Author's BIO
Larry Lester is an esteemed author, historian, and consultant in film and museum curation. He is renowned for his lifelong dedication to preserving African American history, particularly through the lens of sports and cultural heritage.
Co-Founder of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
As co-founder of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM) in Kansas City, Missouri, Lester played a pivotal role in its development. Between 1991 and 1995, he served as Research Director and Treasurer, shaping the Museum’s business plan and facilitating its incorporation in 1990. His efforts in launching the licensing program generated $1.4 million during the Museum’s formative years, providing crucial support for its growth. During his tenure at the NLBM, Lester served as Senior Editor for NLBM's quarterly newsletter Silhouettes, and its annual yearbook Discover Greatness!
Historical Artifact Preservation
Lester also acquired rare artifacts from the families of Satchel Paige, Oscar Charleston, Josh Gibson, Archie Ware, Chet Brewer and others for the NLBM's static exhibit and archives. He also works in support of other institutions in securing artifacts. In 1990, Lester secured full hooded Ku Klux Klan robes, covertly donating them to the Black Archives of Mid-America in Kansas City, Missouri, and the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. This bold acquisition underscored his commitment to preserving significant artifacts of African American history.
Negro Leagues Exhibits, Documentaries and Advocacy
The Museum’s current static exhibition and informational kiosks, were developed from Lester’s personal collection of historic photographs, accompanied with his captions written from archival news clippings. Lester curated the NLBM's inaugural traveling exhibit on the Negro Leagues, showcased annually at Major League Baseball’s FanFest since 1993. From 2022 to 2024, Lester served as a curatorial consultant for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s groundbreaking Black baseball exhibit: The Souls of the Game: Voices of Black Baseball.
He was also lead historical consultant for the 2023 documentary The League, produced by Emmy-winning Sam Pollard with sponsorship from Questlove. Critical reviews about The League can be found at Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB.
In 1995, he left NLBM to establish NoirTech Research, Inc., leveraging his expertise in research and technology to explore African American contributions in sports, scholarship, and entertainment.
His advocacy led to landmark achievements, including securing retroactive Major League Baseball (MLB) pensions for over 90 Negro League veterans in 1997 and enrolling approximately 150 former players in Major League Baseball Properties’ royalty program. These initiatives resulted in $143,248 awarded to surviving Negro League players—a testament to Lester’s dedication to justice and equity.
Advancing Black History Preservation
Lester’s efforts extend beyond the sports world. For over a decade, he has work in partnership with Dr. Jeremy Krock to fund and install more than 50 headstones on unmarked graves of Black athletes. His work highlights the importance of honoring those who have shaped history.
In August 2013, he and several associates and 12 players were invited to the White House and recognized by President Barack Obama. Read about the former players honored at the White House HERE. Ten years later, Lester donated more than 8,000 minutes of player interviews to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
Collaborations and Cultural Impact
In 2006, Lester chaired the Special Negro Leagues Committee for the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum, selecting a record 17 new Negro League players, executives, and managers—an unprecedented recognition of their contributions. Also that year, he successfully campaigned with Senator Bill Nelson (of Florida), former player Bob Mitchell, and Satchel Paige's children for Congress to designate May 20th as `Negro Leaguers Recognition Day'.
That same year, he co-founded the 100 Black Men of Greater Kansas City, spearheading mentoring programs, reading initiatives, and financial literacy courses for youth. It's motto: "Real Men, Giving Real Time!" employed four pillars of commitment: 1) Education, 2) Economic Empowerment, 3) Health & Wellness, and 4) Mentoring. The parent organization was started in New York City (1963) by Jackie Robinson and other businessmen and chartered as the "100 Black Men, Inc." to signify a sign of solidarity.
Negro League Statistics Recognition
In December 2020, Lester’s comprehensive compilation of Negro League records (1920–1948) was officially recognized by Major League Baseball (MLB), rewriting the historical record books. Read a tribute by Thomas White for The VOICE on how Lester started this statistical renaissance. Read Lester's Op-Ed on the statistical revolution HERE. FAQs can be found at Baseball-Reference.com. As a member of Commissioner Rob Manfred's Negro Leagues Statistical Review Committee, Lester was honored with a lifetime season pass to every major league game.
Leadership and Community Engagement
In 2017, Lester was named President of the Greater Kansas City Black History Study Group (GKCBHSG), a branch of the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History (ASALH), founded by Dr. Carter G. Woodson in 1915. The mission of the ASALH is to promote, research, preserve, interpret and disseminate information about Black life, history and culture to the global community.
Lester’s leadership as President from 2017 onward brought transformative initiatives to the branch, including motor coach tours of local historic sites for two years, artistic cemetery walking tours using CLIO, an educational website and mobile application that guides the public using GPS coordinates and video. The branch also had collaboration with organizations like the Garrison School Cultural Center to examine the Great African American Migration tasking students to interview seniors.
The branch's projects also extended to Women’s History Month campaigns, with daily posting of biographies on Facebook of local Black women during March in 2018 and 2019. There was a special emphasis in 2020 to recognize 31 nationally known Black women suffragists to promote ASALH’s theme “African Americans and the Vote.” Posters and publications were made available to the public for the three years. Additionally, the branch published a 14-page bibliography of “The Best Books to Research and Write about Life and History in Greater Kansas City.” As the branch membership grows incrementally, it has eight institutional members with solid support from local museums and libraries.
Lester is also an active member of M.A.G.I.C., Midwest Afro American Genealogy Interest Coalition, based in Kansas City.
Scholarship
Up until 2021, Lester was chairman of the Society for American Baseball Research's (SABR) Negro Leagues Committee. For more than 30 years, he annually hosted and emceed the Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference, the only academic symposium dedicated exclusively to the examination and promotion of black baseball history. The conference annually awarded four essay scholarships and two library grants.
Lester’s impact as an author, contributing researcher, and consultant spans nearly 250 publications, 12 author/editor books, written forewords to seven books and has worked with renowned media outlets like HBO Real Sports, ESPN, PBS, C-SPAN, MSNBC, TV One, BET and CNN. Lester has appeared on talk shows with Charles Barkley, Bryant Gumbel, Roland Martin, Harold Reynolds, Michael Smith, Stephen A. Smith and Michael Wilbon. His Mount Rushmore of literary giants are Sam Lacy, Shirley Povich, Lester Rodney, and Wendell Smith.
Testimonials
Author and historian John B. Holway claimed, "Larry Lester might know more about the Negro Leagues and their players than anyone else. He's certainly among the top five scholars." Award winning author Lonnie Wheeler, I Had A Hammer (with Hank Aaron), Pitch by Pitch (with Bob Gibson), and The Bona Fide Legend of Cool Papa Bell, called Lester "the de facto chairman of all things Negro League."
Lester's Wikipedia page can be found at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Lester
For more information about Lester's personal journey into Black Baseball history read Gare Joyce's article's Fitting Tribute. Also read MLB official historian John Thorn's tribute to Lester HERE. And read Lester's statistical journey into baseball at the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Legacy
Through his unwavering dedication to preserving African American history and advocating for justice, Larry Lester has left an indelible mark on cultural heritage and the lives of countless individuals. His passion, expertise, and advocacy inspire future generations to continue the vital work of historical preservation.
For fee-based lectures, seminars, panel discussions, educational forums, workshops, exhibit bookings, presentations, and/or book signings, see contact information below. Read speaker bureau's bio on Lester HERE.
Co-Founder of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
As co-founder of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM) in Kansas City, Missouri, Lester played a pivotal role in its development. Between 1991 and 1995, he served as Research Director and Treasurer, shaping the Museum’s business plan and facilitating its incorporation in 1990. His efforts in launching the licensing program generated $1.4 million during the Museum’s formative years, providing crucial support for its growth. During his tenure at the NLBM, Lester served as Senior Editor for NLBM's quarterly newsletter Silhouettes, and its annual yearbook Discover Greatness!
Historical Artifact Preservation
Lester also acquired rare artifacts from the families of Satchel Paige, Oscar Charleston, Josh Gibson, Archie Ware, Chet Brewer and others for the NLBM's static exhibit and archives. He also works in support of other institutions in securing artifacts. In 1990, Lester secured full hooded Ku Klux Klan robes, covertly donating them to the Black Archives of Mid-America in Kansas City, Missouri, and the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. This bold acquisition underscored his commitment to preserving significant artifacts of African American history.
Negro Leagues Exhibits, Documentaries and Advocacy
The Museum’s current static exhibition and informational kiosks, were developed from Lester’s personal collection of historic photographs, accompanied with his captions written from archival news clippings. Lester curated the NLBM's inaugural traveling exhibit on the Negro Leagues, showcased annually at Major League Baseball’s FanFest since 1993. From 2022 to 2024, Lester served as a curatorial consultant for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s groundbreaking Black baseball exhibit: The Souls of the Game: Voices of Black Baseball.
He was also lead historical consultant for the 2023 documentary The League, produced by Emmy-winning Sam Pollard with sponsorship from Questlove. Critical reviews about The League can be found at Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB.
In 1995, he left NLBM to establish NoirTech Research, Inc., leveraging his expertise in research and technology to explore African American contributions in sports, scholarship, and entertainment.
His advocacy led to landmark achievements, including securing retroactive Major League Baseball (MLB) pensions for over 90 Negro League veterans in 1997 and enrolling approximately 150 former players in Major League Baseball Properties’ royalty program. These initiatives resulted in $143,248 awarded to surviving Negro League players—a testament to Lester’s dedication to justice and equity.
Advancing Black History Preservation
Lester’s efforts extend beyond the sports world. For over a decade, he has work in partnership with Dr. Jeremy Krock to fund and install more than 50 headstones on unmarked graves of Black athletes. His work highlights the importance of honoring those who have shaped history.
In August 2013, he and several associates and 12 players were invited to the White House and recognized by President Barack Obama. Read about the former players honored at the White House HERE. Ten years later, Lester donated more than 8,000 minutes of player interviews to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
Collaborations and Cultural Impact
In 2006, Lester chaired the Special Negro Leagues Committee for the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum, selecting a record 17 new Negro League players, executives, and managers—an unprecedented recognition of their contributions. Also that year, he successfully campaigned with Senator Bill Nelson (of Florida), former player Bob Mitchell, and Satchel Paige's children for Congress to designate May 20th as `Negro Leaguers Recognition Day'.
That same year, he co-founded the 100 Black Men of Greater Kansas City, spearheading mentoring programs, reading initiatives, and financial literacy courses for youth. It's motto: "Real Men, Giving Real Time!" employed four pillars of commitment: 1) Education, 2) Economic Empowerment, 3) Health & Wellness, and 4) Mentoring. The parent organization was started in New York City (1963) by Jackie Robinson and other businessmen and chartered as the "100 Black Men, Inc." to signify a sign of solidarity.
Negro League Statistics Recognition
In December 2020, Lester’s comprehensive compilation of Negro League records (1920–1948) was officially recognized by Major League Baseball (MLB), rewriting the historical record books. Read a tribute by Thomas White for The VOICE on how Lester started this statistical renaissance. Read Lester's Op-Ed on the statistical revolution HERE. FAQs can be found at Baseball-Reference.com. As a member of Commissioner Rob Manfred's Negro Leagues Statistical Review Committee, Lester was honored with a lifetime season pass to every major league game.
Leadership and Community Engagement
In 2017, Lester was named President of the Greater Kansas City Black History Study Group (GKCBHSG), a branch of the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History (ASALH), founded by Dr. Carter G. Woodson in 1915. The mission of the ASALH is to promote, research, preserve, interpret and disseminate information about Black life, history and culture to the global community.
Lester’s leadership as President from 2017 onward brought transformative initiatives to the branch, including motor coach tours of local historic sites for two years, artistic cemetery walking tours using CLIO, an educational website and mobile application that guides the public using GPS coordinates and video. The branch also had collaboration with organizations like the Garrison School Cultural Center to examine the Great African American Migration tasking students to interview seniors.
The branch's projects also extended to Women’s History Month campaigns, with daily posting of biographies on Facebook of local Black women during March in 2018 and 2019. There was a special emphasis in 2020 to recognize 31 nationally known Black women suffragists to promote ASALH’s theme “African Americans and the Vote.” Posters and publications were made available to the public for the three years. Additionally, the branch published a 14-page bibliography of “The Best Books to Research and Write about Life and History in Greater Kansas City.” As the branch membership grows incrementally, it has eight institutional members with solid support from local museums and libraries.
Lester is also an active member of M.A.G.I.C., Midwest Afro American Genealogy Interest Coalition, based in Kansas City.
Scholarship
Up until 2021, Lester was chairman of the Society for American Baseball Research's (SABR) Negro Leagues Committee. For more than 30 years, he annually hosted and emceed the Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference, the only academic symposium dedicated exclusively to the examination and promotion of black baseball history. The conference annually awarded four essay scholarships and two library grants.
Lester’s impact as an author, contributing researcher, and consultant spans nearly 250 publications, 12 author/editor books, written forewords to seven books and has worked with renowned media outlets like HBO Real Sports, ESPN, PBS, C-SPAN, MSNBC, TV One, BET and CNN. Lester has appeared on talk shows with Charles Barkley, Bryant Gumbel, Roland Martin, Harold Reynolds, Michael Smith, Stephen A. Smith and Michael Wilbon. His Mount Rushmore of literary giants are Sam Lacy, Shirley Povich, Lester Rodney, and Wendell Smith.
Testimonials
Author and historian John B. Holway claimed, "Larry Lester might know more about the Negro Leagues and their players than anyone else. He's certainly among the top five scholars." Award winning author Lonnie Wheeler, I Had A Hammer (with Hank Aaron), Pitch by Pitch (with Bob Gibson), and The Bona Fide Legend of Cool Papa Bell, called Lester "the de facto chairman of all things Negro League."
Lester's Wikipedia page can be found at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Lester
For more information about Lester's personal journey into Black Baseball history read Gare Joyce's article's Fitting Tribute. Also read MLB official historian John Thorn's tribute to Lester HERE. And read Lester's statistical journey into baseball at the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Legacy
Through his unwavering dedication to preserving African American history and advocating for justice, Larry Lester has left an indelible mark on cultural heritage and the lives of countless individuals. His passion, expertise, and advocacy inspire future generations to continue the vital work of historical preservation.
For fee-based lectures, seminars, panel discussions, educational forums, workshops, exhibit bookings, presentations, and/or book signings, see contact information below. Read speaker bureau's bio on Lester HERE.
TED WILLIAMS' Hall of Fame induction speech in part
- June of 1966, in Cooperstown, NY.
“The other day Willie Mays hit his 522nd home run. He has gone past me, and he’s pushing, and I say to him, 'Go get ‘em, Willie.' Baseball gives every American boy a chance to excel. Not just to be as good as someone else, but to be better. This is the nature of man and the name of the game. I hope that one day Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson will be voted into the Hall of Fame as symbols of the great Negro players who are not here only because they weren’t given the chance.”
50th Anniversary of Satchel Paige's HOF Induction article by ESPN's Willie Weinbaum
Video Link of Ted Williams
- June of 1966, in Cooperstown, NY.
“The other day Willie Mays hit his 522nd home run. He has gone past me, and he’s pushing, and I say to him, 'Go get ‘em, Willie.' Baseball gives every American boy a chance to excel. Not just to be as good as someone else, but to be better. This is the nature of man and the name of the game. I hope that one day Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson will be voted into the Hall of Fame as symbols of the great Negro players who are not here only because they weren’t given the chance.”
50th Anniversary of Satchel Paige's HOF Induction article by ESPN's Willie Weinbaum
Video Link of Ted Williams
