Widely regarded one of the greatest baseball players of all time and an American national hero, Joe DiMaggio died on 8 March, 1999, aged 84.

In a 15-year career with the New York Yankees, he won the sport’s Most Valuable Player award on three occasions and was named in the season end’s All-Star team thirteen times.

He also featured in ten World Series, of which the Yankees won nine, a record only surpassed by legendary team-mate Yogi Berra.

His fame, which transcended the game, was cemented by marriage to Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe in 1954.

Guiseppe Paolo DiMaggio was born on 25 November, 1914, in Martinez, California. He was the eighth of nine children born to Sicilian immigrant parents. The family moved to San Francisco when Joe was 12-months-old.

Consumed by baseball as a boy, who quickly became known to all as Joe, he played in the local baseball leagues until sensational batting figures alerted him to the Yankees’ scouts. He was duly signed up in 1934.

After making his Major League debut on 3 May, 1936, he helped his side win the World Series in his debut season. With Mr DiMaggio dressed in his trademark number five shirt, the Yankees went on to win the title for a further three consecutive years.

He also set a record of his own during the 1937 campaign – hitting a total of 46 home runs. Although, of his many feats, by far the most famous was his 56-game hitting streak in 1941, which remains unsurpassed to this day.

In February 1942, following America’s entry into the Second World War, Mr DiMaggio enlisted into the US air force rising to the rank of Sergeant. However, his popularity was so great it was feared that if he were to be killed national morale would plummet. To this end, he never left American shores during the conflict.

Mr DiMaggio resumed his heroic batting exploits post-war, and was once again a key member of the famous Yankee teams which won three World Series between 1949 and 1951, when a succession of injuries forced him to retire aged 37.

Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955, he was also voted the sport’s greatest living player in 1969.

After divorcing from his first wife, blonde actress Dorothy Arnold in 1943, he met a second on a blind date in 1952 – Marilyn Monroe . In January 1954 the pair were married but divorced just 10 months later.

Mr DiMaggio was said to have brought a grace and athleticism to a sport previously dominated by crude sluggers.

His life – which saw him rise from poor Italian immigrant’s son to national hero – embodied the American Dream. Paul Simon’s song Mrs Robinson famously paid tribute to “Joltin’ Joe” when it was released in 1968 and gained him a new generation of fans.

Off the field, Mr DiMaggio was said to possess class, elegance and a quiet dignity.

“This son of Italian immigrants gave every American something to believe in. He became the very symbol of American grace, power and skill,” President Bill Clinton said after hearing of his death from lung cancer.