Good evening. This is Dead Legends. The daily newsletter that slides into your inbox like Trea Turner.

Let’s dive in.

Today’s story is about baseball’s greatest clown.

It all started with a Joe DiMaggio home run.

Back in those days, Max Patkin was still chasing his professional baseball dreams, and playing with the Navy during WWII.

When DiMaggio took him yard, Patkin famously chased him around the bases, and the people loved it.

That was the first time he realized his true gift; making people laugh.

Once Patkin got out of the service, he jumped back into baseball.

The Cleveland Indians picked him up and sent him to the Class-A Wilkes-Barre Barons in '46.

He pitched five games, but unfortunately developed tendinitis in his shoulder.

That pretty much crushed his career as a ballplayer, but during that time, he started his next career.

Patkin switched gears and started performing during games, keeping the crowd entertained while distracting the opposing team.

Even Connie Mack, who was usually stone faced, got a laugh out of Patkin’s routine when the Indians played the A’s.

After Max was released by Wilkes-Barre he was offered $100 to do his routine for the Harrisburg Senators, and that’s where he crossed paths with the legendary Bill Veeck.

Veeck signed him to a $1 baseball contract and a “personal services” contract for $650 per month.

Patkin created his own distinct style that was different from other baseball clowns before him - he always wore a full uniform.

In ‘49 when Veeck sold the team, Patkin decided to go off on his own, barnstorming across the country doing his routine at any place that would hire him.

That’s when things really took off, Max went everywhere you can think of and at one point he toured with the Harlem Globetrotters.

In ‘88, he was featured in one of the greatest baseball movies of all time: Bull Durham.

Over 50 years, he did 5,000 gigs, and never missed one.

One time, he jumped off a burning plane after it landed in Fayetteville, Arkansas, in order to make a gig.

In another instance, he rode in a cab for 300 miles on a flat tire to get to the ballpark for a performance.

His biggest show was in front of 80,000, but he said he performed for as few as four people.

Patkin passed away in ‘99, but he’ll always be remembered for his love of the game.

BASEBALL TRIVIA

STRANGE NAMES

If you're just joining us, we play this game every day where we try to find the weirdest names throughout baseball history.

Why? Don't ask us, it's just something we like to do.

If you've been rocking with us for awhile now, you know what time it is.

Today's winner is:

Campau’s family was one of the founding families of Detroit.

He went to Notre Dame and was a player and a manager in professional baseball (mostly the minor leagues) for 19 years.

Although stats from the 1800s are often unreliable, some records say he had over 2,000 hits and 600+ stolen stolen bases throughout his career.

THE DEAD LEGENDS ARCHIVE

If you like this story, check out some of our past favorites:

• The Hot Dog Incident: One ballplayer, two hot dogs

• The Fall: Ed Delahanty’s mysterious death

• The Fence: One of the most lopsided trades in baseball history