Louis Goldman/Columbia/Kobal/Shutterstock7. Madonna was desperate to be on the roster, as producer Greenhut recalled, “And I told her, ‘You know, it’s very little money.’ She explained that she wanted to be diverse in her career. And she took it seriously. She might have come in late a few times, and maybe I had to bring her to the principal’s office kind of thing. But ultimately, she was a sweetheart. She was just so enthusiastic about doing a good job.” One of her toughest scenes as dancer turned center fielder “All the Way” Mae Mordabito involved sliding into third, he recalled, “That took a while to get right.” During training, the actresses reportedly practiced by using a Slip ‘N Slide.
Columbia Picutres16. Rosie O’Donnell had on-the-field skills, “I played with my brothers and in little league,” she told Entertainment Weekly in 1992 of being able to realistically star as former bouncer and third baseman Doris Murphy, but it was her comedic timing that was best remembered by her castmates. “She suggested to the production company that they hire a stand-up comic friend of hers to keep the stands [of extras] happy because there was a lot of downtime,” recalled Megan Cavanagh (second baseman and ace slugger Marla Hooch). “And Rosie would come out and sing Madonna songs.” The two stars sharing a dynamic as friendly as their characters’, “Rosie was not afraid of Madonna. She did what she wanted to do, and I think Madonna loved that,” said Cavanagh. “Rosie would sing all of ‘Holiday,’ and Madonna would get mad at her and say, ‘Don’t ever sing one of my songs again.’ And the next day, she’d come out and sing ‘Vogue.’ It was so fun to watch her do that.”
