The Baseball Filmography, 1915 Through 2001 (2nd Edition)

by Hal Erickson

McFarland & Company (series)

Since the first baseball movie (Little Sunset) was released in 1915, Hollywood has had an on-again, off-again affair with the sport. The resulting relationship has produced a wide array of films, some good (Field of Dreams, A League of Their Own), some obscure (Roogie's Bump, Hot Curves) and some flops (The Slugger's Wife, The Babe Ruth Story).

This is a detailed look at the 111 "fictional" baseball films produced and released in the United States from 1915 through 2001. This expanded and updated version of the 1992 first edition includes 29 new films produced between 1991 and 2001. New material includes an entry on 1978's Goodbye Franklin High (unavailable for the 1992 edition) and revisions to several entries after the uncut versions of several silent and pre-1950 talkie baseball films were made available, among them Hit and Run (1924), The Battling Orioles (1924), Slide Kelly Slide (1927) and They Learned About Women (1930). Each entry contains full cast and production credits, year of release, production company, a synopsis, and a critique of the movie. Behind-the-scenes and background information is included. Two additional (and completely updated) sections cover baseball short subjects and baseball in non-baseball films. An extensive bibliography completes the work.

Since the first baseball movie (Little Sunset) in 1915, Hollywood has had an on-again, off-again affair with the sport, releasing more than 100 films through 2001. This is a filmography of those films. Each entry contains full cast and credits, a synopsis, and a critique of the movie. Behind-the-scenes and background information is included, and two sections cover baseball shorts and depictions of the game in non-baseball films. An extensive bibliography completes the work.