RADIO
 Directed by Mike Tollin
 Based on a true story
COMPETENCIES ADDRESSED
 Work Ethic
 Persistence
 Self-Confidence
 Coaching, Developing and Instructing
 Inspiring
 Seeking Improvement
 Communicating with the Community
 Providing a Good Example
 Being Accountable
MORAL-ETHICAL EMPHASIS
 Trustworthiness
 Empathy/Compassion
 Pride
 Respect
CAST CHARACTERS
 Cuba Gooding Jr. ... Radio
 Ed Harris ... Coach Jones
 Alfre Woodard ... Principal Daniels
 S. Epatha Merkerson ... Maggie
 Brent Sexton ... Honeycutt
 Chris Mulkey ... Frank
 Sarah Drew ... Mary Helen
 Riley Smith ... Johnny
 Patrick Breen ... Tucker
 Debra Winger ... Linda
 Bill Roberson ... Del
 Kenneth H. Callender ... Don
 Michael Harding ... Irv the Cop
 Charles Garren ... Clive
 Rebecca Koon ... Waitress
SUMMARY
The time is 1976, the place Anderson, South Carolina. Harold Jones, the local
school's football coach, discovers some of his players bullying a developmentally
challenged young black man. Immediately, and with as much passion and drive
as he puts into his coaching, the coach devotes himself to the welfare of James
Robert Kennedy (nicknamed 'Radio' because of his love of transistors), letting
him help at the sports practice sessions and integrating him into the school itself,
and the broader community. At first Radio's widowed mother is suspicious,
Harold's wife and daughter are jealous, the school principal is worried, and the
star player's father is furious, but as Radio gradually emerges from his shell, the
whole town comes to accept and love him. Radio contains good scenes for
discussions on accepting others different from us, compassion, humility vs. pride,
taking a stand, and caring when it costs.
QUESTIONS
While watching the movie, please answer the following questions.
1. Twice Johnny and his friends played tricks on Radio; each time the prank
backfired on them. What were the tricks and how did the boys pay for their
prank? Use specific references to the film.
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2. Empathy is the capacity to recognize and, to some extent, share feelings
(such as sadness or happiness) that are being experienced by another person.
How would you feel if you were in Radio’s shoes experiencing the same pranks
and being mistreated by others?
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3. Coach Jones was a friend, a mentor, and a teacher to Radio. But he says to
the townspeople, "Radio's been teaching us."
a.) What did Coach teach Radio?
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b.) What did Radio teach Coach Jones and the team?
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Discussion
For this discussion, we use two scenes to talk about the cost of compassion.
The first clip has Coach Jones and his wife discussing whether or not it is worth it
to allow Radio, a developmentally challenged student to remain helping with the
sports program. The first clip begins at 1:34:40.
The second clip we will show begins at 1:37:24. This is a scene where Coach
Jones has realized that it is time for him to step down from coaching so that he
can put his time and focus into Radio and his wife and family.
Scene 1 Clip: "A mistake to care about Radio?"
Scene 1 Introduction:
Today's discussion is about empathy/compassion. Empathy is the capacity to
recognize and, to some extent, share feelings (such as sadness or happiness)
that are being experienced by another person. Someone may need to have a
certain amount of empathy before they are able to feel compassion. The movie
is about a developmentally challenged boy named Radio, and how a high school
football coach, Coach Jones, has changed the entire school and community by
showing empathy and compassion to Radio. But now, things are getting difficult
for the coach because some people are against his allowing Radio to be a part of
the sports program. In this scene, we hear Coach questioning if it’s worth it. As
we watch this first clip, pay attention to the difference in perspective between the
coach and his wife. Right now, Coach has just said to his wife that it would have
been better if instead of spending so much time with Radio, it would have been
better to go get him some help.
Scene 1 Script:
Linda: Help? And what you’ve been giving him has been…?
Coach: Couldn’t have been easy on you and Mary Linda… me spending all this
time with Radio the past few months.
Linda: Harold, wait. You can’t believe that’s been a mistake, you being with
Radio. You’ve been so great for each other.
Coach: Yeah, well, look where it’s got us.
Linda: Where it got you is a school full of kids that love him. And Mary Linda
feels the same way. And anything that Frank can do or say – that’s not gonna
change anything. It’s never a mistake to care for someone. That’s always a
good thing. Right?
Scene 1 Group Discussion:
1. Before we begin, let's go around the circle and share our favorite character in
the movie and explain why?
2. Was Coach justified in feeling the way he did—that it was a mistake to care
about Radio? Why or why not?
3. What was the difference, in that scene, between the coach’s view of the
situation with Radio, and his wife’s?
4. The coach had made an investment into this mentally challenged man’s life
and made him feel like part of the school. He adjusted his priorities and went the
extra mile for someone. Share a time when you went the extra mile for someone
(outside of your family).
5. Sometimes we need to switch around our priorities because we realize there’s
a cost to caring for someone. It might make us unpopular or inconvenienced.
Give an example of this—how caring for someone else can be inconvenient or
uncomfortable.
6. And when we help others and care for others, who are we actually doing it to?
7. What can you do this week to show caring for others?
Scene 2 Clip: “Setting that Right”
Fast forward to 1:37:24 (Scene 28 on the DVD), a scene beginning in the barber
shop. There is a meeting with some of the parents and the principal. One
disgruntled parent wants everyone to agree that Radio is “a disruptive force” in
the community because of some incidents that happened earlier in the film.
Coach Jones enters with his wife and daughter.
Scene 2 Introduction:
This scene is a meeting between the Coach and some upset parents who think
that Radio should not be part of the school community. Listen carefully to what
the Coach says.
Scene 2 Script:
Coach Jones: Well, I had a talk with Radio this morning. I told him, in not so
many words, that we might be looking at some changes. It didn’t take long to
see the more I talked the more he didn’t understand me. We got a lot of that
going on around. When I was playing, I had a coach. He used to tell me to keep
my priorities straight. He’d say, “Son, you figure out what’s important. You push
everything else aside.” I love football; I love everything about it. I love Friday
nights when you’re looking for a win and Saturday mornings when you found it.
But that’s not what’s important right now. We got ourselves a young man we’re
not thinking about. The same young man who could hardly talk when we first
met him, and now he’s making announcements in the morning over the
loudspeaker. Same young man who got himself a football letter last fall, but he
never wears it, because he can’t afford a jacket. Now we’re asking him to
leave…
…I know some of you don’t know or don’t care about all that Radio’s learned over
these past few months. Well, the truth is we’re not the ones who’ve been
teaching Radio. Radio’s the one been teaching us. ‘Cause the way he treats us
all the time is the way we wish we treated each others even part of the time.
Look, I know something’s gotta happen here. I know some changes gotta be
made. And I know I can’t let what happened last season happen again. So I’ve
decided to step down as head football coach… (crowd murmurs
disappointment)…I’d like to keep teaching, if that’s all right. Keep an eye on
Radio, make sure he stays out of trouble. And I’d like to spend a little time with a
few other folks I’ve neglected over the years…while I still have a chance to.
Much as I love this game, you know, it’s not half as important as setting that right.
Scene 2 Group Discussion:
1. The coach adjusted his priorities so that he could continue to impact Radio
and others. He gave up coaching football. What priorities in your life might you
need to adjust so that you can better serve yourself?... others?
2. What’s the difference between caring about someone who will make it worth
your while, by paying you back somehow, and caring about someone who can’t
pay you back in any way? Maybe they don’t run with the ‘cool’ crowd or maybe
you don’t think they’re as ‘sharp’ or ‘deserving’ as you. The point here is that
caring can cost us. Let’s talk about what it might cost us in different situations.