Ron Shelton Visits "The Church of Baseball"

As both a baseball fan and a movie aficionado, Bull Durham is one of my favorites. The 1988 film, written and directed by Ron Shelton, and starring Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins, is a delightful comedy set in the world of minor league baseball. In addition to the talented star trio, there's a wonderful supporting cast, including Robert Wuhl and Trey Wilson. The movie was Shelton's directorial debut, and its success was followed by several more sports themed films, including Cobb, White Men Can't Jump and 1996's Tin Cup, which also starred Costner.  But it all started with a small-budgeted film about a romantic triangle, with baseball as the backdrop to the story.

Shelton has written an in-depth account of the production of Bull Durham, entitled The Church of Baseball: The Making of Bull Durham, and it's a fascinating read. Shelton actually played in the minor leagues, and used his real life experiences to add depth to his colorful tale about life, love and the love of baseball. He'd previously written the screenplays for a couple of films that didn't catch fire at the box office, but he really wanted to get his baseball film produced by a Hollywood studio. The Church of Baseball is the fascinating story of Shelton's often challenging journey to get the film made.

The process of getting Bull Durham produced and ultimately released was a journey littered with the usual Hollywood roadblocks, including thick-headed studio executives, financial issues and casting problems. One executive wanted Anthony Michael Hall to play the Tim Robbins role, despite the fact that Shelton's experience with Hall's audition was less than positive. At various times during the filming, studio personnel wanted to re-shoot portions of the film, cut important scenes from the script, and even replace Shelton with another director.

Shelton's retelling of the film's pre-production, production and completion is an absorbing story, related in a low-key, conversational style, almost as if you're sitting at the bar with him listening to the story. It's a compelling tale that's as much about Shelton himself as it is about his adventures dealing with the Hollywood machine. There's a lot of great inside information on the making of Bull Durham, but there are also some funny, moving and illuminating autobiographical reminisces about Shelton's own life experiences, which informed his work on the movie. If you're a fan of Bull Durham, or Shelton's other films, The Church of Baseball: The Making of Bull Durham is a must read.