Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - While it's been 42 years since the filming of "The Natural", former Buffalo Bisons general manager Mike Billoni remembers just how Buffalo was selected as the backdrop for the film.
"It was Friday the 13th, 1983. We received a call from Mel Bourne, the production designer, they were looking for a stadium. We brought him in here two days later," said Billoni on Tuesday with WBEN. "As he was coming down Best Street in a limo, he opens up the roof as he sees War Memorial Stadium he calls Bob [Robert Redford] and said, 'We found it! We found it."
Redford came a few days later and asked to go to the ballpark. Billoni remembers the actor asking to hit a few baseballs.
"I got a bunch of bats and balls, and there he was at home plate. He was a great baseball player," Billoni recalled. "He played ball in college with Don Drysdale., then decided acting was his route. But he loved it here, he really did."
A baseball autographed by Redford is on Billoni's desk today, along with photos and articles from 1983. He called it a memorable time and great summer.
"I'll never forget taking Redford and the crew to dinner. They picked Oliver's on Delaware. Henry Guarino gave them the side room. They went through the kitchen, the kitchen staff had to move out. They loved it. It became their go-to place," Billoni said.
With all of the movies being filmed in Buffalo today, Billoni remembers "The Natural" as being the start of Buffalo's renaissance.
Redford died on Tuesday at the age of 89.
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