Electric Football will be front and center this Sunday night on ESPN at 9 pm EST. That’s when the network will air a short film on our favorite hobby as part of a 2-hour special titled It’s Not Crazy, It’s Sports.
The entire program was directed by Errol Morris, whose film credits include The Thin Blue Line and the Academy Award wining The Fog Of War. To have a highly respected documentary film maker like Mr. Morris in Electric Football’s corner is really mind blowing.
The subject Mr. Morris chose to feature was John “Larue” DiCarlo and his Charlotte Electric Football League. John has organized and run this Rochester, NY-based league since 1981. The games are played in John’s elaborate basement “Subterranean Stadium,” which is also the title that ESPN chose for the Electric Football segment.
The subject of Errol Morris’ ESPN Electric Football short film – John “LaRue” DiCarlo
It was by total coincidence that we ended up sitting next to John at the TudorCON dinner in January of 2014. Within 5 minutes of conversation he quickly became one of our favorite people in all of Electric Football. Knowledgeable, generous, unassuming, and hilarious — all at the same time.
Earl and Roddy enjoying a chat with John DiCarlo at TudorCON 14.
Mr. Morris’ office has been in contact with us since the filming started. Mr. Morris read our book The Unforgettable Buzz, and used it as a historical reference text for the film. There was even very serious discussion that The Unforgettable Buzz would be the title of the Electric Football segment.
We’re very pleased that The Unforgettable Buzz will be listed in the film credits. It’s truly an honor to have a great director like Errol Morris use our book for one of his projects.
We’ll be seeing the documentary for the first time on Sunday night just like everybody else. But we have a feeling that the pairing of Errol Morris and John DiCarlo is going to be a memorable one. Something that we’re going to talk about for a long time to come in Electric Football.
Earl, Roddy, & MK
Watch the trailer for the film: