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August 07, 2007
Jensen On Being Munson
From David Martindale of the Star-Telegram asks Erik Jensen three questions -
Erik Jensen, who portrays Thurman Munson in ESPN's The Bronx Is Burning, needed no research to learn how much Yankees fans adored their ornery catcher. During filming, Jensen would hear testimonials from crew members all day long. "The amazing part about playing him," the actor said, "was when men of a certain age, most of them Teamsters, would come up with tears in their eyes, telling me how much Thurman meant to them and where they were on Aug. 2, 1979 [the day Munson died in a plane crash]." The miniseries continues at 9 tonight.
Was it surreal getting to play this baseball legend? You put on the pinstripes and it's magic. There's so much baseball history in that uniform. Then you realize you're wearing No. 15, a retired number. Nobody since 1979 has worn that number on the field. Yankees fans will never forget the day he died. It's on par with, "Where were you when John Lennon was killed?"
Which was tougher, the acting audition or the baseball-skills audition? The baseball audition. I threw down my mitt at age 14 when I discovered that girls like going to plays more than baseball games. But a buddy took me to the batting cages and worked with me. In the end, my baseball skills were barely good enough.
Was it hard to capture Munson's famous grumpy demeanor? The fact that I gained 30 pounds for the part made me really grumpy. It made my knees sore. I couldn't run. I couldn't do anything at night but lie in bed like a beached whale. So that aspect of his personality came naturally.
If he gets an Emmy, it will have been worth the thirty.
Posted by Steve Lombardi at August 7, 2007 12:19 PM