“The '85 Bears” to Premiere at Hall of Fame on Thursday
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Honor the Heroes of the Game, Preserve its History, Promote its Values & Celebrate Excellence EVERYWHERE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE @ProFootballHOF 02/02/16 Contact: Pete Fierle, Chief of Staff & Vice President of Communications [email protected]; 330-588-3622 “THE ’85 BEARS” TO PREMIERE AT HALL OF FAME ON THURSDAY ADDITIONAL SCREENINGS FRIDAY & SATURDAY OF ESPN’S FILMS 30 FOR 30 SERIES PROFILE ON SUPER BOWL XX CHAMPIONS CANTON, OHIO – The Pro Football Hall of Fame will premiere ESPN Films’ award- winning 30 for 30 series newest film, “The ’85 Bears” on Thursday, Feb. 4 and offer additional screenings on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 5-6, 2016. Guests to the museum on Thursday will be treated to the premiere during showings at 11 AM and 1 PM ET. In addition, special screenings will also take place at 11 AM and 1 PM ET on Friday and Saturday at the Hall. The premiere and showings are offered FREE with the price of a museum admission. “The ’85 Bears,” profiles the team’s magical 1985 season on the 30th anniversary of their epic Super Bowl XX victory. The film, directed by Emmy Award winner Jason Hehir and produced by Vince Vaughn and Peter Billingsley, looks at the many personalities on the team, the birth of Buddy Ryan’s “46 Defense,” the lone loss of the season at the hands of the Miami Dolphins in a classic Monday night matchup, and the filming of the famed “Super Bowl Shuffle.” The 1985 Bears roster included four future Hall of Fame players – Richard Dent, Dan Hampton, Walter Payton, Mike Singletary – and were coached by Hall of Fame tight end Mike Ditka. The Pro Football Hall of Fame has become home to many great movie and television show premieres. The list of special screenings at the museum include episodes of NFL Films’ A Football Life, series which has been premiering at the Hall since 2014, other ESPN 30 for 30 films such as the recent “Four Falls of Buffalo,” that told the story of the Buffalo Bills unprecedented four straight Super Bowl appearances. Most recently, the Hall showed exclusive screenings of the movie “Greater,” the inspirational story of Brandon Burlsworth who is considered the greatest walk-on in college football history. “Greater” appears in theaters nationwide this summer. COMMITMENT • INTEGRITY • COURAGE • RESPECT • EXCELLENCE “30 for 30 strives to be the gold standard of sports storytelling and continues to deliver thought-provoking documentaries that give viewers a unique point of view into a particular story,” said Connor Schell, senior vice president, ESPN Films and Original Content. “The projects coming in 2016 showcase some of our most ambitious work to date and we’re proud to work with this diverse group of incredible filmmakers who have again raised the bar when it comes to high quality storytelling.” Producers from “The ’85 Bears” were assisted by archivists and researchers from the Hall of Fame’s Ralph Wilson, Jr. Pro Football Research and Preservation Center, home to the world’s largest and most comprehensive collection of pro football. The Ralph Wilson, Jr. Pro Football Research and Preservation Center houses more than 30 million pages of documents and five million photographic images. The Center’s staff handles thousands of information requests each year from media, historians, members of the academic community, and the general public. About the Pro Football Hall of Fame Located in Canton, Ohio, the birthplace of the National Football League, the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Mission is to Honor the Heroes of the Game, Preserve its History, Promote its Values, & Celebrate Excellence EVERYWHERE. Hundreds of thousands of fans from across the globe travel to Canton annually to experience the exciting museum that chronicles America’s most popular sport. Millions more are reached through the Hall of Fame’s 100-plus special events held annually outside Canton and through the multiple nationally broadcast programs focused on the selection of the newest Class of Enshrinees and the Enshrinement Weekend. This year, the NFL’s Road to Super Bowl 50 began in Canton during the 2015 Enshrinement Weekend and will continue through the election of the Hall’s new class of enshrinees on the eve of the Super Bowl in San Francisco. Now in its third year of traveling, Gridiron Glory: The Best of the Pro Football Hall of Fame is a large-scale traveling exhibition that presents a panoramic view of pro football’s story and includes hundreds of artifacts from the Hall’s expansive collection. Gridiron Glory will be showcased at the Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara, Calif., site of Super Bowl 50, from Jan. 18-April 3, 2016 and is scheduled for three-month stays at various museums and cultural institutions through 2019. Enshrinees from the Class of 2015 along with numerous other Hall of Fame members received the spectacular Hall of Fame Ring of Excellence by Kay® Jewelers during ceremonies held in NFL stadiums during 13 of the 17 weeks of the 2015 NFL regular season. The Hometown Hall of Famer™ program presented by Ford honors Hall of Fame heroes with a program and permanent plaque to honor the Hall of Famer’s hometown support. Now in its 4th year, the US Army- Pro Football Hall of Fame Award for Excellence honors 20 high school students nationally for excellence in community service, academics and athletics. Construction on HOF Village, a $476 million development project, is under way in Canton to transform the Hall of Fame’s campus. For more information about the Pro Football Hall of Fame, please visit ProFootballHOF.com; @ProFootballHOF on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. ### COMMITMENT • INTEGRITY • COURAGE • RESPECT • EXCELLENCE .