Fever Pitch

Stone193

Every year "hope springs eternal" for all suffering baseball fans who have never enjoyed a WS in their life-time.

I saw the movie tonite on HBO - tho not a terrribly great movie - it was entertaining - especially for a baseball fan like myself.

It pretty much covers the way Boston fans viewed their team and what was a "magical" season for them.

I still think one can carry the "fan" and "winning" thing a bit far - on the OCD side - at times, but it gave a nice personal perspective on being a fan.

There would be, for me, something special about sitting in the same seat for an entire season or seasons and seeing the same people - who become your friends.

When I was in school in NYC, I sat in the same area of the bleachers at Yankee stadium for many games and saw the same people there each time. The same happened when I went to Augusta Pirate games.
One winds up engaging in chit chat with them and ya kind of look forward to that also.

So, lets Play Ball!!!

mike

zef204

Mike-

I have been sitting in the same seats in Soldier's Field for 20 years. They redid it a few years ago, but most of us still have relatively the same seats. I was 9 when the Bears won their last championship and didn't really appreciate what it was about. But the people around us saw me go from 9 to 29. It is pretty cool.

I was offered season tickets at Wrigley 2 years ago but I had to pass. I have 4 friends that have 8 seats together about 15 rows behind the Cubs bullpen. I go with them all the time and the people around haven't changed.

Its pretty cool.

SoFLPhillyFan

Saw the movie last night also.

The highlight for me was turning to my wife and telling her how lucky I am that she is a sports fan. We attend many games together throughout the year.

I am the envy of all her male coworkers who tell her that they wish their wives enjoyed sports.

Keith

Tedw9

I bought that movie as soon as it came out. I'm a HUGE Red Sox fan, and I LOVE Drew Barrymore, so this was a win/win for me!

I too am lucky, my wife is a sports fan, football and hockey. Her grandfather was an usher at Maple Leaf Gardens for many, many years. She has taken to baseball too, so I'm blessed.

At various spots through the movie, my wife would snicker and say "Thats just like you!" No, I'm not that bad, but she knows how much the Sox have been apart of my life.


That being said, BRING ON THE YANKEES!!!

MooseDog

With the price of tickets now, along with corporate ownership of a lot of blocks of tickets, you don't get the same people sitting in the seats all the time. I had season tickets for the A's back in the 1970s and most of the time it was the same people game after game, so you did have a little sense of community. Since I moved 50 miles away, I don't get to A's games very often but I do now have season tickets to the San Jose Sharks (hockey for you non-NHLers) and I swear it's different people around us every game.

There is a active aftermarket for Sharks tickets and a LOT of people seek partners for their tickets even before the bills arrive. For some people it probably puts a crimp on the budget. For me it's my one indulgence.

Best line in FEVER PITCH:

"Consider this. You LOVE the Red Sox. But when have they ever loved you back?"

grilloj39

I have yet to see the movie, but as a diehard Red Sox fan, it is a must for me. I remember being 7 years old when the Red Sox lost the 67 WS to St Louis and I cried. Then in 1975, my father got pissed off when Joe Morgan hit that weak blooper off Jim Burton to win Game #7, a broken TV was the result. Then in 1986 I was stationed in Korea, where on Armed Forces Korean Network (AFKN) they skipped the 8th and 9th inning and jumped to Bob Stanley throwing the wild pitch. I was confused as hell because normally when AFKN skips several innings (we never viewed the games live) it is normally to show the last out of the game and I was in the Recreation center with my friends saying...."This is it! This is it! The last out of the game!"

I am just glad they won 1 in my lifetime...I am content and although I want them to win some more, I'll be happy with the one I got.

yawie99

Hmmm...Drew Barrymore, Jimmy Fallon and the 2004 World Series. I think I'd rather have my eyes pecked out by avian flu-positive crows than watch that.

But, yeah, play ball!!!

tkd7

Never saw the movie, but I know it is based on a novel by one of my favorite authors, Nick Hornby. Hornby is British, and the story is semi-autobiogrphical. It is about his love for British football and his ups and downs following his favorite team. The novel is based on knowing what it is like to be a fan of a losing team. If you have ever seen the movies High Fidelity or About a Boy, those are based on Hornby novels as well.

Interestingly, the filmmakers picked the Red Sox assuming that they would lay another egg, but they had to change the movie ending (and stray even further from the novel) when the Sox won the Series.


Anyway, I agree, let's play two.

Brian48

I actually resisted seeing the movie when it first came out. I couldn't bring myself to be excited about a "chick" flick, even if the backdrop of the story was that magical 2004 Red Sox season. Anyway, eventually I gave rented it on DVD. I have to admit, there were a lot moments in the film that I related too and it was very enjoyable overall. The funny part is, I actually know people like that. I think we have a city of about 200,000 Jimmy Fallons here in Boston.

Anyway, the only thing that seemed a little flat was the ending. It was very obviously that ending scenes were a bit rushed. From what I've heard in the interviews, they had to make quite a few script changes at the last minute when they realized that there was actually a chance that the Sox would actually WIN (Wow!). I remember seeing them film that "kissing scene" on the field when all the players were mobbing each other after they shut down the Cardinals. Man, what year that was. Forgotten in the madness was the fact that the Patriots had won another Superbowl

RipublicaninMass

mY significant other was an extra in the movie, I was down at fenwey for the few weeks they were shooting. Fallon is actually a Yankee fan! All the scenes were shot at night after the games in the freezing cold! Funny how hollywood can make it look like summer and daytime! I htought the movie was OK funny at times

GlynRParson

I saw it on a plane coming back from Hawaii and found it surprisingly rather enjoyable.

Stone193

First, I'm enjoying reading the responses - As I said, it's not a terribly great movie...

But, die hard baseball fans can totally relate to this movie - and for most of us who have wives who could give a rats ass about sports and collectibles - let's super relate!

I'm probably the oldest here and grew up in one of the greatest baseball sports arenas on the planet - NYC.

For those who like to read about first experiences - here's my post on visiting
Yankee Stadium as a child.

And another, on the day I met Babe Ruth.

They're both short, and I believe capture some of the feeling that us baseball FANatics go thru in a life-time of watching the purist sport on the planet. I know a lot of the regulars have already seen them but for those who haven't, I think they will relate.

Anybody else want to talk about their experiences?

mike

phreakydancin

I saw the original British version, about an obsessed Arsenal fan in London ("Pitch" is what the English call a soccer field), but not the American remake.

The original was fine but not great. It sounds like the newer one falls into the same category.

phreakydancin

Incidentally, the novel High Fidelity is excellent. I was very disappointed by the movie version with John Cusak, especially since he's one of my favourite actors.

eyebone

I am acquainted with a guy named Tom who has a booth at a nearby flea market. Tom is employed by the City of Toronto, working at one of the city's landfills (ie. dumps). He has actually found some pretty interesting sports related items at the dump, one of which relates to the topic of this thread....the movie "Fever Pitch".

It was filmed in Toronto and when filming was over many of the props from the set were simply taken to the nearest landfill. Tom happened to be working that particular day (well over a year ago now) and he noticed a couple of guys dumping these baseball things....he wandered over for a closer look, began a conversation with them and found out they were in charge of disposing of the movie's props.

Basically he scooped up eveything they were dumping. This included some of the things that were on Jimmy Fallon's bedroom wall (remember the poster with the aerial view of Fenway and downtown Boston above his bed), the wall of the school, the wall of a bar they visited, old photos, script copies, etc, etc. He had some great "junk" and it was all free. He sold alot of it on ebay when the movie was first released and I know some of it fetched some very nice money.

Eyebone

thesplendidsplinter

<< <i>Incidentally, the novel High Fidelity is excellent. I was very disappointed by the movie version with John Cusak, especially since he's one of my favourite actors. >>



But Jack Black became a star in it! He has been great ever since!

phreakydancin

<< <i>

<< <i>Incidentally, the novel High Fidelity is excellent. I was very disappointed by the movie version with John Cusak, especially since he's one of my favourite actors. >>



But Jack Black became a star in it! He has been great ever since! >>

Very true! He was the highlight of that otherwise lacklustre movie. Jack is another one of my favourites

tkd7

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>Incidentally, the novel High Fidelity is excellent. I was very disappointed by the movie version with John Cusak, especially since he's one of my favourite actors. >>



But Jack Black became a star in it! He has been great ever since! >>

Very true! He was the highlight of that otherwise lacklustre movie. Jack is another one of my favourites >>



I like the movie High Fidelity. Although I do think the film adaptations of Hornby's novels suffer when they are Americanized. The film script is almost a word for word transcription.

scooter729

As a diehard Sox fan, I (and many others) have put Fever Pitch on the "Do Not Watch" list. Aside from the fact that Fallon is a Yankee fan, this movie was ruined for me when, during Game 4 of the 2004 World Series, FOX kept showing Fallon and Drew Barrymore in the crowd, talking about the movie. And within 10 seconds of the final out, as the Sox were celebrating on the field, Sox fans who waited 86 years to see it were forced to see Fallon and Barrymore on the screen, hugging and kissing, for a good 5 seconds.

Any respect I had for Fox was lost at that moment - who wants to see those two filming a movie instead of seeing that long-awaited Sox Series celebration??? It was bad enough having to listen to McCarver for the whole series, but that was the icing on the cake.

With this being Opening Day for most teams, it's time to start recalling what an AWFUL announcer McCarver is. To refresh your memory, Check Out Some Awful Tim McCarver quotes