American Masters (TV Series) Ted Williams: "The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived" (2018) User Reviews

Extremely well made...but it's missing something.

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 17 August 2018]

"Ted Williams: "The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived"" is a very enjoyable installment of "American Masters"...one I highly recommend you see. It's certainly a warts and all biography...with a lot of negative information about this great man that some fans might not want to know...but which were a part of this highly flawed hero.

The show talks about Williams' career...and you knew it would. But it also talked about him off the field--his attitude, his stubbornness, his nastiness that made up the man. And, likewise, it talked about the little things he did that he refused to publicize...the admirable things he did to help sick kids and ball players down on their luck. Essentially, the show makes him sound like a guy who might have wanted to be be loved or lovable but simply didn't know how, as he never learned from his terrible parents how to love. It's all rather sad...and, at times, inspirational...and I know that's an odd combination!

So why didn't I give this show a 10? Well, it seemed VERY odd that while talking about his career, it NEVER mentioned him as a coach....the head coach of the old Washington Senators and a batting coach for the Red Sox. How could a show about Williams NOT mention this? Also, if I had made the film, I would have excised the distasteful cryogenics portion (after all, it was a big hubbub AFTER he was dead) and instead talk about him as a coach?? An odd omission.

Riveting Documentary

[larrys3 · 9/10 · 29 September 2018]

As part of the PBS American Masters series, I found this documentary to be concise (at approx 54 min.), and riveting. It's well edited and well directed by Nick Davis.

The film focuses on the fascinating life and career of the very complex and charismatic great baseball player Ted Williams, who truly may have been the greatest hitter in the history of the game. After a most difficult childhood, Williams was filled with anger and with a "chip on his shoulder" became obsessed with proving to all what a tremendous talent he was, especially at the plate.

Throughout his life, Williams was determined to do things his way and his searing honesty did not always sit well with others. After retirement, he was able to show his true colors with his work for charities such as the Jimmy Fund, and helping ex-players financially who were hurting.

Overall, I can highly recommend this film. To note, the subtitles on my DVD copy were comparatively small, and there is raw language throughout.

Short But Perfectly Compelling Doc Of The Splendid Splinter

[zkonedog · 10/10 · 29 April 2019]

As an enormous baseball fan, I stumbled across this episode of PBS's American Masters series on Netflix. I can't say I had huge expectations, as I've done a fair amount of reading on Ted Williams myself and questioned what new information could be provided here. The actual viewing experience was exactly the opposite, however, as I found this little bio to be perhaps the most compelling piece of material on The Kid I've ever consumed.

Despite running only about 50 minutes in length, this episode is a very well-produced look at the career and life of Teddy Ballgame. It is narrated perfectly by Jon Hamm, contains footage I had never seen, and presents new interviews from family members and baseball historians.

In all seriousness, this is the type of quality that, say, an HBO would put into their documentaries. It is that well-produced, riveting, and emotional. Ted Williams was both an extraordinary baseball player and complex individual, and this piece touches on both of those things in equal time.

In short, baseball fans of nearly any age (some of the language probably rules it out for the kiddies) can enjoy this engrossing look at one of the diamond greats.

A Brief, Yet, Surprisingly Revealing Portrait Of Legendary Hitter, Mister "Teddy Ballgame"

[StrictlyConfidential · 6/10 · 29 May 2020]

Surprisingly enough - This turned out to be one of the very few bio-documentaries that I've seen where equal time was spent discussing both the good side of its subject (Ted Williams), as well as the ugly side of them, too (which his family, his team-mates, as well as the public, were often witness to).

Needless to say - Ted Williams (1918-2002) is widely considered to be one of the all-time greatest hitters of professional American baseball (MLB), bar none.

This 1-hour PBS presentation was directed and produced by Nick Davis. Through stills, archival footage, and interviews it certainly gives the viewer a fairly well-rounded overview of the life and times of baseball hero, Ted Williams (aka. "Teddy Ballgame").