As we wrap up our fifth full-length documentary, I feel like we’ve taken an extended roadtrip that takes a few unexpected stops and turns before arriving at a destination that wasn’t actually planned before starting out. In other words, it’s not a storyline that we could’ve predicted, but glad we found.
Sure we had a great 2024 biography by North Georgia author Jerry Grillo to base the film on (see https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/9781496235442/big-cat/).
And we had a energetic, well-versed on-camera host with Jerry, who had already done countless podcasts about Mize and had chapter and verse down pat.
But little did we expect in the beginning that Jerry’s story of writing the book would also inform our understanding of Mize himself. Or that Mize’s story would lead us to sharing the story of another all-star first baseman who played in the same era as Mize, James “Red” Moore of the Atlanta Black Crackers.
Moore lived in Bush Mountain, an all-Black community in southwest Atlanta. He was a fan favorite across the South and especially when the Black Crackers played home games at Ponce de Leon Ballpark. One of the finest minor league ballparks in the U.S. that is now a parking lot near the highly fashionable Atlanta Beltline, with the centerfield magnolia tree still bearing witness.
While Mize played in the so-called Golden Age of Baseball, so did Moore with the likes of Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, Buck Leonard and many others.
What we discovered during our “road trip,” was that it was impossible to tell Mize’s story without acknowledging Red Moore’s story.
We can only imagine these two all-star first baseman meeting on the ball field.
But from what we know, they would have seen each other as the great players they were.
Mize the slugger with one of the sweetest homerun swings in the big leagues who rarely struck out.
Moore the defensive wiz at first base where no throw was too low.
Oh yeah… the soundtrack features some of Atlanta's finest musicians putting their own twist on that classic "Take Me Out to the Ballgame": New Lost Brasstown Ballers, Gary Motley, hip hop artist Port SAVant, Brandon Reeves, and Kendall Simpson, with a contribution from Jacksonville's Phil Helow.
Hope you get around to seeing the film at a screening in early 2026!