Soul of the Game

*Soul of the Game*
Soul of the Game
Genre	Drama; History; Sport
Teleplay by	David Himmelstein
Story by	Gary Hoffman
Directed by	Kevin Rodney Sullivan
Starring	Blair Underwood; Delroy Lindo; Mykelti Williamson; Edward Herrmann; R. Lee Ermey; Harvey Williams
Music by	Lee Holdridge
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Executive producers	Kevin Kelly Brown; Gary Hoffman; Mike Medavoy
Producer	Robert Papazian
Production locations	Birmingham, Alabama; Huntingburg, Indiana; League Stadium - 1st & Cherry Streets, Huntingburg, Indiana; Los Angeles; Ontario; Pasadena, California; St. Louis; Rickwood Field - 1137 2nd Avenue W, Birmingham, Alabama
Cinematography	Sandi Sissel
Editor	Victor Du Bois
Running time	94 minutes
Production companies	Gary Hoffman Productions; HBO Pictures; Mike Medavoy Productions
Original release
Network	HBO
Release	April 20, 1996

Soul of the Game (released as Field of Honour in the United Kingdom) is a 1996 television film about Negro league baseball.

The film stars Blair Underwood as Jackie Robinson, Delroy Lindo as Satchel Paige, Mykelti Williamson as Josh Gibson, and Harvey Williams as "Cat" Mays, the father of Willie Mays. The film depicts Paige and Gibson as the pitching and hitting stars, respectively, of the Negro leagues in the period immediately following World War II. Robinson is an up-and-coming player on Paige's team, the Kansas City Monarchs.

Plot

Branch Rickey is the general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers who is determined to integrate Major League Baseball. He begins sending his scouts to Negro league games to find the best players. Rickey directs his scouts to look not only at playing ability but also at the players' maturity and capacity to withstand the hostility that is sure to be directed

Cast

Main

Delroy Lindo as Satchel Paige
Mykelti Williamson as Josh Gibson
Edward Herrmann as Branch Rickey
Blair Underwood as Jackie Robinson
R. Lee Ermey as Wilkie
Salli Richardson-Whitfield as Lahoma (credited as Salli Richardson)
Gina Ravera as Grace
Obba Babatundé as Cum Posey
Cylk Cozart as Zo Perry
J.D. Hall as Gus Greenlee
Jerry Hardin as Happy Chandler
Brent Jennings as Frank Duncan
Richard Riehle as Pete Harmon
Armand Asselin as Rip
Joey Banks as Link Rudolph

Supporting

Paul Bates as Orderly #1
Bruce Beatty as Reporter
Guy Boyd as Clark Griffith
Stacye P. Branche as Ella Fitzgerald
Gregg Burge as Bill Robinson
Ed Cambridge as Bellhop
Mimi Cozzens as Jane Rickey
Daniel Estrin as Paperboy
Zaid Farid as Clerk
Edith Fields as Nurse
Erika Flores as Girl
Holiday Freeman as Lillian the Secretary
Jesse D. Goins as John Givens Reporter
Tracy Holliway as Marian Anderson
David Johnson as Roy Campanella
Johnny G. Jones as Hotel Manager
Jonathon Lamer as Cardinal
Joseph Latimore as Jesse Williams
William Bruce Lukens as Umpire #3
Bob Minor as Goon #2
Edwin "EdVanz'd" Morrow as Young Willie Mays (credited as Edwin Morrow)
Jon Pennell as Steve Buckley
Alex Rascovar as Boy
Lou Richards as Baseball Announcer
Terrence Riggins as Orderly #2
Joe Rodriguez as Dodger
Al Rossi as Mayor LaGuardia
Kevin Sifuentes as Waiter
Tim Snay as Umpire #1
Charles C. Stevenson Jr. as Supervisor
Darnell Suttles as Goon #1
Arthur Tipp as Umpire (Home Plate)
Isaiah Washington as Adult Willie Mays
Harvey Williams as Cat Mays
Oscar Williams as Grays Manager

Cameos

Sean Blakemore as Grace's husband
Jeff Coopwood as Stadium Announcer
Jimmy Ortega as El Gigante (Cuban baseball player)

Reception

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a 67% rating based on six reviews.^[1] Audiences gave the film a 67% rating based on 114 reviews.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b "Soul of the Game". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved March 28, 2016.

External links

Soul of the Game at AllMovie
Soul of the Game at IMDb

[rt-1] "Soul of the Game". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved March 28, 2016.

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