It shows how his type one (insulin-dependent) diabetes eventually resulted in the amputation of one and then the other of his legs. It is ironic that his trademark gesture, the clicking of his heels (as seen on the cover of the DVD package), would be eventually claimed by the disease. This Old Cub captures all of the joy, and all of the pain, and even more, all of the character that is Ron Santo.
The documentary is sometimes choppy, sometimes inconsistent, but it is always emotional. It features the likes of Johnny Bench, Bill Murray, Gary Sinise, William Patterson, and Dennis Franz. The production of This Old Cub - like Santo himself - makes up in heart what it lacks in perfection.
The movie was produced and directed by Santo's son Jeff and is sometimes a plea for Santo's installment into the Hall of Fame. Being a life-long Cubs fan, I have a bias, but I think that the facts stand on their own. He played 14 seasons; he was the first third baseman to hit over 300 home runs (337) and five gold-gloves, a feat matched only by hall of fame third baseman Mike Schmidt. He was an eight-time All-Star, lead the NL in on-base percentage in 1964 (.398) and 1966 (.412) and lead the NL in triples in 1964 with 13. In 2005 he came within eight votes and 2007 within five votes of getting into the Hall.
Certainly if you are a Cubs fan and definitely if you are a baseball fan, This Old Cub is a must have. If you are tired of the Barry Bonds of the world trying to justify their records in light of questionable behavior, then you should watch this video for what it really means to be a role model and a person of character. Show it to your kids as well.
As a side note, a portion of the proceeds from this video go to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and so far This Old Cub has raised over a half-million dollars.
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