On Tuesday 9 March 2010 a book was published titled: The Baseball Fan’s Bucket List: 162 Things You Must Do, See, Get, and Experience Before You Die, by Robert Santelli and Jenna Santelli. The book’s table of contents lists all 162 items per the authors’ ranking. I have taken that list and organized it into twelve categories, which I find easier to consider when dealing with the list. I will be presenting each category alphabetically over the course of the 2011 baseball season. The number to the left of each item is its position on the Santellis’ list. Items in red would be of particular interest to Red Sox fans. Today’s category number six out of twelve is:
MOVIES – Part 3
76 Watch The Movie, The Pride Of the Yankees
This 1942 biopic, The Pride of the Yankees, is the life story of Lou Gehrig who played first base for the New York Yankees. Gary Cooper portrays Gehrig, nicknamed the “Iron Horse” for never missing a game. However, Gehrig becomes sick with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and his baseball career comes to an unexpected end. And of course the film has Cooper speak Gehrig’s famous farewell - “Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth”. Actual teammates of Gehrig appear as themselves in the film, one of them being Babe Ruth. The Pride of the Yankees is available on DVD in a Collector’s Edition.
95 Watch The Movie, Bang The Drum Slowly
Based on the 1956 novel of the same title, the 1973 film Bang the Drum Slowly, is another tale of death-too-soon in the world of baseball, fictional though it is. The start pitcher and the unfortunate catcher play for the New York Mammoths, based on you-know-who (see entry above). The time frame is one season and the catcher’s illness is kept secret by his best friend, the pitcher. It’s not a good season either for the team as a whole, but when the catcher’s condition is revealed, the Mammoths turn things around. Bang the Drum Slowly is available on DVD.
103 Watch The Abbott & Costello Skit, “Who’s On First?”
I don’t remember when I first heard the routine “Who’s on First?”, but I know it was sometime in my adolescence. It is the best! I laugh every time I hear it. If somehow you have missed this hilarious baseball gem, read the text here and see the performance below. Enjoy!!!
114 Watch The Movie, Sugar
This 2008 film, Sugar, is the fictional tale of a young Dominican Republic pitcher (Sugar) who makes his way from a Major League sponsored baseball academy in the DR to the Minor League Single-A affiliate of the made-up team Kansas City Knights. In Iowa Sugar lives with a farm family and begins his exposure to American life. With only one friend from the Dominican Republic on the team, Sugar struggles to find a place for himself in this unfamiliar setting and begins questioning his goal to become a Major League baseball player. Sugar is available on DVD.
134 Watch The Movie, Fever Pitch
This 2005 romantic comedy, Fever Pitch, is based on both the 1992 book, Fever Pitch: A Fan’s Life and the 1997 British film. Soccer is the sport in the book and the first film, but baseball is the game in the American film. Not just baseball, but Major League Boston Red Sox baseball! Taking place over the 2004 baseball season, Fever Pitch is the falling in love of a Red Sox obsessed fan with the not-so-obsessed woman who wins his heart while Boston wins the World, as in Series! I have never seen so many Red Sox logoed items in my life as were displayed in character Ben Wrightman’s apartment. My meager Red Sox items are put to shame. Fever Pitch is available on DVD in Full Screen, Widescreen and Boston Red Sox Curse Reversed Editions.
138 Watch The Movie, The Sandlot
Baseball on a kid’s level is the story of the 1993 film, The Sandlot. The film is a reminiscence told by the adult who was the new kid in a Los Angeles neighborhood back in the summer of 1962. With the friendship and help of the best ballplayer in the neighborhood, the new kid improves his baseball skills and earns the respect of the other members of the team. It is a summer of adventures and of the Beast. The Sandlot is available on DVD as are The Sandlot 2 (2005) and The Sandlot: Heading Home (2007).
152 Watch The Movie, Cobb
This 1994 biopic, Cobb, is based on the book Cobb: A Biography. It is the life of Tyrus Raymond Cobb from the perspective of his biographer while he was with Cobb and writing the biography. I haven’t seen this movie and most likely never will. Cobb may have been the first inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame, but he is one of the last players baseball would ever want to represent the sport. Cobb is available on DVD.
My Boston Red Sox DVD Recommendations:
I owe all the DVDs in the following list, but a few of them I have not had the pleasure of viewing. The films are listed in the order I think they should be viewed, but feel free to ignore my suggestion and see whichever ones interest you, in whatever order you like.
Still, We Believe: The Boston Red Sox Movie (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set)
Faith Rewarded: The Historic Season of the 2004 Boston Red Sox (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set)
Wait ‘Til This Year: A Totally Different Look Back at the 2004 Boston Red Sox Season (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set
The Boston Red Sox 2004 World Series Collector’s Edition
All seven complete ALCS games versus the New York Yankees
All four full World Series games versus the St. Louis Cardinals
2004 World Series: Boston Red Vs. St. Louis Cardinals
History Rings True (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set)
Red Sox Vs. Yankees: The Ultimate Rivalry
The Boston Red Sox 2007 World Series Collector’s Edition
Complete ALCS games 5, 6 and 7 versus the Cleveland Indians
All four World Series games against the Colorado Rockies
2007 World Series: Colorado Rockies Vs. Boston Red Sox
Red Sox Memories: The Greatest Moments in Boston Red Sox History
Spaceman: A Baseball Odyssey (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set)
The Lost Son of Havana
Images:
Left: Sugar from the website amazon.com
Center: Fever Pitch from the website amazon.com
Right: The Sandlot from the website upload.wikimedia.org
MOVIES – Part 3
76 Watch The Movie, The Pride Of the Yankees
This 1942 biopic, The Pride of the Yankees, is the life story of Lou Gehrig who played first base for the New York Yankees. Gary Cooper portrays Gehrig, nicknamed the “Iron Horse” for never missing a game. However, Gehrig becomes sick with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and his baseball career comes to an unexpected end. And of course the film has Cooper speak Gehrig’s famous farewell - “Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth”. Actual teammates of Gehrig appear as themselves in the film, one of them being Babe Ruth. The Pride of the Yankees is available on DVD in a Collector’s Edition.
95 Watch The Movie, Bang The Drum Slowly
Based on the 1956 novel of the same title, the 1973 film Bang the Drum Slowly, is another tale of death-too-soon in the world of baseball, fictional though it is. The start pitcher and the unfortunate catcher play for the New York Mammoths, based on you-know-who (see entry above). The time frame is one season and the catcher’s illness is kept secret by his best friend, the pitcher. It’s not a good season either for the team as a whole, but when the catcher’s condition is revealed, the Mammoths turn things around. Bang the Drum Slowly is available on DVD.
103 Watch The Abbott & Costello Skit, “Who’s On First?”
I don’t remember when I first heard the routine “Who’s on First?”, but I know it was sometime in my adolescence. It is the best! I laugh every time I hear it. If somehow you have missed this hilarious baseball gem, read the text here and see the performance below. Enjoy!!!
114 Watch The Movie, Sugar
This 2008 film, Sugar, is the fictional tale of a young Dominican Republic pitcher (Sugar) who makes his way from a Major League sponsored baseball academy in the DR to the Minor League Single-A affiliate of the made-up team Kansas City Knights. In Iowa Sugar lives with a farm family and begins his exposure to American life. With only one friend from the Dominican Republic on the team, Sugar struggles to find a place for himself in this unfamiliar setting and begins questioning his goal to become a Major League baseball player. Sugar is available on DVD.
134 Watch The Movie, Fever Pitch
This 2005 romantic comedy, Fever Pitch, is based on both the 1992 book, Fever Pitch: A Fan’s Life and the 1997 British film. Soccer is the sport in the book and the first film, but baseball is the game in the American film. Not just baseball, but Major League Boston Red Sox baseball! Taking place over the 2004 baseball season, Fever Pitch is the falling in love of a Red Sox obsessed fan with the not-so-obsessed woman who wins his heart while Boston wins the World, as in Series! I have never seen so many Red Sox logoed items in my life as were displayed in character Ben Wrightman’s apartment. My meager Red Sox items are put to shame. Fever Pitch is available on DVD in Full Screen, Widescreen and Boston Red Sox Curse Reversed Editions.
138 Watch The Movie, The Sandlot
Baseball on a kid’s level is the story of the 1993 film, The Sandlot. The film is a reminiscence told by the adult who was the new kid in a Los Angeles neighborhood back in the summer of 1962. With the friendship and help of the best ballplayer in the neighborhood, the new kid improves his baseball skills and earns the respect of the other members of the team. It is a summer of adventures and of the Beast. The Sandlot is available on DVD as are The Sandlot 2 (2005) and The Sandlot: Heading Home (2007).
152 Watch The Movie, Cobb
This 1994 biopic, Cobb, is based on the book Cobb: A Biography. It is the life of Tyrus Raymond Cobb from the perspective of his biographer while he was with Cobb and writing the biography. I haven’t seen this movie and most likely never will. Cobb may have been the first inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame, but he is one of the last players baseball would ever want to represent the sport. Cobb is available on DVD.
My Boston Red Sox DVD Recommendations:
I owe all the DVDs in the following list, but a few of them I have not had the pleasure of viewing. The films are listed in the order I think they should be viewed, but feel free to ignore my suggestion and see whichever ones interest you, in whatever order you like.
Still, We Believe: The Boston Red Sox Movie (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set)
Faith Rewarded: The Historic Season of the 2004 Boston Red Sox (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set)
Wait ‘Til This Year: A Totally Different Look Back at the 2004 Boston Red Sox Season (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set
The Boston Red Sox 2004 World Series Collector’s Edition
All seven complete ALCS games versus the New York Yankees
All four full World Series games versus the St. Louis Cardinals
2004 World Series: Boston Red Vs. St. Louis Cardinals
History Rings True (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set)
Red Sox Vs. Yankees: The Ultimate Rivalry
The Boston Red Sox 2007 World Series Collector’s Edition
Complete ALCS games 5, 6 and 7 versus the Cleveland Indians
All four World Series games against the Colorado Rockies
2007 World Series: Colorado Rockies Vs. Boston Red Sox
Red Sox Memories: The Greatest Moments in Boston Red Sox History
Spaceman: A Baseball Odyssey (included in The Ultimate Boston Baseball Fan Box Set)
The Lost Son of Havana
Images:
Left: Sugar from the website amazon.com
Center: Fever Pitch from the website amazon.com
Right: The Sandlot from the website upload.wikimedia.org
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