HOT SPRINGS -- The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announced Friday that filmmaker Larry Foley's documentary film The First Boys of Spring has been selected for two screenings this month at the 11th annual Baseball Film Festival.
"I would tell you that this is just a great honor," Foley said Friday. "I grew up playing baseball, and I could have never imagined that I would have a film that would be presented at the Baseball Hall of Fame and be part of its permanent collection."
The film, which was previously screened in June 2015 at the Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture, was selected as one of 15 films set to be screened Sept. 23-25. Deadline for submissions was the beginning of August, and qualifying films had to be created within the past five years.
"The films could be of any length or genre but had to have baseball as the primary or secondary focus," said Jon Shestakofsky, National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum vice president of communications and education.
The one-hour documentary film focuses on Hot Springs hosting major and minor league baseball teams for spring training starting in 1886, continuing through eight decades. Narrated by Malvern native and Academy Award-winning actor Billy Bob Thornton, the film has been nominated for four Emmy awards and has been accepted into the Baseball Hall of Fame's archive collection.
"The film, back in winter, was accepted into the library," Foley said. "Anyone who goes to do research at the hall of fame at Cooperstown, N.Y., can ask for a screening copy. That is great to think that I made a film that is in the hall of fame."
Because of scheduling issues, Foley, a professor of journalism at the University of Arkansas, said he may not be able to attend the film festival but will try to send a representative associated with the film.
"We like to have a representative for each film for the Q&A session after the film," Shestakofsky said.
Beyond the film festival, the film is set to be aired nine days throughout September on various FOX Sports Network stations. The First Boys of Spring was previously aired on the Major League Baseball Network on Feb. 13 and Feb. 21.
"I knew very early on that we had a great story, and pretty much everything we have attempted with this piece has worked," Foley said. "It's appeared on MLB Network, Fox networks, it's nominated for four Emmys.
"It has been presented at the Baseball Hall of Fame twice and is going to be presented twice more. It has been a story and film project of a lifetime for me."
State Desk on 09/06/2016