Kriti Mehrotra
As a short documentary co-directed by co-directed by Oscar Award-winning Ben Proudfoot and Philadelphia native Kyle Thrash, Netflix’s ‘The Turnaround’ is absolutely unlike any other. That’s because it carefully chronicles the tale of devout Philadelphia Phillies (baseball) fan Jon McCann as he inspires the entire city to give a struggling newcomer a season-changing standing ovation. The truth is shortstop Trea Turner was struggling during the early days of his debut season owing to all the pressure on him as a $300 million-singed athlete, but this effort helped the team bag 95 wins.
Jon McCann’s Life Was Never Really Ordinary
It was around 1977 when Jon was born to a 14-year-old mother and a 15-year-old father in Kensington, Philadelphia, enabling him to learn the meaning of hard work from an early age. His father actually dropped out of high school to care for the family he was building, unaware that it would also make him rather strict and critical of everything going on. He was still a great father, but these qualities are something his son admittedly ended up inheriting too. But alas, Jon maintains that the thing he is most critical of and has been all his life is actually, sadly, himself.
According to Jon’s own narrative, he was just a young boy when he figured out his family was different from what everyone considers normal, owing to the fact he had started being picked on. He was reportedly deemed the worst dressed by all his peers at one point before it began evolving, yet he thankfully never shied away from showing off his family or who he was. Unfortunately, though, as the years passed by, his experiences and some other uncontrollable factors took their toll, and he was ultimately diagnosed with depressive bipolar disorder – he asserts that the type of bipolar he is has put him in a perpetual state of sadness.
Jon McCann Has Been a Content Creator Since 2016
Although Jon is a Philadelphia native as well as a lifelong baseball fanatic through and through, there was once a time he was just a regular supporter of the Phillies with a regular job. In fact, for quite a few years of his adult life, he served at Center City, delivering suits for a fancy clothing store he knew absolutely nothing about, making him pay a lot of attention to his routes. “I would walk past all these statutes in Center City that I knew nothing about,” he once said. “So, I was just curious about them, so I started googling about the statues. And then I would just show people the statues.” That’s how his YouTube Channel began at the age of 39 in 2016.
Jon’s first 500 or so videos are thus just him showing his audience little spots in his city, with him choosing the username The Philly Captain owing to his love for the city and the fact he liked it when someone once called him “Captain” in passing. However, it wasn’t until the pandemic that his channel really blew up, with his first viral video being from a Flo Rida concert – a band he had gotten obsessed with during lockdown before deciding to see them live. Then came his ensuing comedic and sports-based videos, where he found his niche of being a great heckler both in the ballpark and outside.
Jon McCann Continues to Be Authentically Himself
The reason Jon has managed to go viral several times over the years before also becoming the feature for this Netflix original is the fact he is always unabashedly himself in life. He expresses his opinions and makes no apologies for them, even if it includes chasing a Major League Baseball umpire just to tell him he stinks or telling renowned stars that they can do better. It’s how his content has ended up being used by networks such as ABC, CBS, ESPN, TMZ, as well as Vice, among other platforms and sports experts too, to really delve into the human aspect behind the game.
As if that’s not enough, even though Jon now resides in the Bridesburg area, he hasn’t stopped showing off his city to his viewers, which has only attracted more people to his channel and his home. His authenticity and local cultural knowledge have also landed him opportunities to film videos with some international stars, which most recently included Will Farrell and Harper Steel. Moreover, and more importantly, it’s imperative to note that Jon is a travel enthusiast who actually hopes that his career now will one day enable him to take a road trip across his beloved country in a van. As for his other dream, he truly does want the Philadelphia Phillies to not just come close but win a World Series Title.
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