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Hawkins Financial Service, LLC joins Wrapped Productions

Hawkins Financial Service, LLC joins Wrapped Productions & the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum to produce SHUT OUT (The Untold Truth About The Negro Baseball Leagues) a Documentary on the Negro Baseball Leagues.


  • Admin
  • 19 July, 2018

SHUT OUT (The Untold Truth About The Negro Baseball Leagues) Documentary will tell the story of the Negro Baseball Leagues and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

SHUT OUT (The Untold Truth About The Negro Baseball Leagues), LLC will be a Missouri-based non-profit organization with the goal of telling the story of the history of the Negro Baseball Leagues; the teams, the players, the owners including the history of the great Kansas City Monarchs. The organization is in the process of seeking private and corporate donations and underwriting, as well as advertising sponsors.

SHUT OUT (The Untold Truth About The Negro Baseball Leagues), LLC organization is partnering with Hawkins Financial Service and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, both based in the historic 18th and Vine Jazz District, to tell the untold stories of the African American baseball players who made baseball history. SHUT OUT (The Untold Truth About The Negro Baseball Leagues) will be a celebrity-driven; exciting, fast-moving documentary film similar to the ESPN 30 for 30 series and the music will be very hip with period pieces, jazz, blues, R & B and hip-hop included.

"As a Kansas City native and a lover of baseball, it is an honor to be a part of such a historic and important project. This is a phenomenal team of people who truly care about getting the story told accurately and with passion,” William Hawkins stated.

SHUT OUT (The Untold Truth About The Negro Baseball Leagues) was developed by Kansas City based Wrapped Productions and its principals John Rittenour and Larrie Durham from Kansas City and Gary Ballen and Gregg Champion, both from Los Angeles. The project was fueled by their interest in the Negro Leagues, a tour of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and their respect and admiration for the late Buck O’Neil & museum founder Don Motley. Their primary goal is to ensure that the true and complete stories of these players are told and to be passed down to future generations.

Producer/Director Gregg Champion states, "It is great to have William Hawkins as part of the team now, a true Kansas City son and lover of all things baseball. William has the passion, knowledge, and business acumen to take SHUT OUT (The Untold Truth About The Negro Baseball Leagues), a once in a lifetime project, to new heights.”

Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum is participating and allowing the use of films, photos memorabilia and the artifacts held by the museum, as well as offering his guidance and input in telling the story. There are video interviews archived at the NLBM that will be incorporated in the documentary.

Wrapped Productions members have put together an ever-growing team including Oscar & Emmy winner Lou Gossett Jr., Seattle Mariner Dee Gordon and former MLB player Juan Pierre, as well as a financial consultant to oversee fundraising and business matters. The team is fundraising at this point to fund film development, production, and distribution.

SHUT OUT (The Untold Truth About The Negro Baseball Leagues) team will start accepting donations from individuals and businesses to assist in the underwriting of the project. An upcoming fundraising event will be held by the end of the baseball season with plans to release the documentary in a year.

The completed documentary will be released with the goal of a future international release so that the world will know this historic story. Future projects include: a Broadway play, a Buck O’Neil feature film and an educational program for schools during Black History Month to be sourced by teachers/educators year after year.