To kick off Black History month, Greenwich Historical Society will host the public premiere of ‘Pushing Boundaries: UConn’s First NBA Player,’ an account of the life and career of accomplished athlete and music executive Worthy Patterson, who died in 2022 at 91.
The documentary will be held at Greenwich Historical Society, February 9 at 5:00pm.
Raised in Greenwich and a student at Greenwich High School, Patterson was the first black player to captain a sport at UConn. He became the first UConn alumnus, as well as one of the first generation of black basketball players, to play in an NBA game as a member of the St. Louis Hawks.
Documentary producer and multiple Emmy Award-winning journalist Ronnie Forchheimer tells the remarkable story of Patterson excelling in predominately white Greenwich, becoming the first black captain of any sport at UConn, and the first of UConn’s 38 players in the NBA, as well as his post NBA career as a successful executive at RCA and Warner Brothers.
Patterson notably attained these career heights as a Black person navigating the discrimination and racism before, during and after the civil rights movement.
A Q & A with Forchheimer will follow the screening. Members of Patterson’s family, including his wife Queen and son Worthy Patterson III, will join from California via Zoom.
“It’s a privilege to host the premiere of Ronnie Forchheimer’s moving film charting the course of Patterson’s career – it’s ups and downs, challenges and extraordinary achievements,” said Historical Society’s Public Programs Manager Stephanie Barnett.
For more information and to purchase tickets for the documentary screening: https://greenwichhistory.org/event/documentary-film-screening-pushing-boundaries/
Sports: More than Just a Game!
The Patterson documentary also paves the way for the Historical Society’s upcoming exhibition: “Sports! More than Just a Game!” which features Patterson and other notable local athletes throughout history who achieved fame at the highest levels in sport. The exhibition opens March 8 and runs through September 3, 2023. For more information: https://greenwichhistory.org/upcoming-exhibits/