Special Event: BRANCA'S PITCH

Special Screening Event

BRANCA’S PITCH

Post-film Q&A with Ralph Branca, 
Moderated by Bobby Valentine

Thursday, October 3 at 7:00 p.m.

Carte Blanche: FREE | Members $10 | Nonmembers: $15

ABOUT THE FILM: On October 3, 1951 Ralph Branca became a legendary figure in baseball history. The 26-year old Brooklyn Dodger pitcher became infamous for losing the 1951 National League Pennant to the bitter rival New York Giants, by giving up the game winning homerun termed “The Shot Heard Round the World.” Jeered by once adoring fans and labeled a scapegoat for the rest of his life, Ralph never reclaimed his career.

BRANCA’S PITCH is a feature-length documentary film that follows 85 year-old Ralph Branca’s journey to pen a memoir that finally tells his side of the story, to try and restore his fascinating, yet overlooked legacy in baseball’s “Golden Age” of the 1940s and ‘50s. Enlisting the help of bestselling ghostwriter, David Ritz, an unlikely friendship forms. Ritz, with sleeve tattoos covering both arms and flamboyant outfits, is on a constant journey towards the heart of matters. While Branca is a conservative stoic of a bygone era, needing help to let out decades of pain on to the page. Their poignant exchanges are both endearing and humorous as Ralph begins to trust Ritz with not only righting his legacy but also sharing a secret held for over 50 years – that the New York Giants cheated. By turns poignant, tender, and humorous BRANCA’S PITCH is an exploration in personal mythology and calls into the question the relationship between truth and memory.

ABOUT RALPH BRANCA: Ralph Branca was born in 1926 in Mount Vernon, New York. He was 18 years old when he signed his professional contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers. In 1947, Branca won 21 games and lost 12 with an ERA of 2.67. He appeared in three All-Star games, and was the starting pitcher in the 1947 All-Star Game at the age of 21. Branca made two post-Season Appearances in the 1947 and 1949 World Series. He played professional baseball for twelve seasons, from 1944 to 1956, during which he won 88 games and lost 68, with a career ERA is 3.79 in 1,484 innings pitched. Branca, still active as a Chartered Life Underwriter, is a successful businessman living in Rye, New York, with his wife Ann.

ABOUT BOBBY VALENTINE: Bobby Valentine is one of the most recognizable baseball personalities in the world. In 2000 Bobby managed the New York Mets to the memorable “Subway Series” World Series versus the New York Yankees. In 2005 Bobby became the first foreign manager to win the Japan Series when he managed the Chiba Lotte Marines to the franchise’s first ever championship. In 2008 Bobby’s successful career in Japan was the subject of the THE ZEN OF BOBBY V, a 2008 Tribeca Film Festival Official Selection. From 2010 – 2011 Bobby was lead baseball analyst for ESPN’s Baseball Tonight and Sunday Night Baseball Broadcasts. In 2012 Bobby managed the Boston Red Sox. In addition to his work in baseball and television, Bobby is also a noted restaurateur and humanitarian. In 2002 Bobby was awarded Rotary International and Major League Baseball’s prestigious Branch Rickey Award for his contributions to the 9/11 relief effort.