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Barefoot Sanders was the Federal Judge.

Shoeless Jackson was the Baseball Player.

Barefoot Sanders

Harold Barefoot Sanders Jr. inherited his middle name from his grandmother, Dennie Barefoot. Initially, he preferred the name H.B. As H.B., Sanders won the title of Freckle King at the Texas State Centennial Celebration at age 11. Later, he decided that Barefoot is a more memorable name, and thus he used it for the rest of his life. Judge Sanders was a three-term state legislator, United States attorney for the northern District, and a high official in the Justice Department and the White House. While serving in the Justice Department, Sanders was in charge of all United States attorneys and marshals. In the White House, Sanders filled the position of legislative counsel. President Jimmy Carter appointed Sanders to the federal bench in 1979. During his 28-year career as a federal judge, he steered Dallas schools through desegregation. He made most busing voluntary, and ordered the construction of attractive and effective magnet schools to attract children across neighborhood boundaries. He also wore a gold footprint pin on his judicial robes. Another particularly interesting fact about Judge Sanders: he was a few cars behind President Kennedy’s in the fatal motorcade. “After the assassination, [Sanders] personally found and delivered a federal judge, Sarah T. Huges, to swear in Lyndon B. Johnson as president on Air Force one.”

Shoeless Jackson

As part of a low-income family, Joseph Jefferson Jackson never saw the inside of a schoolhouse. Instead, he started working at a mill around age six. Even with these conditions, he grew up to be tall and gangly with long, strong arms. His nickname came when he played a baseball game while nursing his feet from a new pair of baseball shoes. Without shoes, he hit a triple, which made an opposing fan cry, “You shoeless bastard, you!” Even though he was also taunted for his illiteracy, his skills still shown through: he hit a .407 in his first full season as big league player. And his lifetime batting average is .356. While playing for the Cleveland Naps (later the Indians), he developed an attraction to the city, fine food, nice clothes, and—wait for it—expensive shoes. Meanwhile, he retained his quirks. To strengthen his arms, the easygoing Jackson would hold out his bat with each arm for as long as he could. For his eyes, he would stare at a lit candle with one eye alternatively until his vision blurred. Whatever the training method, his superior athleticism was recognized by other greats. Pitcher Walter Johnson called him the best natural ballplayer Johnson had ever seen. Babe Ruth copied Jackson’s feet-together batting stance and power stride into the pitch. Unfortunately for Jackson’s career, however, he was involved with the Black Sox Scandal. While playing for the White Sox during a World Series championship, some of his teammates conspired with gamblers to fix the game. Although his participation in the scandal was never clear, he and the others were eventually banned from professional baseball by federal judge and baseball commissioner Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis. Outside the grand jury room, a young boy supposedly uttered a line that became a well-known American phrase: “Say it ain’t so, Joe.” Despite that fiasco, fans still like Jackson. In fact, his bat, Black Betsy, was once exhibited in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

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CORRECT!

Barefoot Sanders

Harold Barefoot Sanders Jr. inherited his middle name from his grandmother, Dennie Barefoot. Initially, he preferred the name H.B. As H.B., Sanders won the title of Freckle King at the Texas State Centennial Celebration at age 11. Later, he decided that Barefoot is a more memorable name, and thus he used it for the rest of his life. Judge Sanders was a three-term state legislator, United States attorney for the northern District, and a high official in the Justice Department and the White House. While serving in the Justice Department, Sanders was in charge of all United States attorneys and marshals. In the White House, Sanders filled the position of legislative counsel. President Jimmy Carter appointed Sanders to the federal bench in 1979. During his 28-year career as a federal judge, he steered Dallas schools through desegregation. He made most busing voluntary, and ordered the construction of attractive and effective magnet schools to attract children across neighborhood boundaries. He also wore a gold footprint pin on his judicial robes. Another particularly interesting fact about Judge Sanders: he was a few cars behind President Kennedy’s in the fatal motorcade. “After the assassination, [Sanders] personally found and delivered a federal judge, Sarah T. Huges, to swear in Lyndon B. Johnson as president on Air Force one.”

Shoeless Jackson

As part of a low-income family, Joseph Jefferson Jackson never saw the inside of a schoolhouse. Instead, he started working at a mill around age six. Even with these conditions, he grew up to be tall and gangly with long, strong arms. His nickname came when he played a baseball game while nursing his feet from a new pair of baseball shoes. Without shoes, he hit a triple, which made an opposing fan cry, “You shoeless bastard, you!” Even though he was also taunted for his illiteracy, his skills still shown through: he hit a .407 in his first full season as big league player. And his lifetime batting average is .356. While playing for the Cleveland Naps (later the Indians), he developed an attraction to the city, fine food, nice clothes, and—wait for it—expensive shoes. Meanwhile, he retained his quirks. To strengthen his arms, the easygoing Jackson would hold out his bat with each arm for as long as he could. For his eyes, he would stare at a lit candle with one eye alternatively until his vision blurred. Whatever the training method, his superior athleticism was recognized by other greats. Pitcher Walter Johnson called him the best natural ballplayer Johnson had ever seen. Babe Ruth copied Jackson’s feet-together batting stance and power stride into the pitch. Unfortunately for Jackson’s career, however, he was involved with the Black Sox Scandal. While playing for the White Sox during a World Series championship, some of his teammates conspired with gamblers to fix the game. Although his participation in the scandal was never clear, he and the others were eventually banned from professional baseball by federal judge and baseball commissioner Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis. Outside the grand jury room, a young boy supposedly uttered a line that became a well-known American phrase: “Say it ain’t so, Joe.” Despite that fiasco, fans still like Jackson. In fact, his bat, Black Betsy, was once exhibited in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

CONTINUE WITH QUIZ