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“We Want to Deliver on That”: Renowned Producer-Director Hopes to Make Dale Earnhardt Jr. & His Father’s Story Hit Home for Everyone

Jerry Bonkowski
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Feb 22, 2017; Daytona Beach, FL, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. speaks to the media during Daytona 500 media day at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-Imagn Images

Who knew the same actor who played Opie and Richie Cunningham was a racing fan? Ron Howard, who played little cherub-like Opie on The Andy Griffith Show more than 60 years ago, then starred in “Happy Days,” went on to become one of America’s great directors and producers.

But few knew that deep down inside, Howard loved all forms of motorsports. He went on to direct movies like “Rush”  — which is about the 1976 Formula 1 battle between James Hunt and Nikki Lauda — and is hoping his new documentary on NASCAR icon Dale Earnhardt and his son Dale Jr., simply titled “Earnhardt”, will resonate with fans and moviegoers everywhere.

“It’s still the relationships and the challenges that each generation had to overcome and deal with and cope with are they’re rich, they’re relatable and they mean a lot,” Howard said on this week’s edition of The Dale Jr. Download.

“It just so ticked all those boxes of really potentially great storytelling and people who don’t know anything about NASCAR, or much about it and never thought too much about it, are going to be drawn into it and understand it in a lot more visceral emotional way. And so for them, it’s going to be a real surprise.

“If you go into it because you love the sport, we wanted to deliver on that. If you go into it because it’s a famous name and you hear it’s good and it seems to be about a family, then we want to deliver on that as well and this series certainly does.

“But you also then want to say, ‘Wow, you had no idea what NASCAR was about, did you? Wow, well look here.’”

Howard was executive producer of “Earnhardt,” a four-part documentary series that examines The Intimidator’s rise to racing fame, how he became such a feared competitor, his complicated family and marriage dynamics — including his relationship with Dale Jr. — and, sadly, Earnhardt’s death on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500.

What makes this series stand out from other previous Earnhardt-related movies and documentaries is it focuses much more on the personal dynamics of Earnhardt, his loves, his family, and his inner personality, something that other documentaries seemed to only gloss over.

I love history, I love documentaries and I like movies based on real events,” Howard said. “(We) just believed in the facts. All we have to do is show it and the drama will be there. I followed that mantra and went into it still wondering how audiences would respond.

“These stories are liberating because you choose stories that are out of the ordinary, you choose events where human beings have together or separately somehow achieved something remarkable or experienced something in a really intense way and you want to expand people’s understanding of the human experience.”

The series is currently airing on Prime Video.

Post Edited By:Srijan Mandal

About the author

Jerry Bonkowski

Jerry Bonkowski

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Jerry Bonkowski is a veteran sportswriter who has worked full-time for many of the top media outlets in the world, including USA Today (15 years), ESPN.com (4+ years), Yahoo Sports (4 1/2 years), NBCSports.com (8 years) and others. He has covered virtually every major professional and collegiate sport there is, including the Chicago Bulls' six NBA championships (including heavy focus on Michael Jordan), the Chicago Bears Super Bowl XX-winning season, the Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs World Series championships, two of the Chicago Blackhawks' NHL titles, Tiger Woods' PGA Tour debut, as well as many years of beat coverage of the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA for USA Today. But Jerry's most notable achievement has been covering motorsports, most notably NASCAR, IndyCar, NHRA drag racing and Formula One. He has had a passion for racing since he started going to watch drag races at the old U.S. 30 Dragstrip (otherwise known as "Where the Great Ones Run!") in Hobart, Indiana. Jerry has covered countless NASCAR, IndyCar and NHRA races and championship battles over the years. He's also the author of a book, "Trading Paint: 101 Great NASCAR Debates", published in 2010 (and he's hoping to soon get started on another book). Away from sports, Jerry was a fully sworn part-time police officer for 20 years, enjoys reading and music (especially "hair bands" from the 1980s and 1990s), as well as playing music on his electric keyboard, driving (fast, of course!), spending time with Cyndee his wife of nearly 40 years, the couple's three adult children and three grandchildren (with more to come!), and his three dogs -- including two German Shepherds and an Olde English Bulldog who thinks he's a German Shepherd.. Jerry still gets the same excitement of seeing his byline today as he did when he started in journalism as a 15-year-old high school student. He is looking forward to writing hundreds, if not thousands, of stories in the future for TheSportsRush.com, as well as interacting with readers.

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