The Little Gate-Crasher: The Life and Photos of Mace Bugen

By Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer

Mace Bugen might have been an achondroplastic dwarf—forty-three inches tall with an average-sized head and a torso set on small, twisted legs—but that didn’t mean he was an idiot or a pushover. In truth, he was smarter than most; over the years, he learned to effectively turn what society in those days called a “handicap” into a powerful tool he could use to his advantage.

At a time before cell phones or Andy Warhol, you could say that Bugen was the world’s first practitioner of the celebrity selfie. Or maybe you could say more accurately that he was the world’s first selfie photobomber. Over a period of three decades, using his unique combination of guile, cunning, disability, and sense of entitlement, Mace engineered photos of himself with some of the biggest celebrities of his day, among them Muhammad Ali, Jonas Salk, Jane Russell, Sammy Davis Jr, Joe DiMaggio, and Richard Nixon.

In a column dated September 28, 1955, Walter Winchell, the iconic and fedora wearing syndicated gossip columnist, included this item in his roundup: “The dwarf who crashes the gate at most major sports events (past the cops and attendants) is ‘Mace’ Bugen, an insurance and realty man of Phillipsburg, N.J.” Thereafter he was known wherever he went as The Little Gate-Crasher.

“When I was a kid,” Mace Bugen once said, “I’d ask myself, ‘Why is that guy on the football team? Why can’t I be on the team? Why didn’t God give me the height so I could be the hero?’

“Then at some point I figured it out: I gotta do something special to let ’em know I’m me.”

Read this moving and detailed account by his great niece, with photos included.

• Language: English
• Publisher: The Sager Group
• Release date: Apr 20, 2016
• ISBN: 9780996490139

Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer

Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer is a writer and educator based in Philadelphia, the author of two books of plays for children, and a theater workshop leader specializing in custom-designed programs for exploring Jewish sacred texts through creative writing and drama. She is married to Fred Kaplan-Mayer, executive director of the Hiway Theatre in Jenkintown, PA. Gabrielle works with couples as a wedding officiant, leading creative, personal wedding ceremonies. Click here to learn about how she can work with you and your partner to create a memorable Jewish Wedding.

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The Little Gate-Crasher: The Life and Photos of Mace Bugen. By Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer

Published at Smashwords

Copyright © 2016 by Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Published in the United States of America.

Cover designed by Stravinski Pierre and Siori Kitajima,SF AppWorks LLC http://www.sfappworks.com

Formatting by Siori Kitajima and and Ovidiu Vlad for SF AppWorks LLC

E-book formatted by Ovidiu Vlad

Cataloging-in-Publication data for this book

is available from the Library of Congress.

ISBN-13: 978-0-9964901-3-9

ISBN-10: 0-9964901-3-2

Published by The Sager Group LLC

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Photos Courtesy Lynn Auerbach-Kaplan

Scanning by North Shores Printery, Pacific Beach, CA

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For My Mom,

Lynn Auerbach-Kaplan

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Moishe Morris Mace Bugen

June 12, 1915 – October 31, 1982

Mace Bugen might have been an achondroplastic dwarf­—43 inches tall with an average size head and torso set on small, twisted legs—but that didn’t mean he was an idiot or a pushover. In truth, he was smarter than most; over the years, he learned to effectively turn what society in those days called a handicap into a powerful tool he could use to his advantage.

When I was a kid, he once said, "I’d ask myself, Why is that guy on the football team? Why can’t I be on the team? Why didn’t God give me the height so I could be the hero?

Then at some point I figured it out: I gotta do something special to let ’em know I’m me.

LIST OF PHOTOS

Moishe Morris Mace Bugen, June 12, 1915 – October 31, 1982

Mace (far right) at the bar mitzvah of Sager’s uncle, Paul R. Sager.

With Joe DiMaggio. The New York Yankees centerfielder, known as Joltin’ Joe, was married to Marilyn Monroe and still holds a major league baseball record for his a 56-game hitting streak.

With Muhammed Ali, 1970. Considered the greatest heavyweight in the history of boxing, Ali was a polarizing figure during the early part of his career due to his political outspokenness.

With Meadowlark Lemon (and boys from the Tallis & Tefillin club), 1970. Known as the Clown Prince of the Harlem Globetrotters, Lemon was also an ordained minister and TV star.

With Hank Aaron, 1972. Hammerin’ Hank Aaron is one of only two players to hit 30 or more home runs in a season at least fifteen times.

With Bob Feller, 1971. An eight-time All-Star with the Cleveland Indians, Feller was ranked 36th on The Sporting News Selects Baseball’s 100 Greatest Players and was named the publication’s greatest pitcher of his time.

With Mario Andretti. The naturalized US citizen was the only race car driver to win the Indianapolis 500, Daytona 500, and the Formula One World Championships.

With Willie Mays, 1972. The Hall of Famer started his career in the Negro American League and went on to be named to the Sporting News ’s 100 Greatest Players list.

With Bill Russell. The All-Star center lead the Celtics to 11 NBA championships and went on to become the NBA’s first African American coach.

With Larry Holmes, 1973. At age 22, the Easton, PA, native got his big break as a sparring partner for Muhammad Ali. Later he would beat Ali and become heavyweight champion.

With Joe Louis. Nicknamed The Brown Bomber, Louis held the world heavyweight championship from 1937–1949. He was Bugen’s first celebrity acquaintance.

With Jersey Joe Walcott. A New Jersey–born fighter, Walcott broke the world’s record for the oldest man to win the heavyweight title at age 37. In 1965, he refereed the controversial world heavyweight championship bout between Muhammad Ali and Sonny Liston.

Mace in his Hadassah Jeep. I never got mad at God. I figured he made me so that’s it, he once said.

With Harry James. The big band leader, James played trumpet with Benny Goodman and later was the first to hire a young vocalist named Frank Sinatra.

With Jane Russell (far right). One of Hollywood’s sex