The recruitment of Wilt Chamberlain to the University of Kansas by legendary coach Phog Allen, the challenges with segregation Wilt encountered when he arrived in Lawrence, and the triple overtime matchup with North Carolina in 1957 are all featured in the movie, “Jayhawkers,” produced by Junction City native Kevin Willmott.
Willmott brought the movie to the C. L. Hoover Opera House where a big audience saw the
show Saturday night. Willmott called the experience Saturday evening awesome. “So good to see so many old friends, and see the film warmly received.”
Willmott first came up with the idea to do a film on Chamberlain after the former basketball star died several years ago, but fundraising was a big challenge. Eventually the focus of the movie shifted the challenges with segregation in Lawrence during Chamberlain’s time at KU and how he had a positive impact toward integration in the Lawrence community.
Current Kansas Jayhawk basketball player Justin Wesley portrayed Wilt Chamberlain. Willmott noted, “Justin is just an incredible young man. I think he was kind of made to play this part in so many ways. ” Willmott added KU coach Bill Self Justin Wesley for the part of Wilt Chamberlain.
Wesley is 6’9, but that’s still more than three inches shorter than Chamberlain. Willmott indicated that in many of the scenes Wesley had to stand on apple box wooden crates to reach the appropriate height.
Veteran actor Kip Nevin had a prominent role in the show, as he performed in the role of Phog Allen, who recruited Wilt to KU, but never got to coach him on the varsity because he was forced to retire at the age of 70.
Geary County Commissioner Larry Hicks watched the movie. He felt it accurately depicted the challenges confronting African – Americans in the mid-1950’s. Hicks said since then there has been considerable improvement. “It’s good to know that the time that Mr. Chamberlain was living was a time in which he was moving in terms of making some of those changes that were needed.”
Willmott expects the movie to be available on DVD in the future…possibly a couple of months.
