The Deadliest Season

{{Infobox television

| image =

| caption =

| genre = Drama
Sport

| writer = Ernest Kinoy

| director = Robert Markowitz

| starring = Michael Moriarty
Kevin Conway
Meryl Streep

| music = Dick Hyman

| country = United States

| language = English

| executive_producer = Herbert Brodkin

| producer = Robert Berger

| editor = Stephen A. Rotter

| cinematography = Alan Metzger

| location = Hartford, Connecticut

| company = Titus Productions

| network = CBS

| runtime = 98 minutes

| released = {{Start date|1977|3|16}}

}}

The Deadliest Season is a 1977 American made-for-television sports drama film aired on CBS on March 16, 1977. It was directed by Robert Markowitz, written by Ernest Kinoy and produced by Titus Productions. The film stars Michael Moriarty, Kevin Conway and Meryl Streep.

Plot

Gerry Miller (Michael Moriarty) is a professional ice hockey defenseman relegated to the minor leagues because his play is not aggressive enough. In an effort to get back to the majors, he plays dirty and gets into fights on the ice, which gets him back to the majors. His aggressive play results in the death of a former friend (Paul D'Amato) playing for an opposing team who sustained a ruptured spleen during a game. Miller appears largely indifferent to the situation, appearing to view it as a normal part of playing top-level ice hockey. He is charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon by the district attorney and is under pressure to accept a plea bargain while his team and the league dissociate themselves from the scandal. He is defended by George Graff (Kevin Conway), a disabled lawyer who is one of the few people that believes he can get Miller exonerated in court.[https://www.nytimes.com/1977/03/16/archives/tv-the-making-of-a-hockey-killer.html O'Connor, John J. "TV: The Making of a Hockey 'Killer,'" The New York Times, Wednesday, March 16, 1977.] Retrieved February 21, 2024.[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/paul-damato-dead-slap-shot-dr-hook-1235831416/ Barnes, Mike. "Paul D’Amato, Tim 'Dr. Hook' McCracken in Slap Shot, Dies at 76," The Hollywood Reporter, Wednesday, February 21, 2024.] Retrieved February 21, 2024.

Cast

Michael Moriarty as Gerry Miller
Kevin Conway as George Graff
Meryl Streep as Sharon Miller
Sully Boyar as Tom Feeney
Jill Eikenberry as Carole Eskanazi
Walter McGinn as District Attorney Horace Meade
Mason Adams as Bill Cairns
Paul D'Amato as Dave Eskanazi
Ron Weyland as Judge Reinhardt
Frank Bongiorno as Rene Beauvois
Mel Boudrot as Coach Bryant
Rudy Hornish as Walters
Eddie Moran as Eddie Miller
Dino Narizzano as Referee Merritt
Alan North as Detective Forscher
George Petrie as President MacCloud
Tom Quinn as Trainer Doyle
Bob Dio as Kenny
Suzanne Ford as Miss Converse
D.H. Robinson as Pete
Jerry Reid as Coach MacInerny
Andrew Duggan as Al Miller
Patrick O'Neal as Bertram Fowler

In The Deadliest Season, Michael Moriarty plays the main character.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=QhgyAAAAIBAJ&pg=1648,2194182&dq=the-deadliest-season+1977&hl=en|accessdate=October 19, 2012|title=Moriarty stars in hockey film|page=39|location=Montreal|newspaper=The Montreal Gazette |date=August 22, 1979}}{{cite book|author=David Quinlan|title=Quinlan's Film Stars|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KH4kmZJiUtwC&pg=PA374|accessdate=19 October 2012|date=November 2000|publisher=Batsford|isbn=978-0-7134-8651-3|page=374}} Kevin Conway also starred in this film.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article41850150 |title=TUESDAY MARCH 23. |newspaper=The Australian Women's Weekly | date=24 March 1982 |accessdate=October 19, 2012 |page=140 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=vM0yAAAAIBAJ&pg=5297,831445&dq=the-deadliest-season+1977&hl=en|accessdate=October 19, 2012|location=Anchorage, Alaska|newspaper=Anchorage Daily News|date=November 16, 1986|page=102|title=Movies}} Sully Boyar, Jill Eikenberry, Walter McGinn, Andrew Duggan, Paul D'Amato and Mason Adams also appeared on The Deadliest Season.{{cite news|newspaper=The Age|date=November 13, 1980|title=Wednesday TV|page=36|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ofpUAAAAIBAJ&pg=6890,6770170&dq=the-deadliest-season+1977&hl=en|location=Australia}}{{cite book|author=Douglass K. Daniel|title=Lou Grant: The Making of Tv's Top Newspaper Drama|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3vNMxIzSFnYC&pg=PA43|accessdate=19 October 2012|year=1996|publisher=Syracuse University Press|isbn=978-0-8156-0363-4|pages=43–}} Conway played the attorney who defended Mortiarty's character.{{Cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2aojAAAAIBAJ&pg=5676,1128195&dq=the-deadliest-season+1977&hl=en|date=March 12, 1977|title=Network Sports and Specials|page=11|newspaper=The Times-News|location=Hendersonville, North Carolina}} Adams' appearance as the team owner in the film helped land him a role in Lou Grant.{{Cite news|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/73893002.html?dids=73893002:73893002&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Aug+13%2C+1989&author=Jerry+Buck&pub=The+Washington+Post+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=Knight+and+Day%27%3B+Mason+Adams%3A+Looking+for+Another+%60Bad-Guy%27+Role&pqatl=google|title=Knight and Day'; Mason Adams: Looking for Another 'Bad-Guy' Role|date= August 13, 1989|accessdate=October 19, 2012|newspaper=The Washington Post |first=Jerry|last=Buck|page=y.05}}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

The film was written by Ernest Kinoy,{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article41850149 |title=MOViE GUiDE. |newspaper=The Australian Women's Weekly | date=24 March 1982 |accessdate=19 October 2012 |page=142 |publisher=National Library of Australia}} who had already written several television dramas by that time.{{cite book|author=Alvin H. Marill|title=Sports on television|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mmoNAQAAMAAJ|accessdate=19 October 2012|year=2009|publisher=Praeger|isbn=978-0-313-35105-1}} It was directed by Robert Markowitz,{{cite book|author=Jerry Roberts|title=Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YB6tyFdq5TcC&pg=PA366|accessdate=19 October 2012|date=15 June 2009|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-6138-1|page=366}} and produced by Titus Productions.{{cite book|author=Steven A. LuKanic|title=Film actors guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C4ZdIXclpsoC|accessdate=19 October 2012|date=January 1991|publisher=Lone Eagle|isbn=978-0-943728-38-4}} Meryl Streep made her television debut.{{cite journal | title=Streep, Meryl Louise (1949-).(Narrative biography) | journal=Encyclopedia of World Biography | date=1998 | publisher=Gale | url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/65606216 | accessdate=19 October 2012 }}{{Citation | title=IT'S A FACT | journal=Europe Intelligence Wire | date=2012-01-07 | publisher=Financial Times Ltd | url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/160857758 | accessdate=19 October 2012 }} She also made her film debut role for Julia in the same year.{{cite book|author=Liz Sonneborn|title=A to Z of American Women in the Performing Arts|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yf2741A_BkYC&pg=PA202|accessdate=19 October 2012|date=1 January 2002|publisher=Infobase Publishing|isbn=978-1-4381-0790-5|page=202}}{{cite book|author1=Ray B. Browne|author2=Pat Browne|title=The Guide to United States Popular Culture|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U3rJxPYT32MC&pg=PA794|accessdate=19 October 2012|date=15 June 2001|publisher=Popular Press|isbn=978-0-87972-821-2|page=794}} Streep, playing Moriarty's wife, received fifth billing in what was her first role.{{cite web|author=Hal Erickson|author-link=Hal Erickson (author)|date=2008|title=The Deadliest Season|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/124865/The-Deadliest-Season/overview|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080206124814/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/124865/The-Deadliest-Season/overview|archive-date=February 6, 2008|work=The New York Times|location=New York|department=Movies & TV Dept.|accessdate=October 19, 2012}}

Reception

John J. O'Connor of The New York Times praised the film as "an exceptionally impressive production." He complimented Moriarty for bringing "an incredible range of shading and sensitivity to his portrayal of the well‐meaning but confused athlete," Conway for being "admirably forceful, carefully avoiding cheap sentiment" and film editor Stephen A. Rotter and cinematographer Alan Metzger for having "captured the essence of their hockey sequences with stunning fidelity."

Airing

The Deadliest Season was a 98-minute-long courtroom and sports drama made-for-TV movie that originally aired in the United States on CBS in 1977.{{cite book|last1=Didinger|first1=Ray|title=The ultimate book of sports movies : featuring the 100 greatest sports films of all time|last2=Macnow|first2=Glen|publisher=Running Press Book Publishers|year=2009|isbn=9780762435487|location=Philadelphia|page=316|oclc=316825645}}{{cite book|author1=K. Edgington|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3xBVtMpDYaoC&pg=PA509|title=Encyclopedia of Sports Films|author2=Thomas L. Erskine|author3=James Michael Welsh|date=29 December 2010|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-7652-1|page=509|accessdate=19 October 2012}} In Canada, the movie aired in August 1979 on CBC. In Australia, the film first aired in November 1980, and later aired on March 23, 1982, on ATN7. In 1984, it reran in New York on Channel 2.{{cite journal|author=New York Media, LLC|date=2 July 1984|title=New York Magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X-UCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA185|website=Newyorkmetro.com|publisher=New York Media, LLC|pages=185–|issn=0028-7369|accessdate=19 October 2012}} It re-ran on television in Alaska in November 1986.