
A League of Their Own. 1992. USA. Directed by Penny Marshall. Screenplay by Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel, based on a story by Kim Wilson, Kelly Candaele. With Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Lori Petty, Madonna. 128 min.
During WWII, a lack of male workers led many US industries to hire women, including sports leagues. The establishment of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in 1943 was a bid to keep pro baseball alive until the war ended and their dedicated fans and players returned. This comedy/drama follows coach Jimmy Duggan (Hanks) as he struggles to develop a team. He has the ace sisters Dottie and Kit, but neither truly believes in her innate talents; Dottie is waiting for her husband to come home and Kit is afraid of her own shadow. Duggan, a heavy drinker whose bad habits got him thrown out of the majors, morphs from a bully to a big-hearted champion of his female players. The film reunited Hanks with Big director Penny Marshall, who creates a visually authentic wartime America and captures the quietly changing role of women as they stepped out of the kitchen and into the larger world. Added to The Library of Congress National Film Registry in 2012.