Bing Russell

Bing Russell was an American actor and baseball club owner. He was the father of Golden Globenominated actor Kurt Russell and grandfather of exmajor league baseball player Matt Franco.

Russell was born Neil Oliver Russell in Brattleboro, Vermont, the son of Ruth Stewart and Warren Oliver Russell. He always wanted to become an actor and studied drama at Brattleboro High School. As a boy, he was dubbed an unofficial mascot of the New York Yankees, becoming good friends with the likes of Lefty Gomez and Joe DiMaggio. Also, Lou Gehrig, who was already weakened by illness, gave him the last bat he used to hit a home run before his retirement. At one point in the 50s, Bing ran Teddys Restaurant where employee Alfreda Couitt introduced Bing to his future wife, Louise.

Source: Wikipedia