July 19, 2018

Recently Discovered Color Footage Of Ted Williams's Final Game at Fenway Park

The New York Times, July 19, 2018:
Now In Living Color: Ted Williams's Last Game

Bill Murphy, a 19-year-old student at an art college in Boston, skipped class on Sept. 28, 1960, and bought a $2 ticket to Fenway Park. Ted Williams was playing his last game in the major leagues.

Even more auspiciously, Murphy brought his 8-millimeter color film camera with him. ...

A few days after the game, Murphy developed the film. There was Williams, one of the best hitters to ever play the game, clouting the last of his 521 home runs for the Red Sox in his fabled final at-bat. Murphy showed the film to his father and a few friends then tossed it into a desk drawer where it has remained since, all but hidden. ...

For the past 58 years, Williams's last game has been seen in grainy, black-and-white, newsreel-like footage. But this year, on the 100th anniversary of Williams's birth, Murphy's homemade movie, like a buried treasure, has finally been unearthed.

The vibrant color footage will make its broadcast premiere on Monday in a new PBS documentary made in partnership with Major League Baseball.

1 comment:

Franco Capizzo said...

David Ortiz’s production company, Big Papi Productions, co-produced the upcoming American Masters episode along with MLB Prodcutions, Albert M. Tapper and Nick Davis Productions. Thanks for reminding me that’s it’s coming up in a few days. Should be a good documentary on Williams.