1946–49), [[basketball]] (1941–42, 1946–1966)
| team             = {{ubl}}[[Louisville Black Colonels]] (1937)<br>[[Memphis Red Sox]] (1941)<br>[[Birmingham Black Barons]] (1942)<br>[[Harlem Globetrotters]] (1941–42, 1946–1954)<br>[[Indianapolis Clowns]] (1943, 1946–49)<br> [[Harlem Magicians|Harlem Magicians / Stars / Trotters / Roadkings]] (1953–1966)<br>[[Detroit Stars]] (unknown)
}}
'''Reece''' "'''Goose'''" '''Tatum'''<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2209&dat=19940301&id=brRKAAAAIBAJ&sjid=V5UMAAAAIBAJ&pg=6247,39185&hl=en|first=Richard|last=Lederer|title=The names of the games|date=March 1, 1994|newspaper=[[The Telegraph (Nashua)|The Telegraph]]}}</ref> (May 31, 1921{{ref label|birth date and age|a|a}} – January 18, 1967) was an American [[Negro league baseball]] and [[basketball]] player. In 1942, he was signed to the [[Harlem Globetrotters]] and had an 11-year career with the team. He later formed his own team known as the [[Harlem Magicians]] with former Globetrotters player [[Marques Haynes]]. He is a member of the [[Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame]] and the [[Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame]]. Tatum's number 50 is [[retired number|retired]] by the Globetrotters.

==Biography==
Reece Tatum was born in [[El Dorado, Arkansas|El Dorado]], [[Arkansas]], on May 31, 1921,{{ref label|birth date and age|a|a}} to Ben and Alice Tatum. Ben Tatum was a farmer and part-time [[preacher]], and Alice Tatum was a [[domestic worker|domestic cook]]. The fifth of seven children, Reece Tatum attended Booker T. Washington High School in El Dorado, Arkansas, where he was a three-sport star in [[baseball]], [[basketball]] and [[American football|football]]. It is not known if he graduated.<ref name=arkencyclopedia/>

After high school, Tatum pursued a career in [[professional baseball]] and joined the [[Louisville Black Colonels]] in 1937. He played for the [[Memphis Red Sox]] and the [[Birmingham Black Barons]] in 1941 and 1942, respectively.<ref name=arkencyclopedia/> Tatum served in the [[United States Army Air Forces]] during [[World War II]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseballinwartime.com/negro.htm |title=Negro Leaguers Who Served With The Armed Forces in WWII |publisher=baseballinwartime.com |access-date=October 7, 2020}}</ref>

[[Harlem Globetrotters]] owner and coach [[Abe Saperstein]] signed Tatum in 1942. Tatum was released by the Globetrotters in 1955 after 11 seasons. At the time of his release, he was making a reported $53,000 per year, which ''The Detroit Tribune'' noted was the highest salary made by a professional basketball player. Saperstein told the press Tatum's release was due to his violation of team rules and repeated absences from games.<ref>{{cite news |title=Released by 'Trotters; Plans Team |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn92063852/1955-04-30/ed-1/seq-5/#date1=1789&index=4&rows=20&words=GOOSE+Goose+Tatum+TATUM&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Goose+Tatum&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 |access-date=November 13, 2018 |work=The Detroit Tribune |date=April 30, 1955 |location=Detroit, Michigan |page=5}}</ref>

Tatum and [[Marques Haynes]], who were both Harlem Globetrotters players, formed a barnstorming basketball team of their own: [[Harlem Magicians|The Fabulous Harlem Magicians]]. [[Dempsey Hovland]], owner of 20th Century Booking Agency, was recruited to book the Harlem Magicians' games. Hovland earlier had managed the barnstorming [[House of David (commune)|House of David]] basketball team.

===Personal life and legal incidents===
In February 1955, Tatum filed a lawsuit against the owners of the [[San Francisco]], [[California]] based Pan-American Bar for refusing to serve him, his wife and three companions on account of their race. Tatum was asking for $13,000 in damages.<ref>{{cite news |title=Athlete Sues Bar; Asks $13,000 |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=MT19550202.2.30&srpos=13&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN-Goose+Tatum-------1 |access-date=November 13, 2018 |work=Madera Tribune |agency=United Press International |issue=251 |date=February 2, 1955 |volume = 63|location=Madera, California |page=2}}</ref> Tatum was arrested in [[Gary, Indiana]] in November 1955 for non-payment of [[alimony]]. He allegedly owed his ex-wife $7,000 in alimony and was ordered by Judge Anthony Roszkowski to pay $60 a week pending a final judgment.<ref>{{cite news |title=Goose Tatum Gets Cooked |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn92063852/1955-11-26/ed-1/seq-5/#date1=1789&index=2&rows=20&words=REECE+Reece+Tatum+TATUM&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Reece+Tatum&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 |access-date=November 13, 2018 |work=The Detroit Tribune |date=November 26, 1955 |location=Detroit, Michigan |page=5}}</ref>

Tatum was married briefly to [[Lottie 'The Body' Graves|Lottie 'the Body' Graves]] who he met in [[San Francisco]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/paradise-regained/Content?oid=2182182|title=Paradise Regained|last=Klein|first=Sarah|date=3 August 2005|website=Detroit Metro Times|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171002210840/https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/paradise-regained/Content?oid=2182182|archive-date=2 October 2017|access-date=2019-02-04}}</ref>

===Death and legacy===
In 1966, Tatum's son, Goose Jr., was killed in a car accident. Soon after, Tatum began drinking heavily, which led to a series of hospital visits. He died at his home in [[El Paso]], Texas on January 18, 1967, at the age of 45.<ref name=arkencyclopedia/> The official autopsy stated that he died of natural causes. Tatum was interred in the [[Fort Bliss National Cemetery]].

Tatum has been described as the original "clown prince"—a term first applied to seminal Chicago Crusader/Philadelphia Giant [[Jackie Bethards]] in 1933<ref>{{ cite news | title=Among Our Colored Citizens | newspaper=Times | location=Chester, Pennsylvania | date=December 8, 1933 }}</ref>—of the Trotters.  He wove numerous comic routines into his play, many of which achieved a [[cult following]]. Some of these routines were based on his stature—at 6'4", he reportedly had an arm span of approximately 84 inches (210& cm) and could touch his kneecaps without bending.
Tatum is credited with inventing the [[hook shot]].<ref name=arkencyclopedia/> While playing for the Harlem Magicians, Tatum was billed as having scored the most points in the history of basketball, but the assertion is dubious.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Harlem Stars Will Be in Town on Mon., Mar. 9 |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn92063852/1959-03-07/ed-1/seq-5/#date1=1789&index=6&rows=20&words=Goose+GOOSE+Tatum+TATUM&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=Goose+Tatum&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 |access-date=November 13, 2018 |work=The Detroit Tribune |date=March 7, 1959 |location=Detroit, Michigan |page=5}}</ref>

In 1974, Tatum was inducted into the [[Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame]]. His number 50 jersey was retired by the Harlem Globetrotters on February 8, 2002 and his name was placed on the Globetrotters' "Legends Ring" at [[Madison Square Garden]] in [[New York City]].<ref name=arkencyclopedia/> Tatum was the fourth player to have his number retired by the Globetrotters. In 2011, he was elected to the [[Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame]].<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/07/sports/basketball/coronation-for-harlem-globetrotters-clown-prince-reece-tatum.html  "Coronation for Basketball’s Clown Prince,"] by [[Oscar Robertson]], The New York Times, August 6, 2011</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/2011-08-11-goose-tatum-hall-of-fame_n.htm |title=Goose Tatum, Globetrotters' clown prince, is bound for Hall |date=August 12, 2011 |newspaper=[[USA Today]] |author=Jeff Zillgitt}}</ref>

==Footnotes==
*{{note label|birth date and age|a|a}} Some sources list Tatum's birth date as May 3, 1921, in [[Hermitage, Arkansas]].<ref name="arkencyclopedia">{{cite web |last1=Scott |first1=Nikki |title=Reece "Goose" Tatum (1921–1967) |url=http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=3010 |website=encyclopediaofarkansas.net |publisher=The Central Arkansas Library System |access-date=November 13, 2018 |archive-date=July 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130703090235/http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=3010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Baseballstats|br=t/tatumgo01}} and [https://www.seamheads.com/NegroLgs/player.php?playerID=tatum01goo Seamheads]
{{Basketball Hall of Fame}}
{{2011 Basketball HOF}}
{{Indianapolis Clowns}}
{{Portal bar|Basketball|Biography|Sports}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tatum, Reese}}
[[Category:1921 births]]
[[Category:1967 deaths]]
[[Category:African-American baseball players]]
[[Category:United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Arkansas]]
[[Category:Basketball players from Arkansas]]
[[Category:Birmingham Black Barons players]]
[[Category:Cincinnati Clowns players]]
[[Category:Detroit Stars players]]
[[Category:Harlem Globetrotters players]]
[[Category:Indianapolis Clowns players]]
[[Category:Memphis Red Sox players]]
[[Category:Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from El Dorado, Arkansas]]
[[Category:United States Army Air Forces soldiers]]
[[Category:African-American United States Army personnel]]
[[Category:American men's basketball players]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American sportsmen]]
[[Category:African Americans in World War II]]
[[Category:Burials at Fort Bliss National Cemetery]]