The final hours of Tiger Stadium are, well, bizarre:
A film crew is giving Tiger Stadium a temporary reprieve from the wrecking ball as they shoot a movie at the old ballpark today. For production of the independent film “The Irishman,” the site will morph into the old Cleveland Municipal Stadium, which was demolished in 1995 and replaced. Val Kilmer, Christopher Walken and Ray Stevenson are starring in the film . . .
. . . The independent film, which does not have a release date, documents the life of Cleveland-area union organizer and mobster Danny Greene, who was killed by a car bomb as he left a dentist’s appointment.
A final ignominy in a series of ignominies that have befallen Tiger Stadium since the last game in 1999.
I spent a nice chunk of my childhood in Tiger Stadium and loved that building more than the houses in which I grew up. As I mention here, for mercy’s sake, I’m glad it’s finally being demolished. I just wish it didn’t have to suffer through Billy Crystal, Bud Bowl 2006, weeds, neglect, decay and now, finally, Val Kilmer, before it was put out of its misery.