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critics consensus

The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg is an affectionate, often very funny portrait of a baseball pioneer. Read critic reviews

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The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg Photos

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Movie Info

"The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg" is a humorous and nostalgic documentary about an extraordinary baseball player who transcended religious prejudice to become an American icon. Detroit Tiger Hammerin Hank's accomplishments during the Golden Age of Baseball rivaled those of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.
  • Rating:
    PG (Mild Language|Thematic Elements)
  • Genre:
    documentary, biography
  • Original Language:
    English
  • Director:
    Aviva Kempner
  • Producer:
    Aviva Kempner
  • Writer:
    Aviva Kempner
  • Release Date (Theaters):
     wide
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Box Office (Gross USA):
    $1.7M
  • Runtime:
  • Production Co:
    Ciesla Foundation

Cast & Crew

Hank Greenberg
Self
Alan Dershowitz
Self
Bob Feller
Self
Charlie Gehringer
Self
Kenesaw M. Landis
Self
Carl Levin
Self
Walter Matthau
Self
Ira Berkow
Self
Sander Levin
Self
Michael Moriarty
Self
Hal Newhouser
Self
Maury Povich
Self
Shirley Povich
Self
Dick Schaap
Self
Aviva Kempner
Director
Aviva Kempner
Writer
Aviva Kempner
Producer
Ari Daniel Pinchot
Associate Producer
Jerry Feldman
Cinematographer
Kevin Hewitt
Cinematographer
Tom Hurwitz
Cinematographer
Tom Kaufman
Cinematographer
Christopher Li
Cinematographer
Scott Mumford
Cinematographer
Marian Sears Hunter
Film Editor
Ira Spiegel
Sound Editor
Benny Goodman
Non-Original Music
Charlie Christian
Non-Original Music
Jim Mundy
Non-Original Music
Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg

All Critics (65) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (63) | Rotten (2)

  • It's an adroit manipulation of interviews and stock footage, mostly along the lines of establishing not so much what Hammerin' Hank did for himself, but what he meant to American Jews.

    May 7, 2014 | Full Review…

    Stephen Hunter

    Washington Post

  • Kempner demonstrates how the star's success and dignified bearing inspired a generation of Jews to fight through the ethnic barriers in all fields.

    May 7, 2014 | Rating: 3.5/4 | Full Review…

    Jack Mathews

    New York Daily News

  • Writer-director Aviva Kempner crafted this love letter to Greenberg by imaginatively weaving interviews with great footage from newsreels and feature films.

    May 7, 2014 | Full Review…

    Lou Lumenick

    New York Post

  • Aviva Kempner hits a grand slam in her thrilling documentary about baseball, about a great baseball player, about Jews in America and about the country itself in the 1930s and 1940s.

    March 20, 2013 | Full Review…

    Joe Morgenstern

    Wall Street Journal

  • The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg is a gem of a baseball documentary because it illuminates what the Hall of Famer's splendid career meant away from the ballpark.

    March 19, 2013 | Rating: 3.5/4 | Full Review…

    Desmond Ryan

    Philadelphia Inquirer

  • Aviva Kempner's warm and intelligent mash note to a man who clearly deserved it.

    March 19, 2013 | Full Review…

    Kenneth Turan

    Los Angeles Times
View All Critic Reviews (65)

Audience Reviews for The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg

  • May 31, 2010
    Hank Greenberg was good enough to have me commemorate his career on my pretend baseball hall of fame. Not that I had ever seen him play but his stats seemed impressive. Not the legend that Ruth was probably because he played in Detroit, Greenberg's story is very memorable. Likely inspired Jewish stars like Sandy Koufax in the next generation.
    John B Super Reviewer
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