1966 AUTO RACING INDUCTEE JOHNNY BOYD Auto racing, ranging from low budget midgets and modified hardtops to big bucks Indy machines, has enjoyed a large and loyal following in Fresno for more than fifty years. Motor sports old-timers still enjoy reliving memories of steamy summers when midget autos and souped-up stocks roared at Airport Speedway…
1965 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE BERT SCHWARZ Back in 1922, Bert Schwartz went out for football at Fresno High School. He was a guard. He was active in other sports at high school. He matriculated to the University of California in 1925 and continued to play in the line. On the Cal Varsity, he was the first…
1965 SOFTBALL INDUCTEE KAY RICH Fresno Rockets manager, Dutch Chandler is quoted as saying during a team reunion in 1979, “I’ve never known a greater woman athlete than Kay Rich.” Unfortunately, Rich was unable to make that occasion. Rich was present, however, in 1963 when the Rockets gave her a surprise testimonial dinner in Fresno.…
1965 ICE SKATING INDUCTEE CAROLE ORMACA The story of Carol Ormaca Butler is one of a real-life Cinderella. It was by chance that one evening, the Ormaca family, for want of something better to do, went skating at the old Fresno Rink on Olive Avenue. Carol, who had been studying ballet, took to the blades…
1965 ICE SKATING INDUCTEE ROBIN L. GREINER, JR. With the land of snow and ice some 50 miles away, Robin Greiner, with his partner Carol Ormaca Butler, reigned supreme in United States figure pairs ice skating for four years. The Fresno pair were the U.S. Champions from 1953-1956. The combination was a member of the…
1965 COMMUNITY LEADER INDUCTEE JOE DALE, SR. This feisty native of Leadville, Colorado arrived in Fresno in 1917. He and his brother, Court, immediately set up a coffee roaster on one side of Holland Market. By 1921, the Dales bought out Art McGaff and started the Dale Bros. Coffee business on H Street. It so…
1965 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE WALTER H. BYRD, SR. As a youngster, Walt Byrd was always at the head of his class when it was it came to athletics. So it wasn’t surprising that he was a dominant player at the high school and collegiate levels. Old timers extol the achievements of this spunky 5’8″, 155-pound halfback…
1964 COACHING-FOOTBALL INDUCTEE ERWIN GINSBERG Erwin Ginsburg was one tough customer. In his days at Tulare High School before graduating in 1922, he racked up All-Conference honors in football, basketball, and track. He was always known for his work ethic and his “all for the team” attitude. At Fresno State College, he was a multi-year…
1964 COMMUNITY LEADER INDUCTEE JOHN EULESS John M. Euless was the right man at the right time with the right connections when professional baseball returned to Fresno in 1941. This was the year that the California League was created and Fresno was selected to be one of the franchise team locations. Euless, who was raised…
1964 TRACK & FIELD INDUCTEE GORDON DUNN Gordon Dunn had two nicknames in various stages of his life. He was “Slinger Dunn” at Stanford University and “No Fun Dunn” while mayor of Fresno as he waged a relentless war on city vices. Dunn was born in 1912 in Portland, Oregon, but the family moved to…