Angels in the Outfield (1951)

My Review

“Angels in the Outfield” is a sports comedy movie about a reporter’s investigations discovering the Pittsburgh Pirates’ losing streak is caused by the manager’s cursing and swearing and fighting with players. About the same time, the skipper hears an angel promising to help the team if he changes his ways. The comedy and drama proceed from there, well directed by Clarence Brown (“National Velvet” 1944) from a screenplay by Dorothy Kingsley and George Wells, the story by Richard Conlin.

The cast includes Paul Douglas as the manager, Janet Leigh as the reporter, Keenan Wynn as a sportscaster, Donna Corcoran as the girl who claims to see angels assisting players, Lewis Stone as the Commissioner of Baseball, Spring Byington and Ellen Corby as nuns, and James Whitmore as the voice of the angel. Cameos include ball players Joe DiMaggio and Ty Cobb, Pirates minority owner Bing Crosby, and Barbara Billingsley as a hat check girl in a restaurant.

The watchable “Angels in the Outfield” experienced a net loss at the box office for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was filmed primarily in and around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, especially at Forbes Field (torn down in 1970). Additional baseball action was shot at Wrigley Field in South Los Angeles (torn down in 1969). A remake of the same name was released in 1994, starring Tony Danza, Christopher Lloyd, and the struggling California Angels of Anaheim.