The King is gone

[gsf23]

Eddie Feigner, founder of the travelling four-man softball team The King and his Court passed away at the age of 81.

Softball star Feigner dies at 81
Associated Press


Eddie Feigner, the hard-throwing softball showman who barnstormed for more than 50 years with his "The King and His Court" four-man team, died Friday. He was 81.

Feigner, known for his trademark crewcut and bulging right arm, died in Huntsville, Ala., from a respiratory ailment, longtime friend and teammate Jack Knight said.

With a fastball once clocked at 104 mph, Feigner threw 930 no-hitters and 238 perfect games and struck out 141,517 batters while playing more than 10,000 games. He was inducted into the National Senior Softball Hall of Fame in 2000.

A stroke in 2000 -- a day after he threw out the first pitch before the women's softball competition in the Sydney Olympics -- ended his playing career at age 75. He left the team for medical reasons last summer and lived in Trenton, Tenn., for the last several years until recently moving to Huntsville. Knight said Feigner also suffered from dementia.

"Eddie Feigner was a genuine Jekyll and Hyde," Knight said. "On the field, a master showman, brilliant pitcher, creator of the most popular softball attraction in history. And off the field, one tough son of a gun. He was a former Marine, everything was by the numbers. He made millions and was generous to a fault. Some guys got fired three times in the same day and rehired in the next moment."

Feigner not only pitched from the standard mound, 46 feet from home plate, but also from second base, behind his back, on his knees, between his legs, from center field and blindfolded. In a nationally televised exhibition against major-leaguers at Dodger Stadium in 1964, he struck out Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Maury Wills, Harmon Killebrew, Roberto Clemente and Brooks Robinson in order.

Feigner began "The King and His Court" in 1946 on a dare in his hometown of Walla Walla, Wash. He had just thrown a shutout in his nine-man team's rout of a team from Pendleton, Ore., and the Oregon team challenged him to another game. Backed by just a catcher, first baseman and shortstop, Feigner pitched a perfect game, winning 7-0.

At the height of Feigner's popularity, the team played at major-league ballparks, including Yankee Stadium, and Feigner appeared on numerous national television shows, including "The Today Show," "I've Got a Secret," "What's My Line?" and the "CBS Sports Spectacular." On the "Tonight Show," he pitched blindfolded to Johnny Carson, who loosely held a bat over a home plate. Feigner hit Carson's bat on his first pitch.

Feigner is survived by his wife, Anne Marie; son Eddie Jr., who played with the team for 25 years; daughters Shirley, Carol and Debbie; nine grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. Services are pending.


Eddie was one of the greatest ambassadors in the game of softball and could do some incredible things on the field. He will be missed.

[mick]

I was honored to have seen him and to have worked a game in the yard.

[greymule]

The King was unhittable, even when he backed up to second base. This makes me wonder why he (or another of the many overpowering softball pitchers) couldn't adapt his motion to a baseball and make real money.

I've read various clockings of Feigner's speed, all over 100 mph and some as high as 117. So why couldn't he have used his FP motion with a baseball at 60'6"? Is there something about a baseball that works against the FP softball motion?

[BretMan]

As many times as I've heard reports of Feigner's 100+ mph fastball, I have a hard time believing those numbers to be accurate. My guess is that it is either showmanship hype, faulty measuring methods or the speed of the pitches were converted to an "equivalent" speed for a baseball thrown from 60 feet.

I had the pleasure of seeing The King and His Court just this past summer. Eddie wasn't there and it was announced that his failing health prevented him from attending.

The men's fastpitch league were I play supplied the players to act as fodder for the The Court's antics. We also supplied the umpires for the exhibition.

Rich Hoppe has taken over the pitching duties for the team and still does the whole blind folded, pitching from second base routine.

It has been reported that Hoppe also pitches at over 100 mph. Having seen him pitch in person, I would have to say that he must have had a 100 mph hurricane at his back the day those readings were taken!

I would estimate his pitches to have been in the low-to-mid 70's, tops. Speaking with the umpire after the game confirmed this to be his opinion, too.

A 75 mph softball pitch is nothing to sneeze at, and the pitcher will really be popping the mitt. A men's pitcher with that kind of speed will be successful. But it is a far cry from 100+ mph.

Interestingly, I do know a good softball pitcher that played for one of the men's baseball leagues around here. He was a pretty good softballer, and could still throw around 65 mph.

He tried pitching underhand in some baseball games and was not very successful. One problem was that the smaller surface area of the baseball made it impossible to get the same kind of movement on the pitches that the larger softball allows.

Flat, straight 65 mph pitches from 60 feet in an adult baseball game have a tendency to find themselves on the other side of the fence in a hurry!

[Steve M]

I did not have the pleasure of geting to bat against him when I played, but I don't have any doubt that he threw over 100mph in his younger days. I umped a couple of his games, once when he was still an oustanding pitcher and the last time he would have been an excellent 'C' level pitcher - maybe even 'B' level.
I see a fair amount of men's upper level ball. I know there are several in the one league that are easily into the mid 80's, maybe higher.
One of the guys who's done some of my mentoring worked a couple of the Stofflet-Feigner games. Stofflet was another 100+ pitcher, so the "slow" guy in those games was around 105.

[SWFLguy]

Quite the showman for sure. I called the plate for an exhibition game of the King and His Court back around 1980. He was probably a fireballer in his younger days, but did not have all that much velocity when I saw him.
Placement ? -- for sure.
RIP Eddie !

[bkbjones]

I had the privilege of working 3 games ofr Eddie, one in about 1975, another in the late 80s, and another in the early 90s. Early 90s he obviously was just a shadow - albeit a large one - of his former self. He went into the bit with the blindfold, and I whispered to the catcher that I was gonna piss Eddie off.
Called the pitch - a strike right down the chute - a ball. Ohhhh, did he show his Marine side. But, the catcher, me, and the crowd all had a great laugh at Eddie's expense. And, that was part of what Eddie was all about - entertaining the fans. He brought joy to tens of millions over 60 years around the world. My world is better for having had the privilege of being on the same field (and getting an autographed softball for my collection).

[blue]

I played against Eddie and the Court in the late 70's. I could'nt tell you if he threw over 100 because i never saw the ball. I just took the ump at his word when he called strikes. We did win the game tho.

[argodad]

Originally Posted by SWFLguy

Quite the showman for sure. I called the plate for an exhibition game of the King and His Court back around 1980. He was probably a fireballer in his younger days, but did not have all that much velocity when I saw him.
Placement ? -- for sure.
RIP Eddie !

I remember a chat room Q&A with Eddie in the late 1990s. Someone asked him how hard he threw "now." His answer, "I still throw as hard as ever. The ball just doesn't go as fast."