Dorothy Helen Ruth Pirone (June 7, 1921 – May 18, 1989) was the biological daughter of the US baseball player

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

and his mistress Juanita Jennings (born Juanita Grenandtz)."Dorothy R. Pirone, 68, Babe Ruth's Daughter"
''The New York Times'', May 20, 1989. Accessed August 7, 2012. She was adopted by Babe and his first wife Helen Woodford Ruth of Boston Massachusetts. She wrote a memoir of her father, titled ''My Dad, the Babe''.

Childhood

Dorothy was born June 7, 1921 in New York City at St. Vincent's Hospital to Juanita Jennings, and was adopted by Babe and Helen Woodford. It is documented that Dorothy was raised to believe that Helen was her biological mother. It is speculated that Helen did not know that Dorothy was the result of an extramarital affair between Babe and his girlfriend Jennings. It is possible that when Babe Ruth learned of his mistress' pregnancy, he convinced Helen, unaware that Babe was the father, to adopt the baby girl. Babe Ruth also somehow convinced Dorothy's biological mother to allow him to adopt their daughter, so that she could be raised with him and (a possibly unsuspecting) Helen. Helen and Babe Ruth separated some time between 1924 and 1926. Babe and Helen Ruth did not divorce because of their religious beliefs. Dorothy lived with her adoptive mother Helen after the separation. In January 1929, when she was 7 years old, her mother died in a house fire. After Helen's death, Dorothy lived with her father and

Claire Merritt Ruth Claire Merritt Hodgson Ruth, born Clara Mae Merritt (September 11, 1900 – October 25, 1976), was a native of Athens, Georgia, United States, who is most famous for having been the second wife of Babe Ruth. Biography Claire's first husband, ...

, whom he married in April 1929. She had one step-sister as Babe had adopted Claire's daughter Julia. Dorothy learned at the age of 59 in 1980 that Juanita Jennings Ellias was her biological mother. Dorothy had known Juanita growing up, but only as a friend of her father. She referred to Jennings as Aunt Nita.

Later life

She married Daniel J. Sullivan, a Brooklyn employee of the

Railway Express Agency Railway Express Agency (REA), founded as the American Railway Express Agency and later renamed the American Railway Express Inc., was a national package delivery service that operated in the United States from 1918 to 1975. REA arranged trans ...

, on January 7, 1940. Her son, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. (1940 - 1974), was born in October 1940 and later had five children. Dorothy's marriage to Sullivan also produced two daughters, Genevieve Herrlein and Ellen Ruth Hourigan (1943-2017), before the union ended in 1945. Dorothy later married Dominick Pirone in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

on December 8, 1948. Three children were born of this second marriage: Donna Analovitch, Richard Pirone (1950-2001), and Linda Ruth Tosetti (b. 1954). She lived in

Durham, Connecticut Durham is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. Durham is a former farming village on the Coginchaug River in central Connecticut. The population was 7,152 at the 2020 census. Every autumn, the town hosts the Durham Fair, the ...

, raised

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s, and wrote ''My Dad, the Babe''. She was a joint

plaintiff A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of t ...

along with the

Babe Ruth League The Babe Ruth League is an international youth baseball and softball league based in Hamilton, New Jersey, US named after George Herman "Babe" Ruth. The parent program, Babe Ruth League, Incorporated, is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization. B ...

in a trademark dispute with Macmillan Incorporated over use of the Babe Ruth likeness.Dorothy Ruth Pirone, et.al. v. Macmillan, Inc., No. 89-7750, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
, 894 F.2d 579; 1990 U.S. App. LEXIS 1301. February 13, 1990. pdf accessed August 7, 2012. She died on May 18, 1989 at the age of 67 in

, survived by four daughters, a son and 12 grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruth, Dorothy 1921 births 1989 deaths Babe Ruth 20th-century American biographers American women biographers American adoptees