61*

61*
Directed by	Billy Crystal
Produced by	Robert F. Colesberry
Written by	Hank Steinberg
Starring	Thomas Jane Barry Pepper
Music by	Marc Shaiman
Distributed by	HBO Films
Release date(s)	April 28, 2001
Running time	129 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

61* is a 2001 American sports drama film directed by Billy Crystal. It stars Barry Pepper as Roger Maris and Thomas Jane as Mickey Mantle on their quest to break Babe Ruth's 1927 single-season home run record of 60 during the 1961 season of the New York Yankees. The film first aired on HBO on April 28, 2001.

Plot

In 1998, the family of the late Roger Maris are preparing to go to Busch Stadium to watch Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals break their father's record with 62 home runs. Before the game, Maris' widow, Pat, is hospitalized due to complications from arrhythmia and watches the game on television from a hospital bed.

Decades earlier in 1961, Maris is presented with the Most Valuable Player award for the 1960 baseball season. Mantle is the team's superstar. As the season begins, Mantle starts off hot, Maris not. Roger thinks he might be traded, but new manager Ralph Houk decides to have Mantle and Maris switch places in the Yankees batting order to see if it helps. It does and Maris begins to hit home runs at a record pace. Mickey keeps pace and it becomes clear that both "M & M Boys" are going to make a run at the Babe's record.

Mickey's life off the field is taking a toll on his playing. He drinks, enjoys the Manhattan nightlife and goes to the ballpark hung over. More than once, pitcher Whitey Ford has to bail him out or sober him up. Maris and teammate/roommate Bob Cerv invite Mantle to move in with them in a modest apartment in Queens to stay out of trouble, with one condition: no women.

New York's fans and media are pulling for the popular and personable Mickey, a long-time Yankee. The quieter Roger is viewed as an outsider, aloof and unworthy. As they get closer to the record, MLB Commissioner Ford Frick, who also happened to be Babe Ruth's admirer and ghostwriter, makes a decision. Unless the record is broken in 154 games (the same number Ruth played in 1927), the new record would be listed separately from Ruth's record, because MLB's season is now 162 games long. Contrary to popular belief (and the movie's title) there was never any "asterisk" involved or mentioned in real life.

It appears Mantle is not going to make it. His health deteriorates and he plays in pain. The relationship is taking a toll on Maris, too. Pressure is mounting and Maris feels antagonism from all sides. Roger is not accustomed to the kind of attention that Mickey gets every day. Mickey is more easy-going and knows how to handle the press. The fans heckle Maris, even throw objects at him on the field. The press dissect or distort everything he does and says. Maris is getting hate mail and even death threats. His wife lives far from New York, usually available only by phone. The stress is so great that Roger's hair begins to fall out in clumps. The Yankees owner also tries to favor Mantle by asking Houk to switch Mantle and Maris in the batting order. Houk refuses, saying the lineup he has is winning for him, even remarking sharply, "The right guy is going to break that stupid record!"

Chronic injury and alcohol abuse catch up with Mickey and an ill-advised shot by a doctor infects his hip and lands him in a hospital bed. Now the record is all Roger's to get. He comes up just shy in the 154th game of the season, but he does finally hit the record-breaking 61st home run on the last day of the season.

According to a voiceover (by long-time Yankee Stadium public address announcer Bob Sheppard), during the end credits, no asterisk was ever officially placed next to Roger's feat, due to separate records being created for the 154 and 162 game seasons. It is revealed that in 1991, six years after Roger's death, baseball's then-Commissioner Fay Vincent decided that a season is a season and separate records would no longer be kept, making Maris the only record holder.

Cast

• Barry Pepper as Roger Maris
• Thomas Jane as Mickey Mantle
• Anthony Michael Hall as Whitey Ford
• Richard Masur as Milt Kahn
• Bruce McGill as Ralph Houk
• Chris Bauer as Bob Cerv
• Jennifer Crystal Foley as Pat Maris (1961)
• Patricia Crowley as Pat Maris (1998)
• Christopher McDonald as Mel Allen
• Bob Gunton as Dan Topping
• Donald Moffat as Ford Frick
• Joe Grifasi as Phil Rizzuto
• Peter Jacobson as Artie Green
• Seymour Cassel as Sam Simon
• Robert Joy as Bob Fishel
• Michael Nouri as Joe DiMaggio
• Tom Candiotti as Hoyt Wilhelm
• E.E. Bell as Fan impersonating Babe Ruth

Filming locations

Most of the baseball action scenes, including those set at Yankee Stadium, were actually filmed at Tiger Stadium in Detroit, Michigan. A combination of strategic photographing and post-production effects were used to enhance the illusion of the "classic" layout of Yankee Stadium. Tiger Stadium was credited as "playing" Yankee Stadium in the closing credits. The shots depicting Fenway Park and Baltimore's Memorial Stadium were shot at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Errors

In the beginning of the movie, Bob Cerv was seen with the Yankees on Opening Day. In reality, Bob Cerv was a member of the Los Angeles Angels until May and then was traded to the Yankees.

External links

• 61* at the Internet Movie Database
• 61* at the Baseball Movie Guide

v t e New York Yankees Formerly the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Highlanders • Based in The Bronx, New York City, New York Franchise History • Seasons • Records • No-hitters • Awards • Players • Managers • Coaches • Owners and executives • Broadcasters • Opening Day starting pitchers • Opening Day starting lineups • Team captains • Members of the Hall of Fame • First-round picks • YES Network Ballparks Oriole Park • Hilltop Park • Polo Grounds • Yankee Stadium (opened 1923) (Events) • Shea Stadium • Yankee Stadium (opened 2009) Spring Training: Barrs Field • Bader Field • Al Lang Stadium • Fort Lauderdale Stadium • George M. Steinbrenner Field Lore Curse of the Bambino • Johnny Sylvester • Murderers' Row • Babe Ruth's called shot • Ed Lucas • M&M Boys • Bucky "Bleeping" Dent • Pine Tar Incident • Jeffrey Maier • The Yankee Years • The Core Four • David Wells' perfect game • David Cone's perfect game Culture Monument Park • New York Yankees Museum • Old-Timers' Day • Bleacher Creatures • Yankees Universe • Eddie Layton • Logos, uniforms and dress code • "Holy Cow!" • Robert Merrill • John Sterling/"Yankees win! Theeeeeee Yankees win!" • Ronan Tynan • "Here Come the Yankees" • "Haya Doin'?" • "New York, New York" • "God Bless America" • The Pride of the Yankees • The Babe Ruth Story • Damn Yankees (musical · film · The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant) • Safe at Home! • 61* • The Bronx is Burning (Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning • The Bronx Is Burning) • Gene Monahan • Dandy • Freddy Sez • George Costanza • Paul Olden • Yankee Stadium Legacy • Yankees HOPE Week Rivalries Boston Red Sox • New York Mets • Los Angeles Dodgers • San Francisco Giants • Subway Series Monument Park honorees Mel Allen • Ed Barrow • Yogi Berra • Bill Dickey • Joe DiMaggio • Whitey Ford • Lou Gehrig • Lefty Gomez • Ron Guidry • Elston Howard • Miller Huggins • Reggie Jackson • Mickey Mantle • Roger Maris • Billy Martin • Don Mattingly • Joe McCarthy • Thurman Munson • Allie Reynolds • Phil Rizzuto • Red Ruffing • Jacob Ruppert • Babe Ruth • Bob Sheppard • George Steinbrenner • Casey Stengel Retired numbers 4 • 3 • 5 • 7 • 37 • 8 • 8 • 16 • 15 • 32 • 9 • 10 • 1 • 44 • 23 • 42 • 49 Key personnel Owners: Yankee Global Enterprises (Hal Steinbrenner • Hank Steinbrenner) • General Manager: Brian Cashman • Manager: Joe Girardi • Team Captain: Derek Jeter Championships (27) 1923 • 1927 • 1928 • 1932 • 1936 • 1937 • 1938 • 1939 • 1941 • 1943 • 1947 • 1949 • 1950 • 1951 • 1952 • 1953 • 1956 • 1958 • 1961 • 1962 • 1977 • 1978 • 1996 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2009 American League Pennants (40) 1921 • 1922 • 1923 • 1926 • 1927 • 1928 • 1932 • 1936 • 1937 • 1938 • 1939 • 1941 • 1942 • 1943 • 1947 • 1949 • 1950 • 1951 • 1952 • 1953 • 1955 • 1956 • 1957 • 1958 • 1960 • 1961 • 1962 • 1963 • 1964 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1981 • 1996 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2003 • 2009 Other titles Eastern Division: 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1980 • 1981 • 1996 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2009 • 2011 | Wild Card: 1995 • 1997 • 2007 • 2010 Minors AAA: Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees | AA: Trenton Thunder | A: Tampa Yankees • Charleston RiverDogs • Staten Island Yankees | Rookie: Gulf Coast League Yankees • DSL Yankees1 • DSL Yankees2   Seasons (111) 1900s-1910s 1900 • 1901 • 1902 • 1903 • 1904 • 1905 • 1906 • 1907 • 1908 • 1909 • 1910 • 1911 • 1912 • 1913 • 1914 • 1915 • 1916 • 1917 • 1918 • 1919 1920s-1930s 1920 • 1921 • 1922 • 1923 • 1924 • 1925 • 1926 • 1927 • 1928 • 1929 • 1930 • 1931 • 1932 • 1933 • 1934 • 1935 • 1936 • 1937 • 1938 • 1939 1940s-1950s 1940 • 1941 • 1942 • 1943 • 1944 • 1945 • 1946 • 1947 • 1948 • 1949 • 1950 • 1951 • 1952 • 1953 • 1954 • 1955 • 1956 • 1957 • 1958 • 1959 1960s-1970s 1960 • 1961 • 1962 • 1963 • 1964 • 1965 • 1966 • 1967 • 1968 • 1969 • 1970 • 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 1980s-1990s 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 2000s-2010s 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 Book:New York Yankees