Fear Strikes Out

Buy This Item Fear Strikes Out by Paramount  Available from Amazon  $14.95  on 11-1-2008     From its early scenes of a young Jimmy Piersall literally suffering his father's abusive determination that the boy should play baseball, Robert Mulligan's 1957 <I>Fear Strikes Out</I> becomes more about mental health than love of the game. But this is a compelling drama about the real-life Piersall's gradual breakdown one season before a national audience, the legacy of his domineering dad's overbearing ways. (Karl Malden plays Piersall's father.) Mulligan (<I>To Kill a Mockingbird</I>) brings his usual, civilized mix of poignancy and dramatic urgency to the proceedings, keeping any viewer (sports fan or not) involved. Perkins looks out of place on the field and is meant to appear that way; his fragility and intensity underscore the sad tale of Piersall's woes. <I>--Tom Keogh</I> Reader Reviews Both Perkins and Malden turn in possibly the greatest performances of their illustrious careers in this story of the gifted but troubled center fielder. Perkins is truly brilliant in the role, and its hard to imagine anyone at this point who could have done a better job in the role. Maldon is relentless as the overbearing sports dad, who does love his son and wants him to do well, but whose love is truly a two-edged sword. The rest of the cast is excellent as well, the movie has a fine script, and the film is taughtly directed by Robert Mulligan. One minor quip I did have was that the wife's part, played capably by Normal Moore, could have been bigger. Coincidently, I attended the Norma Moore private school my last two years in high school. :-) Overall, it's a fine movie about a great baseball player's descent into mental illness and his struggle to return to normalcy, but be aware that it does take some artistic license with the facts. In the film, Piersall's disorder is portrayed as an "anxiety disorder characterized by obsession and occasional auditory hallucinations," (from the Wikipedia article on Piersall), rather than bipolar disorder, which was how it was actually diagnosed. These inaccuracies eventually led Piersall to disown the film. Also, the movie makes no mention of the fact that Piersall's mother was diagnosed with mental illness. A little trivia note, he became a professional baseball player at only age 18 with the Red Sox, after having been an outstanding high school basketball player. In a career marked by bizarre behavior and various antics, he celebrated his 100th career home run by running the bases running backwards, as promised (although in the right order). He had a career batting average of .272, led the American League in doubles with 40 in 1956, was elected to the American League Hall of Fame in both 1954 and 1956, and earned Golden Glove awards in 1958 and 1961. Interestingly, Piersall and Perkins, who last names both begin with P, share their first and middle names, since Piersall's middle name is Anthony. Finally, in his autobiography, Piersall once said, "Probably the best thing that ever happened to me was going nuts. Whoever heard of Jimmy Piersall, until that happened?"

Fear Strikes Out Available from Amazon Price: $14.95 Updated on 11-1-2008.

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