No No: A Dockumentary

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You know Henry James

said to be one of those

on whom nothing is lost.

Dock was one on whom

nothing was lost.

(Crowd cheering and music)

(Crowd cheering and music)

Commentator:
Well, here

we are in the 7th inning.

Dock Ellis working

on a no-hitter.

Dock Ellis has put

nine men on the bases.

Eight walks and one hit batsman,

but three outs separate him

and a no-hitter.

Somewhere along the line, I'm

sure this is all being recorded,

so that we can have it for

dock if he throws the epic.

Looking out at the scoreboard,

he can see zero, zero, zero

where it says San Diego.

Dock Ellis:
During the time when

i was pitching the no-hitter

in San Diego, I really

didn't know...

I didn't see the hitters.

All I could tell was if they

was on the right side

or the left side.

As far as seeing the target, the

catcher put tape on his fingers

so I could see the signals.

But as far as seeing

the batters themselves,

i didn't really see

who they were.

I didn't really see

who they were.

( Star spangled banner playing)

The opposing team and my

teammates, they knew I was high,

but they didn't know

what I was high on.

They didn't really see it,

but I had the acid in me,

and I didn't know what I

looked like with that acid.

I had lost all concept of time.

[Distorted announcer commentary]

[Distorted announcer commentary]

It was easier to pitch with

the LSD because I was

so used to medicating myself.

That's the way I was dealing

with the fear of failure.

You know, if dock's pitching,

you know he's high.

How high is he?

( Star spangled banner playing)

I pitched every game

in the major leagues

i pitched every game

in the major leagues

under the influence

of drugs.

( Star spangled banner playing)

(Music)

(Music)

(Music)

Dock Ellis pitched a

no-hitter on LSD.

Those who have taken LSD,

tell the others how hard

that might be.

You heard stories about him

that was wild stories,

but they really didn't

get the intellect of dock.

Oh, that's the dude used

to pitch for the pirates,

the acid guy.

Nah, it's cool.

You know.

I'm remembered.

You know, everybody

wants to be remembered.

Basically, one hell

of a pitcher.

Commentator:
The pirates,

in a world series

for the first time in 11 years,

start dock Ellis.

For the first time in 11 years,

start dock Ellis.

And there was no

cookie cutter persona to dock.

You never knew whether

he was serious,

whether he was kidding,

but he was always a guy

that had something to say.

He was probably one of the

most misunderstood people

in the game.

He done a lot of

damn good things

while he was doing

the bad things,

but no one... oh, no, no.

They don't pick that out.

They just pick the bad.

He understood playing,

but he understood,

I think, that he had

a better calling.

I think, that he had

a better calling.

I'm not one of those guys

that won 300 games

and a cy young award, but I was

a guy that was personable,

I was controversial.

My entire career I was

an angry black man.

I don't know.

I was there playing a dream of a

lot of people, but I was angry.

Dock, a militant,

black athlete.

He was a athlete,

and he was black.

He talked about race

but in a way that was

really accessible

and sort of logical.

He seemed to bend the rules

or chafe against authority

he seemed to bend the rules

or chafe against authority

a little bit.

There hadn't been a hell of

a lot of progress made

in terms of the comfort level

of players of color

since Jackie Robinson.

Dock was one of the most

impactful guys in regard

to those issues that has

ever come down the pike.

A lot people did

not understand him,

but if some people say that he

didn't know what he was doing,

that's wrong.

He knew what he was doing.

He always knew

what he was doing.

Dock was never the one

to appease the society.

Dock was never the one

to appease the society.

Dock's gonna tell it the way

it is, and you deal with it.

(Music)

(Music)

Dock Ellis.

Are you familiar with him?

Well, the baseball commissioner,

he's been ordered by the

commissioner not to wear hair

curlers during team practice.

Commissioner not to wear hair

curlers during team practice.

My hand on that.

The man had hair curlers

and was out.

He doesn't like that.

He's got... he's a

great pitcher.

He's got three great pitches.

A fastball, a slider,

and a spitcurl.

Have you seen that?

(Laughter)

Now you got to set the story

up with the fact that

we're playing all day games,

so everybody's hung over.

You know, we're out trying to

stay away from the manager,

so we're all out there

in the bullpen benches

and here comes dock

out of the dugout

with a gaggle of writers

and photographers.

With a gaggle of writers

and photographers.

Dock, any other town.

We're hurting.

We don't want to run, but we're

gonna run just to stay

out of this nonsense, just to

get away from this maniac

who's decided to put curlers

in his hair at wrigley field

when everybody has a hangover.

Not fair, dock.

Not good.

Not good on that day.

(Music)

Dock:
Putting curlers

in my hair.

Ah... you know, that was

hip and slick.

I was throwing spitballs.

I was throwing spitballs.

I had a perm, so all I had to do

was go to the back of my neck,

and I would have had

a handful of water.

Sweat.

I remember one time,

sweat coming off the ball,

and the umpire at third base

called time and said,

"he's throwing a spitball."

The home plate umpire told

the third base umpire

to get back to third base.

"You don't know what

you're talking about.

He throws a natural sinker."

He came out one day with

curlers in his hair,

and it, you know,

everybody was shocked.

And it, you know,

everybody was shocked.

I was sitting in the dugout with

Danny murtaugh, the manager,

and he says to me,

"hey, is this your buddy there?"

And I looked at him and

thought, "oh, my God.

Is this dock?"

And I looked again and it was

dock there, and there were

red and blue and yellow curlers

on his head.

Danny murtaugh came to me,

and he said, "Bob," he said,

"go out there in the bullpen

and tell dock

to take the curlers

out of his hair."

So I walked out, and dock knew

why I was coming out there.

He said, "alright.

What do you need?"

I said, "well..."

I said, "well..."

"'Bout my hair, isn't it?"

And I said, "yeah."

It was no big thing to me.

You know, I saw curlers

all the time.

And maybe it was

a cultural thing.

You know, in the black

community, you saw, you know,

sometimes men with

curlers in their hair.

So it wasn't nothing new to me.

(Music)

He always had a purpose

of doing something.

He always had a purpose

of doing something.

A lot of people thought

dock was crazy.

Dock wasn't crazy.

Dock knew a lot more than other

people, and he proved points

by making them on the

baseball field.

He took stands.

He felt that the brothers should

be able to wear their hair

any way they damn well please.

Dock:
In wearing the

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