Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation Hosts Advance Screening of Disney's MILLION DOLLAR ARM

Tonight The Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation will host a special advance screening of Disney's "Million Dollar Arm," which hits theaters nationwide on May 16, 2014.

The Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation was created in 2002 to bring a greater understanding, awareness and compassion to those suffering through the experience of domestic abuse. Its mission is to educate to end the cycle of domestic violence and save lives. The Foundation was created by Joe Torre and his wife, Ali, as a result of the impact that domestic violence had on Torre growing up as a child. In 2005, the Foundation established its signature programming initiative, Margaret's Place, named in memory of Joe's mother. Margaret's Place is a comprehensive program that provides students with a safe room in school where they can meet with a professional trained in domestic violence intervention and prevention. There are currently Margaret's Places in the Los Angeles and New York City areas.

"'Million Dollar Arm' touches on many of the Safe At Home Foundation's core values, such as children, teamwork and family," said Torre. "I want to thank Disney for giving us and our supporters the opportunity to see the film in advance. We know it will be a home run."

Based on a true story, sports agent JB Bernstein (Jon Hamm) finds that business has changed and things aren't going well for his career. In a last ditch effort to save his livelihood he concocts a scheme to find baseball's next great pitching ace. Hoping to find a young cricket pitcher he can turn into a major league baseball star, JB travels to India to produce a reality show competition called "The Million Dollar Arm." With the help of cantankerous but eagle-eyed retired baseball scout Ray Poitevint (Alan Arkin), he discovers Dinesh (played by Madhur Mittal from "Slumdog Millionaire") and Rinku (played by Suraj Sharma from "Life of Pi"), two 18-year-old boys who have no idea about playing baseball, yet have a knack for throwing a fastball. Hoping to sign them to major league contracts and make a quick buck, JB brings the boys home to America to train. While the Americans are definitely out of their element in India, the boys, who have never left their rural villages, are equally challenged when they come to the States. As the boys learn the finer points of baseball, JB, with the help of his charming friend Brenda (Lake Bell), learns valuable life lessons about teamwork, commitment and what it means to be a family.

Directed by Craig Gillespie from a screenplay written by Tom McCarthy, Disney's drama "Million Dollar Arm" stars Jon Hamm, Aasif Mandvi, Bill Paxton, Suraj Sharma, Lake Bell and Alan Arkin. The producers are Mark Ciardi, Gordon Gray and Joe Roth. The executive producers are Palak Patel, Kevin Halloran, Bill Simmons and Connor Schell.

Torre is the former Major League Baseball All-Star, and four-time World Series Champion as Manager of the New York Yankees, who is currently the Executive Vice President for Major League Baseball. He will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., on July 27, 2014.

About the Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation

The Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation was created in 2002 to bring a greater understanding, awareness and compassion to those suffering through the experience of domestic abuse. Its mission is to educate to end the cycle of domestic violence and save lives. In 2005, the Foundation launched its signature programming initiative, Margaret's Place, which provides a "safe room" in schools and reaches more than 8,000 middle and High School students in New York City metropolitan area and Los Angeles each year. For more information, please visit www.joetorre.org.