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The Way I See It
I'VE come to admire movie directors who take pains to carefully research stories about real people. ‘Hurricane’
director blows itBut these days that seems to be a rarity.
You'd think that background work on a 20th century subject's public life would be fairly simple, given all the avenues of research we now have.
But director Norman Jewison's researchers seemed to conveniently distort sports history in the making of "The Hurricane," now a popular rental on video and DVD.
Jewison wanted the film to show how racial prejudice derailed boxer Rubin Carter's life -- in the ring and in society.
But Jewison's decision to flavor Joey Giardello's successful Dec. 14, 1964, middleweight title defense against Carter in Pennsylvania with that theme was dead wrong.
Hawaii's own Les Keiter, who broadcast the fight, knows it. And Keiter is as sensitive as anyone to the hatred that prevailed in the '50s and '60s. He once received a phone threat for his positive play-by-play comments about a New York Giants rookie -- Willie Mays.
Philadelphia Daily News sportswriter Bernard Fernandez figured out Jewison's error even though he's too young to have been at the 1964 fight. He found Giardello and took him to see the film. He then got a copy of the original fight tape.
He called and interviewed Keiter, who told him it was an even fight but Giardello dominated the last two rounds.
"It wasn't at all like in the movie," said Keiter, who showed me the entire tape with his commentary in February.
"I've seen a lot of things in my time, but it's taken 35 minutes to tell us what this hometown crowd already knows," said Jewison's fictionalized ringside broadcaster in the film. "Joey Giardello is about to lose the crown to Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter."
Keiter laughed at that.
"I had nothing to say about the delay. It took a while to get the judges' slips read but as an announcer on the air, I would never make a comment about it."
In fact, what Keiter did say was, "Certainly tonight, he (Giardello) was the master craftsman in there, champion of the world, against the challenge of a devastating puncher, 'Hurricane' Carter."
Giardello enlisted Keiter's support in a lawsuit against Universal Pictures settled in late September.
In a voice-over in a special section of the movie's DVD version, Jewison states that after a review of the tape it's clear to him Giardello won the fight.
But he also says the last seconds of the fight were what made him think, "Rubin had it."
Exclaimed Keiter, "Where does he get that?"
Regarding the ringside broadcaster's comments in the movie, Jewison says, "Whether the announcer ever says that, I have no idea."
"The whole thing is ludicrous," Keiter said.
CD players
That CD released in the stores today called, "Versatile from the Isles," has a familiar sports name on it.Yes, that's Mark Atuaia, the former Kahuku High running back who once held the state career rushing record and played fullback at Brigham Young. He's done with football but the CD, which leads with the reggae-pop song, "Straight off the Rock," is expected to sell well.
Atuaia, married to former Jets lead singer, Elizabeth Wolgramm (now expecting their third child), joins other local football players-turned-entertainers.
Former NFL defensive lineman Esera Tuaolo (Waimanalo) has been singing and recording on the mainland, and injured UH running back Afatia Thompson performs with a group called, "Reign."
Pat Bigold has covered sports for daily newspapers
in Hawaii and Massachusetts since 1978.
Email Pat: pbigold@starbulletin.com
