The film Field of Dreams hits all the notes
artistically, emotionally and as entertainment. It’s not just a baseball
movie—it’s also as much about redemption, following dreams and the complicated
relationships between fathers and sons. A significant character instrumental in
tying the whole story together was played by actor Dwier Brown, who going on 30
years later, is still deeply impacted by his iconic role and the catch he
played with Kevin Costner.
For the two or three of you who may not have yet seen the
movie, Field of Dreams is about
farmer Ray Kinsella, an Iowa corn farmer with a young family and a significant
amount of regret. He loves baseball and talking about Shoeless Joe Jackson,
the exiled and disgraced former outfielder, who was the subject of frequent
stories he was regaled with by his father. However, as he got older, Ray fell
out with his father and inflicted a final parting shot of refusing an offer to
have a catch together. They never spoke again, and his father passed away
shortly thereafter. Years later, Ray discovers that his corn field not only has
the magical ability to re-connect him to baseball but may also help facilitate
redemption in amazing ways.
Released in 1989, Field
of Dreams was based on W.P. Kinsella’s book Shoeless Joe. Starring Costner and James Earl Jones, one might
think that the movie is dominated by its stars—but they would be wrong. The
entire film is a wonderful ensemble effort, and Brown, who only appears in the
final five minutes as John Kinsella, Ray’s father, steals the show with an
emotional scene that can elicit tears from the gruffest of individuals.
Watch that scene here (SPOLIER ALERT):
Not yet 30 when the film was made, Brown was already a
veteran actor, having worked on notable projects like The Thorn Birds and The Twilight Zone. His experience
was put to good use in making a role with so little screen time into one that
will be remembered forever. Paired with Costner, he matches the legendary actor
beat for beat with the result being an amazingly powerful and emotional scene.
Brown continues to act, both in television and movies. He
has also published a book titled If
You Build It...: A book about Fathers, Fate and Field of Dreams. It’s a memoir of his life, working on
the film and how that ended up impacting him in powerful and unexpected ways.
Keep reading for more about Dwier Brown and his
once-in-a-lifetime movie role, and how to connect with him online and through
social media.
Dwier Brown Interview
What was your
experience with baseball growing up?: My father taught me how to catch with
his split-fingered glove from the 1930’s. I was involved in Little League as a
kid and played catch endlessly with my older brother and other kids from
neighboring farms in Ohio, where I grew up. I was a good fielder but struggled
for a long time with hitting. I was very sad when I didn’t make the cut for my
freshman baseball team. But I sometimes tell my friends who were stars of that
baseball team that I had the last laugh—it’s my picture that ended up in the
Baseball Hall of Fame (from the movie).
How did you become
interested in acting?: Having grown up on a farm, my brother and sister and
I were always looking for fun things to do that didn’t involve work. My sister
started acting in school plays, then my brother created a little community
theatre group and I started performing in their productions. I enjoyed
pretending to be someone else and making people laugh. My sister and brother
eventually gave it up, and I continued performing in college and then moved to
Chicago to get involved in plays and improvisational theatre.
Please explain how
you happened to land the role of John Kinsella in Field of Dreams.: The audition was one like any other that was
scheduled for me by my agent. I had already read the book Shoeless Joe, on which the movie was based, and really loved it, so
I worked very hard on the audition (which consisted of the last five pages of
the script). I tried to create as much magic as I could in the tiny casting
room, but I knew they were auditioning a lot of actors for the role (maybe
200-300 guys). It took them a long time to get back to me so I had pretty much
given up hope by the time they finally told me that I was going to Iowa!
What's your favorite
memory from the shoot?: Because I had been such a fan of the book Shoeless Joe, one of my sweetest memories
of the shoot was driving down the long driveway of the Lansing farm location
for the first time and seeing that perfect baseball diamond in the midst of
cornfields like the ones I had grown up surrounded by. It really did feel like
Heaven! There I was, merging my childhood on a farm with my impossible dream of
becoming an actor, by shooting this magical movie on this beautiful farm.
(Meeting James Earl Jones was pretty amazing, too, but you can read about that
in the book).
How many takes (and
how much catch did you have to play with Kevin Costner) for the closing moments
of the movie?: Because director Phil Robinson and cinematographer John
Lindley decided to shoot the final scene at “magic hour” (those fifteen minutes
of golden light just after sunset), we shot a piece of that scene almost every
night for two weeks. We would shoot as much as we could until it was too dark,
then do a different angle the next day. One of the biggest challenges in the
scene for me was trying to re-create the delicate emotional pitch of that final
moment day after day so it would look like continuous action. For the final
catch sequence, between the helicopter, the waning daylight and the 3,000
extras in their cars, we figured we would have just one take. It was very
tense. The first take didn’t look right, so we tried another. It still didn’t
look right so Phil made a small adjustment and we tried a third time. By then
it was too dark to try another. Fortunately, the third take worked, because
when they got the film back from the lab, the first two takes were black.
Playing catch was the easy part. But I have to admit, I was never so nervous
about dropping a ball…
When did you first
know that you had something special with this movie?: For most of us
involved with the movie, I think that happened at the cast and crew screening
about a week before its release. It had been almost a year since we’d filmed in
Iowa and most of us had worked on several other projects in the meantime. From
the beginning, you could tell the movie had come out well—beautiful
cinematography, tight editing, great score and wonderful performances. Crew
members tend to be a little silly at these events—laughing at awkward moments
remembered from the shoot and teasing each other with “inside” jokes. But as
the ending approached, an extraordinary quiet fell over us as we got lost in
the story. Despite the fact that we had all worked on the film and knew exactly
what was going to happen, I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house.
What is the most
common reaction/question that you get from fans?: What is Kevin Costner
like?
That final scene
became a poignant icon for fathers and sons. How has that impacted you?:
Since the film’s release in 1989, I have been recognized by dozens of fans who
have told me touching stories about their relationships with their fathers and
how that movie changed their lives. In many cases, they tell me stories of
guilt or regret or joy with tears in their eyes, all while we are standing
together in the airport or the grocery store. I sometimes feel like a priest
who takes confessions on the street. Since my own father died unexpectedly a
month before we shot the movie, I have come to think of it is my father’s way
of remaining present in my life. It’s my own little traveling cornfield, where
people get a second chance with their dads.
What are the current
projects you are working on?: Since I released my book, If You Build It… A book about Fathers, Fate
and Field of Dreams a year ago, I have been asked to make appearances and
speeches in boardrooms and in ballparks all over the country. I have met fans
and thrown out first pitches at Fenway and Kauffman, met dozens of Hall of
Famers and All-Stars, and talked with hundreds of fans about their fathers,
sons and daughters. You can get more details about my adventures on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook @DwierBrown or on my website.
Meanwhile, I continue to field offers in film and television and am currently
working on a movie called, The Rain.
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You can check me out on Facebook or follow me on Twitter @historianandrew
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