Angels in the Outfield (1951)

Director:

Clarence Brown

Writers:

Richard Conlin (story)
Dorothy Kingsley (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

19 October 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Sport

Tagline:

The toughest guy you ever met ... until an angel said "Hello!"

Plot:

A young woman reporter blames the Pittsburgh Pirates' losing streak on the obscenely abusive manager...

Plot Keywords:

Angel | Catholic Orphanage | Convent | Beautiful Woman | Baseball

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Paul Douglas	...	Aloysius X. 'Guffy' McGovern
Janet Leigh	...	Jennifer Paige
Keenan Wynn	...	Fred Bayles
Donna Corcoran	...	Bridget White
Lewis Stone	...	Arnold P. Hapgood
Spring Byington	...	Sister Edwitha
Bruce Bennett	...	Saul Hellman
Marvin Kaplan	...	Timothy Durney
Ellen Corby	...	Sister Veronica
Jeff Richards	...	Dave Rothberg
John Gallaudet	...	Joe Reynolds
King Donovan	...	Mack McGee
Don Haggerty	...	Rube Ronson
Paul Salata	...	Tony Minelli
Fred Graham	...	Chunk (coach)

Also Known As:

Angels and the Pirates (UK)

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #15350) | Sweden:Btl | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Forbes Field - Boquet and Sennott Streets, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

The player wearing #4 who hits a home run is Ralph Kiner, who was known as a pretty good hitter.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When the sign is changed from a bunt to hit-away, the batter singles to left field with a runner on second base. The pitcher incorrectly runs toward third base instead of home plate to back up the catcher on a play to home plate.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Sports on the Silver Screen (1997) (TV)

Now who'd have thought angels would be helping a bunch of pirates.

Before the New York Mets came along, the Pittsburgh Pirates were the first name in baseball for flat footed futility. At the time that Angels in the Outfield was made the Pirates had a long term lease on the National League cellar. In fact the only reason the Pirates drew any crowds at all was the presence of the premier slugger in the National League, Ralph Kiner. One shudders to think where they might have finished without him.

But that's reality. In this film some heavenly help is granted the Pirates, presumably by a long suffering Deity who's maybe a Pirate fan. That is on condition that manager Paul Douglas clean up his act. He's told that by unseen angel James Whitmore.

As it turns out Douglas is not the only one getting celestial visitations. He only hears angels, but little Donna Corcoran sees them behind every Pirate player on the field. When reporter Janet Leigh writes the story all kinds of complications ensue.

Even without the special effects of the 1994 remake, Angels in the Outfield still maintains an innocent charm that is irresistible to baseball fans of a perennial losing team. After all we found out in Damn Yankees the kind of outside help they've been getting to stay on top.

Nine years later the Pirates were in fact World Series winners, humbling the mighty Yankees in seven games. And for thirty years after that the Pirates were a contending ball club. They're back in the doldrums that Angels in the Outfield portrays. Maybe time for another heavenly assist.