Jackson miniseries a home run for ESPN

Reggie Jackson had my heart even before becoming Mr. October. Didn't matter his New York Yankees eventually clubbed my L.A. Dodgers in the 1977 World Series. That talent, that swagger. God how I wished I could have gotten my 10-year-old hands on one of those Reggie! candy bars.

So, lucky me. Here he is in the scorching-hot ESPN miniseries "The Bronx is Burning" (premiering at 7 p.m. Monday and then airing at 10 p.m. for seven consecutive Tuesdays). Adapted from Jonathan Mahler's bestselling book, the narrative tells the story of the 1977 Yankees against the backdrop of a city in tumult: the Son of Sam serial killings, a blackout and a nasty mayoral election.

But the grand slam here is an awesome cast of characters whose sparring egos make for terrific TV. Oliver Platt ("Huff") as fierce, media-savvy George Steinbrenner; John Turturro ("O Brother, Where Art Thou?") as the turbulent, womanizing Billy Martin; and Daniel Sunjata as the one and only Reg-GIE. Best known as Franco on "Rescue Me," Sunjata oozes the same winning charisma that turned so many of us into Jackson fans.

The joy here is not only the mesmerizing cast, it's how the show takes you into the locker room, into Steinbrenner's office and into a bar where Jackson uttered those now infamous, Thurman Munsonslamming words: "I'm the straw that stirs the drink." As New York City dives into turmoil so does a baseball team until, ultimately, it steps up and delivers a summer as remarkable as this.

Also of note and making it easy to stick with the baseball theme is the quality documentary "Brooklyn Dodgers: The Ghosts of Flatbush" (8 p.m. Wednesday with repeated showings through Aug. 13 on HBO and through Aug. 25 on HBO2). It's a look at 10 definitive years in the franchise: from the "great experiment of 1947" when Jackie Robinson joined the team, breaking the color barrier; through the five World Series defeats to the Yankees; and finally, to the team's relocation to Los Angeles (gulp) in 1957.

Florangela Davila: 206-464-2916 or fdavila@seattletimes.com