For what seems like the first time, Harrison Ford will be playing an old man. He will be acting in the upcoming movie 42: The True Story of an American Legend. Ford’s character, Branch Rickey, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame not for his .239 career batting average, but because he signed both Jackie Robinson and Roberto Clemente into Major League Baseball.
Another unusual aspect of Ford’s role is that he is not the star of this film. The film’s star is Chadwick Boseman, who plays Jackie Robinson. Robinson, whose number 42 has been retired across the realm of baseball and can never be worn by another player, is notable for having broken the color barrier in baseball. The film is the first one in over 60 years that focuses on Jackie Robinson.
The trailer excites viewers by using a popular Jay-Z song (Brooklyn We Go Hard) in the background. Jay-Z uses the phrase “I jack, I rob, I sin” as a play on Jackie Robinson’s name, and to demonstrate the struggles of living in Brooklyn. However, the struggles Jay-Z faced growing up in Brooklyn were vastly different than the racism Jackie Robinson dealt with daily during his playing career as a Brooklyn Dodger.
Born to a single-parent family in Georgia, Robinson excelled at sports from a young age. Robinson went on to compete and letter in baseball, basketball, football, and track at UCLA. Due to financial difficulties, Robinson was forced to drop out of school and enlist in the army. Like his collegiate athletic career, his military career was also cut short. Robinson received an honorable discharge due to extreme levels of racism in the army. Racism would follow Robinson into the major leagues after he was signed by Branch Rickey, as he broke the over-50-year color barrier in major league baseball. As a Dodger, Robinson faced death threats, racist headlines, “beanball” pitchers (pitchers known for head hunting batters), and Robinson was often not allowed to stay in the same hotel as his teammates.
Despite the racism, Robinson’s athletic abilities prevailed. A .311 lifetime batting average, 19 steals of home, a Rookie of the Year and MVP award, and six World Series appearances paved the way for Robinson into Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.
This yet unrated film will be released on April 12 by Warner Brothers. Directed by Brian Helgeland the film also features Alan Tudyk (Dodgeball), Christopher Meloni (Law & Order: SVU) as Leo Durocher, and Lucas Black as Pee Wee Reese.
In comparison to the legacies of Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, and Malcolm X, Jackie Robinson is often forgotten and overlooked regarding his contributions towards civil rights. 42: The True Story of an American Legend will remind people of how important Robinson was to civil rights and the game of baseball.