Gene Hackman in ‘Hoosiers’: On Camera, ‘He Really Went to Town’

Gene Hackman portrayed a long list of acclaimed characters in his career: Buck Barrow, Little Bill Daggett, Popeye Doyle. But one of his most beloved roles was that of Coach Norman Dale in “Hoosiers,” a 1986 film that is often cited as one of the greatest sports movies ever made.

In the film, set in the 1950s, Hackman’s character arrives at tiny Hickory High in Indiana. Ups and downs, and eventual sporting triumph, await. The story is inspired by the real success of Milan High, a small school that won an Indiana state title in 1954.

While Hackman, who was found dead on Wednesday in New Mexico, didn’t win either of his two Academy Awards for the film, his character’s presence and quotability make him one of the actor’s most memorable creations.

After Hackman’s death, we spoke to cast members from the film about working with him to make an enduring underdog story.

‘Leave the ball, will you George?’

“My first day on the set was the ‘Leave the ball, George’ scene,” said Chelcie Ross, who played George, the movie’s antagonist. In the scene, George starts coaching the team without permission, only to be ordered out of the gym by Coach Dale, who says: “First of all, let’s be real friendly here. My name is Norm. Secondly, your coaching days are over.”

“As a young actor walking in to do a scene with Gene Hackman, it was a little intimidating,” Ross said in a phone interview. “I was very nervous, and we did the one and only rehearsal.

“He didn’t like to rehearse a lot. He didn’t like to rehearse at all. Wanted to just do it.”

Ross fondly remembered asking Hackman for tips and being told: “No, you’ve got this. Do what you’re doing.”

The scene established George as a bit of a jerk (he eventually tries to have Hackman fired). Ross said he was told that after his audition the decision makers said, “That’s the jackass we’re looking for.”

‘Have fun Coach, trying to win with five.’

Early on, Coach Dale has problems fielding a full team, especially after Buddy, played by Brad Long, quits. “In the script, it called for me to be kind of surprised,” Long said in a phone interview. “Gene took me aside and said, ‘Brad, I think you might be more angry.’ And so I played that scene kind of angry.

“I walked out, and I smacked the door on my way out. That was improvised, and he told me that was a really good choice. We make our own choices, but he would give tips and advice, and I always cherish that.”

‘I don’t want to be a Terhune Tiger.’

That’s a line you won’t remember unless you watched the deleted scenes on the DVD version of the movie, one of which shows Buddy rejoining the team after deciding not to play for a different school.

“I share about a five-minute dialogue with Coach Dale, where I get my second chance, where I see the error of my ways,” Long said. “It’s just he and I; it’s a kind of a tender moment, and it doesn’t make it to the screen!”

Long said that while the director and writer of the film felt it was a crucial scene, the producers thought that he looked too much like another character, Jimmy, and that audiences would be confused.

“That is a scene that will stick with me,” Long said, “because I remember concentrating on the scene, and then somebody grabbed me from behind. It was Gene, who said, ‘That was great.’ And I never forget that came from Gene Hackman.”

‘I love you guys.’

Hackman’s whispered words to his team are one of the movie’s emotional high points.

“I was behind a locker, standing back there, just listening,” said Ross, who was not in the scene. “He didn’t make an emotional thing out of it; he did not emote at any point. But just the power of the sincerity of it struck me.”

‘You’re in my Army. Every day between 3 and 5.’

Hackman was an actor who knew what he wanted on set, much like the no-nonsense coach he played.

“He refused to do scenes that he knew instinctively were not going to be in the film, that were extraneous and were a waste of his time,” Ross said, “and he absolutely would refuse to do them.

“I think he had an aversion to authority figures and would get his back up and be real stubborn about some things.”

Long said: “He played Lex Luthor in ‘Superman.’ He played Popeye Doyle in ‘The French Connection.’ He could have come in and been a real prima donna. Gene did not do that. He came in and said, ‘Hey, I want to learn; I’ve never played a high school coach before.’

“And so we proceeded to get him to some high school practices. And he learned their body language, he learned their verbiage. I thought, Man what a pro. There’s an old dog that is willing to learn some new tricks.”

Long added: “Gene was kind of quiet. It’s when he got in front of the camera when he really went to town. I don’t think he ever did the same scene exactly the same. I noticed that whenever we would do two or three takes, his choices were different every time.”

‘In my book, we’re going to be winners.’

That line, which Coach Dale delivers to his players before the big game, exemplified the collegiality that other actors said Hackman showed on set.

“I think initially we were somewhat intimidated, maybe even scared,” Long said. “But I would tell you that from the moment that we met him, just all that fear melted. He made us feel so at ease.”

Ross said: “He stopped to talk to people and sign autographs, and when we got in the car, he said, ‘You always want to remember that, ultimately, dinner is on them. They’re paying your paycheck.’

“He had a great sense of humor. You think of some of the later films that he did, ‘Heartbreakers,’ ‘The Royal Tenenbaums.’ You really in those films got to see how funny he was.”

“Hoosiers” is a movie that people continue to watch almost 40 years later, sometimes for the third, 10th or 30th time.

“Any time you have an ‘underdog makes good,’ that is a recipe for success,” Ross said. “Because that makes people feel good about themselves, and think that they might be able to overcome something. So I think that’s always going to play well.”