SOARING LIKE EAGLES `INVINCIBLE' JOURNEYS FROM ZERO TO NFL HERO.

Byline: Evan Henerson Staff Writer

Sports fans in Philadelphia have, over the years, been known to bring a gusto in rooting for their Phillies, Sixers, Flyers and Eagles that doesn't always befit a burg carrying the designation ``City of Brotherly Love.''

Nobody dishes it out with quite such color as the fans of the Eagles (known to locals as ``Iggles''), who have never won a Super Bowl championship.

``There have been incidents in the past that stand out, including the booing of Santa Claus,'' concedes Vince Papale, a former Eagles wide receiver whose tenure in the National Football League inspired the Disney film ``Invincible'' (opening Friday), ``but he was justifiably booed. He was a drunk who came out of the stands impersonating Santa Claus. The Eagles were losing 30-0 at halftime, and the fans had to vent their frustrations on something.

``The fans in Philadelphia are just typical of the people in Philadelphia: hard-working people who are really passionate about the things they care about,'' adds Papale. ``Yeah, they're going to voice their displeasure by booing, but they won't voice their displeasure if they feel like you're giving 110 percent.''

Papale gave 110 percent on his worst days. Having spent several years as an Eagles season-ticket holder, sitting among those very fans before making the jump to the field, Papale is kind of a nonfictional counterpart to filmdom's Rocky. Underdog, thy name is Papale.

In 1976, Papale -- then a 30-year-old substitute teacher and part-time bartender with barely a year of high-school football experience -- attended an unconventional open tryout session called by new Eagles coach Dick Vermeil.

Not only was Papale the only player from the open tryout invited to training camp, he made the team and played with the Eagles for three seasons, retiring in 1979. Coach Vermeil, who still lives in Philadelphia, fondly recalls ``the Italian kid who came in and was the fastest guy in camp.''

`I liked his contributions,'' Vermeil says. ``He was good for team chemistry. He would do whatever you asked him to do, and he would do it well. He was always ready to play. In my career, I've always had a soft spot for kids like that.''

``Invincible'' takes a few creative liberties with the depiction of its hero's life. Not entirely the from-the-stands Cinderella story the film suggests, Papale actually played in rough touch leagues for several years and had a stint with the World Football League's Philadelphia Bell, whose general manager talked the Eagles into giving Papale a look. The meetings between Papale and his second wife, Janet Cantwell, have been Hollywood-ized. Papale and Cantwell got together well after Papale's tenure with the Eagles had come to an end.

Admittedly, Papale's was not a career of great or consistent on-field heroics. ``Invincible,'' which tracks its hero from pre-tryout through training camp, shows Papale botching a crucial play in the team's season-opening loss to Dallas and concludes without noting that the Eagles went an unsightly 4-10 in 1976, Papale's rookie year.

Even so, the folks behind Disney's recent stable of heart-stirring sports tales figured that, for inspiration, Vince Papale could hardly be bested. Producers Mark Ciardi and Gordon Gray previously teamed on ``The Rookie'' and ``Miracle.'' ``Invincible,'' starring Mark Wahlberg as Papale and Greg Kinnear as Vermeil, is the first football-themed film to receive the full endorsement of the NFL since ``Jerry Maguire.''

The film was shot in Philadelphia, a city whose sports fans may throw snowballs at St. Nick but demand respect for its gridiron heroes. Kinnear recalls getting off the airplane and immediately spotting an enormous billboard with Vermeil's head peering down at him. The famed coach left the Eagles following the 1982 season.

``I was like, `Wait a second. They still talk about this guy here?' And they do,'' says Kinnear. ``I had a great feeling about that city when I got there, and I feel like I understand why those people take their sports seriously.''

``The fans are not quiet, and they're not shy,'' adds Wahlberg. ``They basically said, `If you (expletive) it up, don't bother coming back to Philadelphia.' Hopefully it will be cool, because I have to go back there in a couple of weeks to shoot another movie.''

``Vince was the one guy I've seen of his era who played solely for his team, solely for the Eagles,'' continues Wahlberg. ``He played the way the people in the stands wanted to see the team play. He did everything he could to help the Eagles or prevent another team from beating them. That meant sacrificing his body play after play, and that's what he did.''

Director Ericson Core -- also the film's director of photography -- noted that ``Invincible'' was shot while the 2005 Eagles were in the midst of a wretched 6-10 season that saw the team miss the playoffs and suspend star wide receiver Terrell Owens for conduct detrimental to the team.

``There was a person (Owens) who obviously had much more self-interest in terms of how he played vs. the story we're telling,'' says Core, ``about a man who had very little self-interest and was much more about playing for the team and the spirit of community.''

Papale, a frequent motivational speaker who now makes his home in south New Jersey, downplays talk of past heroism. He has written a book about his life and seems to be enjoying the attention with a youthful ``how neat is this'' attitude.

``I got honored by the mayor. That was pretty cool,'' says Papale, who works as a marketing executive for the loan organization Sallie Mae. ``But really it just wasn't my nature to think of (myself) as anything other than a guy who wanted a job and happened to get a high-profile job playing in the NFL.

``I used to drive over the Walt Whitman Bridge, and when you looked to the left, you'd see Veteran's Stadium, which isn't there anymore,'' he continues. ``And the pride and joy I felt at knowing this was where I made my living, this was my office, it was pretty cool.''

``It's just another incredible piece of good fortune that Vince Papale is from Philadelphia,'' says Kinnear. ``If he was from Phoenix, I just don't know if we'd have the same story.''

Evan Henerson, [phone]

[e-mail]

`A very Disney kiss'... with CGI 

Here's a little bit of behind-the-scenes trivia that's sure to set tongues a-wagging.

That ``Invincible'' screen kiss between gridiron hopeful Vince Papale (played by Mark Wahlberg) and bartender Janet Cantwell (Elizabeth Banks)? Pretty spicy for a family sports-themed film, no?

``But it was a very Disney kiss,'' says Wahlberg. ``There was no tongue.''

Well, maybe not in what appears on screen. But as it turns out, the kiss, as filmed, was a bit spicier, says ``Invincible'' director Ericson Core.

``I shot that on the street in one shot with zero coverage, because with great actors you can do that,'' says Core. ``So we did a few takes, found the one we wanted, and we all went home.''

OK, so cut to the first test screening where studio executives inform Core that the Wahlberg/Banks buss, as depicted, ``is not a Disney kiss.'' Which presents a bit of a problem, since the scene is in the can and there is no more-chaste version to replace it.

``So we actually did some (computer-generated) work to de-tongue the shot,'' says Core. ``There was a little bit of tongue that has since been removed technologically. You could hear it in the soundtrack and all the rest. We literally had to change that slightly to make it a little more Disney.''

-- E.H.

You can cry if you want to

The most consistent advice Greg Kinnear heard from the Philly populace about playing legendary former Eagles coach Dick Vermeil in the film ``Invincible'': ``You better cry.''

``I hope they're not too disappointed that I didn't get teary,'' says Kinnear. ``You know, (Vermeil) holds a 45-minute press conference and he gets choked up for 30 seconds, and that's what ESPN runs. Most of Dick Vermeil's coaching career was not spent crying.''

Kinnear, who sports hair extensions, green pants and matching white shoes and belt in the film, had full access to the coach for a weekend visit to the Kansas City Chiefs' training camp. At one point, Vermeil introduced Kinnear to the entire team and then clammed up, giving Kinnear the floor.

``It was one of the most horrifying afternoons of my life,'' says Kinnear. ``I'm supposed to give a speech following one of Dick Vermeil's speeches?''

Vermeil, who had not seen ``Invincible'' prior to the premiere, said he had favorable reports of Kinnear's work from his son, who had a small part in the movie.

``I'm a little apprehensive, but I know it's not a documentary,'' says Vermeil, who retired from coaching at the end of the 2006 season and now lives in Philadelphia. ``I know Disney does these things well, and Greg Kinnear invested a lot of time portraying me. My son said he did a tremendous job.''

Even as he was hanging out with Vermeil, Kinnear quickly discovered that the coach was not exactly star-struck. He recalls an early phone message from Vermeil saying, ``I guess you're going to be playing me in a movie. All right, good luck with that.''

``He's on to so many other things now, even if he's not coaching,'' says Kinnear. ``Of course he'll see the movie, and we will talk. I'll try to get some sense of whether he likes the portrayal, but, more importantly, I hope he likes the movie and feels that it captures what was going on back then.''

-- E.H.

CAPTION(S):

6 photos, 2 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) `Invincible' dream

Walhberg, Kinnear tell Philly story

(2 -- 4) From top, Greg Kinnear as Dick Vermiel, Vince Papale, Mark Walhberg as the NFL workhorse.

Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer

(5) Mark Wahlberg and Elizabeth Banks got a bit too frisky for Disney standards in ``Invincible.''

(6) Coach Dick Vermeil, who left the Eagles following the 1982 season, is famed for getting emotional when addressing his teams and the press.