Champions: A Love Story

Champions: A Love Story
Genre	Drama
Screenplay by	John Sacret Young
Directed by	John A. Alonzo
Starring	Jimmy McNichol; Shirley Knight; Tony Lo Bianco; Anne Schedeen;
Theme music composer	John Rubinstein
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
Production
Executive producer(s)	Philip Mandelker
Producer(s)	John Sacret Young
Cinematography	John A. Alonzo
Editor(s)	Bernard J. Small
Running time	100 minutes
Production company(s)	Warner Bros. Television[1]
Distributor	Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Release
Original network	CBS
Original release	January 13, 1979;

Champions: A Love Story is a 1979 American television film directed by John A. Alonzo and starring Shirley Knight, Tony Lo Bianco, Jimmy McNichol, Joy LeDuc, and Anne Schedeen. Its plot follows a teenage ex-hockey player (McNichol) who falls in love with a figure skater (LeDuc).[2]

Cast

Shirley Knight as Barbara Harlich
Tony Lo Bianco as Damschroeder
Jimmy McNichol as Peter Scoggin III
Joy LeDuc as Carrie Harlich
Anne Schedeen as Diane Kachatorian
Jennifer Warren as Camille Scoggin
Richard Jaeckel as Peter Scoggin Jr.
Philip Brown as Ernie Perella
Elizabeth Cheshire as Lisa
Tiffany Ann Francis as Laura
Missy Francis as Sally
Eddie Deezen as Eric Philpot

Production

The film's screenplay was written by television writer and producer John Sacret Young, who himself was a former hockey player.[1] Prior to writing the screenplay, Young had been unsuccessfully working as a novelist in Vermont.[1] Commenting on the setting, Young said: "Skating is filled with stories that are very intense - the romances, the hatreds. I don't think that story's ever been told. Skating is a loose fraternity. They share something, the early morning practice, the rigorous training. It's like war veterans without the pall of death."[3]

Young spent six months frequenting ice skating rinks in Colorado, and based many of the characters in the film real people he met there: "You go to any rink and 6 a.m. and here are these burly women in overcoats. They give their lives to this."[1] Young was partly inspired to write the film after the 1961 Sabena Flight 548 plane crash that killed the entire U.S. Figure Skating team.[1]

Reception

People magazine deemed the film a "surprisingly compelling 1979 TV movie."[4] Jerry Buck of the Associated Press praised the film as "a warm story that bursts at the seams with vitality and life."[5]

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References

"'Champions': A love story on ice". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. January 12, 1979. p. 30 – via Newspapers.com.
"Champions: A Love Story". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
"Champions: A Love Story". The Register-Guard. Eugene, Oregon. January 13, 1979. p. 12.
People Staff (August 3, 1981). "Picks and Pans Review: Champions: a Love Story". People. Archived from the original on February 25, 2019. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
Buck, Jerry (January 13, 1979). "Skating tale bursts with vitality and life". Albany Democrat-Herald. Albany, Oregon. Associated Press – via Newspapers.com.

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[la2-1] "'Champions': A love story on ice". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. January 12, 1979. p. 30 – via Newspapers.com.

[2] "Champions: A Love Story". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 25, 2019.

[3] "Champions: A Love Story". The Register-Guard. Eugene, Oregon. January 13, 1979. p. 12.

[4] People Staff (August 3, 1981). "Picks and Pans Review: Champions: a Love Story". People. Archived from the original on February 25, 2019. Retrieved February 25, 2019.

[5] Buck, Jerry (January 13, 1979). "Skating tale bursts with vitality and life". Albany Democrat-Herald. Albany, Oregon. Associated Press – via Newspapers.com.