By MICHELLE MILLER
Staff Writer
Twenty years after its
debut, “Bull Durham” finally
appeared on the silver
screen at the Baseball Hall
of Fame.
During Friday night’s
presentation held in the
Hall of Fame’s Grandstand
Theater, Hall of Fame President
Jeff Idelson said the
museum was ``absolutely
thrilled’’ to open its annual
baseball film festival by
honoring one of the all-time
classic baseball movies,
“Bull Durham.”
However, the feeling
was not so welcoming in
2003 when the 15th anniversary
celebration of the
1988 film was canceled because
of criticism of co-stars
Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon.
Dale Petroskey, Hall of
Fame president at the time,
sent letters to Robbins and
his longtime companion Sarandon
criticizing their
views on the war in Iraq.
Petroskey, a Republican,
told Robbins and Sarandon
that by criticizing President
Bush, they were, in
the minds of those at the
Hall of Fame, undermining
``the U.S. position, which
ultimately could put our
troops in even more danger.’’
Robbins said he was
``dismayed’’ by the Baseball
Hall of Fame’s decision at
the time of the cancellation.
However, politics was not
the topic of discussion this
time around. The program
was focused on how the
movie was made and what
went into its production.
Movie critic Jeffery Lyons
asked the questions while
the film’s director-writer,
Ron Shelton, and actors
Robbins (Nuke LaLoosh),
Sarandon (Annie Savoy)
and Robert Wuhl (Larry
Hockett) answered — often
getting laughs from the
crowd.
Idelson said there is no
baseball film that relates to
fans like “Bull Durham.”
He said the movie reflects
baseball in the minor
leagues to perfection.
``It reminds us (that)
baseball is an integral part
of the fabric that defines
American culture and
American values,’’ he said.
Robbins and Sarandon
met while auditioning for
the film. Shelton said they
were selected to be in the
movie because he knew
right away that they were
the ``right fit.’’
``They had chemistry,
and chemistry is everything
in a movie,’’ said Shelton.
When asked what she
first noticed when seeing
Robbins, Sarandon said, ``I
just remember he was really
tall.’’
Sarandon said she was
not sure how she would fit
in a cast of men, saying she
was wary of how she would
be treated. She said she
told herself she had to at
least give it a shot and
swallow her pride. Sarandon
said she was proven
wrong because she was
treated with more respect
than any other movie she
had been in.
Robbins said getting to
play a part that allowed
him to put on a baseball
uniform and play on a baseball
field was a dream come
true.
He always wanted to be
a ballplayer growing up, he
said.
It was also the first audition
he was able to drink
scotch with the director,
Robbins added.
Robbins said one of his
most vivid memories of
making the movie was
when he almost got fired.
He said first-time director
Shelton took a gamble when
he stood up for his actor
(Robbins) when not having
enough energy to perfect a
scene. Robbins said Shelton
took the producer by the
collar and had him up
against the wall ready to
strangle him.
Character Crash Davis
may be fictitious, but not
entirely. Shelton said he
got the name out of a South
Carolina minor league record
book assuming the actual
person was dead. However,
the true Crash Davis
gave Shelton a phone call
saying he read in the paper
that there was a film in the
making about him. Shelton
said he was, of coarse, not
basing the film on him, and
asked permission to use his
name in the film regardless.
Crashes response was,
“`Do I get the girl?’’
Wuhl said nobody expected
the film to be the hit
that it was.
``The best part about it is
we are still all here talking
to one another,’’ he said.
When asked about a sequel,
Shelton said at first
he didn’t think it would
make sense to make one 20
years after the first. He
said he’s changed his mind,
however, and he finds the
idea intriguing.
