Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on November 19, 1921.

Played for the Baltimore Elite Giants of the Negro Leagues from 1937 to 1942.

Made his Major League debut on April 20, 1948, with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Played with the Dodgers until 1957.

In 1953, he set single-season records for catchers with 41 home runs and a National League-best 142 RBI's. His home run record lasted until 1996, when it was broken by Todd Hundley.

His career was ended by an auto accident prior to the 1958 season that left him paralyzed from the chest down. Although physical therapy eventually allowed him to regain use of his arms and hands, he was confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of his life.

His final major league game, on September 29, 1957, was also the last major league game ever played at Brooklyn's Ebbets Field.

Campanella played in a total of 1,215 games, 1,183 of them as a catcher. He was a member of five World Series teams (1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956), and eight All-Star Team teams (1949-1956). He led National League catchers in putouts six times, hit 242 home runs as a catcher, and was the National League MVP in 1951, 1953, and 1955.

In May 1959, the Dodgers (by now located in Los Angeles) played an exhibition game against the New York Yank