On Twitter, a history prof. was asking who should play who in an historical movie. He wanted likenesses between historical figures and current actors. I think he had Jack Black playing someone? Sorry, it was a few weeks back. 

Anyway, this was my decidedly 20th-century contribution: 

The guy on the left is Cool Papa Bell, one of the best players in the Negro Leagues, and the man about whom it was said he was so fast he could turn off the light and be in bed before it got dark. He's been honored by both Ken Burns, in his baseball doc, and Paul Simon, in this song, but never by Hollywood. Not by name. And he's got a helluva name. 

The guy on the right is actor Jamie Hector, who played Marlo Stanfield, the cold-blooded gangster in seasons 3-5 of HBO's “The Wire.” I can't remember when I made the connection between the two. I think I was just looking at a photo of Cool Papa and going, “Who does this remind me of again?” Then it hit. 

Maybe HBO should do the movie? If you give it to a Hollywood studio, we‘ll get another “42” (if we’re lucky) or “Race” (if we're not).