Josh Gibson, the greatest slugger of his day, who was denied the chance to play on baseball’s biggest stage, has arrived at long last in a forum worthy of his epic story.
I was among the Benedum Center crowd that rose to its feet at the conclusion of Pittsburgh Opera’s performance Tuesday of “The Summer King,” having been swept up by the sound and spectacle. Opera is not generally an art form I find easily accessible, but this plot hinged not on tuberculosis in 19th-century Paris or a hunchbacked jester in 16th-century Italy.
This was about athletic greatness and moral skimpiness in 20th-century America.