As the son of an oil refinery worker and third of 14 children, Rudy rose from valleys of discouragement and despair to the pinnacles of succes. It took years of fierce determination to overcome obstacles and criticisms, yet Rudy achieved his first dream - to attend Notre Dame and play football for the Fighting Irish.
In 1993, Tristar Productions immortalized Rudy´s life story with the blockbuster film, RUDY: Written and directed by Angelo Pizzo and David Anspaugh, the award winning team who brought us HOOSIERS, the critically acclaimed RUDY received “Two Thumbs up” from SIskel and Ebert, is considered one of the “most inspirational movies of all time” by Fandango, IMDB, Ranker and countless other websites. USA TODAY ranked RUDY as the #1 “Best football movies of all time”. The film continues to inspire millions worldwide.
Today Rudy Ruettiger is an Emmy award winning motivational keynote speaker, author, and producer with over 25 years of experience speaking to corporations, universities, sport teams, and special events.