61* (2001)

Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle race to break Babe Ruth's single-season home run record.

Director:

Billy Crystal

Writer:

Hank Steinberg

Stars:

Barry Pepper, Thomas Jane, Anthony Michael Hall

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 4 wins & 25 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Barry Pepper	...	Roger Maris
Thomas Jane	...	Mickey Mantle
Anthony Michael Hall	...	Whitey Ford
Richard Masur	...	Milt Kahn
Bruce McGill	...	Ralph Houk
Chris Bauer	...	Bob Cerv
Jennifer Crystal Foley	...	Pat Maris ('61)
Christopher McDonald	...	Mel Allen
Bob Gunton	...	Dan Topping
Donald Moffat	...	Ford Frick
Joe Grifasi	...	Phil Rizzuto
Peter Jacobson	...	Artie Green
Seymour Cassel	...	Sam Simon
Robert Joy	...	Bob Fitschel
Michael Nouri	...	Joe DiMaggio

Storyline

Aiming for one of the most famed records in sports history, a pair of very different baseball players hit home runs at an impressive rate. Roger Maris, a reserved sort, is much less popular than his hard-partying New York Yankee teammate Mickey Mantle, the player who many observers think will be the one to challenge Babe Ruth's record of 60 home runs in one season. But in the summer of 1961, Maris surges ahead of Mantle, making a run at Ruth's mark.

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Plot Keywords:

babe ruth character | reference to ed sullivan | joe dimaggio character | reference to mark mcgwire | mickey mantle character | 

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Taglines:

Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris. Why did America have room in its heart for only one hero?

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History | Sport

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Did You Know?

Trivia

The story Whitey Ford tells about Mickey Mantle tearing his knee because Joe DiMaggio made him back off a fly ball is true. According to Billy Crystal, Mickey had told him that story before and had even said "My knees were done right there and then."

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Goofs

The broadcast of the opening day game describes the Twins pitcher as "Pascual" - a reference to longtime pitcher Camilo Pascual. He did not pitch that day - Pedro Ramos pitched a complete game for the Twins.

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Quotes

Roger Maris: [after reading a news story of him signing an X on a kid's ball] ... So the guy tells me "Hey, Rog, would you sign an X for my kid?" I sign X and the son of a bitch takes off! I was going to give him a real autograph, I was just kidding around! We win the most important game of the season and this is the horseshit they write about?
Mickey Mantle: [Mickey is eating eggs at the coffee table. Bob, his right knee wrapped up, rests it next to Mickey's plate] What the hell are you doing?
Bob: Sorry, Mick. You're not the ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

The first set of credits lists Dominic Lombardozi; the second, Domenick Lombardozzi.

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Connections

Referenced in Dinner for Five: Episode #3.7 (2004)

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Soundtracks

I Like It Like That
Written by Allen Toussaint (as Allen Troussaint) & Chris Kenner
Performed by Chris Kenner
Courtesy of Charly Licensing APS

User Reviews

Powerful as back-to-back out of the park homers.

This is a wonderful piece of work from director and executive producer Billy Crystal. A powerful and personal story of the little known amiable relationship between Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle during that dramatic home run race of 1961. The two sluggers were always pictured as being bitter rivals. This is a whole different tale.

Mantle(Thomas Jane)being the Yankees 'golden boy' and Maris(Barry Pepper)the ridiculed interloper learned to coexist and become the M & M Boys. Mantle being jaded by the press offered his best advice to the often stoic and sullen Maris on matters of surviving publicity. Most of the home run chase was like a masterpiece on canvas. Maris never seemed to get the respect he deserved, but his fortitude garnered him a place in baseball history. 61* would of course become 61 and then later shattered and surpassed by another home run chase.

This movie deserves being ranked among the elite of sports movies and one of the best baseball flicks ever. Pepper is outstanding as Maris. Jane takes a little warming up to as the Mick. A very talented supporting cast includes: Richard Masur, Bruce McGill & Christopher Bauer. Plus most impressive is Billy Crystal's daughter, Jennifer, playing Pat Maris.

This is a must see for every sports fan!

Details

Official Sites:

HBO

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 April 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

61

Filming Locations:

Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Films, Face Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

129 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1