Review of "The Real Hoosiers"

Hoosiers is certainly considered to be one of the best basketball movies ever made.  This book is not about the movie, nor about Milan High, the school on which the fictional Hickory High is based.  Instead, it is about the team that lost the game - and then won the next two Indiana state championships. 

Title/Author:

“The Real Hoosiers: Crispus Attucks High School, Oscar Robertson, and the Hidden History of Hoops” by Jack McCallum

Rating: 

3 ½ of 5 stars (okay)

Review:

In the mid-1950’s, an all-Black school, Crispus Attucks, won the Indiana state high school championship in back-to-back seasons.  The previous season, it lost to Milan, a much smaller school and the game on which the film Hoosiers was based. Three championship game appearances and back-to-back titles was a major accomplishment in the time of school segregation, even though it had just been declared unconstitutional. The story of Crispus Attucks and its most famous player, Oscar Robertson, is told in this book by Jack McCallum.

The story of Crispus Attucks cannot be told without background information on the social and racial climate of Indiana and its capital, Indianapolis, at that time. While the book does have enough basketball text to be considered a book on the sport, it does spend a lot of time on the subject of racism in Indiana – mostly off the court, but it does make its way into the game as well, such as several references to white players and teams getting favorable calls from referees.  At times, the text feels a bit heavy-handed and repetitive – but that doesn’t take away the need to tell those stories, nor does it make the message any less meaningful.

Having not previously read any memoir or book on Oscar Robertson aside from his involvement in the early days of the NBA players’ union, I found some of the stories on him to be the best parts of the book.  Here, McCallum did some of his best work and research since Robertson declined to be interviewed for the book.  Nonetheless, a reader will be able to capture not only the greatness he was already showing on the court, but also the complicated personality of the young man. Having learned a lot about Robertson in this book when McCallum could not speak to him says a lot about the research done to portray “The Big O”. 

Some parts of the book were a slog to get through and other parts were page-turning exercises because I couldn’t get enough. That averages out to a book that was a good one to pick but will not be one I will be reading again.

I wish to thank Grand Central Publishing for providing a copy of the book. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.

Link: The Real Hoosiers: Crispus Attucks High School, Oscar Robertson, and the Hidden History of Hoops: McCallum, Jack: 9780306830754: Amazon.com: Books

Review of “Baseball: The Movie”

 With the nominations for the 2024 Casey Award for the best baseball book of the year, I have decided to give each one of them (or as many as I can) a look. This one about baseball movies is a finalist and I admit to having mixed feelings about it. Here is my review of “Baseball: The Movie.”

Title/Author: “Baseball: The Movie” by Noah Gittell

Rating:  3 1/2 of 5 stars (Okay)

Review: As one who will watch any movie with a baseball theme, when I saw that not only there was a book about baseball movies, but it was also a finalist for the Casey Award for the best baseball book of 2024, I had to check it out. After reading this book by Noah Gittell, I have mixed feelings about it at best. 

I’ll start with my disappointment to get that out of the way. Some of the critiques felt very preachy to remind the reader about baseball’s racism and sexism in its history and also to pick apart some of the movies to find anything that might not stand up to 2024 moral and social scrutiny. I’ll use two of my favorite movies for this section. While Mr. Gittell mostly praises “A League of Their Own” he did have to mention that the baseball scenes had to be realistic since the mostly male establishment would criticize it if those portions didn’t seem realistic. Couldn’t we just enjoy the movie for the excellence it had without that comment?  He also was very harsh on his chapter on “The Sandlot.”  While yes, the scene where Squints fakes drowning in order to kiss lifeguard Wendy Peffercorn can be labeled as sexual assault, I guess it’s not okay to just enjoy a movie with scenes that many people MIGHT fantasize about. And of course, even though the best player is a Latino, the lack of a Black player seemed to bother the author enough that he had bring that into the discussion.

This kind of commentary is a shame to me because when he is writing just about the movie or the baseball, he has excellent commentary. I felt the best of those are about two other movies I really enjoyed, “Pride of the Yankees” and ”Little Big League.” While my enjoyment of the latter might be biased since I am a Twins fan, I really liked how Mr. Gittell mostly praises this movie for its use of today’s analytical thinking in the game before it was common. His description of the scene where young Billy, while managing the Twins, is talking to one of his coaches on situational baseball. More text like this and less about the social shortcomings in the movies would have made this book much more enjoyable for me. At best I give this 3 1/2 stars. 

Link: https://www.amazon.com/Baseball-Movie-Noah-Gittell/dp/1637272642/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Review of "National Pastimes"

This book is a little different than most featured here as it focuses on sports movies and the various messages they can present.  I found the book very engaging and while not the best book I have read, it is one that is very good.  Here is my review of "National Pastimes"

Title/Author:

“National Pastimes: Cinema, Sports and Nation" by Katharina Bonzel

Tags:

Running, Summer Olympics, Soccer, Boxing, Baseball, movies, politics, social issues

Publish date:

January 1, 2020

Length:

252 pages

Rating: to

4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:

Sports movies have brought about many different emotions and senses of pride for moviegoers for decades. One source of pride that many of these movies evoke is a pride for the nation, either where the movie takes place, for the nation characters represent, or the nation where the movie is being shown (sometimes this is the same for some or all of these).  This notion of national pride in sports movies is the topic of this interesting book by Katharina Bonzel.

While the subject of the nation is the primary focus of Bonzel's work, she does not limit this to only a nation and its politics.  There are other topics in which Bonzel discusses how sports movies can paint a picture that may either be in line with the times described or can limit the scope of how that issue is framed in the movie. An example of this is her look at gender identification and roles, including sexuality, in two movies in which female athletes are the primary characters.  These are "A League of Their Own" and "Bend It Like Beckham."  For both, Bonzel explains how the movies portray these female athletes in roles that limit their complete identity.  For example, Bonzel points out that Geena Davis' character in "A League of Their Own" is complying with the role of women at the time in the movie – the 1940's – by giving up baseball to "start a family" when her husband returns home from World War II.  This, Bonzel argues, shows how these movies can limit the expression of feminism in characters or, as a character in "Bend It Like Beckham" is portrayed, it may also limit the expression of one's homosexuality in order to conform to certain standards. 

While these discussions are interesting and thought-provoking, they came after Bonzel's best work in the book, which focuses on national identity.  She discusses how "Chariots of Fire" was an excellent portrayal of British nationality through the Olympic performances of the two main characters. Add in her excellent dissection of the "Rocky" franchise, especially her discussion of "Rocky III" and "Rocky IV" which was a good portrayal of the United States' embrace of Regan-era conservatism and Cold War politics at the time of the movies.  While she does mention political references, this is not to be taken as a political book, nor is it one that really takes one side or the other.  Instead, when there are political implications in the message that she believes the movies tell, she tells what those implications are.  Other movies she discussed in the national identity discussion are "The Miracle of Bern" about the 1954 World Cup victory by Germany and "Hoosiers", the movie about a small town in Indiana defeating a powerful city school to win the state championship.

While I cannot honestly say I agree with every point made by the author about every movie, I did believe that this was an engaging and thought-provoking book, made even better in the easy-to-read language that many scholarly works of this type are lacking.  The book's audience covers a wide range – sports fans, movie fans and readers who are interested in social and political issues will all find something of interest in this book.

I wish to thank University of Nebraska Press for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

                                    

Book Format Read:

Hardcover

Buying Links:

https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/university-of-nebraska-press/9781496215529/

https://www.amazon.com/National-Pastimes-Cinema-Sports-Society/dp/1496215524/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Giveaway and review of "Pride of the Yankees"

Long considered one of the best baseball movies ever made, "Pride of the Yankees", the story of Lou Gehrig, is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its release this summer. A book has been written about the making of the movie and I was fortunate to receive two copies of the book - one of which was earmarked for a giveaway.  So, that is what I will do to one lucky person. To enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment below with an email address or some other contact information in order to contact you in case you are selected as the winner.  This will run for one week - leave the comment by June 4 in order to be included in the random drawing.

As for the book, it was just as good as the movie as the reader will learn a lot of inside information about the making of the film. Below is my review of "Pride of the Yankees."

Title/Author:

“The Pride of the Yankees Lou Gehrig, Gary Cooper and the Making of a Classic” by Richard Sandomir

Tags:

Baseball, Yankees, movies

Publish date:

June 13, 2017

Length:

293 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

When there is a celebration for the 75^th anniversary of the release of a movie, it shows that the film has stood the test of time. 2017 marks the 75^th anniversary of the release of the movie “Pride of the Yankees” and not only the movie, but both Lou Gehrig (the movie’s subject) and Gary Cooper (the movie’s lead actor) are still remembered fondly. 

This book by Richard Sandomir is an excellent one to commemorate this anniversary. Rich with detail about not only the movie itself, the book mainly revolves around three of the most important people involved in the film – Gary Cooper, Eleanor Gehrig, and Samuel Goldwyn. 

Mrs. Gehrig was important because she had a lot of influence on what the final picture would look like.  Her opinions were needed in order to fulfill Goldwyn’s vision of the film, which he wanted to promote as a romantic picture, not a baseball one.  Both the story of Gehrig dying as a young man in the prime of his life and his change from being a “mama’s boy” to a loving and devoted husband made a great script in Goldwyn’s mind. That is the message the book delivers – and it is delivered in a well-researched and graceful manner.  The writing is smooth and graceful as the stories of these people, as well as those of other important figures such as Teresa Wright and Babe Ruth (who was unusually subdued in his role).

Many of the myths about the move are addressed in the book, such as whether Gehrig’s farewell speech at Yankee Stadium in the movie is truly the same as what Gehrig actually said on July 4, 1939.  Because of the lack of newsreel footage, that question may never be completely answered. The other big issue about the movie that the book addresses is about Cooper’s baseball scenes as it was well known that he was not an athlete, and that he was right handed while Gehrig was left handed. Through coaching by former National League batting champion Lefty O’Doul, Cooper was able to do some of the scenes, but there was also some backup work done by Babe Dahlgren. Also, the question of whether these scenes were shown as a reverse of the film’s negatives, resulting in Cooper appearing to be left-handed when he would have performed the scenes right-handed, was addressed.  That myth is debunked.

All of these, plus more in-depth insight into all aspects of the film make this book required reading for baseball fans, movie fans, romance fans and anyone else who has been touched by this movie, the speech that the movie helped make famous or by the story of Lou Gehrig.  This book is a worthy to become a part of the legend that this movie has become. 

I wish to thank Hachette Books for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Book Format Read:

Hardcover

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/Pride-Yankees-Gehrig-Cooper-Classic-ebook/dp/B01LL8BUUS/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1495980519&sr=1-1&keywords=the+pride+of+the+yankees

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-pride-of-the-yankees-richard-sandomir/1125687700?ean=9780316355056

Review of "The Making of Major League"

This movie has been considered one of most beloved baseball movies in recent years.  After reading this book, I can certainly understand why.  While I have not seen it many times like the author and many others, it certainly has produced some memorable lines.  One them you will see on the cover - at least a play on that line.  Here is my review of "The Making of Major League." 

Title/Author:

“The Making of Major League” by Jonathan Knight

Tags:

Baseball, Indians, Movies

Publish date:

May 29, 2015

Length:

255 pages

Rating: 

4 1/2 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review:

In 1989, there was a film that was released without a lot of fanfare depicting the hapless Cleveland Indians. They were owned by a woman who had a scheme to make sure the team was bad enough so they could break their lease and move to Miami. However, the team overcame a lot so that they became a winning ball club. That movie, “Major League”, has become one of the more beloved baseball movies of a generation. 

This book on the making of the movie and some of the inside stories, written by Jonathan Knight, is a terrific read about making the movie and the principle characters and actors.  Most of them have stories to share, including Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Rene Russo, Corbin Bernson, Dennis Haysbert, Wesley Snipes and writer/producer David S. Ward.  From the stories, it is obvious that these performers, many of whom have had many more successful movies and television shows, still have fond memories of this baseball movie.

There is even some mention of former baseball players who were inspirations for characters.  Charlie Sheen’s character of Ricky Vaughn was inspired by another relief pitcher who wore thick black rimmed glasses, Ryne Duran. Former slugger Pedro Guerrero was the idea for Pedro Cerrano. The owner, Rachel Phelps, was described as a cross between George Steinbrenner and Georgia Frontierre (former owner of football’s Los Angeles Rams).  These were a nice touch to the book.

Knight’s writing is not like other baseball or sports books in that he certainly wears his fandom of the movie on his sleeve – he admits to have had a “period in my life where I watched Major League every single day” – but that makes reading the book a lot of fun.  The only negative about this is that he seems to try to make a connection between some events in baseball and the movie.  One example, where he doesn’t come out and say it but wants to plant the idea in the reader’s mind, is that the movie led to the ritual of teams playing a certain song when the closer comes out of the bullpen to start the ninth inning.  Did the use of “Wild Thing” for Ricky Vaughn lead to the use of “Hell’s Bells” for Trevor Hoffman or “Enter Sandman” for Mariano Rivera?  He doesn’t state this directly, but I felt he tried to make the reader believe it.

However, when that is the worst thing I can say about this book, that means it has to be very good, which it was. The writing was crisp; the stories were detailed on many items, such as the filming of baseball scenes in Milwaukee.  The stories of the actors’ “training camp” held by former Dodgers catcher Steve Yeager were terrific.  Even when the sequels were described in a later chapter that followed the mood of moviegoers for them – not so enthusiastic – it was entertaining. 

This was a terrific book that should both baseball and movie fans will enjoy. It will leave a reader laughing and wanting to fire up the device used to watch movies and see this one again.  On that score, this book is a winner.

I wish to thank Gray & Company Publishers for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Did I skim?

No

Pace of the book: 

Much like Wild Thing’s fastball, this book moves along at a very fast speed as I completed it in only about two hours.  Also much like the movie, the entertainment factor was very high as well.

Do I recommend? 

Whether the reader has seen the movie only once or twice and enjoyed it (like me) or is one of those fans Knight mentions frequently who have watched it many times and can recite every line, this book is one that must be added to his or her library.

Book Format Read:

E-book (Epub)

Buying links:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-making-of-major-league-j-knight/1121637504?ean=9781938441646

http://www.amazon.com/Making-Major-League-Juuuust-Baseball-ebook/dp/B00XDA6H38/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1434449031&sr=1-1&keywords=the+making+of+major+league&pebp=1434449045259&perid=14BYA3T8ZFAZ5TP4QQVW