Morgana the Kissing Bandit: How Many MLB Players Did She Actually Kiss?

Morgana the Kissing Bandit: How Many MLB Players Did She ...

By Fan Arch August 27, 2024 06:16

Photo by Manny Millan /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images

Morganna Roberts, born on July 04, 1947, in Louisville, Kentucky, was one of the most beloved figures in American sports history, known as " Morganna the Kissing Bandit". In her quest for fame, she accepted a dare from a friend in August 1969 to run onto Crosley Field during the game and kiss Reds player Pete Rose. What would become an impulsive act created a three-decade career that saw Morganna appear nationwide at baseball fields, basketball courts, and hockey rinks.

A Cincinnati sportswriter labeled her "The Kissing Bandit" with the headline 'Bandit steals a kiss from Pete Rose' when she appeared during one of her various stunts. The nickname stuck, and Morganna played up to it by turning her spontaneous act into a routine that would last for decades and endeared herself to American sports fans.

A Comprehensive List of MLB Players Morganna Kissed

Morganna was said to have kissed many MLB players during her career. Obviously, it's hard to track down all of them, so I've included an overview and rundown underneath the table.

Pete Rose (Cincinnati Reds)
Nolan Ryan (California Angels)
Steve Garvey (Los Angeles Dodgers)
George Brett (K.C. Royals)
Cal Ripken Jr. (Baltimore Orioles)
Johnny Bench (Cincinnati Reds)
Len Barker (Cleveland Indians)
Fred Lynn (California Angels)
Don Mattingly (New York Yankees)

Reality vs. Rumor

For as much lore behind Morganna as there is, verifying every alleged encounter with her would be quite laborious. Media authorities from that era highly publicized most of her kisses, mainly those with household names in players like Pete Rose and George Brett. But it's a little harder to independently verify the specific 37 MLB players Kiss claimed she'd kissed by 1990.

Others are sealed within baseball lore, like her 1969 kiss with Pete Rose, an incident the sources described as having been confirmed by multiple people. Others, particularly those with less prominent players or at the minor league level, may have written much less about them.

Of course, it's important to remember that Morganna wasn't just getting close with MLB players. She also said she had kissed 12 NBA players, as well as a wide array of minor league athletes, umpires, managers, and even team owners.

Player, Team, and League Official Reaction

How players, teams, and league officials reacted to a kiss from Morganna truly ran the gamut. Many of the players appeared to meet her antics with humor. Former Detroit Pistons player Kelly Tripucka added, "That's what it was like hugging a mattress. I felt like it was a Mack truck, man. I was faced with two choices: I could either be hit or move out of the path. I decided to get hit."

Some players even reprised a few of her actions. After Morganna kissed George Brett during a Baltimore Orioles game, he hit the stage three weeks later to kiss her as she performed while fans applauded.

Well, it was not all sunshine and butterflies in the reaction department. Morganna even felt the long arm of the law several times over her career, being arrested nearly 20 times for trespassing. She was arrested in Anaheim, California, and tried and acquitted for prostitution out of Houston. The fact that some people found her behavior amusing but others as jarring and hazardous is also reflected in those four legal affairs.

The Cultural and Social Implications

Her actions were seen as harmless fun and a source of amusement, given the spirit of the late 20th century in which she was participating. She was also known as "the grand dame of baseball" and was unofficially named the face of professional Baseball.

But her coming out of the stands and planting kisses on players without invitation posed a safety risk to fans, which would, odds are, not be looked at so fondly today. The fact that Morganna was arrested multiple times and was taken to court means some people were bothered by what she did, even in those days.

Another aspect is the gendered nature of Morganna's performances. Despite being a woman whose physical attributes were front and center, she was often joined on stage by comparisons to bust size; her act probably played to the stereotypes or at least expectations of that time.

Nonetheless, Morganna was popular without question. It was rumored that her investment in baseball led to part-ownership of a minor league club, the Utica Blue Sox, and she even appeared as an exhibit at the Baseball Hall of Fame. The kind of acceptance and de facto celebration from the baseball establishment is evidence that, for many, what she did was not just customary but an inherently good and entertaining part of the sport.

Morganna "The Kissing Bandit" Roberts has been immortalized in baseball and American sports. Though it's tough to say for sure the exact number of MLB entities this caught lips with, consider Morganna a lasting influence on America's pastime in more ways than one. Morganna first started making headlines with her passing infatuation and quick kiss of Pete Rose in 1969, which opened the door for questions about fan interaction as entertainment at sporting events.

Her legacy is nuanced and emblematic of how societal attitudes toward consent and the place of women in sports have evolved. In her time, she was celebrated as a performer and de facto symbol of audience loyalty but would probably be looked at more askance if some other fur-wearing star made the same statements today. But Morganna the Kissing Bandit is still one of a kind in baseball lore and represents an era that would not be seen again in sports or anything to do with being a fan.

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