ASHLAND — A soon-to-be-shown documentary film about the legendary Satchel Paige has much of its roots in Ashland.
“Pitching Man: Satchel Paige. Defying Time,” which has just been completed, has been selected for showing at the Connecticut Film Festival on June 4.
More than a decade in the making, this film pays homage to a remarkable athlete and black baseball’s most charismatic personality — Leroy “Satchel” Paige.
When the Tri-State Fair & Regatta was an active, three-state summer fair and entertainment series, almost 30 years ago, a significant, annual event was the Negro League Baseball Reunion.
Filmmakers Craig Davidson and Donn Rogosin, who had an interest in these baseball players and their stories of the sport before integration, attended several of the reunions and interviewed the players.
Now, many of these players come alive again in this compelling 55-minute documentary narrated by actor Billy Dee Williams.
At least two interviews took place locally. Davidson and Rogosin reunited the old Crawford outfield — Jimmie Crutchfield, James “Cool Papa” Bell and Ted Page — in an Ashland sandlot in 1981 during the reunion. An interview with Satchel and Lahoma Paige took place in the Ashland home of Gene and the late Nancy Dickinson.
Paige was the single most important player in the old Negro Baseball Leagues and an American legend. He was an extraordinary athlete and a genuine original who played the game for 40 years on makeshift rural sandlots and in major league ballparks against the best in the game.
When Paige triumphed in the major leagues as a 42-year-old rookie, he solidified his position as a hero in black communities and confirmed his status as one of the greats of the game.
Paige was unique and idiosyncratic, but his accomplishments in baseball reflected his perseverance, hard work and discipline. His personal struggle against racism and later age discrimination had tremendous impact. He was almost entirely self-made and possessed inner dignity and strength. Paige’s weapons were skill, wit, charm, humor, intelligence, savvy and an overpowering fastball.
Paige became the first Negro Leaguer to win induction into baseball’s Hall of Fame. His is a vivid story that illustrates much about the times and the plight of black Americans. This documentary remembers a true baseball immortal and paints a vivid portrait of American society in transition.
Davidson and Rogosin pieced together this extraordinary story, taking more than a decade to accurately describe the man, his sport and the times. The journey began while recording interviews for the filmmakers’ critically acclaimed documentary, “There was always Sun Shining Someplace: Life in the Negro Baseball Leagues.”
“It seems everyone had a story about Paige, arguably the greatest pitcher of his era,” Davidson said. “Paige was complex with Madison Avenue savvy, P.T. Barnum showmanship and a wit that could disarm his harshest critics.”
Local News
Satchel Paige documentary shows Ashland
Film highlights Negro League Baseball Reunions
- Local News
-
-
Man has cellphone stolen by woman soliciting sex
A man reported Tuesday his cell phone was stolen by a woman who got into his vehicle and solicited sexual favors for money.
-
Kentucky Teleworks looking for workers
Kentucky Teleworks will soon be screening eastern Kentucky applicants for several jobs where they can work at home for two companies that are global leaders in the telework industry.
-
Carter sets June 5 for 2nd reading
Carter Fiscal Court will have a special meeting on June 5 at the Carter Fiscal Courtroom, room 201, in the Carter County Courthouse.
-
Tempers flare in Carter County
Angry voices called out from a standing-room-only audience during the Carter County Fiscal Court meeting Tuesday as elected officials proceeded with plans for a proposed regional jail.
-
18 from area died in dinner club fire
Eighteen members of Ashland’s Roadrunners Club were killed in the third-worst nightclub fire in U.S. history on May 28, 1977. In total, 165 revelers died in the Beverly Hills Supper Club fire just across the river from Cincinnati.
-
The long ride home
Adventure, says Ryan Curry, is in his blood.
- News in brief, 5/30/12
-
2 recipes revealed in Sanders autobiography
Want to cook like the Colonel?
-
Vet picnic will be Saturday
Tri-State veterans are invited to a free outing on Saturday.
-
‘Building Doctors’ will make rounds in Portsmouth June 14,15
Main Street Portsmouth, TSHD Architects and the Ohio Historic Preservation Office of the Ohio Historical Society will sponsor a Building Doctor Clinic for old-building owners in the Portsmouth area June 14 and 15.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Man has cellphone stolen by woman soliciting sex
No Limits for Disabled Hunters at Mich. Base
Victim Identified in Fla. Face-chewing Attack
Radioactive Bluefin Tuna Crossed the Pacific
90 Guns Seized, Dozens Arrested in Oakland
Raw Video: Hail Storm Batters Oklahoma City
6-Year-Old Going to National Spelling Bee
California's Foie Gras Ban About to Begin
Video Essay: Funky Winkerbean Comic Turns 40
Hurricane Andrew Remembered, 20 Years Later
Judge's Ruling Halts Tenn. Mosque Construction
Romney in Las Vegas on Texas Primary Day
Sister Says She Reported Brother in Patz Killing
Even Fla. Police Shocked by Face-Mauling Attack
Angry Birds Spreading Their Wings
