Hank Greenberg

Greenberg in 1937, at Harris & Ewing, Library of Congress, LC-DIG-hec-22989

Birth Name: Henry Benjamin Greenberg

Date of Birth: January 1, 1911

Place of Birth: Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City, New York, U.S.

Date of Death: September 4, 1986

Place of Death: Beverly Hills, California, U.S.

Ethnicity: Ashkenazi Jewish

Hank Greenberg was an American professional baseball player and team executive. A first baseman, he played primarily for the Detroit Tigers, as well as the Pittsburgh Pirates, of Major League Baseball (MLB). He is in the Baseball Hall of Fame, and was a two-time MVP winner. He is sometimes described as the first Jewish superstar in American team sports. He was nicknamed “Hammerin’ Hank,” “Hankus Pankus,” and “The Hebrew Hammer.”

Hank was the son of Sarah (Schwartz) and David Greenberg. His parents were Orthodox Jews, who emigrated from Bucharest, Romania. His family owned a cloth-shrinking plant. They moved to The Bronx when he was a child.

Hank was married to actress Linda Douglas/Mary Jo Tarola, until his death. He had three children with his former wife Caral Gimbel. Caral was the daughter of businessperson Bernard Gimbel, who was president of the Gimbels department store.

Hank’s paternal grandfather was Heshel Greenberg (the son of Yisrael Greenberg and Gittel Moskowitz).

Sources: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org

Genealogy of Hank Greenberg (focusing on his father’s side) – https://www.geni.com