It's now well-established that the Pirates pitcher portrayed in "42" is a real person. His name is Fritz Ostermueller. In this new trailer we see more of a confrontation between Ostermueller and Robinson, and there's even some dialogue. Here's a fresh collection of screen grabs. You can check out the shot by shot analysis I did for the first trailer here.
"You don't belong here, and you never will."
Jackie Robinson batting at Forbes Field in 1947, his rookie season. This is the first in a series of shots from the Forbes Field scene that we saw in the first trailer.
Ostermueller delivers a pitch. Look at the detail in the scenery behind him. The scoreboard looks perfect. Just beyond it, you can see part of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
The ball hits Robinson square in the head.
This did happen in real life. Robinson has hit by a pitch thrown by Ostermueller during a game at Forbes Field in 1947, but the circumstances in "42" appear to be much different, and quite frankly, fabricated. One account I found of the game indicates it was most likely an accident. The report says Ostermueller apologized to Robinson through a teammate later in the game.
This new trailer for "42" suggests Robinson later gets his revenge against Ostermueller.
Robinson drives the ball to left in this gorgeous shot. It looks like it could be a home run. That would be interesting because Robinson didn't record an extra base hit at Forbes Field during his rookie year. Again, the details of Forbes Field are incredible, especially the buildings beyond the outfield wall.
Robinson makes a face.
Ostermueller makes a face.
This a new shot that was not in the first "42" trailer, and it may be the most remarkable one yet from the Forbes Field scene. You can clearly see the Cathedral of Learning on the University of Pittsburgh campus.
There's little doubt in the my mind that "42" will include the most detailed and accurate recreation of Forbes Field ever put to film. It's almost mind-blowing to see just the handful of shots in the first couple trailers. What makes it all the more remarkable is that Forbes Field probably plays little more than a cameo role in the movie.
In both trailers there are also scenes at Brooklyn's Ebbets Field which look just as gorgeous. I can imagine more than a few longtime Dodgers fans will be welling up when they see it on the big screen. For Pirates fans, seeing the old "House of Thrills" in recreated with such care and attention to detail is going to be a great treat.
I've been looking at this trailer for weeks now, wondering if that was Forbes Field! Now it's quite clear that it is!
ReplyDeleteAlthough you have to wonder if the Cathedral was that clean in '47. The Carnegie probably wasn't either. They were both black with soot from the mills.
That's a great point. Can't wait to hear reaction from longtime Pirates fans. Thanks for reading!
DeleteI grew up in Pittsburgh and attended Pirates games at Forbes Field from 1955 until it's closing. While the recreation has a lot of good touches (Cathedral of Learning, Carnegie Institute), there are a few glaring factual errors. The score board was much closer to the left field line. In the film, it's in left center. There was never advertising on the outfield walls. That was a point of pride in Pittsburgh. The outfield wall was brick and covered in ivy. There were one or two monuments in center field near the flag pole and the batting cage was stored in the deepest part of center field during games.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the feedback. I was curious after seeing "42" about some buildings that were visible down the right field line. Found those strange, but maybe they were really there.
DeleteI was looking to see if any other baseball fans did the same thing I did during the viewing of 42, looking for accuracies of the yards featured in the film. I was looking for the Cathedral of Learning tower as well and then pointed it out to my friend as it appeared toward the end of the movie. Great post. I even gave you a shoutout on my blog as well BLOGGIN' IN L.A. .
ReplyDeleteAndrei
BLOGGIN' IN L.A.
http://dodgerdrei.mlblogs.com
Thanks for spreading the word. I can't believe how obsessed I've become with this movie. It's a period of baseball history that really fascinates me.
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