A League of Their Own Character Review: Ira Lowenstein

*The schedule for the Character Review posts will be changing to Friday (or Saturday at the latest from now on).

*Warning: This post contains spoilers about the characters from the movie A League of Their Own. Read at your own risk if you watched the movie. There is something to be said about a well-written, human character. They leap off the page and speak to us as if they were right in front of us, as flesh and blood human beings, instead of fictional creations.

The key to any successful business is marketing. The product or service can be the best thing since sliced bread, but without the buying public being aware of it, success is unlikely to happen. In A League of Their Own, Ira Lowenstein (David Strathairn) is the man behind the appeal of the AAGPBL. When his boss, Walter Harvey (Garry Marshall) wants to close down the league due to the lack of an audience, it is Ira who keeps it alive. But, like any businessman, the cold truth of the bottom line counteracts the personal relationships of its employees. When Dottie Hinson (Geena Davis) becomes a star, that spotlight adds to the long-simmering tension with her younger sister, Kit Keller (Lori Petty).

To sum it up: It takes vision, drive, and belief to make it in the business world. This is especially true when an idea is new, untested, and the response from the public is not what it was expected to be. What makes Ira special is that he believes in the players, even when it contradicts the ideals of the period and is not bringing in the expected profit.

Which is why he is a memorable character.

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