The animated feature film Henry & Me, the baseball-themed tale of a young cancer-stricken boy’s magical and life-changing experience with New York Yankees old and new, will be released on DVD and digitally on September 30, 2014, it was announced today. The film, which features an all-star line-up of voices including Richard Gere, Cyndi Lauper, Chazz Palminteri, Lucie Arnaz, Danny Aiello, and Paul Simon, and Yankee greats Mariano Rivera, Reggie Jackson, Hideki Matsui, Yogi Berra, Jorge Posada, CC Sabathia, and Mark Teixeira, among others, is also now available exclusively at Yankee Stadium on DVD.
Henry & Me, which had a star-studded premiere at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City on August 18th, will also have a week-long NYC theatrical engagement at Quad Cinema (34 West 13th Street) starting Friday, September 19th through Thursday, September 25th. For more info on screenings, visit http://www.quadcinema.com/coming-soon/. The film also received an Oscar®-qualifying run in Los Angeles at the Landmark Regent in Westwood, September 5th through 11th.
Henry & Me tells the heart-warming story of Jack, an 11 year-old baseball fan who finds himself magically transported from his hospital bed to an amazing world where he meets Yankee legends old and new (including , Babe Ruth, Lefty Gomez, Thurman Munson, and Mickey Mantle), and learns valuable lessons about baseball and the curveballs that life throws you.
Henry & Me, inspired by the best-selling children’s books by Ray Negron, was written by David I. Stern, screenwriter of such animated features as Open Season 2 & 3 and the Annie Award-nominated Free Birds. Barrett Esposito, winner of the Best Directorial Debut prize at the New York International Independent Film & Video Festival for his 2001 feature Mourning Glory, directs.
The film stars Richard Gere in the title role of “Henry” with Chazz Palminteri as “Babe Ruth” and Austin Williams as “Jack.” The film also stars Cyndi Lauper, Danny Aiello, Paul Simon, Lucie Arnaz, Joseph Gian, and Luis Guzman. Hank Steinbrenner, the co-chairman of the Yankees organization, voices the role of his father, George Steinbrenner. Present and former Yankees figures portray themselves in the film: Hideki Matsui, CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, Curtis Granderson, Nick Swisher, Reggie Jackson, Yogi Berra, Bernie Williams, Goose Gossage, Willie Randolph, John Sterling, Michael Kay, Joe Girardi, and Brian Cashman.
A portion of the proceeds from the DVD and digital sales of Henry & Me will benefit a collection of participating charities including: Cyndi Lauper’s True Colors Fund, St. Jude’s, Lou Gehrig Society, Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, The New York Yankees Foundation, Jason Mraz Foundation, International Campaign for Tibet, Children’s Health Fund, NIMBY, The Max Cure Foundation, CC Sabathia’s Pitcch In Foundation, Joe Girardi’s Catch 25 Foundation, Harlem RBI, Leukemia Society, Curtis Granderson’s Grand Kids Foundation, Sarah McLachlan’s Sarah School of Music, Pitch for a Cure, American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge, and many more.