August 10, 2019 at 05:50AM
Disney's hit biographical football film, "Remember the Titans," returns to Pasadena's Rose Bowl big screen a second time, 19 years after its premiere showing in 2000.
It was the first movie that ever premiered at "America's Stadium," and the cultural significance of the evening and the film's impact since were not lost on those who attended.
Set in 1971 after a federal mandate required T.C. Williams High School in Virginia to integrate, tensions ran high among football teammates when their celebrated white head coach is replaced with and African American coach, played by Denzel Washington.
As fans know, Washington's Coach Boone is given a stipulation — win every game or lose his job.
Characterized by his cut-throat training, Boone brings the team and the community together.
The Rose Bowl Stadium featured the docu-drama on Sept. 23, 2000, hosting hundreds of Hollywood stars and thousands of guests, according to a Y2K press release. This time around, on Saturday, Aug. 10, visitors will watch the film from the stadium's video board. Visitors are encouraged to bring blankets and lawn chairs to sit on the grass.
The screening is the first event in its summer movie series in 10 years since the venue stopped hosting the series, Meredith Thomas, media spokesperson for the Rose Bowl, said.
High school football players throughout the area have been invited to attend the event, sporting their team jerseys, just as they were at the premiere event 19 years ago, Thomas said.
She said she hopes the event will spark more summer movie events in the future.
For Travis Brown, head coach for Hacienda Heights-based Los Altos football team, Coach Boone was a trailblazer and created the foundation for African American coaches like himself.
"While we still have great hurdles to jump over," Brown said, "football is one of the few things in life that affords us the opportunity to look past the color lines. It doesn't matter where you're from, the playing field is level."
Brown said the cultural significance of the movie reverberates to this day and aligns with his coaching philosophy: He wants his athletes to leave better men.
In his 10 years of coaching, Brown said race hasn't impacted his programs as it did in 1971, and "Remember the Titans" has had a role in bringing awareness to the racial tensions of the time.
Pasadena's Chamber of Commerce CEO Paul Little attended the Disney premiere in 2000 with his family, noting the uniqueness of a movie premiere being held in the Rose Bowl, a venue home to many unique events.
Little recalled the evening as star-studded that his entire family enjoyed, even giving them the chance to meet a handful of celebrities.
Here's how Washington described it in a Sep. 29, 2000, interview with Bryant Gumbel on CBS:
"We had a screening the other night at the Rose Bowl, 55,000 young men and women. The football teams–what–what they did is they brought in football teams, the cheerleaders in the colors–whatever uniforms, whatever town they're from–I don't know how many schools, 300, 400, 500 schools–55,000 kids.
"We were driving up to the Rose Bowl, and I saw these–these colors, and I said, 'Wow.' It dawned on me there could be a problem there, you know. All these groups, hundreds and two hundreds at a time. "
But nothing happened, Washington told Gumbel. "Not one problem, not one fight, nothing."
Music, lawn games and photos from the premiere will be on the field at Saturday's event. Food and beverages will be available for purchase before the movie begins. No outside food and beverage is permitted, and no animals except for service animals are allowed.
Special guest Paula Hines Lonergan, daughter of Paul "Doc" Hines, who was the assistant coach of the actual 1971 T.C. Williams football team, is scheduled to introduce the film and answer questions about his experience.
If you go:
Where: Rose Bowl Stadium Gate A, 1001 Rose Bowl Drive, Pasadena
When: Saturday, Aug. 10, doors open at 6:30 p.m., movie begins 8 p.m.
Cost: Tickets are $20 for an adult ticket, $10 for children ages 6-10, free for ages 5 and under. To purchase, go to the eventbrite page. Tickets are also available at the door, starting at 6:30 p.m. Parking is free in Lot F. For more information visit www.rosebowlstadium.com.
Disney's hit biographical football film, "Remember the Titans," returns to Pasadena's Rose Bowl big screen a second time, 19 years after its premiere showing in 2000.
It was the first movie that ever premiered at "America's Stadium," and the cultural significance of the evening and the film's impact since were not lost on those who attended.
Set in 1971 after a federal mandate required T.C. Williams High School in Virginia to integrate, tensions ran high among football teammates when their celebrated white head coach is replaced with and African American coach, played by Denzel Washington.
As fans know, Washington's Coach Boone is given a stipulation — win every game or lose his job.
Characterized by his cut-throat training, Boone brings the team and the community together.
The Rose Bowl Stadium featured the docu-drama on Sept. 23, 2000, hosting hundreds of Hollywood stars and thousands of guests, according to a Y2K press release. This time around, on Saturday, Aug. 10, visitors will watch the film from the stadium's video board. Visitors are encouraged to bring blankets and lawn chairs to sit on the grass.
The screening is the first event in its summer movie series in 10 years since the venue stopped hosting the series, Meredith Thomas, media spokesperson for the Rose Bowl, said.
High school football players throughout the area have been invited to attend the event, sporting their team jerseys, just as they were at the premiere event 19 years ago, Thomas said.
She said she hopes the event will spark more summer movie events in the future.
For Travis Brown, head coach for Hacienda Heights-based Los Altos football team, Coach Boone was a trailblazer and created the foundation for African American coaches like himself.
"While we still have great hurdles to jump over," Brown said, "football is one of the few things in life that affords us the opportunity to look past the color lines. It doesn't matter where you're from, the playing field is level."
Brown said the cultural significance of the movie reverberates to this day and aligns with his coaching philosophy: He wants his athletes to leave better men.
In his 10 years of coaching, Brown said race hasn't impacted his programs as it did in 1971, and "Remember the Titans" has had a role in bringing awareness to the racial tensions of the time.
Pasadena's Chamber of Commerce CEO Paul Little attended the Disney premiere in 2000 with his family, noting the uniqueness of a movie premiere being held in the Rose Bowl, a venue home to many unique events.
Little recalled the evening as star-studded that his entire family enjoyed, even giving them the chance to meet a handful of celebrities.
Here's how Washington described it in a Sep. 29, 2000, interview with Bryant Gumbel on CBS:
"We had a screening the other night at the Rose Bowl, 55,000 young men and women. The football teams–what–what they did is they brought in football teams, the cheerleaders in the colors–whatever uniforms, whatever town they're from–I don't know how many schools, 300, 400, 500 schools–55,000 kids.
"We were driving up to the Rose Bowl, and I saw these–these colors, and I said, 'Wow.' It dawned on me there could be a problem there, you know. All these groups, hundreds and two hundreds at a time. "
But nothing happened, Washington told Gumbel. "Not one problem, not one fight, nothing."
Music, lawn games and photos from the premiere will be on the field at Saturday's event. Food and beverages will be available for purchase before the movie begins. No outside food and beverage is permitted, and no animals except for service animals are allowed.
Special guest Paula Hines Lonergan, daughter of Paul "Doc" Hines, who was the assistant coach of the actual 1971 T.C. Williams football team, is scheduled to introduce the film and answer questions about his experience.
If you go:
Where: Rose Bowl Stadium Gate A, 1001 Rose Bowl Drive, Pasadena
When: Saturday, Aug. 10, doors open at 6:30 p.m., movie begins 8 p.m.
Cost: Tickets are $20 for an adult ticket, $10 for children ages 6-10, free for ages 5 and under. To purchase, go to the eventbrite page. Tickets are also available at the door, starting at 6:30 p.m. Parking is free in Lot F. For more information visit www.rosebowlstadium.com.