--Students Work to Pass Law to Make Fever Pitch an Official State Movie of Massachusetts with May 14th Hearing Scheduled

Cambridge, Mass—May 11, 2009—The best way to understand the legislative process is to become actively engaged in it. That could be the mantra for Darcy Hoyt’s 8th-grade history class at Cambridge Friends School, a local Quaker school through which students have launched a campaign to have Fever Pitch declared the official state romantic comedy of Massachusetts. Having Fever Pitch join the ranks of other official state symbols, which include the Boston Terrier (dog), Boston cream pie (state dessert) and Plymouth Rock (state historical rock) is a logical next step for a sport which some historians claim may have been played in Massachusetts as early as 1791. Despite the light-hearted content, this particular campaign makes for a meaningful civics lesson, giving middle-schoolers a first-hand understanding of the legislative process.

“The genesis of our ‘Fever Pitch’ campaign was completely student-driven,” said Darcy Hoyt, a teacher of 7th and 8th grade history at Cambridge Friends School. “During a field trip to the State House in 2008, our class visited the Office of Legal Documents, where we learned that any citizen of Massachusetts can propose a bill to become a law. Having recently looked at official state symbols, my students wondered why there wasn’t an official state movie. They decided to campaign for Fever Pitch because it is an entertaining, age-appropriate movie filmed in Massachusetts.”

A 2005 movie directed by New England’s own Farrelly brothers, Fever Pitch is the story of a diehard Red Sox fan, played by Jimmy Fallon, who nearly eschews the love-of-his-life, played by Drew Barrymore, for the game of baseball. The movie follows the Red Sox as they vie for, and win, the 2004 World Series.