Blast from the Past: Robby Benson’s Career Revisited
During the making of Running Brave, director Donald Shebib relied on help from Billy Mills, the subject of his biopic, to make sure the film would be historically accurate.
Billy Mills, a member of the Oglala Sioux in South Dakota, later attended the University of Kansas where he was recruited by the Olympic running team and won the gold medal in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics for the 10,000 meter race.
In a great upset in sports history, Mills sprinted from third place for the win. After Mills won gold, he served his community by providing scholarships to Native American youth. Mills is still the only American in history to win the Olympic 10,000 meter run.
Robby Benson portrays Mills, supported by Pat Hingle as his coach, and young Graham Greene (later Oscar nominee for Kevin Costner’s 1990 Oscar winner, Dancing With Wolves).
We learn that, as Mills was growing up, he never knew that his family lived in poverty, nor did he experience the life of an American child.
Mills would leave the reservation with his family and experience an unsettling amount of racism due to Mills being Native American. Hee had a stellar school system for his part of the reservation, but he never learned what it was actually like outside of the reservation.
As a child, Mills would constantly go on long bike rides and swim across lakes with his friends, which contributed to his cardiovascular strength.
When Mills was eight, his mother passed away, and then four years later, when Mills was twelve, his father passed away as well. Due to this, Mills was sent to a Native American boarding school in Lawrence, Kansas, where he started to run. In his high school years, he became standout runner, earning scholarship at the University of Kansas.
During his four years at school, he experienced hardships and racial outstrikes–it was uncommon to see a Native American runner. Mills claims that he found success, and that his teammates and coaching staff were always supportive when he faced racial discrimination.
After Mills graduated from Kansas, he joined the US Marines, hoping to work to be officer. Still training for the Tokyo Olympic Games, he went on many 25-mile runs. He qualified for the 10,000-meter race, determined to win gold to prove all the people wrong who said he could not do it.
Up to the present day, Mills is still the only American to win gold in the 10,000-meter. Now, Mills created and works for a non-profit organization named Running Strong for the Native American Youth, where he provides ten $10,000 scholarships to Naive American kids to make their dreams and aspirations come true.
The movie was not commercially popular.
In 2012, President Barack Obama heard about Mills’ story and awarded him a Presidential Citizens Award for his work with the Native American youth.
Shebib has directed other films that were more popular, including Goin’ Down the Road, Down the Road Again, Nightalk, and Between Friends.
Cast
Robby Benson as Billy Mills
Pat Hingle as Coach Bill Easton
Claudia Cron as Pat
Graham Greene as Eddie
Wendell Smith as Chris Mitchell
Jeff McCracken as Dennis Riley
August Schellenberg as Billy’s Father
Credits:
Directed by Donald Shebib (credited as D.S. Everett)
Written by Henry Bean, Shirl Hendry, Based on the life of Billy Mills
Distributed byBuena Vista Distribution
Release date: Nov 4, 1983
Running time: 106 minutes
Running Brave (1983): Donald Shebib’s Sports Biopic, Starring Bobby Benson as Native American Billy Mills
Blast from the Past: Robby Benson’s Career Revisited
During the making of Running Brave, director Donald Shebib relied on help from Billy Mills, the subject of his biopic, to make sure the film would be historically accurate.
Billy Mills, a member of the Oglala Sioux in South Dakota, later attended the University of Kansas where he was recruited by the Olympic running team and won the gold medal in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics for the 10,000 meter race.
In a great upset in sports history, Mills sprinted from third place for the win. After Mills won gold, he served his community by providing scholarships to Native American youth. Mills is still the only American in history to win the Olympic 10,000 meter run.
Robby Benson portrays Mills, supported by Pat Hingle as his coach, and young Graham Greene (later Oscar nominee for Kevin Costner’s 1990 Oscar winner, Dancing With Wolves).
We learn that, as Mills was growing up, he never knew that his family lived in poverty, nor did he experience the life of an American child.
Mills would leave the reservation with his family and experience an unsettling amount of racism due to Mills being Native American. Hee had a stellar school system for his part of the reservation, but he never learned what it was actually like outside of the reservation.
As a child, Mills would constantly go on long bike rides and swim across lakes with his friends, which contributed to his cardiovascular strength.
When Mills was eight, his mother passed away, and then four years later, when Mills was twelve, his father passed away as well. Due to this, Mills was sent to a Native American boarding school in Lawrence, Kansas, where he started to run. In his high school years, he became standout runner, earning scholarship at the University of Kansas.
During his four years at school, he experienced hardships and racial outstrikes–it was uncommon to see a Native American runner. Mills claims that he found success, and that his teammates and coaching staff were always supportive when he faced racial discrimination.
After Mills graduated from Kansas, he joined the US Marines, hoping to work to be officer. Still training for the Tokyo Olympic Games, he went on many 25-mile runs. He qualified for the 10,000-meter race, determined to win gold to prove all the people wrong who said he could not do it.
Up to the present day, Mills is still the only American to win gold in the 10,000-meter. Now, Mills created and works for a non-profit organization named Running Strong for the Native American Youth, where he provides ten $10,000 scholarships to Naive American kids to make their dreams and aspirations come true.
The movie was not commercially popular.
In 2012, President Barack Obama heard about Mills’ story and awarded him a Presidential Citizens Award for his work with the Native American youth.
Shebib has directed other films that were more popular, including Goin’ Down the Road, Down the Road Again, Nightalk, and Between Friends.
Cast
Robby Benson as Billy Mills
Pat Hingle as Coach Bill Easton
Claudia Cron as Pat
Graham Greene as Eddie
Wendell Smith as Chris Mitchell
Jeff McCracken as Dennis Riley
August Schellenberg as Billy’s Father
Credits:
Directed by Donald Shebib (credited as D.S. Everett)
Written by Henry Bean, Shirl Hendry, Based on the life of Billy Mills
Distributed byBuena Vista Distribution
Release date: Nov 4, 1983
Running time: 106 minutes
Budget$8 million
Box office$3 million