Have you ever seen sports props in the background of a movie?

[CarltonHendricks]

When I got home from Brimfield MA last May I rented Love Story to see the shots of the Harvard campus I had visited on my trip...Towards the end of the movie Ryan O'Neal's character goes to see his father for money to pay his wife's medical expenses...My radar came on as he sits in his fathers office waiting for him...I spotted a c1890 coxed pair rowing bronze sitting on the desk...Phew, would I like to run into one of those at an antiques show!...you can see more photos of the office scene in a feature I hoisted up on my home page SportsAntiques.com...Has anyone else ever seen a sports relic in the background of a movie?

[BrandonG]

My new favorite HBO Sunday night show "Boardwalk Empire". Nookies new lawyer has a Ty Cobb signed ball on his desk, and later in the episode a drawer full to give to the kiddies!

[Chris Counts]

In the movie, "Brighton Beach Memoirs," there is wonderful advertising piece depicting Sunny Jim Bottomley on the bedroom wall of the main character, Eugene. There's also a nice vintage photo of Dizzy Dean ...

[leftygrove10]

I sold a picture of Lefty Grove to a girl in Hollywood to be used on the set of "Money Ball". The photo was supposed to be in the office of the Athletics Owner. Unfortunately, I didn't see the picture when I watched the movie a few weeks ago.

[Bpm0014]

In the first 5 minutes of A Christmas Story, when they show Ralphies bed, you can very quickly see a couple of baseball cards (one is a T206) glued to the back headboard.

[Jantz]

You can see quite a few items in "The Sandlot". James Earl Jones has them scattered throughout his house. They are shown towards the end of the movie.

Also in the movie "Good Will Hunting", Robin Williams has about 20 baseball cards on a board behind his desk.


Jantz

[jacksons]

Originally Posted by leftygrove10

I sold a picture of Lefty Grove to a girl in Hollywood to be used on the set of "Money Ball". The photo was supposed to be in the office of the Athletics Owner. Unfortunately, I didn't see the picture when I watched the movie a few weeks ago.

Hi Brad -

I watched this on DVD recently and I distinctly recall seeing a Grove photo on the wall of the room in which the scouts meet. Several scenes from the movie are done in this room. I think the photo appears in a shot of Jonah Hill, behind him on the wall.

I could be proven wrong.

[CarltonHendricks]

Fred MacMurray


William Frawley





While watching the 1960's T.V. series My Three Sons starring Fred MacMurray I noticed three pieces of sports memorabilia decor in the house. Moreover, all the rest of the wall pictures I saw were English sporting prints...and a large dog painting or print....not a stitch of flowers or chick art in the place!

For those of you who weren't around in the early to mid 1960's My Three Sons was one of the most popular shows then. The premise of the show was Fred MacMurray played a widower raising three boys. William Frawley who previously played Fred Mertz on I Love Lucy played the gruff outspoken salt of the earth grandfather who did the cooking and housekeeping in the early seasons.

An avid New York Yankees baseball fan, Frawley had it written into his I Love Lucy contract that he did not have to work during the World Series if the Yankees were playing. The Yankees were in every World Series during that time except for 1954 and 1959. He missed two episodes of the show as a result. Source Wikipedia

http://www.examiner.com/article/clas...-my-three-sons
Stanley Livingston who played youngest son Chip gave an interesting newspaper interview September 18, 2011, link above, in which he talked about his close relationship with William Frawley even though Frawley didn't like kids per se.

[patricka]

I remember watching the 2003 made for TV movie "And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself" with Antonio Banderas. There is a scene that takes place in a NY restaurant and on the wall is a framed T200 Fatima Team Premium Jumbo Photo. Can't remember the team but it appeared to be a reproduction.

[D. Broughman]

You may want to watch White Collar tonight there advertising a Babe Ruth ball is going to be stolen from Yankee Stadium.

[scooter729]

Not quite a movie or a real signed ball, but there was the great recent commercial with an appearance of a Honus Wagner signed ball in an Audi commercial....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40WNKZsQMYg

[sayhey24]

In Rain Man, Dustin Hoffman has a lot of baseball cards on the wall of his room. Someone mentioned The Sandlot before -- I remember that James Earl Jones had those 1960s HOF busts in his house.

Greg
http://www.baseballbasement.com

[Kalineman]

In Spike Lee's movie Crooklyn, there are a couple scenes where Strat-O-Matic baseball is being played. Not surprising because Spike has been a big Strat-O-Matic player since childhood.

[novakjr]

A gem mint '52 Topps Pafko was pretty much the entire plot of "Cop Out".

[okmaybent@aol.com]

I had a BB card store in Los Angeles in the 80s. Art Department people came in and bought a lot of Football photos to be used somewhere in JR Ewings house...probably a den... as background. Also I think we sold some cards that were used in a 1980's Robert Wagner "Hart to Hart" episode about a rare $250,000 BB card collection. The show pictured some very current cards.

Max of Valley BB sold some to them as well. I think we/ or Max sold some stuff to be used in Dustin Hoffman's room near the beginning of "Rainman" too. Its been a long time so memory is fading.

What I do remember VERY CLEARLY is that after the "Hart to Hart" episode my phone rang off the hook with people who after seeing those common cards with the $250,000 price tag were convinced their shoebox of 1981 Fleer cards were worth millions. I was a VERY long and frustrating day.

[mcgwirecom]

Stephen Kings "Needful Things" has a Mantle rookie card in it I remember. In "The Natural" at the beginning they show the inside of Roy Hobbs' bedroom and he has a lot of pennants and a baseball lamp I think.

[murphusa]

In Bells of St Mary's Bing Crosby goes into a sporting goods store and you see a wall of boxed baseball gloves

[novakjr]

Originally Posted by mcgwirecom

Stephen Kings "Needful Things" has a Mantle rookie card in it I remember. In "The Natural" at the beginning they show the inside of Roy Hobbs' bedroom and he has a lot of pennants and a baseball lamp I think.

This was actually just mentioned in the post-war forum...In "Needful Things" the movie, it was a signed '56 Mantle. In the book, it's a signed '56 Koufax..

[dherm360]

In the Mask
Rocky collects 55 Dodger cards and continue to talk about Rube Walker-after he dies the cards were placed at his grave site

[Runscott]

In 'Mask', Rocky collected Brooklyn Dodgers baseball cards. If I remember correctly, he had them pinned to a wall or bulletin board.

[CarltonHendricks]

Spotted these stained glass windows about 3/8ths the way thru the 1981 movie Chariots of Fire...on the right is a cricket player and though the one on the left wasn't fully visible it was certain to be a football (soccer) player...Extremely English but absolutely incredible nevertheless...They were in a Victorian restaurant where the character takes a date...or I should say moves in on the girl his roommate was smitten by. Below a shot of the maître d' standing in front of them to illustrate their girth

[whiteymet]

I have in my records somewhere about a movie or TV show where some kid had a few Hartland statues on his bureau. Berra was one was as I recall.

Anyone remember or know about this?

[deebro041]

Just watched the 1951 version of The Day The Earth Stood Still. Sorry I can't do screen captures, but in the little boys room(Bobby), beside the door hangs a catcher's mask. Probably a youth mask, but still nice to see.

[brewing]

I walked by a set before they started filming a couple of weeks ago in Savannah and took a picture of this.

[bigfanNY]

Needful things was mentioned earlier in post it was a 1956 Mantle tempting a kid who had all the other 56 Yankees. The biggest Prop ever in Movies/TV was The series Royal Pains The main Character walks in a house where Two T206 Wagner's are displayed in the front hall of a Hampton's home.

[Butch7999]

Had an old episode of Perry Mason (1957-58, season 1, episode 25) on TV the other night -- "The Case of
the Empty Tin." The opening scene takes place in a Los Angeles camera shop / photography studio.
On the wall in back there's a roughly 8x10" portrait of a haggard-looking fellow wearing a baseball cap.
Sure looks like Grover Cleveland Alexander.

[CarltonHendricks]

Originally Posted by Butch7999

Had an old episode of Perry Mason (1957-58, season 1, episode 25) on TV the other night -- "The Case of
the Empty Tin." The opening scene takes place in a Los Angeles camera shop / photography studio.
On the wall in back there's a roughly 8x10" portrait of a haggard-looking fellow wearing a baseball cap.
Sure looks like Grover Cleveland Alexander.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5gqqjz

[Butch7999]

Thanks, Carlton, nice work!
We couldn't find the full video to post a screenshot.