Lewes Base Ball Club to host ‘The League’ screening Feb. 28

The Lewes Base Ball Club is partnering with the Rehoboth Beach Film Society to screen “The League,” a critically acclaimed 2023 documentary about the history of the Negro Leagues in the early 20th century. The screening is set for 6:30 p.m., Wednesday Feb. 28, at the Cinema Art Theater, 17701 Dartmouth Drive, Lewes. Doors open at 6 p.m.

The free screening is made possible by the Lewes Base Ball Club. Seats are limited and signup is required via email to lewesbaseball@gmail.com.

Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Sam Pollard with executive producers Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson and Tariq Trotter, and produced by RadicalMedia, “The League” celebrates the dynamic story of Negro League baseball's triumphs and challenges through the first half of the 20th century. The story is told through previously unearthed archival footage and never-before-seen interviews with legendary players. Included are appearances by Satchel Paige and Buck O’Neil, whose early careers paved the way for the Jackie Robinson era, as well as celebrated Hall of Famers Willie Mays and Hank Aaron, who started out in the Negro Leagues.

From entrepreneurial titans Cumberland Posey and Gus Greenlee, whose intense rivalry fueled the rise of two of the best baseball teams ever to play the game, to Effa Manley, the activist owner of the Newark Eagles and the only woman ever admitted to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, “The League” explores Black baseball as an economic and social pillar of Black communities and a stage for some of the greatest athletes ever to play the game, while also examining the unintended consequences of integration.

For more information, go to rehobothfilm.org and lewesbaseball.org.