Ron Shelton

Ron Shelton (September 15, 1945 in Whittier, California) is a U.S. film director and screenwriter, most notable for the many films he has made about sports.

Shelton was a minor league baseball player in the Baltimore Orioles' organization from 1967 to 1971.

Film career

After working on the scripts of a number of movies, including co-writing Nick Nolte/Gene Hackman political drama Under Fire, Shelton made his directorial debut with Bull Durham in 1988. Set in the world of minor league baseball, the romantic comedy stars Kevin Costner and Susan Sarandon. Shelton's script for the film netted him a number of awards, including Best Script from North America's National Society of Film Critics. It was also nominated for an Academy Award. Shelton worked with Costner again on 1996 golf romance Tin Cup.

Shelton's other films as both writer and director include acclaimed basketball comedy White Men Can't Jump, starring Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes, and two biopics: Cobb, in which Tommy Lee Jones portrays record-breaking baseballer Ty Cobb, and Blaze, which starred Paul Newman as colourful Louisiana Governor Earl Long.

Personal life

Shelton grew up in Montecito, California, the oldest of four brothers. He is an alumnus of Santa Barbara High School and of the University of Arizona and Westmont College.

Shelton is married to Canadian-born actress Lolita Davidovich, who has appeared in three of his films, including taking the title role of Blaze Starr in Blaze. The couple have two children. The couple reside in Los Angeles and Ojai, California.

Filmography

• Under Fire (1983) (script only, written with Clayton Frohman)
• The Best of Times (1986)(script only)
• Bull Durham (1988)
• Blaze (1989)
• White Men Can't Jump (1992)
• Cobb (1994)
• Blue Chips (1994)(script only)
• Tin Cup (1996)
• The Great White Hype (1996) (script only, written with Tony Hendra)
• Play It to the Bone (1999)
• Dark Blue (2003)
• Hollywood Homicide (2003)
• Bad Boys II (2003) (script only, written with Jerry Stahl, story credit shared with The Wibberleys)
• Hound Dogs (2011) (TV)

External links

• Ron Shelton at the Internet Movie Database
• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference