Doc on Pirates legend Roberto Clemente to premiere in September

Samuel Long / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A documentary telling the story of the life of Pittsburgh’s greatest baseball icon, Roberto Clemente, will soon be available to a wide audience. 

“Clemente,” made by Mt. Lebanon-based filmmaker David Altrogge, will premiere in theaters (including national chains and also The Lindsay Theater and Cultural Center locally) on Sept. 12 — just three days before Major League Baseball’s official Roberto Clemente Day, according to production company Vantage. It will then make its television debut on The History Channel on Sept. 23.

Clemente died in December 1972 at 38 years old in a plane crash. He was delivering supplies to victims of an earthquake in Nicaragua. The following year, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. 

The film first appeared at the 2024 SXSW Film and TV Festival in Austin, Texas, and was also shown at the 2024 Three Rivers Film Festival in Pittsburgh. The theatrical release will mark the first time the documentary is shown outside of a film festival. 

Clemente’s three sons, Luis, Roberto Jr. and Roberto Enrique Clemente, executive produced the film alongside other names including Richard Linklater, LeBron James, Maverick Carter and Jamal Henderson. 

“It’s so exciting to have gone on this journey we’ve gone on, to have discovered as much about Clemente as we’ve discovered and unearthed never before heard recordings,” said Altrogge.

 “Getting to know Roberto and Luis and the Clemente family and just seeing their deep love and respect for their father, it’s just been such an incredible journey.”