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Henry Wiggen #3
A Ticket for a Seamstitch
This is the third novel narrated by Henry Wiggen, a six-foot three-inch, 195-pound, left-handed pitcher for the New York Mammoths. Henry, who began as a rookie in The Southpaw and developed into a pro in Bang the Drum Slowly , is a mature veteran in A Ticket for a Seamstitch .
A seamstress from "somewhere out West" writes to Henry, her hero, that she will be in New York to watch the Mammoths play on the Fourth of July. When she arrives in New York, both the married Henry and his pal, the very unmarried Thurston "Piney" Woods, are at a loss as to what to do with their visitor. The two men finally do the decent they take the seamstress to the automat for dinner. In so doing, they both learn some things worth knowing, although the distraction undoubtedly affects their performance in the big game.
In the essay "Easy Does It Not" Mark Harris describes the origins of this wonderfully comic novel.
A seamstress from "somewhere out West" writes to Henry, her hero, that she will be in New York to watch the Mammoths play on the Fourth of July. When she arrives in New York, both the married Henry and his pal, the very unmarried Thurston "Piney" Woods, are at a loss as to what to do with their visitor. The two men finally do the decent they take the seamstress to the automat for dinner. In so doing, they both learn some things worth knowing, although the distraction undoubtedly affects their performance in the big game.
In the essay "Easy Does It Not" Mark Harris describes the origins of this wonderfully comic novel.
143 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1985
About the author
Mark Harris
284 books25 followersHarris was born Mark Harris Finkelstein in Mount Vernon, New York, to Carlyle and Ruth (Klausner) Finkelstein. At the age of 11, he began keeping a diary, which he would maintain for every day of his life thereafter.
After graduating in 1940 from Mount Vernon High School, he dropped his surname because "it was a difficult time for kids with Jewish names to get jobs." He subsequently went to work for Paul Winkler's Press Alliance news agency in New York City as a messenger and mimeograph operator.
He was drafted into the United States Army in January 1943. His growing opposition to war and his anger at the prevalence of racial discrimination in the Army led him to go AWOL from Camp Wheeler, Georgia, in February 1944. He was soon arrested and then hospitalized for psychoneurosis. He was honorably discharged in April 1944. His wartime experience formed the basis for two of his novels, Trumpet to the World (1946) and Something About a Soldier (1957).
Harris joined The Daily Item of Port Chester, New York, as a reporter in May 1944. A year later he accepted a position with PM in New York City but was fired after two months. In July 1945 he was hired by the International News Service and moved to St. Louis. While there, he met coworker Josephine Horen, whom he would marry in March 1946. After resigning in July 1946, he spent the next year and a half in a succession of short-lived journalism jobs in Albuquerque, New Mexico (Albuquerque Journal), Chicago (Negro Digest and Ebony), and New York (Park Row News Service).
In February 1948, Harris abandoned journalism to enroll in the University of Denver, from which he received a Master's degree in English in 1951 as well as obtaining a PhD in American Studies from the University of Minnesota in 1956.
In September 1956, he was hired by the English department of San Francisco State College, where he taught until 1967. He went on to teach at several other universities, including Purdue, California Institute of the Arts, the University of Southern California, and the University of Pittsburgh. In September 1980, he joined the faculty of Arizona State, where he was a professor of English and taught in the creative writing program until his retirement in 2001.
His first novel, Trumpet to the World, is the story of a young black soldier married to a white woman who is put on trial for striking back at a white officer, was published in 1946, and he continued to produce novels and contribute to periodicals through the years. In 1960, while in his first college teaching position, Harris promoted his then-most-recent book in a TV appearance as guest contestant in "You Bet Your Life", a game played on The Groucho Show.
In January 1962, Something About a Soldier, a stage version of Harris's novel, played briefly on Broadway. Written by Ernest Kinoy and produced by the Theatre Guild, it featured Sal Mineo in the lead role. Later, the novel Bang the Drum Slowly was adapted into a stage play at the Next Theatre in Evanston, Illinois.
Harris died of complications of Alzheimer's disease at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital at age 84. He was survived by his wife, Josephine Horen; his sister, Martha; two sons, one daughter, and three grandchildren.
Harris was best known for a quartet of novels about baseball players: The Southpaw (1953), Bang the Drum Slowly (1956), A Ticket for a Seamstitch (1957), and It Looked Like For Ever (1979). Written in the vernacular, the books are the account of Henry "Author" Wiggen, a pitcher for the fictional New York Mammoths. In 1956, Bang the Drum Slowly was adapted for an installment of the dramatic television anthology series The United States Steel Hour; starring Paul Newman as Wiggen and Albert Salmi as doomed catcher Bruce Pearson. The novel also became a major motion picture in 1973, with a screenplay written by Harris, directed by John D. Hancock and featuring Michael Moriarty as Wiggen and Robert De Niro as Pearson.
After graduating in 1940 from Mount Vernon High School, he dropped his surname because "it was a difficult time for kids with Jewish names to get jobs." He subsequently went to work for Paul Winkler's Press Alliance news agency in New York City as a messenger and mimeograph operator.
He was drafted into the United States Army in January 1943. His growing opposition to war and his anger at the prevalence of racial discrimination in the Army led him to go AWOL from Camp Wheeler, Georgia, in February 1944. He was soon arrested and then hospitalized for psychoneurosis. He was honorably discharged in April 1944. His wartime experience formed the basis for two of his novels, Trumpet to the World (1946) and Something About a Soldier (1957).
Harris joined The Daily Item of Port Chester, New York, as a reporter in May 1944. A year later he accepted a position with PM in New York City but was fired after two months. In July 1945 he was hired by the International News Service and moved to St. Louis. While there, he met coworker Josephine Horen, whom he would marry in March 1946. After resigning in July 1946, he spent the next year and a half in a succession of short-lived journalism jobs in Albuquerque, New Mexico (Albuquerque Journal), Chicago (Negro Digest and Ebony), and New York (Park Row News Service).
In February 1948, Harris abandoned journalism to enroll in the University of Denver, from which he received a Master's degree in English in 1951 as well as obtaining a PhD in American Studies from the University of Minnesota in 1956.
In September 1956, he was hired by the English department of San Francisco State College, where he taught until 1967. He went on to teach at several other universities, including Purdue, California Institute of the Arts, the University of Southern California, and the University of Pittsburgh. In September 1980, he joined the faculty of Arizona State, where he was a professor of English and taught in the creative writing program until his retirement in 2001.
His first novel, Trumpet to the World, is the story of a young black soldier married to a white woman who is put on trial for striking back at a white officer, was published in 1946, and he continued to produce novels and contribute to periodicals through the years. In 1960, while in his first college teaching position, Harris promoted his then-most-recent book in a TV appearance as guest contestant in "You Bet Your Life", a game played on The Groucho Show.
In January 1962, Something About a Soldier, a stage version of Harris's novel, played briefly on Broadway. Written by Ernest Kinoy and produced by the Theatre Guild, it featured Sal Mineo in the lead role. Later, the novel Bang the Drum Slowly was adapted into a stage play at the Next Theatre in Evanston, Illinois.
Harris died of complications of Alzheimer's disease at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital at age 84. He was survived by his wife, Josephine Horen; his sister, Martha; two sons, one daughter, and three grandchildren.
Harris was best known for a quartet of novels about baseball players: The Southpaw (1953), Bang the Drum Slowly (1956), A Ticket for a Seamstitch (1957), and It Looked Like For Ever (1979). Written in the vernacular, the books are the account of Henry "Author" Wiggen, a pitcher for the fictional New York Mammoths. In 1956, Bang the Drum Slowly was adapted for an installment of the dramatic television anthology series The United States Steel Hour; starring Paul Newman as Wiggen and Albert Salmi as doomed catcher Bruce Pearson. The novel also became a major motion picture in 1973, with a screenplay written by Harris, directed by John D. Hancock and featuring Michael Moriarty as Wiggen and Robert De Niro as Pearson.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
March 9, 2023
My least favorite of the series so far, and a tremendous disappointment after how much I enjoyed the prior installment.
On a positive note, this was also (again, by far) the shortest in the series (indeed, more of a novella than a novel) and, by and large, the funniest (at least so far). But 'twas very much a horse of a different color from its predecessors.
Given how little there was to the book, I can't fathom that it would work for folks who hadn't read the first two. Indeed, other than the funny stuff, everything seemed like (OK, excuse the pun) inside baseball.
Given that there's only one more book in the series, I expect I'll eventually read it (but, after this one, I'm in no rush).
On a positive note, this was also (again, by far) the shortest in the series (indeed, more of a novella than a novel) and, by and large, the funniest (at least so far). But 'twas very much a horse of a different color from its predecessors.
Given how little there was to the book, I can't fathom that it would work for folks who hadn't read the first two. Indeed, other than the funny stuff, everything seemed like (OK, excuse the pun) inside baseball.
Given that there's only one more book in the series, I expect I'll eventually read it (but, after this one, I'm in no rush).
July 14, 2008
Ticket is the third of Harris' novels about left-handed pitcher of the New York Mammoths, Henry "Author" Wiggin. Actually, its no more than a novella, started as magazine story and flying by in little more than 120 large-type pages.
As with the previous two books ("The Southpaw" "Bang The Drum Slowly")although this one is set in the world of baseball, its really a character study. As with its predecessors, it is alos by turns funny, enlightening and touching. Harris deftly handles the baseball stuff, but where his real mastery lies is in creating unique and enjoyable characters and his sense of voice--Wiggin's first person vernacular narrative style is as distinctive as they get.
Although slighter than the first two books, this one is also a charmer--count me amoung the legions of fans who feel lucky whenver I get a chance to spend a couple hours with Mr. Author Wiggin.
As with the previous two books ("The Southpaw" "Bang The Drum Slowly")although this one is set in the world of baseball, its really a character study. As with its predecessors, it is alos by turns funny, enlightening and touching. Harris deftly handles the baseball stuff, but where his real mastery lies is in creating unique and enjoyable characters and his sense of voice--Wiggin's first person vernacular narrative style is as distinctive as they get.
Although slighter than the first two books, this one is also a charmer--count me amoung the legions of fans who feel lucky whenver I get a chance to spend a couple hours with Mr. Author Wiggin.
September 24, 2025
Pitcher Henry Wiggen chases a record while his wild roommate and erratic catcher Piney Woods chases a dream in Mark Harris's third baseball novel, ostensibly another memoir from "Author" Wiggen, this time "polished for the printer" by his fictional editor. Following on The Southpaw and Bang the Drum Slowly, Seamstitch is the shortest of these adventures in the dugout, locker room, outfield, and hotel rooms, with a few trips to the Automat rounding out Wiggen's gallant attempts to square things with a unknown fan, sort of a baseball groupie, who falls short of Piney's expectations when they actually meet. I read these gathered in one 600-page paperback omnibus, and besides the humor I'm mainly most impressed with the voice of Wiggen himself, who is a sharp, honest, and compelling narrator. Looking forward to tracking down the last Wiggen novel It Looked Like For Ever, which charts his last playing days.
May 15, 2017
This is the third novel narrated by Henry Wiggen, a six-foot three-inch, 195-pound, left-handed pitcher for the New York Mammoths. Henry, who began as a rookie in The Southpaw and developed into a pro in Bang the Drum Slowly, is a mature veteran in A Ticket for a Seamstitch. This is a short little book with a lot of humor in it. If you have read the 1st two books in this series, there is no reason not to read this one. It is enjoyable.
November 10, 2021
The third book in the original trilogy but later in the four-part saga. This one was funny and entertaining and a quick read. I didn't want to put it down. I would like to know what became of the Seamstitch though.
May 20, 2017
Don't forget about Harris's books. They are all very solid. Baseball fans will love them.
June 7, 2016
A disappointment after the first two books of Harris's series about Henry "Author" Wiggen, star pitcher for the New York Mammoths in the 1950s. The Southpaw was clever and engaging, and Bang the Drum Slowly was downright brilliant; this little novella just doesn't live up to its predecessors. The plot is thin, the characters are not drawn as vividly as they are in the other books, and, worst of all, we simply don't get enough of Henry's thoughts and his unique interpretations of the world around him. I still enjoyed the glimpse into the inner workings of a baseball team--the descriptions of the on-field action and interactions are the best parts of the book--but A Ticket for a Seamstitch never quite comes alive off the field.
June 16, 2008
Many years ago I listened to the other three books (The Southpaw, Bang the Drum Slowly and It Looked Like Forever) in this series about baseball player Henry Wiggin. I really enjoyed them - they were funny and sweet and the narrator was perfect as Henry who spoke in a grammatically imperfect small-town dialect. To try to read it I found, is a chore. ("Of" instead of "how," "leave" instead of "let" and many other examples I couldn't figure out.) There's also a great deal of play-by-play baseball in this one than in the others and much less about the characters. So it's a miss for me.
December 26, 2015
The book should not be called a novel, at 143 pages,I'd call it a novella and not a very good one at that.It is the 3rd of 4 stores concerning Henny Wiggen, star pitcher for the " New York Mammouths " The other three "the Southpaw " Bang the Drum Slowly " and It Looked like Four Ever" I gave 4 stars each, so why only 2 stars for this one ? The story line is very weak, not much of a plot and very short on inventiveness, there is easy reading and there is literature. This book was neither. I'm sorry I took the time to read it.
March 29, 2019
This is the third book of four that Mark Harris wrote about Henry Wiggen, a fictional pitcher for the equally fictional New York Mammoths. It is a very short novel and easily the weakest of the series. It’s value is showing Wiggen and his performance level at that point in his career, but little else. The other books in the series are much more enjoyable.
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January 3, 2009The "lightest" and shortest of Harris's Henry Wiggen books, this is a novella or extended short story. Less memorable than the others in the series, but there's an excellent introductory essay on writing. Harris is an outstanding writer.
September 5, 2010
The last and least substantial of Harris's 3 Wiggen books from the '50s, and if you poke around in used-book stores, you can find all 3 in the edition I actually have. He revisited the character decades later, and we'll get to that one next year.
August 27, 2012
This book series is brilliant for its characterization and style. I love the way Harris humanizes baseball and its players, making a fake 'immortal' seem like someone you have had coffee with at the automat.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews