Post by FWS on Jun 14, 2014 19:32:24 GMT -6
Kevin Costner returns to 'Field of Dreams' site
Kyle Munson
Iowa City Press-Citizen
June 13, 2014
DYERSVILLE – With his shirt sleeves rolled up and a big yellow softball clutched in his fist, Kevin Costner on Friday afternoon strolled back out onto the rural Iowa ball field that helped make him famous a generation ago.
He stood on the porch of the iconic white farm house and chatted with Don Lansing, who owned this ground when "Field of Dreams" was filmed here in 1988. The actor gazed out across the Iowa corn in the outfield — the stalks only about 16 inches high in mid-June, so barely tall enough for a farm dog to disappear into them, let alone a team of ghost players.
But Costner, 59, seemed to relish a chance to walk onto the ball diamond with his wife and three kids. It was a moment of calm before some 12,000 fans were expected to converge on this farm Friday and today for a smorgasbord of events to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the movie that has become the Midwest's answer to "It's a Wonderful Life."
It was Costner's first visit here in eight years, since his rock band Modern West took the field to perform on behalf of Netflix. He's since fathered three more children, and it was a chance to introduce them to his extended Dyersville family.
The only problem was that the soaring orchestral score from "Field of Dreams" suddenly fell silent as Costner and his brood took the field.
"Can you let that music keep going?" Costner asked as he shot a glance at the giant speakers that loomed in the outfield, where the original movie would be screened later that night.
Actor Kevin Costner shares reflections on his career and his work on the movie Field of Dreams at a reunion of cast members for the iconic Iowa film on Friday, June 14, 2014, at the movie site outside Dyersville, Iowa. Des Moines Register
I probably don't have to mention that, yes, of course the music swiftly resumed at the request of the Hollywood actor.
Then Costner looked almost wistful as he stood in the middle of Iowa and listened to his own voice from 25 years ago in the narration that begins the film: "My father's name is John Kinsella. It's an Irish name. …"
Costner had a catch with his two young sons, Hayes, 5, and Cayden, 7. The dad chased down his boys as they scurried to first base.
Meanwhile, his daughter Grace, 4, (her right arm encased in a cast) scampered around the perimeter of the field with her mom, Christine Baumgartner, as she shot video of the pastoral, patriarchal interlude.
Back on the porch, seemingly in a reflective mood, Costner said, "Iowa has left a mark on me. Have I left a mark on Iowa? I don't know. But Iowa certainly has been an important part of my filmography."
The gathering at the field Friday also included Frank Dardis, a retired postmaster who portrayed one of the original ghost players seen in the film. He shed his wool 1919 Chicago White Sox uniform for a simple T-shirt to help rake the red infield gravel into a smooth surface.
"I was a heartbeat from saying, 'No, I don't have time,' " Dardis recalled of the ethereal film role he signed up for — a role that changed the rest of his life and has led him to play baseball around the globe.
"I can't imagine my life if the Field of Dreams had not been a part of it," he said, shaking his head.
The field is the symbolic epicenter of Father's Day in Iowa this weekend, and Costner cited the movie's father-son theme as a reason it has resonated so strongly with families.
Television sportscaster Bob Costas shares his observations on his first visit to the Field of Dreams on Friday, June 13, 2014, outside Dyersville, Iowa. Des Moines Register
The movie deals "with that biblical thing of men and their sons and maybe not getting along," he said, and "I think women watch how beautifully orchestrated this movie was and they actually could turn to their husbands that maybe have never made peace with their father, or turned to their husbands who haven't made peace with their own sons, and say, 'You need to do something about this. You don't want to go through life and wish you had played catch.'"
Also swirling in the sea of emotion at the field Friday were the countless stories brought here by pilgrims to the site (dropped off by the school busload Friday) — and an ongoing story of controversy over the site's proposed redevelopment. Denise Stillman of suburban Chicago heads the company planning All-Star Ballpark Heaven, a youth sports complex that would surround the field.
"It's a fight that Denise still has on her hands," Dardis said.
A newly installed "Save the Field of Dreams on Facebook" billboard stood on the south edge of Dyersville where traffic turns east to drive to the movie site. A coalition of neighboring farmers (known as the Residential and Agricultural Advisory Committee) sued the City of Dyersville, alleging that its rezoning of the Field of Dreams farm from agricultural to commercial ground was illegal. The case awaits a judge's ruling.
Meanwhile, Gov. Terry Branstad — who also was in office when the movie was filmed here in 1988 — came to the stage to read and sign a proclamation. And Dyersville Mayor Al Haas spoke reverently about his recent visit to the field to watch the sunrise on Easter. Both officials voiced strong support for the ballpark project as the "funding mechanism" (as Haas put it) to preserve the original field as a free tourist site.
Sportscaster Bob Costas filmed interview segments Friday for the MLB Network and the "Today" show. ("Today" co-host Matt Lauer was scheduled to come but never made it because his plane was delayed in bad weather.) In the evening, Costas also led Costner and two of his fellow cast members, Timothy Busfield (who portrayed his brother-in-law) and Dwier Brown (who portrayed his ghostly father), in a public Q&A on a stage in front of the farmhouse.
"I'm really glad that people are playing catch out in the field and not paying attention to what we're saying," Costner said, inspiring laughter, and added that was appropriate behavior given the setting.
Costner also took time to walk out onto the field and have a catch with anybody willing to step up and share the afternoon sunshine.
Ron Lovell and his 13-year-old son, Tucker, from suburban Nashville, Tenn., were the two first lucky guys to share that 25th anniversary moment on their first trip to Iowa, let alone the Field of Dreams.
"He's an amazing man to just walk out and play catch with people," Joe Gutowski from Hadley, Mich., said as he looked on.
Another of the ghost players seen in the film, Ron "Hank" Lucas, a self-described "hard-nosed ball player" in his youth, was on hand Friday to help with security. Coincidentally, his latest residual check from Universal City Studios happened to arrive Friday in the mail at his home in Holy Cross: the princely sum of $13.65. Lucas brought the check with him to show to Costner.
"We kind of get our checks mixed up, don't we?" Lucas ribbed the movie star.
Costner reportedly just chuckled and told the ghost player not to spend his "Field of Dreams" windfall all in one place.
At least there was a wealth of shared sentiment Friday among the corn.
In the public Q&A with Costas, Costner told the audience that his three young children never had seen "Field of Dreams." Friday night would be there official introduction to dad's family lore.
"I'm going to sit in a little cornfield in Iowa, these lights are going to go out, and we're going to watch a movie," Costner said. "And I don't think there's anything more American, I don't think there's any bigger miracle for me that occurred than this movie that was made 25 years ago here in this field."
So in that sense Costner was just another nostalgic dad cuddled up with his family in the countryside. For one night, it was the largest, oddest and most heartfelt movie theater in Iowa.
Kyle Munson
Iowa City Press-Citizen
June 13, 2014
DYERSVILLE – With his shirt sleeves rolled up and a big yellow softball clutched in his fist, Kevin Costner on Friday afternoon strolled back out onto the rural Iowa ball field that helped make him famous a generation ago.
He stood on the porch of the iconic white farm house and chatted with Don Lansing, who owned this ground when "Field of Dreams" was filmed here in 1988. The actor gazed out across the Iowa corn in the outfield — the stalks only about 16 inches high in mid-June, so barely tall enough for a farm dog to disappear into them, let alone a team of ghost players.
But Costner, 59, seemed to relish a chance to walk onto the ball diamond with his wife and three kids. It was a moment of calm before some 12,000 fans were expected to converge on this farm Friday and today for a smorgasbord of events to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the movie that has become the Midwest's answer to "It's a Wonderful Life."
It was Costner's first visit here in eight years, since his rock band Modern West took the field to perform on behalf of Netflix. He's since fathered three more children, and it was a chance to introduce them to his extended Dyersville family.
The only problem was that the soaring orchestral score from "Field of Dreams" suddenly fell silent as Costner and his brood took the field.
"Can you let that music keep going?" Costner asked as he shot a glance at the giant speakers that loomed in the outfield, where the original movie would be screened later that night.
Actor Kevin Costner shares reflections on his career and his work on the movie Field of Dreams at a reunion of cast members for the iconic Iowa film on Friday, June 14, 2014, at the movie site outside Dyersville, Iowa. Des Moines Register
I probably don't have to mention that, yes, of course the music swiftly resumed at the request of the Hollywood actor.
Then Costner looked almost wistful as he stood in the middle of Iowa and listened to his own voice from 25 years ago in the narration that begins the film: "My father's name is John Kinsella. It's an Irish name. …"
Costner had a catch with his two young sons, Hayes, 5, and Cayden, 7. The dad chased down his boys as they scurried to first base.
Meanwhile, his daughter Grace, 4, (her right arm encased in a cast) scampered around the perimeter of the field with her mom, Christine Baumgartner, as she shot video of the pastoral, patriarchal interlude.
Back on the porch, seemingly in a reflective mood, Costner said, "Iowa has left a mark on me. Have I left a mark on Iowa? I don't know. But Iowa certainly has been an important part of my filmography."
The gathering at the field Friday also included Frank Dardis, a retired postmaster who portrayed one of the original ghost players seen in the film. He shed his wool 1919 Chicago White Sox uniform for a simple T-shirt to help rake the red infield gravel into a smooth surface.
"I was a heartbeat from saying, 'No, I don't have time,' " Dardis recalled of the ethereal film role he signed up for — a role that changed the rest of his life and has led him to play baseball around the globe.
"I can't imagine my life if the Field of Dreams had not been a part of it," he said, shaking his head.
The field is the symbolic epicenter of Father's Day in Iowa this weekend, and Costner cited the movie's father-son theme as a reason it has resonated so strongly with families.
Television sportscaster Bob Costas shares his observations on his first visit to the Field of Dreams on Friday, June 13, 2014, outside Dyersville, Iowa. Des Moines Register
The movie deals "with that biblical thing of men and their sons and maybe not getting along," he said, and "I think women watch how beautifully orchestrated this movie was and they actually could turn to their husbands that maybe have never made peace with their father, or turned to their husbands who haven't made peace with their own sons, and say, 'You need to do something about this. You don't want to go through life and wish you had played catch.'"
Also swirling in the sea of emotion at the field Friday were the countless stories brought here by pilgrims to the site (dropped off by the school busload Friday) — and an ongoing story of controversy over the site's proposed redevelopment. Denise Stillman of suburban Chicago heads the company planning All-Star Ballpark Heaven, a youth sports complex that would surround the field.
"It's a fight that Denise still has on her hands," Dardis said.
A newly installed "Save the Field of Dreams on Facebook" billboard stood on the south edge of Dyersville where traffic turns east to drive to the movie site. A coalition of neighboring farmers (known as the Residential and Agricultural Advisory Committee) sued the City of Dyersville, alleging that its rezoning of the Field of Dreams farm from agricultural to commercial ground was illegal. The case awaits a judge's ruling.
Meanwhile, Gov. Terry Branstad — who also was in office when the movie was filmed here in 1988 — came to the stage to read and sign a proclamation. And Dyersville Mayor Al Haas spoke reverently about his recent visit to the field to watch the sunrise on Easter. Both officials voiced strong support for the ballpark project as the "funding mechanism" (as Haas put it) to preserve the original field as a free tourist site.
Sportscaster Bob Costas filmed interview segments Friday for the MLB Network and the "Today" show. ("Today" co-host Matt Lauer was scheduled to come but never made it because his plane was delayed in bad weather.) In the evening, Costas also led Costner and two of his fellow cast members, Timothy Busfield (who portrayed his brother-in-law) and Dwier Brown (who portrayed his ghostly father), in a public Q&A on a stage in front of the farmhouse.
"I'm really glad that people are playing catch out in the field and not paying attention to what we're saying," Costner said, inspiring laughter, and added that was appropriate behavior given the setting.
Costner also took time to walk out onto the field and have a catch with anybody willing to step up and share the afternoon sunshine.
Ron Lovell and his 13-year-old son, Tucker, from suburban Nashville, Tenn., were the two first lucky guys to share that 25th anniversary moment on their first trip to Iowa, let alone the Field of Dreams.
"He's an amazing man to just walk out and play catch with people," Joe Gutowski from Hadley, Mich., said as he looked on.
Another of the ghost players seen in the film, Ron "Hank" Lucas, a self-described "hard-nosed ball player" in his youth, was on hand Friday to help with security. Coincidentally, his latest residual check from Universal City Studios happened to arrive Friday in the mail at his home in Holy Cross: the princely sum of $13.65. Lucas brought the check with him to show to Costner.
"We kind of get our checks mixed up, don't we?" Lucas ribbed the movie star.
Costner reportedly just chuckled and told the ghost player not to spend his "Field of Dreams" windfall all in one place.
At least there was a wealth of shared sentiment Friday among the corn.
In the public Q&A with Costas, Costner told the audience that his three young children never had seen "Field of Dreams." Friday night would be there official introduction to dad's family lore.
"I'm going to sit in a little cornfield in Iowa, these lights are going to go out, and we're going to watch a movie," Costner said. "And I don't think there's anything more American, I don't think there's any bigger miracle for me that occurred than this movie that was made 25 years ago here in this field."
So in that sense Costner was just another nostalgic dad cuddled up with his family in the countryside. For one night, it was the largest, oddest and most heartfelt movie theater in Iowa.
