Players Who Deserve Their Own Biopics

[Phantom Dreamer]

Munenori Kawasaki.

[Mingo]

What player's life is worth a studio to put $$$ behind to produce to get the movie going public to spend $$$ at the box office? This is about business as much if not more so than about art.

Agree 100%. This is why there are dozens of crappy movies about zombies and vampires but very few good sports films ever get made.

[Phantom Dreamer]

What player's life is worth a studio to put $$$ behind to produce to get the movie going public to spend $$$ at the box office? This is about business as much if not more so than about art.

[Mingo]

Unfortunately, when you are talking about "warts and all" that's when estates get involved and they tend to become litigious and we end up with sugar coated "afterschool" specials like 42 and Dragon - The Bruce Lee Story.

I heard something like this happened with Joe Jackson's estate concerning how he would be portrayed in a movie. Can't remember which one. I wonder how many other projects have been shot down because an heir didn't like how grandpa would be portrayed? If a film was made and the overall impression of a superstar like Foxx was favorable BUT it shows a few warts, like his alcoholism or chronic mishandling of his money, you'd think his surviving family would still want it made anyway to keep his legacy and name alive. After all, we're all just human with strengths and weaknesses.

You bring up a great question - I wonder if anyone from Cobb's family (or the family of any other pro athlete) ever sue or threaten litigation over a book or movie that portrayed the person unfavorably? The Babe certainly showed some of Ruth's boozing and womanizing. I wonder how much of a vote the estate or family gets? Or if they're even consulted?

[Phantom Dreamer]

Unfortunately, when you are talking about "warts and all" that's when estates get involved and they tend to become litigious and we end up with sugar coated "afterschool" specials like 42 and Dragon - The Bruce Lee Story.

[Mingo]

Great topic! I'd love to see really good, big-budget and factual movies made about the following players:

Jimmie Foxx (with the truth about the beaning he took in Canada and how it affected his career, health and alcohol use. It's time his legacy was reinstated in our consciousness)
Satchel Paige. Imagine what Spielberg could do with Leroy's life story!
Ty Cobb - but not based on Al Stump's fictional nonsense. The truth, warts, records and all...and with better baseball action (and much more of it) and a focus on his playing career, not his cranky-old-man days.
Babe Ruth (with someone playing him as a young player with the LEAN body he actually had, rather than the damaging image John Goodman left in the public's mind that Ruth left St. Mary's weighing well over 300 pounds).
Oscar Charleston (what a story that would be!)
Napoleon Lajoie - another forgotten superstar
Tris Speaker - ditto
Ted Williams - what a story. Just the war footage alone would pack theaters
Joe Dimaggio - from San Francisco to Mr. Coffee, warts and all.
Walter Johnson - with somebody athletic enough to do justice to his size, strength, windup, fastball speed AND his hitting ability.

[Cowtipper]

Barry Bonds.

Actually John Rocker might be a good story.

[Phantom Dreamer]

Sounds like Ernie Banks wanted a movie or perhaps a documentary made about him.
http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Ma...5/Ernie-Banks/

[Phantom Dreamer]

A thread to discuss players past or present who deserve to have a biopic produced...
Perhaps Ted Williams or Roberto Clemente could be candidates. Has there ever been a decent baseball biopic?