Frank Bettger

Franklin Lyle Bettger (February 15, 1888 – November, 27, 1981), also known as Frank Betcher, was an American self-help book author and lecturer. He was a minor league baseball player and briefly played in the major leagues for the St. Louis Cardinals as a third baseman. He is the father of actor Lyle Bettger.

Early life Bettger was born on February 15, 1888. His birth name was Boettger but he removed the "o" from the spelling sometime in the 1900s. His father died when he was young and his mother was left to raise five children by herself. He attended James G. Blaine Grammar School in Philadelphia where he played baseball and football. He dropped out of school in the eighth grade to support his family. He worked as a plumber and steamfitter assistant and at the American Radiator Company.

Baseball career He continued to play baseball and joined a semi-pro team in Philadelphia. He began playing under the name Betcher. He claimed that it was initially an incorrect spelling of his last name on his contract that he did not correct. But he may have changed it himself for easier phonetic pronunciation as he began to get press coverage in the Philadelphia newspapers. He played shortstop for a team town in Bridgeton, New Jersey. In a game against a Red Donahue coached team, he impressed Donahue who convinced the Johnstown Johnnies in the Tri-State League to sign him for the 1907 season. He was coached by Charlie Atherton who kept him on the team despite a poor batting average. However, when Atherton was fired in May, the replacement coach, Tom Daly, released Bettger after just 12 games. The manager advised: "Try something else. That's not working."

Bettger coached baseball at Swarthmore College from 1915 to 1919. and How I Multiplied My Income and Happiness in Selling. How I Raised Myself... was translated into over a dozen languages, including British English, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, and Swedish. Bettger also gave a series of lectures to Jaycees organizations and to local chambers of commerce nationwide with Dale Carnegie.

Later life Bettger held insurance policies that would have benefited his wife after he died, but he lived into his 90s. Consequently, he and his wife outlived their assets. Members of the National Speakers Association contributed to help the couple meet their financial needs. After Frank died, Mrs. Bettger repaid the money from insurance proceeds. The money was then put into a fund dedicated to others in need, thus providing the original funding for the Professional Speakers Benefit Fund (PSBF). The mission of the PSBF is to help other members who may be indigent, face catastrophic health emergencies or losses, or outlive their assets.

He died on November 27, 1981, at his home in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania,

The book is also referenced in Whit Stillman's Barcelona as one of the books utilized by one of the main characters, a salesman.

Publications How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling, New York: Prentice-Hall, 1940 How One Idea Increased My Income and Happiness, New York: Dale Carnegie & Associates (New York), Inc., 1946 Benjamin Franklin's Secret of Success and What it Did for Me, Prentice-Hall, 1960. How I Learned the Secrets of Success in Selling, Kingswood, Sussex: The World's Work, 1961 How I Multiplied My Income and Happiness in Selling, Prentice-Hall, 1982.