Rare Satchel Paige Color Footage: From the Academy Film Archive

From the Richard Brooks Estate, this rediscovered 16mm film preserved by the Academy Film Archive features rare color footage of the legendary Satchel Paige pitching in an exhibition baseball game at Wrigley Field, Los Angeles on November 7, 1948.
As the footage begins, Paige takes the mound for the Royals, a barnstorming team of Negro League ballplayers. Many of the Royals players are members of the famed Kansas City Monarchs. Paige, who had been signed by the Major Leagues' Cleveland Indians in the summer of 1948, wears his Cleveland uniform.
The Royals' opponents are the Gene Bearden-Bob Lemon All-Stars, a team of Major Leaguers headed by Cleveland pitchers Bearden and Lemon. Rookie phenom Bearden appears in the footage, wearing uniform number 30.
Spectators in the stands include MGM studio head Louis B. Mayer, MGM musical producer Arthur Freed and producer William Goetz, Mayer's son-in-law.
Los Angeles' Wrigley Field opened in 1925 and was demolished in 1969. The ballpark was home to the Pacific Coast League's Los Angeles Angels for over thirty seasons, the rival Hollywood Stars for eleven seasons, and the Major League California Angels for their inaugural season. Motion pictures and television shows filmed at the park include It Happens Every Spring (1949), Damn Yankees! (1958), Home Run Derby and many others.
Academy Award-winning writer-director Richard Brooks shot the original Kodachrome film.
For more information about the Academy Film Archive and our quest to locate missing films, please visit: www.oscars.org/...
Learn more about the Home Movie Collection by clicking the following link www.oscars.org/...

[@Halei_from_the_show_me]

Hi I'm Satchel Paige's granddaughter, just came across your page, i love it, thanks for keeping his memory alive!

[@kr1ptik70]

Pun intended?

[@bobpoet9783]

was your grandmother Lahoma there?

[@therealbs2000]

Hello Halei Paige! Please send my respects to your grandfather! He was truly an original and to my mind, baseball is doing a terrible job reminding people about him and it breaks my heart!

[@jasondaley718]

Mon'ae Davis?

[@dxwallace55]

Ol' Satch is like, my all time greatest Black inspiration from sports, way more than Muhammad Ali or Jackie Robinson. What I admire about him most is how he excelled in his 40's when other's were washed up. I carried that youthful spirit in myself after I got over 40. I bought the book "Don't Look Back: Satchel Paige in the Shadows of Baseball", great read!!!! One of my mantras I carry with me is "Don't look back, because something might be gaining on ya' " -Satchel Paige. Don't worry, Ol' Satch will never be forgotten......

[@ronflatter1235]

The football lines and the clock on the scoreboard were there for Pepperdine College, which played football at Wrigley Field in 1948. Pepperdine at the time was in south central L.A., and its football program was in its third year. The football program folded after 1961, and the school was moved to Malibu in 1972.

[@royrowland5763]

Thanks. I knew Pepperdine played there that season, but I didn't know the Malibu campus came much later.

[@keithmccoy1881]

Memory should never died. Thanks for you and your family memories will live on. Thanks again

[@pix999]

ANY color footage of Satchel Paige is GOOD footage. Thanks for posting it.

[@davidblack7356]

What is beautiful to me about this video is the footage of a long gone ballpark.

[@scottlewis8681]

Just finished the book Maybe I'll pitch forever, it was great. Thanks for the video of satchel it was great.

[@danielmatthews638]

incredible footage....would love to hear the sound......just incredible

[@DavidMelloIG]

Thank you for this rare baseball film. This would not only excite baseball fans but also people who may not even remember that Los Angeles had another baseball stadium aside from the ones most know about: Dodger Stadium, Angels Stadium and the L-A Coliseum. It must have excited people so see Paige wearing a Cleveland uniform just a month after he helped lead his team to the World Series.

[@dhall058]

We used to attend L.A. Angels games at Wrigley Field, which was right near Angels Flight funicular railway.

[@nbajrue2270]

1:20 man that’s natural beauty

[@verycoolnin]

People dressed so classy to baseball games back in the day.

[@austinhall9179]

That’s what happens when whites control cultural. Nothing but class

[@ajawofcopan]

thanks for posting this video!

[@superpadre28]

what a beautiful footage!

[@acousticshadow4032]

You mean his left foot or his right foot?🙃

[@johns.8220]

Such amazing footage, makes me feel like I'm actually there.

[@bonniet.johnson6300]

but why do they think I want to see the backs of old men’s heads and a kid selling popcorn!!!

[@dme1016]

You're either being sarcastic, or you're easy to please. I saw nothing definitive regarding Paige.

[@dape8993]

The L.A. version of Wrigley Field was also host to the old black and white Home Run Derby TV show, filmed in the 1959-1960 off season. At this game, Louis B. Mayer appears to be one of the spectators!

[@billslocum9819]

A book "Mining The Home Movie: Excavations in Histories and Memories," mentions this film and specifically points out Mayer. Wonder who the starlets were?

[@billslocum9819]

Link to book on Google: books.google.com/books?id=VG_VZYKGIA4C&pg=PA213&lpg=PA213&dq=Louis+B.+Mayer+Wrigley+Field&source=bl&ots=rQgmVtTBO5&sig=hYGFS7h4vdKStLbncx-ayngoR3w&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwji3qDMlZvRAhWGSiYKHRKGCVYQ6AEIMDAD#v=onepage&q=Louis%20B.%20Mayer%20Wrigley%20Field&f=false

[@doughaak7407]

I saw Paige pitching for the Kansas City Athletics on TV. I think it was 1965.

[@SwagOnSwoosh]

Great footage. Thanks for sharing.

[@slightlygrouchy]

Fantastic upload!

[@lynnek2467]

The Pacific Coast League Los Angeles Angels played there for 30 years, and the PCL Hollywood Stars also played there for a number of years, then moved to Gilmore Field when it opened. Wrigley L.A. was torn down in 1969. (If you click on the words "show more" below the description of the video, there is a lot more information about it)

[@flame-sky7148]

He was 42 years old here. Thanks

[@maitycom]

Unbelievable that Goodyear was allready using zeppelins for commercials all those years ago.

[@metaphoria3]

Zeppelins .. Paige hmm

[@paulazmudzinski9225]

At 00:39 the shafts of sunlight make Wrigley look just like a baseball cathedral. -mikenotpaula.

[@guddagudda420]

they filmed home run derby here in 1960

[@johnvollat]

1:15 I found it unusual how close the umpire got to second base lol thanks for the video

[@Haddonfield63]

ICONIC

[@ACTSVERSE]

It would be mighty rare to see Satchel Paige in color. I’m sure he’d be surprised too.

[@tarmonhill]

yes it is. what team played there, and has it been pulled down?

[@bobpoet9783]

sadly yes. But glad I got to see a couple games there.

[@HillValley85]

Hey, isn't that Wrigley Field in LA, where they did the "Home Run Derby" TV show?

[@bobpoet9783]

yes

[@Skaz1hiphop]

Who is the catcher in this footage?

[@brooklynbeauty5680]

I love baseball and I like to see it played at its highest level... skin color or anything should not keep the best players and the highest level of baseball away from us... not only was this man black, but he was one of the best baseball players ever... and he served in the army! He was an amazing baseball player let’s start there

[@lynnek2467]

It's Wrigley Field, Los Angeles. It was actually the first Wrigley Field -- it had the name before Wrigley Field, Chicago. The park opened in 1925 and was located in South Los Angeles on Avalon Blvd. Isn't it a beautiful ballpark?

[@bobpoet9783]

May have had the name first, but in Chicago, Weegham Park (now Wrigley) opened in 1914 for the Chicago Whales of the Federal League.

[@daniellinehan63]

Whales became the 3rd Chicago team to win the pennant in the War Years( '15,'17,'18)

[@greaterdale]

Allright academy film archive. release the rest of the baseball clips you have hidden, and not on some crappy 200 dollar box set. People deserve to see these more then the big companies deserve to get more millions of dollars.

[@naughtiusmaximus1811]

It matters that there is no audio.

[@bobpoet9783]

Who are young ladies at 1:23 (enjoying the game) and 1:27 (not so much)?

[@edcarter4779]

Cool!

[@jamesfarris3755]

Is that Louis B Mayer?

[@randywalsh8383]

Exactly..I noticed it right away

[@jacethecrowl]

Not knowing my baseball very well I'm more intrigued by the fact that this footage was shot by the director of In Cold Blood - Elmer Gantry - Deadline USA...

[@Remember_Baker]

wow nice

[@dme1016]

It's so rare, we couldn't even tell what it was. C'mon man!!

[@PiratesFan1992]

holy cow how tall was he?

[@just2raw4yall]

Girl at 1:20 was baaaaaaaad!

[@OscarGarcia-me4gp]

I live right next to it now

[@Tony63909]

Is that park still standing? If it is standing, is it still used as a ball park?

[@SDDarrell]

I believe it is now a Rec Center, with a County Mental Health building adjacent to it.

[@Tony63909]

When was that stadium torn down?

[@SDDarrell]

1969, though I don't believe too many events occurred there after 1965. The Angels played their inaugural season there in 1961. Here is more info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrigley_Field_(Los_Angeles)

[@gsalinas400]

Is it 42nd and Avalon?

[@metaphoria3]

This the ol hr derby field

[@crazymiles]

Baseball Reference lists him as 6'3".

[@tarmonhill]

what is the name of this ballpark?

[@ousamaabdu794]

Wrigley Field in LA.. It was an old PCL Park, got tore down in the 1960s

[@jic333]

The game was mostly based on stolen bases and base hits then, since guys weren't hitting the ball out like Hank Aaron. Then I guess HRs became the in thing and teams were more focused on hitting power. I'm sure a lot of guys could have hit 40 40(like Willie Mays could have if he wanted), but the steal did slake off for a while.

[@davanmani556]

Those guys started the relief pitcher trend.

[@daniellinehan63]

Is that Ernie Banks at SS?

[@billp1955]

They need to put some water on that field...

[@javusbonmon6937]

✊🏾💪🏾👍🏾⚾⚾⚾🧢

[@daniellinehan63]

Notice the arm speed on Satch ?!

[@velmanevarez2263]

Beautiful girl in the white blouse.

[@uboatskipper]

A: The footage is of an EXHIBITION game. That it was played in November is irrelevant. B: The Indians' regular season (154 games) ran from April 20, 1948 to October 4. The World Series, six games, ended on October 11, 1948 -- hardly "late" October. All your statements and assumptions are false.

[@davanmani556]

Home run derby.

[@PhantomDreamer_]

Gross, there's a football gridiron on the field. Sacrilege.