Great American Pastime, The

The New York Yankees won today, so life is good for baseball fan Bruce Hallerton. On the same day, wanting to grow closer to his son, Bruce decides to manage a Little League team, so life is also complicated. Suddenly, Bruce must cope with colleagues and parents who are "as soft as forgiving as a saber-toothed tiger," with an attractive widow (Anne Miller) who wants her son to be the team's pitcher, with a jealous and suspicious Mrs. Hallerton (Anne Francis), and with a son who is unexpectedly selected for a rival team and rather enjoys beating the socks off Pop's squad. Batter up, Bruce! Mainstream comedy steps into the batter's box in The Great American Pastime, with Tom Ewell (The Seven Year Itch) in affable mode as the flustered suburban dad. Dean Jones, more than a decade away from The Love Bug, The Shaggy D.A. and other family comedies, has a supporting role as an energetic coach.

• comedy
• sports