There was this exchange in the classic 1989 baseball movie “Field of Dreams” between Shoeless Joe Jackson (Ray Liotta) and farmer Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner):
Shoeless Joe Jackson: What's with the lights?
Ray Kinsella: Oh, all the stadiums have them now. Even Wrigley Field.
Shoeless Joe Jackson: Makes it harder to see the ball.
Ray Kinsella: Yeah, well, the owners found that more people can attend night games.
Shoeless Joe Jackson: [Shakes his head] Owners.
Indeed. What’s next, movies being shown up on ballpark walls?
Well, yeah. Shoeless Joe and the famous “If you build it, he will come” line will step up to the plate Saturday evening on the big screen on the outfield side of (well-lighted) Petco Park.
Movie-goers should show up and look for a good patch of grass at Petco’s Park at the Park. The free event begins at 6 p.m.; the movie starts at 7 p.m.
Anyone can bring blankets, food and nonalcoholic beverages. Chairs are not permitted. Park concession stands will sell hot dogs, beverages and treats. Organizers encourage movie-goers to bring canned food donations that will go to St. Vincent de Paul Village.
“As the community grows, events like Movies at the Park bring families downtown for a fun evening, and to see all that downtown San Diego has to offer,” says Centre City Development Corporation vice president of marketing and communications Derek Danziger.
Now if only the field of dreams inside Petco Park had some quality baseball to offer.
Ron Donoho is a regular contributor to NBCSandiego.com, editorial director of “Pacific SD” magazine and a contributing editor to sandiego.com. His Web site (sandiegoDTOWN.com) is dedicated to news, sports, culture, happy hours and all things downtown.
