The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg

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The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg

PG

Released Jul 2, 1999

1h 29m

Documentary

Biography

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

97%

Tomatometer

66 Reviews

81%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

"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.

Critics Consensus

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

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Stephen Hunter

Washington Post

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

Jack Mathews

New York Daily News

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

Rated: 3.5/4

May 7, 2014

Full Review

Lou Lumenick

New York Post

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

Danielle Solzman

Dugout Dirt

Ninety years after Hank Greenberg took his Yom Kippur stand, The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg remains a must-watch documentary for baseball fans.

Rated: 5/5

Sep 20, 2024

Full Review

Serena Donadoni

Metro Times (Detroit, MI)

Former Detroiter Kempner infuses her portrait of Hank Greenberg with such a joie de vivre that it's a delight for the already converted and nonsports fans alike.

Rated: 4/5

May 7, 2014

Full Review

Robert Wilonsky

New Times

The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg is precisely what a documentary ought to be: engaging and revelatory, turning forgotten footnotes and discarded minutiae into the stuff of riveting drama and poignant laughs.

May 7, 2014

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Stephen C

Real footage in 1 hour and 29 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated PG for Mild Language and Thematic Elements!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $1,700,000.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/07/25

Full Review

JONATHAN K

Excellent capture of the life and times of a great ball player and American hero. Interviews and old footage are especially enjoyable.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/25/23

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Greg Lehmann

Dedicated to the millions of Detroit Tigers fans which I've been since 1966!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/25/20

Full Review

Audience Member

An enlightening documentary on an understated hero.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Great subject matter, but it sure could have been told more dramatically. It was like the director took index cards of chronological facts, laid them out, punctuated them with interviews and wallpapered the whole thing with video. Then there's this random woman groupie who keeps popping up. Her role is never really explained. Even so, it made me want to learn more about Hank Greenberg. Great story about Detroit trading him because the Tigers owner saw a picture of him him wearing a Yankees jersey during WWII.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/26/23

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Audience Member

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.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

Full Review

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Aviva Kempner

Director

Hank Greenberg

Self

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Self

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Synopsis

"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.

Director: Aviva Kempner
Producer: Aviva Kempner
Screenwriter: Aviva Kempner
Distributor: Cowboy Pictures
Production Co: Ciesla Foundation
Rating: PG (Mild Language|Thematic Elements)
Genre: Documentary, Biography
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 2, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 8, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.7M
Runtime: 1h 29m