Champion's Reward
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Fred Coleman
Jesse Owens
John Davis
Charlie Boswell
Fred Shields
Paul Mcvey
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
This film chronicles three athletes in their efforts to overcome their "handicaps" through faith in their own abilities. In the first story, weightlifter John Davis prevails against a formidable Russian competitor in the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki. The second story covers the career of runner Jesse Owens and includes footage of his triumph at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. An African-American athlete, Owens' triumph at these games was ignored by then German leader Adolph Hitler, who refused to honor a "non-Aryan" performer. The last story centers on a golf tournament in Worcester, Massachusetts, in which a blind golfer competes.
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
According to a November 5, 1955 Motion Picture Herald article, the film featured a running narration provided by sports writer Fred Coleman. The article also noted that newsreel and library footage was used in addition to footage of the featured athletes shot specifically for the film. According to a January 5, 1955 Daily Variety article, James Hammerstein and Bud Greenspan formed a film production company to produce Champion's Reward, while MacDonald Pictures financed and distributed the film. The article went on to say that the film was based on three short stories written by Greenspan; however, no further information about those stories has been located.
A writer, director and producer, Greenspan is well known for his series of documentaries about the Olympic Games, including the official documentary for the 1988 Olympics entitled Calgary '88: Sixteen Days of Glory and a twenty-two part television series entitled Olympiad produced in 1976.
