A Special Time...A Special Town...A Special Team
This is a story that is far more complicated and layered
than just “kids playing football.”
The Levittown, NY RED DEVILS Documentary Project
The Devils You Knew
"I think the 70s was just a great time to grow up, pure and simple.
Being from LEVITTOWN, we were not considered rich. We were considered being on the other side of the tracks. All of that brought us together.
We were as blue collar as blue collar could be.
And we took that to the field."
Jerry Broccoli
About the Film
OVERVIEW
The Fall of 2021 will mark the 50th Anniversary of when twenty-six 11-year-old kids from Levittown, N.Y. reported to Polaris Field to become the 1971 Levittown Red Devils Traveling Team.
This is a story that is far more complicated and layered than just “kids playing football” and that is why in January of 2019 Peter Hand, Doug Delaney (former team members) and Jamie Nelson (former Red Devil Coach) embarked on a mission to tell the entire history of that team, those times and all the supportive, colorful and often controversial citizens of Levittown.
THE DEVILS YOU KNEW documentary is a professionally produced, broadcast-ready 1.5-hour testament to those people, those teams, that town and those times.
The pre-production work has been completed. There will be two productions stages and finally, a post-production stage, scheduled to be completed by September 2021.
In 1971 and 1972 (under the tutelage of Coaches Jim Tintle, Bobby Perpall, John Dybus and Rich Festante), the team would make Long Island Youth Football History--outscoring their opponents 443-69, achieving a win loss record of 20-1, capturing the Long Island Midget Football League title 2 years running and defeating Bowl Opponent All-Stars in Maryland 54-0.
And the competition was fierce. Out of the 110 Youth Football teams spread across Long Island from Queens to Montauk, 4000 young athletes in five age and weight divisions battled for the coveted Division Championships.
Since the population of Long Island at the time was as large as the 11th most populous state, the Red Devils accomplished the equivalent of being the State Champs of Florida, Indiana, Massachusetts or New Jersey.
This in itself may not seem to some as extraordinary, considering there were hundreds of talented youth football teams across the nation--but what makes this team special is the manner in which they accomplished what they did, amidst very turbulent and troubling times.
These were "just kids," the offspring of first and second generation Levittowners, whose fathers were veteran servicemen almost to a man. While their Dads were busy policing crime-ridden, decaying and nearly bankrupt New York City, extinguishing massive fires in the South Bronx, and erecting the World Trade Center, their Moms, both working and stay-at-home, kept the home fires bright and burning, sustaining the 19,000 homes of the Nations First True Suburb.
Though the on-field accomplishments of these teams is unparelled in RED DEVIL and even L.I.M.F.O.L. history, it was the off the field lessons and contributions to the lives of these young boys that resonates to this day, not the least of which was the entire community of Levittown--the volunteerism, generosity and sacrifice of Levittowners (whether their kids were associated with the Red Devils or not) was truly a grass roots endeavor that gave these young athletes the support they needed to succeed beyond all expectations.
It is one hell of a story.
OUR PRODUCTION TEAM AND CAST
OUR PRODUCTION TEAM:
BRIAN BALDINGER (Host and Narrator) Former Massapequa, Long Island resident and professional football player for the Dallas Cowboys, Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles, Brian is currently an on-air analyst and for the N.F.L. Network.
DOUGLAS SCOTT DELANEY (Writer-Director) is an award winning author of fiction, non-fiction, theater and cinema. His daily posts regarding life growing up on Long Island can be viewed at FB (CLICK FB ICON at bottom of page).
PETER HAND (Research and Development) is a non-fiction novelist and former Red Devil. Pete is currently on his third book of interviews with Veterans of World War II, Korea and Vietnam.
JAMIE NELSON (the "Unofficial Mayor" of Levittown, NY) is our Professional Fundraiser. He has a Master's degree from Adelphi University and is a Proud Veteran of the Marine Corps. Jamie is currently a Sports Performance Trainer who has worked with over 30 professional athletes over the years--four of which are wearing Super Bowl Rings. His company is Team Nelson, New York.
TIM HAND (Graphic Design) is a video and print layout designer based out of New York. His graphic work on this project has been invaluable and he will soon be moving into our Third Production Stage.
JERRY BROCCOLI (Production Consultant) is another veteran Devil whose accomplishments in athletics, education, military service and Executive Management are far too numerous to mention here. We are blessed to have him on our team.
BARRY GOLDBERG (Production Consultant) has worked as a professional artist/illustrator/sculptor for over 30 years. He has illustrated over 100 picture books mostly based on popular children's TV shows such as Sesame Street, the Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Scholastic, and the Henson Company. He's on the staff of Sesame Works as one of the character artists drawing Elmo, Cookie Monster, Big Bird and the rest of the gang. Barry lives on Long Island, NY with his wife, who is a public school teacher. They have three grown children: "2 artists, 1 normal."
GAILLE PIKE (Production Manager) is the founder of COYOTE WEB SYNERGY, a consultancy firm for maximizing Project Awareness and Reach. She is the Administrator of this website and will handle all your inquiries with greatest professionalism and promptness.
THE CAST:
The SUBJECTS of “THE DEVILS YOU KNEW” are not actors but the real life participants in those crazy, tumultuous and wonderful times. They include:
Peter Hand, Jerry Broccoli, John Rogan, Coach Robert Perpall, Michael Nestor Palahnuk, Tom Federico, Brian Rogich, Coach Richard Festante, Paul Lieberman, Clifford Sinert, Jamie Tintle, Richard Alpert, Doug Delaney, Jamie Nelson, Billy Oberst, Chris Nelson, Thomas Murphy, Glenn Dybus, Ken Daly, Alan Abrams, Joe Neist, Mark Tintle, Mark Matthews, Don Cook, Keith Donnelly, Brian Milano and many more
COMING SOON!
Though the Covid situation has delayed our progress, we remain undaunted to our dedication to complete this project.
Donations are welcome and deeply appreciated because this project is a grass-roots effort. Donations will be used to purchase necessary equipment; licensing and permit fees, film transfer of never-seen-before footage, and for location filming our interviews in New York, Texas, Florida and elsewhere. It will also be used when necessary, to reimburse our production staff for content and travel.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW TO DONATE CONTACT
GAILLE PIKE
PHONE: 267-307-4374
EMAIL: fortysixtrap@gmail.com
A Note from our Lawyer: We are not a non-profit or a 501(c)(3) entity. We are looking for help to bring this project to life, and while unlikely to occur, any profits would benefit our production company, 46 Trap, LLC.
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