Cornfield game draws more viewers than games played in $billion stadium(s)
Field of Dreams (FoD) baseball game between New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox was the most-watched regular season baseball game in 16 years. How many multi-million dollar MLB baseball fields were built during that time? New York Yankee Stadium is the most expensive stadium ever created at?$2.3 billion.
Hard to think of any other sport where that setting could be used? Really! In a cornfield in Iowa! Must be Heaven! Only sport that could make the transition to a modern day setting on a field in Iowa.
Players making a slow, deliberate entry from the cornfield. Unheard of in the modern day beginnings to an athletic event amped up by cheerleaders, fans, digital scoreboards, and loudspeakers. Fox announcers were disappointed at first, but fans were fans; waiting for something, not manufactured, to happen. The game took care of that!
The aesthetics were amazing. My wife, who rarely, watches sports, was spellbound to the event. Later watching the movie again, oohing and aahing over Costner. Last time she showed that much interests in baseball was when the Cubs won the World Series, minus the corn stalks, but with the ivy.
She gets a bigger thrill arguing with Alexa. Alexa is getting much smarter and adept at handling communications, even responding at one point "you are making me mad". Husbands take note. FoD could be the rallying call for Ludites battling rogue technology in sports arenas. Funny sidenote, my wife once upset a customer service representative handling golf ball imprints, and received a bogus order with "asshole" imprinted on the balls. Wonder what happens if Alexa goes rogue? Now that's an idea for a reality show. But then I digress with another illogical idea.
Sidebar: My wife and I attended the Cubs - Cardinal series in St. Louis on our honeymoon, so that might have created her dislike for baseball? Game was played at Sportsman Park, Construction cost US$300,000; ($8.97 million in 2020 dollars) Was in its last days, on life support, then had a miraculous recovery when Cards beat the Yankees in the World Series, that led to a beer infusion from Busch. MLB spent a total of?$8 million?to construct an entirely new stadium for at most one MLB game a year. Not sure how much of that came from an ethanol infusion or from too much corn whiskey moonshine?
Proving that baseball is the only sport that can withstand the "test of time" (without needing modern day technology infusion). For old-time sports enthusiasts, baseball can best be watched in a cornfield or listened to on radio with Harry Caray, Jack Buck, and Joe Garagiola creating the excitement. Difficult to match by other sports.
The FoD game was action packed, I don't recall any delays due to replays or technology overdoses. Pitchers pitched, fielders fielded, and batters batted. Eight home runs are ranked below. Three in the exciting ninth inning.
Unlike the All-Star Game and many other hyped games, I stayed with it past the obligatory pregame ceremonies and early innings. The game had its moments, but there were also amazing visuals of a perfect cornfield with stalks waving in the wind, hot air balloon peacefully framed by the sky and occasional clouds , beautiful sunset, and interview wth Kevin Costner. I'm a National League bigot, who bleeds Cardinal Red. Lot to be said for keeping my interests, as well as the non-baseball fans.
Enjoy Photos: Field of Dreams game brings Hollywood to Midwest by clicking below
Back to the future on business impact updated from building a better mousetrap to building a "field of dreams".
Amazing the number of people who take an illogical idea and attempt to do the same thing without the planning and passion of a Kevin Costner, and then fail.
If you build it, they will come.I like the following meme. Well said!
Takeaways from Field of Dreams
Vision
Baseball was the platform, but father-son and family relationships created the big picture. Costner found a well written story connecting baseball to relationships that withstood test of time, and created a bigger picture. Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, used selling books on the Internet to create a bigger picture. Ideas from inspiration - voice "build it and I will come", books, movies, observations, needs, and wants. Gates and Jobs vision on personal computers, while In 1943?Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, said, "I think there's a world market for maybe five computers."
Steve Jobs “Some people say, "Give the customers what they want." But that's not my approach. Our job is to figure out what they're going to want before they do. I think Henry Ford once said, "If I'd asked customers what they wanted, they would have told me, 'A faster horse!'" People don't know what they want until you show it to them. That's why I never rely on market research. Our task is to read things that are not yet on the page.”
领英推荐
Costner read things that were not on the page!
Passion
Getting started requires a lot of sweat equity, sacrifices, and real dollars. Belief and willingness to swim against the stream. Making personal sacrifices, both financial and with your family. Ray Kinsella investment was more than just his time,he used his personal assets, valuable cornfield for a baseball field. Costner did the same in his commitment, more than drawing a paycheck as an actor. He spent several days on-site living and then bringing life to a dream. At that time how did he explain it to his friends, family, and the rude entertainment media? "I'm going to Iowa to make a movie about this guy who hears a voice, sees baseball ghosts of banned players, and uses his farmland to build a baseball field!" Yeah Right!
Spouse acceptance
FoD Movie Annie: Are you actually thinking of doing this? Ray: I can’t think of one good reason why I should, but …. I’m 36 years old, I have a wife, a child, and a mortgage and I’m scared to death I’m turning into my father. Ray: Do you think I’m crazy? Annie: Yes. But I also think if you really feel you should do this, then you should do it.
Not always a storybook ending with spouse
Jeff Bezos talks a lot about his wife, MacKenzie's willingness to take risk when he started Amazon in the video below. Although no longer married, her net worth is valued at 55.4?billion USD.
"There's a fine line between supporting someone’s dream which hasn’t come true yet, and enabling someone in going on with some sort of self-destructive delusion. You have to be honest. You have to?really?believe in someone’s dream. You can’t go into a marriage?humoring?someone about his dream (a dream which you actually find stupid) and then hope he will see the light under your calm and practical guidance."“What’s Your Father Got To Do With All Of This?”Posted on?May 21, 2011 ?by?sheila Entrepreneur divorce rate varies?between 43% and 48%.
You can’t just believe in the final result. You have to believe in the journey itself.
Motivational risks
Ray: I’m 36 years old, I have a wife, a child, and a mortgage and I’m scared to death I’m turning into my father.
Motivation - Terence: “What was the awful thing you said to your father?” Ray: “I said I could never respect a man whose hero was a criminal.”? Terence: “Who was his hero?” Ray: “Shoeless Joe Jackson.”? Terence: “You knew he wasn’t a criminal, so why’d you say it?” Ray: “I was 17. Son of a bitch died before I could take it back. Before I could tell him … you know. He never met my wife, never saw his granddaughter.” Terence: “This is your penance.”? Ray: “I know. I can’t bring my father back …” Terence: “So the least you can do is bring back his hero. Now I know what everybody’s purpose here is, except mine.”
Wanting to play catch with his dad
Bezos: I decided I had to give it a shot. I didn’t think I’d regret trying and failing. And I suspected I would always be haunted by a decision to not try at all. After much consideration, I took the less safe path to follow my passion, and I’m proud of that choice.
Reflections
From FoD:
The field is a dream come true for John as he is reunited with his son...and his eternal pain is nearly eased. As Ray ponders John's statement that yes, there is a Heaven, and that it's the place dreams come true, he looks around...first at his wife and daughter, then at the field...he realizes that his dreams are coming true as well.?
Bezos: I will hazard a prediction. When you are 80 years old, and in a quiet moment of reflection narrating for only yourself the most personal version of your life story, the telling that will be most compact and meaningful will be the series of choices you have made. In the end, we are our choices. Build yourself a great story. Thank you and good luck!"
Compare those to Jeff Bezos and how he started Amazon. You'll be amazed how close the takeaways are: Click on video below
Script of speech
"I got the idea to start Amazon 16 years ago. I came across the fact that Web usage was growing at 2,300 percent per year. I’d never seen or heard of anything that grew that fast, and the idea of building an online bookstore with millions of titles — something that simply couldn’t exist in the physical world — was very exciting to me. I had just turned 30 years old, and I’d been married for a year. I told my wife MacKenzie that I wanted to quit my job and go do this crazy thing that probably wouldn’t work since most startups don’t, and I wasn’t sure what would happen after that. MacKenzie (also a Princeton grad and sitting here in the second row) told me I should go for it. As a young boy, I’d been a garage inventor. I’d invented an automatic gate closer out of cement-filled tires, a solar cooker that didn’t work very well out of an umbrella and tinfoil, baking-pan alarms to entrap my siblings. I’d always wanted to be an inventor, and she wanted me to follow my passion.
I was working at a financial firm in New York City with a bunch of very smart people, and I had a brilliant boss that I much admired. I went to my boss and told him I wanted to start a company selling books on the Internet. He took me on a long walk in Central Park, listened carefully to me, and finally said, “That sounds like a really good idea, but it would be an even better idea for someone who didn’t already have a good job.” That logic made some sense to me, and he convinced me to think about it for 48 hours before making a final decision. Seen in that light, it really was a difficult choice, but ultimately, I decided I had to give it a shot. I didn’t think I’d regret trying and failing. And I suspected I would always be haunted by a decision to not try at all. After much consideration, I took the less safe path to follow my passion, and I’m proud of that choice.
Tomorrow, in a very real sense, your life — the life you author from scratch on your own — begins.