Bring on the Bill Rodgers movie

Parker Stevenson is too old to play Bill.

But damn he would have been the perfect cast, right?

Never thought of it, but yeah I think it'd be better than 90% of the crap hollywood puts out there.

So would the story finish with his first win at Boston? You'd really have to create some drama out of those lean years to make anyone care. Especially since we all know he goes on to win boston and nyc 4x.

If not a movie, at least an biography. I know he's written some training books, but I'd like to read more about his life and running since he's such an interesting personality.

Right now I'd settle for his logs from 1974. Not that I'm not grateful for the 73 logs, but it only - cruelly, perhaps - whetted my appetite for more. Hodge? Bill?

It's not like either of those Pre movies made any money.

Bill is a heck of a nice guy, a great runner, and a hero to many of us. Apart from that, what would you put in a movie about him? His divorces? His cancer? His broken leg a few years back?

I'm curious how people would structure a movie about him. Give me a beginning, a middle, and an end....preferably a beginning/middle/end that would captivate a NON runner and make him/her want to see it.

Along the same lines, I hear that they are making a movie about Dick Beardsley's life?

Bio-script wrote:

Bill is a heck of a nice guy, a great runner, and a hero to many of us. Apart from that, what would you put in a movie about him? His divorces? His cancer? His broken leg a few years back?

I'm curious how people would structure a movie about him. Give me a beginning, a middle, and an end....preferably a beginning/middle/end that would captivate a NON runner and make him/her want to see it.

A movie about him has SOME broad appeal (mostly for runners though of course):

1) College teammate Amby Burfoot wins Boston Marathon.

2) He smokes and picks fruit at his aunt's fruit farm.

3) He gets serious about training and stuns the running world by winning the 1975 Boston Marathon in a then American Record of 2:09:55 when his previous best time had been 2:19 at Boston a year earlier. And he was wearing this damn shirt -

4) Puts mayonnaise on his pizza.

5) His no-longer "BR" brand.

6) The fact that he was a voice for professional runners to be allowed to participate in the Olympics. "Amateruism doesn't help anyone. If you work hard at something and are good at it, you should get paid for it." (paraphrased)

7) He, and Frank Shorter, were partly (some would say mostly) responsible for the running boom of the 70s.

Add in some drama with regard to his marriages and his cancer, and you could have a decent movie. The BIG problem is that there isn't a good ending. His life isn't over. He's not in the gutter or was in the gutter and now isn't.

Crazy thing to me is that his marathon PR is still better than Dathan Ritzenhein's. That won't be true by the end of Ritzenhein's career, but it is still true now after 3 attempts by Ritz.

I hope people don't forget how great he was.

I agree.... seems like there is enough in there to interest non-runners, not a huge blockbuster hit but at least something that gets the greenlight and actually gets made.

better point... the story is not over (thank God.... I am a HUGE BR fan)

pnw runner wrote:

If not a movie, at least an biography. I know he's written some training books, but I'd like to read more about his life and running since he's such an interesting personality.

his book 'marathoning' is actually almost more of a biography than a training book (although it definitely has a lot of that, too)

Not to mention he was the biggest name in the GBTC 70's running scene, and the club is still going strong!

I would LOVE to see this movie. If it was made years ago. Dennis Christopher of Breaking Away fame would of played a great Billy Rodgers. I'm drawing a blank on who could play him today. You could have Bill Squires as a main character.

The GBTC boys, rival with Frank. Start off with Bill's H.S days, College(Amby) Bill the drifter, Vietnam protest, working at the Hospital carting around dead bodies. Getting canned for wanting to start a union at the Hospital, The Bar life, getting his motorcycle stolen and then the start of his amazing run to being ranked #1 in the world. Starting his store, under the table money, Montreal Olympics, Carter boycotting Moscow...there is alot there you can work with. I always wondered about a Frank Shorter movie too. It could end with the investigation of Cierpenski the drug cheat and Frank getting the Gold he deserves. Wishful thinking.

postfontaine wrote:

the Bill Rodgers story is fascinating (the college running career followed by the smoking and loafing, followed by years of sheer awesomeness). Hollywood made two movies about Pre, must be something in the works regarding Bill R.

Please, no. Let's bear in mind that both the Prefontaine movies were utter crap.

I bet you think The Shaggy Dog was a great movie.

A Bill Rodgers would have all the appeal of a 10 dollar crack whore.

DUI

I didn't know that cross bluntry, I'll have to check it out now. I still think a full-on biography would be great because I bet his life outside running was quite interesting as well.

Here's a question for everyone; what actor would play Rodgers if a movie was indeed made?

what about a running with the buffaloes movie