Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Misc
What Should Marc Ecko Do with #756?
By
tien mao
Published Sep 18, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
tien mao
Published Sep 18, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Isn't the Internet wonderful? It lets baseball fans vote in an All-Star game player and now it lets people around the world decide what to do with a historic ball. After purchasing the ball that Barry Bonds hit to break baseball's all-time home run record, fashion designer Marc Ecko has decided to give the public a vote on what to do with the ball. On the website Vote756.com, Ecko gives voters three choices, "Bestow it. Brand it. Banish it." That's bestow it to Cooperstown and the Baseball Hall of Fame, brand it with an asterisk and then send it to Cooperstown, and banish it to space via rocket.
Ecko, who's no stranger to publicity stunts, was on the Today show yesterday discussing his idea, telling Matt Lauer and Ann Curry that he wanted "to democratize the ball and to give the ball to the people, give the ball to America." Democracy is expensive! Ecko paid $752,467 for the ball last week and was willing to pay whatever he had to in order to get it. As a "collector [and lover] of popular culture," Ecko wanted us all to have a moment together. For the record, Ecko voted to brand the ball with an asterisk.
Voting started yesterday and runs through 11:59 PM next Tuesday. Bonds broke Hank Aaron's home run record on August 7th in San Francisco, where Queens resident Matt Murphy caught the ball and decided to sell it because he was unable to pay the taxes to keep the ball. What does Murphy think of the voting? "This either makes him a lunatic or a genius, one of those two. I'm leaning toward genius." We're going with marketing lunatic. Murphy said he plans to bestow it.
Photo of Marc Ecko with Barry Bonds' 756th home run ball by AP/Mary Altaffer
Tagged
america
ann curry
As
barry bonds
baseball
Baseball Hall
culture
democracy
fashion
Hank Aaron
internet
marc ecko
Mary Altaffer
matt lauer
Matt Murphy
people
publicity
queens
san francisco
sports
taxes
video
voting
tien mao
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE miscellaneous
We visited 8 laundromats to talk about voting and elections. Here's what people had to say.
As we inch closer to Election Day in November, WNYC is turning some laundromats in the New York metro area into hubs of civic dialogue.
By
Jodi Malarbe
and
George Bodarky
Published Jun 23, 2024
Aging with Pride: LGBTQ+ older adults share their personal journeys
As we mark Pride month, LGBTQ+ older adults share their struggles, triumphs and advice for today’s generations.
By
George Bodarky
Misc
Aging with Pride: LGBTQ+ older adults share their personal journeys
As we mark Pride month, LGBTQ+ older adults share their struggles, triumphs and advice for today’s generations.
By
George Bodarky
Hands in the dirt: Meet some of NYC's community gardeners
By
Enrico Denard
and
George Bodarky
'In the very, very beginning, it was about 3 feet of garbage': How NYC’s first community garden got started
By
George Bodarky
Serving up BBQ ribs and a deep sense of community in the South Bronx since 1954
By
George Bodarky
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .