Sue Paterno, the widow of former Penn State coach Joe Paterno, will sit down with Katie Couric in her first lengthy television interview, which will air on Feb. 11.
According to the Sporting News, the interview will mark the first time Paterno has spoken out publically since the Jerry Sandusky sex-abuse scandal was exposed at Penn State. Joe Paterno died from lung cancer on Jan. 22, 2012 after being fired from the university for overseeing the Sandusky scandal.
The interview will appear Couric's syndicated daytime show, Katie, according to the television show's website. According got the report: "Couric traveled to the Paterno home for the show and will welcome Sue Paterno in the "Katie" studio for the talk."
Couric has been snagging high-profile sports interviews lately, as she had the first on-camera interview with former Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o to discuss the elaborate girlfriend hoax story that he was involved in.
The news comes out soon after the anniversary of Paterno's death. According to NBC.com, many people placed signs and memorials at Paterno's gravesite to mark the occasion. "Joseph Paterno. Always remembered. Always a legend," read the sign outside Beaver Stadium and attached to a tree with white wire, according to the report.
Paterno died at age 85 from lung cancer and people marked the anniversary of his death with a candlelight vigil as well. He was fired in the days following the arrest of former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky and died two months later.
"I definitely think that everything that has happened isn't at all indicative of the kind of man that he was," said Bridget Beromedi, 32, of State College, who wore a shirt with Paterno's image. She held up a sign that read "JoePa. Legends never die."
There was a lot of controversy at the time of his firing and may students protested the decision. The school has tried to move on from the scandal and had a successful season under head coach Bill O'Brien. News came out a few weeks ago that actor Al Pacino would portray Paterno in a new feature film.
From the report: Pacino has played gangsters, godfather's, bank robbers, cops and a blind man throughout his illustrious acting career. Time to add another role to the resume.
According to reports from Deadline.com, Pacino will star as disgraced Penn State football coach Joe Paterno in a new film, reteaming with his "Scarface" director Brian De Palma, who will helm the film. Deadline says that film is currently title "Happy Valley", but that could change as the development stages move on in production. The film will detail the story of Paterno as well as the scandal that ended his tenure as coach at Penn State.
The whole scandal came to light when former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky was accused of molesting children over many years at the school. It was revealed that Paterno and others at Penn State oversaw this behavior, but did not do enough to stop it.
The film is being adapted from the bestselling book Paterno by Joe Posnanski and is being looked over by "Wall Street" producer Edward R. Pressman
According to Deadline, Pacino was attached to the film in the fall after the book about Paterno was optioned. A confirmation from Pressman read: "Happy Valley reunites the Scarface and Carlito's Way team of De Palma & Pacino for the third time and I can't think of a better duo to tell this story of a complex, intensely righteous man who was brought down by his own tragic flaw," said Pressman in confirming the deal to Deadline.
Paterno died soon after all the allegations came out and he was not alive to see Sandusky's trial. It was revealed that someone on the staff told Paterno about the situation, but all he did was pass along the information to his higher ups and did not call the police.
After a lengthy investigation, the school dismissed Paterno after a record amount of years as coach and the football program was hit with numerous sanctions from the NCAA. The organization stripped Paterno of his wins that went back to the coverup, while Sandusky will likely be in prison for the rest of his life.
Pacino has played real-life figures in the past, including in the film "Serpico" as well as the recent HBO film "You Don't Know Jack". De Palma's last film was "Passion", starring McAdams and Noomi Rapace. According to Deadline, "De Palma is repped by ICM, Pacino by CAA and Nicita, McKenna by Paradigm and Mosaic."
According to Yahoo, "the film will proceed once a screenwriter is hired to adapt Posnanski's book. David McKenna ("American History X," "Blow") has been approached. Release date and distribution information is as yet unknown."
Pacino has also starred in a film that depicted football, playing a head coach in "Any Given Sunday" for director Oliver Stone that took a controversial look at professional football. This will be the third time that Pacino and De Palma will be working on a feature film, with "Scarface" and "Carlito's Way" coming in the past.
