The Rewards of “The Award”

Bringing characters from a Jack Weyland story to life, these movie makers learned that truth can be found in fiction.

If you’ve ever wished somebody would make a movie from a Jack Weyland story, your wish has come true. The youth and leaders of the Cypress California Stake have turned Brother Weyland’s story “The Award,” published in the November 1979 New Era, into an exciting video production that has touched the hearts of many thousands of viewers with its special magic.

“The Award” is the story of several high school football stars who decide to reward the ugliest girl in their school with a corsage and a poem extolling her ugliness. They assign Kevin, the only Latter-day Saint on the team, to deliver the “award.” When Kevin reads the poem to his girl friend, Colleen, she begs him not to go through with the cruel joke, but he is afraid of losing his friends if he backs out. Before he can deliver the award, however, he has an opportunity to meet Mary Beth, the “ugly girl,” and discovers that she is really an outstanding person who donates much of her time to helping handicapped children.

Kevin and Colleen decide to go ahead and give Mary Beth an award, but they change it from a cruel put-down to a tribute for her acts of service. When the rest of the football team discovers the change, things become interesting.

Eventually, they too have a chance to meet the real Mary Beth. Some of them, led by the fullback, are unimpressed. “There are winners, and there are losers,” he says. “We’re the winners, and the girls we date are winners. The rest are all losers.”

But Craig, the quarterback, says, “We pick the person in school who everybody agrees is a loser, but then she turns out to be okay once we get to know her. … What if every one of them turns out to be special in some way?”

The video has been seen in many seminary classes and firesides, and it has changed people’s lives. “I thought about it all day long, and I saw people differently,” a ninth-grade student said. A local seminary teacher said that the video was the best visual aid she had used in seminary all year. Another seminary teacher says that her students now refer to Matthew 25:40 [Matt. 25:40] (“Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me”) as “the Mary Beth scripture.”

Group W Cable TV of Buena Park was so impressed that it is airing The Award on 15 of its community networks in southern California. Representatives of other religions have asked permission to use it with their own congregations. Chuck Coronado, a city councilman who is not LDS, has said, “We are going to give it as much exposure as we can.”

For the cast, it was a learning experience, not only in film production, but in compassion.

Cheryl Pence, who plays the part of Mary Beth, is a senior in computer science at the University of California at Irvine. She is most definitely not ugly. In fact, she is downright pretty. But her performance in the play gives chilling evidence of how stooped shoulders, downcast eyes, and a frightened expression can transform even a pretty girl into a drab shadow of herself. “It has been difficult at times to play the role of ‘the ugliest girl in school,’” she says. “If you’re not careful it can start influencing the way you see yourself. It must be devastating to suffer from that kind of a label in real life.” Back to her attractive self again after the shooting, Cheryl is not even recognized by most people as Mary Beth, but her alter ego has had a profound effect on her. “Being in the video has given me a greater appreciation for my fellowman and made me more thoughtful of others.”

Steve Astle, who plays the part of Kevin, really identified with his character. A high school senior who is daily faced with peer pressure, he strives to make correct choices and live the principles of the gospel. “I try to live my life pretty straight, just like my character in the film. I’m planning for my mission.”

Lynn Whitebeck, who played the part of Colleen, is a senior in high school and Laurel president. She says of her role, “That was really me. I see people being treated unfairly or rudely at school all the time, and I always stand up for the underdog.

“Being in the video really opened my eyes to the problems of how people can get hurt. I feel that I am more compassionate and loving toward others as a result. I feel that we are all winners. We each have different talents, and some people are easier to love than others. But we have to look for the good in everyone.”

Although the cast of a production tends to receive the public recognition, The Award would have been impossible without the efforts of many talented men and women. Donna Dick, the stake cultural arts specialist, conceived and spearheaded the project. Tom Bay, the director, brought out the best talents of many talented people. Stake President Boyd A. Lake gave his full support; and many many more, some of them professionals, gave long hours of their time without pay. The Award is not an official Church production. It was produced independent of any advice or assistance from Church headquarters. Without the unusual creative talents and commercial video production studios available within the stake, the whole project would have been impossible.

But out of all the hard work and planning came magic. The Jack Weyland characters rose up from the pages of the New Era and walked out into the real world, where they have reminded all who have met them that we should treat one another as brothers and sisters and as children of God.

In the video based on the story, Mary Beth, played by Cheryl Pence, is singled out by the football team as “the ugliest girl in the school.” The team decides to give her an award and assigns the only LDS team member to deliver it. At first he plays along, but then … Mary Beth is revealed as a beautiful, compassionate person who spends time helping the handicapped. She still receives an award, but one that recognizes her worth. (Production photos by Mel Skousen.)