Angelo Pizzo, renowned screenwriter and producer, rose to fame with his inspiring sports films Hoosiers (1986) and Rudy (1993),which garnered immense popularity worldwide. As a result, he received numerous requests to pen more uplifting sports stories, which initially made him hesitant to be pigeonholed as the go-to sports-movie writer.
Born in Wilmette, Illinois, in 1948, to Anthony Pizzo, a pathologist, and Patricia, Angelo grew up in Bloomington, Indiana, after his family relocated there when he was just three years old. He was an average student at University High School but excelled academically at Indiana University, where he majored in political science and considered pursuing a law degree.
However, after graduation, Pizzo felt lost and uncertain about his future. His passion for movies, particularly epic and larger-than-life films, drove him to collect over 150 books on film. Despite his fascination with Hollywood, he felt it seemed impossible to actually work in the industry. It was his father who advised him to identify what he truly loved and then find a way to make a living from it, prompting Pizzo to enroll in film school at the University of Southern California.
At USC, Pizzo studied motion picture history, theory, and criticism, with the goal of becoming a professor. However, he left grad school after being offered an opportunity to work in television. His memories of Indiana high school basketball inspired him to write his first screenplay, "Hoosiers," which he saw as a story about redemption, second chances, and relationships rather than just sports.
Pizzo reunited with his best friend from IU, David Anspaugh, to direct "Hoosiers" and seven years later, they collaborated again on the college football movie "Rudy." Pizzo viewed Rudy's quest to play football for Notre Dame as a reflection of his own youthful dream of working in Hollywood. Their third collaboration was the 1950s World Cup soccer film The Game of Their Lives (2005). Pizzo made his directorial debut with the college football drama My All-American (2015).
Despite achieving success in Hollywood, Pizzo never truly adjusted to the city's competitive and divisive environment. He eventually moved back to his hometown of Bloomington in 2004, seeking a more peaceful and fulfilling life.
