David Mickey Evans (born October 20, 1962) is an American

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

. His films tend to focus on children and the challenges of childhood. A baseball fan, Evans directed and co-wrote ''

The Sandlot ''The Sandlot'' (released in some countries as ''The Sandlot Kids'') is a 1993 American coming-of-age sports comedy film co-written, directed, and narrated by David Mickey Evans. It tells the story of a group of young baseball players during the s ...

'' (1993).

Life and career

Evans was born in

Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in th ...

in 1962. In 1980 he moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

for college. He attended

Loyola Marymount University Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a private Jesuit and Marymount research university in Los Angeles, California. It is located on the west side of the city near Playa Vista. LMU is the parent school to Loyola Law School, which is located ...

and graduated with a film degree in 1984. He got his start writing action-thriller films, but found his niche in the 1990s with family-oriented films that appealed to adults, children and critics alike. He became one of the highest paid screenwriters during this time, selling the screenplays to both ''

Radio Flyer Radio Flyer is an American toy company best known for their popular red toy wagon. Radio Flyer also produces scooters, tricycles, bicycles, horses, and ride-ons. The company was founded in 1917 and is based in Chicago, Illinois. History Antoni ...

'' and ''

'' for over $1,000,000 each. ''Radio Flyer'' was originally to be directed by Evans, but he was replaced by

Richard Donner Richard Donner (born Richard Donald Schwartzberg; April 24, 1930 – July 5, 2021) was an American filmmaker whose notable works included some of the most financially-successful films during the New Hollywood era. According to film historian M ...

due to his inexperience. Reshoots followed after poor test screenings and the film budget jumped from $15,000,000 to $30,000,000. The original script called for more fantasy sequences involving a worm man and zombies but these ideas were scrapped when Richard Donner replaced Evans. ''Radio Flyer'' opened to mostly mixed reviews from critics while ''The Sandlot'' received much more positive reviews and better box office results. Success for Evans became fleeting by the late 1990s, with films like ''

First Kid ''First Kid'' is a 1996 American slapstick comedy film directed by David Mickey Evans and starring Sinbad and Brock Pierce. It was mostly filmed in Richmond, Virginia. Plot Sam Simms is a Secret Service agent assigned by his superior Wilkes ...

'' and '' Ed'' bombing with critics and at the box office. Evans switched to more adult-oriented humor and material with ''

After School Special The American Broadcasting Company coined the term Afterschool Special in 1972 with a series of television films, usually dealing with controversial or socially relevant issues, that were generally broadcast in the late afternoon and meant to be ...

'', but didn't fare much better. Since then, he has written and directed numerous made-for-T.V. and direct-to-DVD films, including ''

The Sandlot 2 ''The Sandlot 2'' (also known as ''The Sandlot 2: The Sandlot Continues'' and ''The Sandlot Kids 2'' in some territories) is a 2005 American Sports film, sports comedy film directed and narrated by David Mickey Evans. It is a direct-to-DVD sequel ...

'', the sequel to the popular film ''The Sandlot''.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, David M. 1962 births Living people Loyola Marymount University alumni 20th-century male writers American male screenwriters Writers from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Film directors from Pennsylvania Screenwriters from Pennsylvania