A boy, a basketball player and a belief that changed the world.
A 1987 movie written by David Field and directed by Mike Newell that proved the awesome power of Little League Baseball and kids keeping
their mouths shut. The movie starred such well known thespians as Jamie Lee Curtis, Gregory Peck and William L. Peterson. Its leading roles were played by Joshua Zuehlke as Chuck Murdock, the spunky Little League pitcher with a conscious and former NBA star Alex English as Amazing Grace Smith, star of the Boston Celtics.
Young Chuck Murdock is the son of fighter pilot Russell Murdock during the tense times of the mid-1980s. While on a field trip with his class
to a nuclear silo, the reality of the arms race becomes frighteningly real to Chuck. In response to the pending doom of the planet, Chuck
refuses to pitch for his Little League team any longer, until the United States and the U.S.S.R. agree to disarm all of their nuclear weapons. Chuck meets with some resistance from the local community and his story makes the news. Eventually, NBA star Amazing Grace Smith hears of Chuck's crusade and decides to join his efforts. Smith walks away from his sports career, vowing not to play until the two largest nations in the world bow to the pre-teen's demands.
Smith moves to the midwest to pal around with his new best friend, Chuck. Soon the pair are joined by people of athletes from other sports and really begin to cramp people's enjoyment of professional sports. Eventually, Chuck gets a meeting with the President of the United States, who implores him to play ball and let him get back to running the nation. Chuck politely refuses and continues not to play.
Things might have continued in this vein were it not for the untimely death of Amazing Grace in a plane crash that is vaguely suspicious. Chuck takes his media-covered tantrum to a new level, by refusing to speak. The children of the world take up Chuck's cause and all begin to refuse to speak. Soon, the President returns, weirded out by the whole silent act, and promises disarmament with the U.S.S.R.
The movie was a pleasant little pipe dream which had its premiere in my hometown because one of the stars (Alex English) lives here and played ball for the local university.