Baseball fanatic or not, most people have heard of the Field of Dreams. What started out as a popular 1989 film starring Kevin Costner (based on the 1982 novel from W.P. Kinsella, Shoeless Joe), has become a sports anthem and popular landmark in Dyersville, IA.
The film’s popularity has captured hearts worldwide, not just for the love of baseball, but in showcasing the relationships between fathers and sons, and the underlying theme of following your dreams, no matter how big, scary, or crazy they may seem.
In 2021, MLB hosted their first televised game at the Field of Dreams, showcasing the Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees. The MLB returned this year for a follow-up to its new annual tradition, with the Chicago Cubs taking on the Cincinnati Reds.
Players wore uniforms modeled after ones worn a century ago, and walked out of the cornfields onto a baseball diamond near the original location used and filmed in the movie.
Fans from all over flocked to Dyersville, IA to be part of this new tradition. And on August 9, 2022, just two days before the big game, The Field of Dreams hosted its first minor league game featuring two Iowa teams: The Quad City Riverbandits (formerly known as the Davenport Blue Sox) vs. the Cedar Rapids Kernels.
10 Fun Facts About the Field of Dreams
- Canadian author W.P. Kinsella wrote Shoeless Joe while enrolled in a Writer’s Workshop at the University of Iowa, which later became the state setting for his novel.
- Kinsella almost named his novel Dreamfield, before deciding on Shoeless Joe.
- The scene in which Kevin Costner is pitching to Ray Liotta (who almost took him out with a line drive down the middle), wasn’t staged. It happened as a fluke, and couldn’t have been captured any better.
- Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were extras on the set.
- The movie was filmed on an actual cornfield in Dyersville, IA, but a season-long drought led to the decision of dyeing the grass green for cosmetic reasons.
- James Earl Jones’ wife is responsible for pushing him to take the role of Terrance Mann. But she thought his famous speech wouldn’t make the final cut.
- James Earl Jones actually cannot stand baseball.
- The filming schedule revolved around the corn’s height.
- Ray Liotta has never seen the movie.
- Tom Hanks was originally offered the role of Ray Kinsella, but he turned it down.
(More fun facts can be found here, and here).
Spotted: Quad City Area Knights at the Field of Dreams
Pictured: Quad City Area Knights players Cooper Funderburk, Liam Campos, and Bennett Campos with one of the original film’s actors , Coach Andy Herr, Liam Campos, Cooper Funderburk, Bennett Campos, and Coach Chad Funderburk of the 2023 11u Knights Black.
(Pictured: Ben Cummins, from the 2023 11u Knights Black walking through the corn at the Field of Dreams).
