On April 8,1974, in his 20th major-league season, Henry Louis Aaron ripped the 715th home run of his baseball career to pass Babe Ruth as the game's all-time home run king.

	Hank Aaron is the first player to reach 3,000 hits and 500 homers.

It was the crowning moment in a glorious career. Born Feb. 5, 1934, in Mobile, Ala., Aaron played 23 seasons in the major leagues. In addition to setting the all-time home run record (755), he also hammered his way into the record book for most runs batted in (2,297), total bases (6,856) and extra-base hits (1,477). He ranks second in at-bats (12,364), tied for third with Babe Ruth in runs (2,174), and third in hits (3,771) and games played (3,298).

He is the only player to hit at least 30 homers in 15 seasons and at least 20 homers in 20 years. He hit at least 40 homers eight times, with a career-best of 47. He is the first player to reach both 3,000 hits and 500 homers. He led the National League in homers and RBI four times each and played in 24 All-Star Games.

But Hank Aaron forever will be remembered for his pursuit and conquest of Ruth's record. The chase began to heat up in the summer of 1973, and with it came the mail -- an estimated 3,000 letters a day, many of which were racist, degrading and even threatening. "This," Aaron said of the letters, "changed me."

He finished that season with 713 homers, then opened the '74 season with No. 714 on his first swing of opening day. On April 8, the largest crowd in Braves history (53,775) came out to witness history, and Aaron delievered in the fourth inning.

After retiring as a player, Aaron became one of the first blacks in upper-level management as a Braves vice president and director of player development. Since December 1989 he has served as senior vice president and assistant to the president, but he's more active for Turner Broadcasting as a corporate vice president of community relations and a member of TBS' board of directors. He also is vice president of business development for The Airport Network.

To this day, he still has the letters that dogged him in his pursuit of Ruth. "I read the letters," he said, "because they remind me not to be surprised or hurt. They remind me what people are really like."