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The Old Man

The Old Man
Far from your traditional sports tale, we felt compelled to include the Old Man (Spencer Tracy) from the adaptation of the Ernest Hemmingway classic, “The Old Man and the Sea”. The film, which is basically just Tracy for most of it, sees his struggle to capture an enormous marlin, and like most sporting struggles (and we will consider fishing a sport for our purposes) this takes on a far deeper meaning.




The Bullet Points:
Movie Appeared:
The Old Man and the Sea (1958)

Actor:
Spencer Tracy

Role Portrayed:
Cuban Fisherman

Why You Should Vote For Him:
The combination of Spencer Tracy and Ernest Hemmingway is about as legendary as it gets.

Why You Should Not Vote For Him:
This is a fisherman, and not one in an actual competition.



Steve Morgan

Steve Morgan
How many times do you watch a boxing film and think that there is no way that this guy could play a boxer? At least with the “The Prizefighter and the Lady” you never thought that as the main fight at the end featured future Heavyweight Champion, Max Baer going up against the then champion, Primo Carnera.


This film was Baer’s film debut (he would star in twenty films) and he played Steve Morgan, a bouncer turned boxer, once a former manager known as “The Professor” (played by Walter Huston) sees his skills with his fists. Morgan is an overnight sensation rising through the ranks, though getting cocky in the process. He earns a fight with Promo Carnera (playing himself) though receives no instruction from his manager causing him to get pummeled early; that is until he has a change of heart and offers winning strategy.   Well sort of, as Morgan battles back to a draw; though Baer must have gotten some really good advice as he beat Carnera for real to win the Heavyweight Title a year later.



The Bullet Points:
Movie Appeared:
The Prizefighter and the Lady (1934)

Actor:
Max Baer

Role Portrayed:
Boxer

Why You Should Vote For Him:
At least we have a case where the boxers in the ring know what they are doing.

Why You Should Not Vote For Him:
Max Baer’s “acting” leaves a lot to be desired.



Ronald

Ronald
Played by the legendary Buster Keaton, we meet Ronald, a nerdish academic in love with a woman who shockingly only loves jocks. Ronald enrolls at College and tries his hand at sports with comical results and though he is pathetic at everything he tries, he gets the girl out of pure persistence. This may not be a great sports film, but it does showcase Buster Keaton in some great physical comedy.




The Bullet Points:
Movie Appeared:
College (1927)

Actor:
Buster Keaton

Role Portrayed:
Wannabe jock

Why You Should Vote For Him:
When you talk about legends, it doesn’t get much better than Keaton. Besides, he got the girl at the end!

Why You Should Not Vote For Him:
He was more of an anti-hero athlete wouldn’t you say?



Ron "Cat" Catlan

Ron 22Cat22 Catlan
We here at Notinhalloffame.com are suckers for all things New Orleans Saints, and all things Charlton Heston following the Planet of the Apes, so how can we not love the box office bomb that was “Number One” where Heston played Ron “Cat” Catlan, a 40 year old Quarterback of the New Orleans Saints who once led them to a Championship, but desperately trying to hold on. It was a very impressive feat considering the Saint never won a title until 2009 and this film was released in 1969 (only three years after New Orleans entered the league), but Moses can do a lot can’t he?


Incidentally, members of the then Saints were in the film, and Heston, who made his share of stinkers would call this the worst film he ever made.



The Bullet Points:
Movie Appeared:
Number One (1969)

Actor:
Charlton Heston

Role Portrayed:
Quarterback for the New Orleans Saints

Why You Should Vote For Him:
This is Ben-Hur for crying out loud!

Why You Should Not Vote For Him:
The Saints were a mess in the late 60’s, was it really that important to play with them?