In the new sports comedy 80 for Brady, four longtime friends—and diehard New England Patriots fans—take a whirlwind trip to the 2017 Super Bowl to see their idol Tom Brady battle it out against the Atlanta Falcons.
The women at the center of the story are played by four icons in their own right: Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Sally Field. But in real life, it was a group of five dedicated friends who made up the “Over 80 for Brady” fan club that inspired the movie, in theaters Feb. 3.
For years, the club consisted of Betty Pensavalle, Elaine St. Martin, Anita Riccio, Pat Marx, and Claire Boardman. Pensavalle, whose grandson Max originally pitched the idea for the movie, says she and St. Martin began getting together for Patriots game days after their husbands passed away. “We started watching together, Elaine and me,” she says. “Then we added Anita then we added Claire and Pat. We were good friends. We had known each other for years and we were all widows.”
Today, Pensavalle and St. Martin are 94 and 95 years old, respectively, and have been friends for 72 years. Boardman passed away last year, and Riccio and Marx now live in an assisted living facility. But the memories of the years the group spent watching football together remain a bright spot for both Pensavalle and St. Martin. “The camaraderie was wonderful,” Pensavalle says. “We laughed and yelled a lot. We watched on my patio and I’m sure the neighbors heard us even though it’s enclosed. We had a lot of fun.”
Read more: 80 for Brady May Not Be a Masterpiece. But the World Needs Movies Like This
Football Sundays became a grand occasion for the group and, as St. Martin says, gave them all “something to look forward to every week from September thru February.”
“The girls all came for the 1 o’clock game,” Pensavalle says. “They would get here at 12:30, we would get settled, and we would start watching. They brought hors d’oeuvres and, later in the game, we’d have wine or Bloody Marys.”
Brady became an additional draw for the friends when he took over as the Patriots’ quarterback after Drew Bledsoe was injured early in the 2001-02 season. “We liked Bledsoe but now Tom was the quarterback and he was our guy,” Pensavalle says.
The Patriots would go on to win the Super Bowl that season and, with Brady at the helm, would win five more over the course of the next 15 years. One of those, of course, was the infamous 2017 Super Bowl depicted in 80 for Brady. The game saw Brady mount the greatest Super Bowl comeback in NFL history, beating the Falcons 34-28 in overtime despite trailing 28-3 late in the third quarter.
“I loved watching Tom from the beginning,” St. Martin says. “Even when the Patriots were behind we never lost hope. We knew he could pull out a miracle, as he did in many games, especially the Super Bowl against the Atlanta Falcons.”
In 2006, following Brady’s third Super Bowl win with the Patriots, Pensavalle says her grandson Ben designed “Over 80 for Brady” t-shirts and had them made for the group. “We wore them at every game,” she says. “All of my grandchildren knew about the group and would call during the games to talk about how the Patriots were doing…[My grandson] Max kiddingly said one Sunday when his family was visiting, ‘Nannie, this would make a cute movie. You all have so much fun.'”
Then, in 2020, Pensavalle received a personalized video message from Brady himself telling her he wanted to turn the “Over 80 for Brady” crew’s story into a movie. 80 for Brady is the first movie from Tom Brady’s new production company, 199 Productions.
In real life, the “Over 80 for Brady” fan club never made it to a Super Bowl like their Hollywood counterparts. But that doesn’t matter so much to Pensavalle and St. Martin, who say they never expected this kind of notoriety at their age.
“Though the movie is about four friends going to the Super Bowl, the main thing you need to take away from this is that having good friends is very precious,” St. Martin says. “Even at 95, I can say, ‘Life is short. Too short for arguments and holding grudges. Be kind to others and kindness will find you.’ Betty and I have been friends for 72 years with never a harsh word.”
For years, the club consisted of Betty Pensavalle, Elaine St.Martin, Anita Riccio, Pat Marx, and Claire Boardman. Pensavalle, whose grandson Max originally pitched the idea for the movie, says she and St. Martin began getting together for Patriots game days after their husbands passed away.
The getting together for night matches is not true, as the real women felt it was too late, and preferred afternoon games with wine and hors d'oeuvres, as they told CBS. Also, the ladies never got to meet Brady like in 80 For Brady.
Maybe you've even seen the whole movie — it was released in theaters on Feb. 3. Well, most of that story isn't true. While the movie is based on a true story, the actual group of senior citizens never attended the Super Bowl, according to Attleboro resident Bob Riccio.
Inspired by a true story, it focuses on four lifelong friends (played by Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Sally Field) who travel to watch Brady and his New England Patriots play in Super Bowl LI in 2017. Billy Porter, Rob Corddry, Alex Moffat, and Guy Fieri also star.
Sadly, the Over 80 for Brady club has dwindled to two. Claire passed away, and Anita and Pat are in an assisted living facility. But Betty and Elaine's devotion to their team – and each other – is strong enough for all of them.
These days, the Over 80 for Brady club membership is down to two. Claire passed away, and both Anita and Pat reside in assisted-living facilities. But Betty and Elaine still call each other every day, and still get together for Patriots games.
Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Sally Field, and Rita Moreno star as senior Pats pals who have followed Brady's career since 2002 when Lou was getting through chemotherapy, and Brady led the Pats, 20-17, against the St. Louis Rams in their first Super Bowl victory.
As profiled on CBS Sunday Morning, the real "Over 80 for Brady" club consisted of five women: Elaine, Betty, Anita, Pat, and Claire. Friends for over 70 years, they united in their love for the New England Patriots and star quarterback Tom Brady after they all became widows.
After Betty's (Field) victory at Guy Fieri's wing-eating competition, she realizes that she has lost the group's Super Bowl tickets. So when she, Lou (Tomlin), Trish (Fonda), and Maura (Moreno) arrive later that night at a party, they split up to find the famous restaurateur in hopes that he can help.
Midway through an animated and wide-ranging chat with Jane Fonda (85), Lily Tomlin (83), Sally Field (76) and Rita Moreno (a vibrant 91) about their old girls' buddy-movie 80 for Brady, Fonda offers YOU readers a relationship tip.
THOMPSON: "80 For Brady" is based on a group of real-life friends, all of whom were over 80 at the time, who formed a group called Over 80 for Brady, named, of course, for their favorite NFL quarterback, Tom Brady, whom you might remember from his most recent retirement last week.
The four indelible stars of 80 for Brady — Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno and Sally Field — have a combined age of 335 years but are not the least bit inclined to act like it in this highly concocted but sassy, good-natured wish-fulfillment comedy.
It gave us lots of opportunities to blend the real with the narrative fiction that we're telling.” Rather than travel to Houston, the production filmed exteriors on sets it constructed at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Banc of California Stadium in order to take advantage of California tax credits.
Puerto Rican actress Rita Moreno, who is best known for playing Anita in West Side Story, plays Maura in 80 for Brady. Rita is 91 years old and lives in Berkeley, Cali.
The idea to film “80 for Brady” came from Pensavalle's grandson, Max Gross. A talent agent, Gross pitched his grandmother's story to different producers until it caught the attention of Brady and his production company, 199 Productions.
But in real life, it was a group of five dedicated friends who made up the “Over 80 for Brady” fan club that inspired the movie, in theaters Feb. 3. For years, the club consisted of Betty Pensavalle, Elaine St.Martin, Anita Riccio, Pat Marx, and Claire Boardman.
After a short fling with Tara Reid, the NFL quarterback started dating actress Bridget Moynahan in 2004. The pair had broken up — and Brady had moved on with Gisele Bündchen — when they welcomed son John "Jack" Edward Thomas Moynahan in 2007.
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