We're Men Now: Urinals at Dodger Stadium

I recall when I was six years old, and my brother Chris was a few months shy of four, my father was teaching us how to use the toilet like a “man.” I remember him saying, “This is how a man uses the toilet.”

My brother and I were standing there, facing the toilet. He was so little that he had to stand on a small step to go. As we did our thing, we were laughing as the urine splashed into the toilet water and we could hear the sound of the steady stream.

That was my first—or at least earliest—experience I could remember standing upright to “take a leak.” It certainly was not my last.

Dad used to take us to several pro-sports games—football and baseball. We were always on the invite list for the after-party. My brother and I met several major league sports stars. I remember this one party—it was after a game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

It must have been in September 1966, as I vaguely remember school had started a month earlier. My mom didn’t want me and my brother to go, as it was a Sunday and we had to go to school the next day. But Dad convinced her because it was a once-in-a-lifetime event—we would be meeting the biggest star in baseball at the time. My brother and I were both excited and happy we’d be going.

It was a doubleheader game, so the second game ended around 5 p.m. or 6 p.m. Chris and I were pretty tired, but we were still excited to be going to the party after the game. We were just little ones, but we knew this was an exciting event. There were a lot of people dressed in suits. I don’t recall seeing many other kids there. As a matter of fact, I think my brother and I were the only kids present.

There were several tables with snack-type foods on them, such as bags of peanuts, bags of popcorn, and different candies. There was a man with a hot dog machine serving hot dogs and sodas. There was all kinds of food there. It was a food circus, and my brother and I were having the time of our lives. At that point in time, we were both big fans of hot dogs.

After gulping down a big soda, my brother had to use the toilet. Our dad was busy talking with some of the grown-ups, but my brother had to go pretty bad. So I tugged on his jacket to get his attention and let him know that Chris needed to use the toilet.

He took us to where the bathroom was, but for some reason, he didn’t go in with us. I can’t remember the reasoning, but he stood just outside the bathroom door, talking to some man. Could’ve been one of the baseball players—I’m not quite sure. But once my brother and I were inside the daunting large bathroom, which was nothing like the bathroom at home, we found the stalls where the toilets were and stood there in front of one. I remember my brother saying, “I’m not big enough.” But there was no step stool for him to stand on. I didn’t know what to do.

Then this man walked in, and I said to him, “My brother needs to use the toilet, but he can’t reach it.” So the man guided us out of the stall and took us to the urinals. I remember seeing them as we walked in, but I had no clue what those were. I just thought they looked pretty strange. The man explained that you stand in front of them and do your duty that way. So Chris and I stood in front of the same urinal, and we did what we had to do. I said to Chris, “See, we’re men now.”

The man was really kind. He helped us wash our hands afterward by lifting Chris up to the sink so he could wash his hands.

Once we were back at the party, there was an excitement in the air. It was time for the big event to happen. The one we were all waiting for was finally in the building. He was sitting at a table with two men standing beside him, and a long line assembled pretty quickly. My dad, Chris, and I were somewhere in the middle of the line. I remember it seemed like it took forever for us to get to the front and finally meet this famous baseball player.

When we finally made it, there he was—the man we had been waiting to meet. It was Sandy Koufax. He had just played one of the best games of his entire career, and everybody was excited that he was there in our presence. He seemed very sincere and happy to meet my brother and me, he shook our hands and signed a photograph for us. I don’t know whatever happened to that photograph. I’m going to have to search for it. But I don’t think we have it anymore. I can imagine it would be worth a chunk of change these days.

After all the excitement, it was getting pretty late. I believe it was around 9 p.m., and we had to be at school the next morning. So Dad drove us home, and Chris and I fell asleep in the car—but we were happy campers.

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With Love, RHC 🧢