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Still, the crew got most of the people they hoped to interview as it painted the big-picture story--and the picture keeps getting bigger and bigger. Boston's first World Series title in 86 seasons has created a fervor of interest, especially in New England. As a result, a record half-million copies of the video were produced. Knowing the Bosox faithful, however, that might not be enough.

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The Boston Red Sox finally, at long last, reversed the curse, at the expense of the St. Louis Cardinals, but there wasn't much cursing among Redbird enthusiasts. The mood in St. Louis, where the Red Sox completed their four-game World Series sweep, was more along the lines of "If we can't win it, I'm glad they finally got a title." Or, more to the point, "It's better to get to the World Series and lose to the Sox than to have the [arch-rival] Chicago Cubs get to it and win."

Boston won the World Series for the first time in 86 years. The drought--which included heartbreaking seven-game setbacks to the Cardinals in 1946 and 1967--stretched all the way to 1918, two years before the Red Sox sold a fellow named Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees. Hence, the "Curse of the Bambino" was born.

Fans in St. Louis (touted by many as the best baseball town in the country) remained hopeful when the team returned home down two games to none. That hope was short-lived, however, after Bosox ace Pedro Martinez dominated the Cards' normally heavy-hitting lineup in Game 3, setting up the clincher the following evening. It was time for the glum reality: St. Louis gave up as many runs (24) as it had hits. The Cardinals' batting average was .190; their earned-run average was 6.09. Plus, they never led in the Series.

Some fans sold their Game 4 tickets to Boston followers who had made their way to town, evidently feeling that it was better to make a tidy profit than sit sulking in Busch Stadium if the Redbirds happen to lose.

Nancy McNiff was one of the lucky Red Sox fans to attend the Series-deciding game. She grew up in suburban Boston, moved to Florida for 11 years, and has lived the last six years in St. Louis, where she is the general manager of a printing plant. She has become a Cardinals follower, too, and attended the game with St. Louis fans.

"It was very interesting being a Boston fan and a St. Louis fan at the same time; it made it kind of odd," she says. However, there was absolutely no doubt where her deepest loyalties lied. "In my heart of hearts, Boston is my roots and it was their time."

Although she shouldn't have been (considering their reputation), McNiff was surprised by the reaction of the Cardinals fans toward the small, but vocal, group of Red Sox rooters who attended.

"What stuck out was how incredibly gracious the St. Louis fans were to the Boston fans," McNiff marvels. "I didn't see anything other than them offering congratulations, that it was a long time coming. Having grown up in Boston, it was something fun to experience."