Whenever Joe DiMaggio appeared at Yankee Stadium after retirement, he was always introduced as "the greatest living ballplayer." In the career-spanning Joltin' Joe DiMaggio, Richard Gilliam puts together the inspiring story of how he achieved that distinction when baseball was truly the national pastime and how he stayed in American hearts long after his departure from the game. DiMaggio's legendary status is more than his unbeatable record of a 56-game hitting streak in 1941 and his gliding greatness in the outfield as "The Yankee Clipper." With his supple wide-legged swing, DiMaggio batted in more runs per game than Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, and Hank Aaron - the third highest R.B.I. this century - and he struck out fewer times than any other power hitter with his home-run record. "Joe was the pride of baseball," said Cardinal outfielder Stan Musial, and rival Ted Williams admitted, "He could do it all." Joseph Paul DiMaggio possessed a dignity on and off field that carried him through not only thirteen seasons with the Yankees - and ten World Series - but also his famous marriage with Marilyn Monroe, his success as a pitchman, and appearances in works by Ernest Hemingway and Paul Simon. Joltin' Joe DiMaggio combines the best writing from newspapers, magazines, and books - including Esquire, The Sporting News, the Saturday Evening Post, Sports Illustrated, and many others - with fascinating and eye-opening interviews, featuring new and rare ones with athletes who playedwith and against the great Joe D.