Released by Warner Home Video in 1992, Jim Thorpe provided technical advising during the original production in 1951. In the 1912 Olympic Games decathlon in Stockholm, Thorpe won the gold medal with a World Record 8412 points, with a margin of victory of 688 points. The back of the box describes the film: "All action. All excitement. The life story of an all-American legend. He did it all. And he did it better than anyone. Oklahoma Indian Jim Thorpe played pro baseball, almost singlehandedly put pro football on the map, and won Olympic gold medals- yet knew nothing about organized sports before enrolling as a young man at Carlisle School for Indians. When selecting "the greatest athlete of the first half of the 20th century," American sportswriters really had only one choice: Jim Thorpe. Choosing who would play Thorpe in his life story was not so easy. Warner Brothers searched 15 years before they found the right actor. Burt Lancaster excelled at boxing, baseball, track, and gymnastics at New York University and later Ringling Brothers audiences with his audacious acrobatic act. The virile future Academy Award winner brings muscle to this exciting film loaded with thrilling sports action. And he brings dramatic power to his portrayal of Thorpe's greatest triumph: the climb back to a successful life after a bitter slide into obscurity." Obtain your copy of this film at Amazon.cm in either VHS or DVD format. This biographical drama was done in black and white, and released in DVD format on October 23, 2007. Directed by Michael Curtiz, produced by Everett Freeman, and music by Max Steiner.
