November 25, 2025 • 10 mins
Dave Softy Mahler and Kent Loomer sit down to discuss "The Dawgfather", a documentary about the life of Don James on and off the field, which Loomer is the Writer and Director of.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
All right, dog fans, thanks for checking us out this
afternoon saftie with you, and it's always my pleasure. You know,
I love talking Husky football, you know, I love talking
about one of my favorite men I've ever come across
in my life. Never had a chance to cover Don
James when he was the head coach at Washington, but
formed a great relationship with him and his wife, Carol
(00:22):
after he was done coaching at you dub. You know
back in the day. Some of you may know that
Mike Gastino did a weekly radio show with Don James
when his coaching career came to an end in the
early nineties. So it's absolutely right up my alley when
somebody contacts me and says, hey, we got a documentary
it's called The dog Father The Legacy of Don James,
and we'd like to jump on and talk about it.
(00:44):
So of course I say absolutely. And one of the writers,
the director of the documentary is with us right now.
His name is Cantlomer, and he joins us here can't
how are you man.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
I'm great, Thanks for having me, No glad to talk
about Don James and the.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Husky absolutely well, before we get into what you cover
in the documentary, talk about the impetus for doing this.
What drove you guys to get off your butts and
do this project, which I know was no small undertaking.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
Yeah, that's for sure. There was a guy I went
to high school with that is as an avid Husky fans,
named Mike Martin. You may know him from Howland Husky
and his writing online. And he approached me one day
after I had written and directed a short narrative film
(01:36):
out up in Bellingham, and he said, Hey, what do
you think about doing a movie on Don James? And
I kind of kept him at arm's length. I said
I don't know, and he was persistent, and then I
had to go to Friday Harbor, where he was living
at the time, and I said, why don't you tell me.
I'll come down a day early and you tell me
what you think this movie is, because to me, it
sounds like it's a puff piece about a coach that
(01:58):
won a bunch of football game. I'm a huge Husky fan.
I was in the military. I followed them all the
years I was gone out of the area. But I
just don't see that it's a movie. And then he
sat down and started telling me the true story of
Don James and how football was such a small element
in the impact that he had on people surrounding the
program and people unassociated to the program. And when it
(02:21):
was when we were done with the conversation, there was
a pile of three by five index cards on his
kitchen table and I said, this is your movie. I
don't have the means to do it. I don't have
the resources, but I do, through working in the film industry,
have contacts. I'll set up a pitch meeting for you
with the production company out of Bellingham named Rocket Soul Studios.
(02:42):
And so about seventy two hours later we were sitting in
front of the producers there and we pitched the story
and they said they want forty eight hours to think
about it. And within those forty eight hours they said,
we'll do it, but only if you write and direct
it right. And I said, are you sure, because I've
(03:02):
never written a feature and I've never done a documentary.
And they said, no, we believe in you. And that
started the ball rolling. But yeah, that was boy now
almost eight years ago. It took us over six and
a half years to get it done, that's for sure.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
Yeah, Well, Kent Lumer again is with us. He is
one of the writers director of the brand new documentary
about Don James called The dog Father le The Legacy
of Don James. And can't you mentioned that when you're
kind of going through the process, you found out there
was a lot more to Don than just football. And
I think those of us that knew him kind of
knew that he was a very very religious man, very
(03:39):
into his family, no question about that. But what were
a couple things about DJ that maybe you uncovered that
There's no way you would have known if you hadn't
jumped on this project.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
Well, as you're aware, softy, I mean, he wasn't a
look at me guy. He wasn't a guy that demanded attention.
He was a guy that did his work, did his business,
lived his lifestyle, like you said, and unapologetic about it.
And when I heard how he as a young man
at fourteen years of age in the fifties, knew that
he wanted to be a coach because of the impact
(04:11):
he could have on people long term in their life
beyond football. You just didn't hear about that back then.
That wasn't something that someone did. He passed on playing
professionally like his brother Tommy. Did you know when he
came out of college and decided he wanted to get
into coaching, and he was a man that fought social
norms throughout his life by living his life the way
(04:33):
he genuinely lived his life. I mean, the Warren Moon thing.
We all know he took a bunch of crap about
bringing Warren Moon to University of Washington because in the
seventies there wasn't a lot of African American quarterbacks on
the West coast, right, And you know, he's here three
years and lo and behold hees the MVP of the
Rose Bowl and starts the ball rolling here at UDUB.
(04:54):
You know the way that he embraced a female administrator
in Gertrude Peoples, who was also African American, and she
was treated just like one of the coaches because school
was important and she was a one man gang doing
the academic compliance stuff. I mean, when I sat down
(05:15):
with Mike Lude for his interview, the guy was so
complimentary to what Gertrude Peoples meant to the project, and
you would never know it. You would never know that.
You know that man as a coach. You know the
thing that really connected to me is that it's a
selfless story in a selfish world. It's a guy that
put others before himself and he lived true to his
(05:37):
statement of your legacy is not what you do, it's
what you empower others to do. And I think that's
a message that we as a collective could really use
right now.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
Yeah, Well, Kent Lumer again, writer director of the brand
new Don James documentary. We'll get to how you can
check it out and see it in a few minutes.
Some of the people that are featured in the documentary,
Nick Sabe been obviously, Mike Lude you mentioned him. Carol
James is in this. Did she get a chance to
(06:06):
see this? I know she passed in January? Was the
documentary done? Did she get a chance to even remotely
see what you were working on before she passed away?
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Yes? She did. In fact, before we even started the project,
I said I wouldn't do it until I got the
blessing of the family. So Mike set up a meeting
with Carol and we went to the steakhouse there on
First where Don and her would go frequently when Don
was still alive, and we sat down and I talked
(06:37):
to her and I said, why has no one ever
done a movie about your husband? Because he seems like
this and she's like, he never wanted it. And I said, well,
are you sure that it's going to be okay to
do it, because I'm going to talk about, you know,
the resignation, like this is the story I kind of
want to tell. And she goes, what's he going to
say about it now? And she laughed and I thought
it was kind of funny. But yeah, Carol did get
(06:58):
to see it. Premiered the film in a very special
occasion at the Gig Harbor Film Festival last year in
twenty twenty four, and Carol was unable to attend that
event because of her health, but Jenny James, the youngest
of the children, was there with her husband and daughter,
and we made sure that they got to see it
(07:20):
and she was able to see it before she before
she passed, and she was From what Jenny and Jill
had told me, they said that she was exceptionally pleased.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
Yeah, which is good. That's great. That's great to get
her blessing man. And I remember when when Don passed away,
Carol told me something that I actually have kind of
taken with me. Don apparently told Carol, don't do anything
big for a year after I pass away. Let this
thing kind of marinate, you know, the house in Palm
(07:51):
Desert that they eventually I think sold, you know, any
big moves she wants to make with you know, personally
professionally what he told her. He said, just let everything
settle for a year and then, you know, go about
your business. And I've kind of taken that, you know,
advice and used it on much smaller scales obviously, when
you're emotional about something or there's a you know, change
(08:13):
in the family or a job change or a move
or something like that, just let everything kind of simmer
down right, be in the right state of mind before
you make any big time decisions. And that that's a
piece of advice that that Carol said Don gave her
right before he passed away. I think it's it's great advice.
And I'm assuming that there's a lot of little nuggets
and stories in the documentary The dog Father The Legacy
(08:37):
of Don James, Nick Saban's in it, Gary Pinkell's in it,
Warren Moon, Lincoln Kennedy, Lonzel Hill, The Out the Now,
Outgoing Mayor of Seattle, Bruce Harrold, Michael Jackson maybe the
greatest linebacker in UB history, so really some great stuff.
Can't wait to watch it. I know it's completed, but
for people that haven't seen it, and for people that
(08:58):
want to watch it, how do they check it out?
Speaker 2 (09:01):
Man? Right now, we have started to sell Blu rays,
and I know that people will scoff at the idea
that it's not a digital release at this point. But
at this point that's our only option is Blu rays
and those can be purchased at Don jamesdocumentary dot Com.
There's also the trailer is also there for the film.
(09:24):
Our hope is to be able to use the money
the proceeds from those Blu ray purchases to get us
to the next phase where we can go after a
digital or a theatrical release. It's a fifty six minute
run time. The target was definitely ESPN thirty for thirty
from the beginning, but we're at a point now where
(09:45):
we need to shore up the archival licensing in order
to take it to that step. That's one thing I
learned along the way. SOFTI archival footage is no joke.
That is expensive stuff. Well, and fifty dollars a second
is of what it's running.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
Yeah, that's that's over my pay grade, man, to be
honest with you, So God bless you for taking on
this this endeavor. Don James Documentary dot Com. I know
a lot of Husky fans would love to check it out,
buy a copy of that Blu Ray DVD. And I've
still got a Blu Ray player, so I'm good to go. Man.
So I appreciate you making it available in that format,
(10:25):
but to listen, can't great stuff. Can't wait to check
it out. Man, Congratulations on getting this done and we
will definitely spread the word and talk down the road. Man.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
Appreciate this, Hey, I appreciate the opportunity to share it
with your listeners.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
And go dogs, you bet go dogs. Can't Luomer again,
who is one of the writers director of the Don
James documentary called The dog Father The Legacy of Don James.
You want to find out more, buy a Blu Ray
copy as well. You can check check out Don James
Documentary dot com to find out more.
All right, dog fans, thanks for checking us out this
afternoon saftie with you, and it's always my pleasure. You know,
I love talking Husky football, you know, I love talking
about one of my favorite men I've ever come across
in my life. Never had a chance to cover Don
James when he was the head coach at Washington, but
formed a great relationship with him and his wife, Carol
(00:22):
after he was done coaching at you dub. You know
back in the day. Some of you may know that
Mike Gastino did a weekly radio show with Don James
when his coaching career came to an end in the
early nineties. So it's absolutely right up my alley when
somebody contacts me and says, hey, we got a documentary
it's called The dog Father The Legacy of Don James,
and we'd like to jump on and talk about it.
(00:44):
So of course I say absolutely. And one of the writers,
the director of the documentary is with us right now.
His name is Cantlomer, and he joins us here can't
how are you man.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
I'm great, Thanks for having me, No glad to talk
about Don James and the.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Husky absolutely well, before we get into what you cover
in the documentary, talk about the impetus for doing this.
What drove you guys to get off your butts and
do this project, which I know was no small undertaking.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
Yeah, that's for sure. There was a guy I went
to high school with that is as an avid Husky fans,
named Mike Martin. You may know him from Howland Husky
and his writing online. And he approached me one day
after I had written and directed a short narrative film
(01:36):
out up in Bellingham, and he said, Hey, what do
you think about doing a movie on Don James? And
I kind of kept him at arm's length. I said
I don't know, and he was persistent, and then I
had to go to Friday Harbor, where he was living
at the time, and I said, why don't you tell me.
I'll come down a day early and you tell me
what you think this movie is, because to me, it
sounds like it's a puff piece about a coach that
(01:58):
won a bunch of football game. I'm a huge Husky fan.
I was in the military. I followed them all the
years I was gone out of the area. But I
just don't see that it's a movie. And then he
sat down and started telling me the true story of
Don James and how football was such a small element
in the impact that he had on people surrounding the
program and people unassociated to the program. And when it
(02:21):
was when we were done with the conversation, there was
a pile of three by five index cards on his
kitchen table and I said, this is your movie. I
don't have the means to do it. I don't have
the resources, but I do, through working in the film industry,
have contacts. I'll set up a pitch meeting for you
with the production company out of Bellingham named Rocket Soul Studios.
(02:42):
And so about seventy two hours later we were sitting in
front of the producers there and we pitched the story
and they said they want forty eight hours to think
about it. And within those forty eight hours they said,
we'll do it, but only if you write and direct
it right. And I said, are you sure, because I've
(03:02):
never written a feature and I've never done a documentary.
And they said, no, we believe in you. And that
started the ball rolling. But yeah, that was boy now
almost eight years ago. It took us over six and
a half years to get it done, that's for sure.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
Yeah, Well, Kent Lumer again is with us. He is
one of the writers director of the brand new documentary
about Don James called The dog Father le The Legacy
of Don James. And can't you mentioned that when you're
kind of going through the process, you found out there
was a lot more to Don than just football. And
I think those of us that knew him kind of
knew that he was a very very religious man, very
(03:39):
into his family, no question about that. But what were
a couple things about DJ that maybe you uncovered that
There's no way you would have known if you hadn't
jumped on this project.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
Well, as you're aware, softy, I mean, he wasn't a
look at me guy. He wasn't a guy that demanded attention.
He was a guy that did his work, did his business,
lived his lifestyle, like you said, and unapologetic about it.
And when I heard how he as a young man
at fourteen years of age in the fifties, knew that
he wanted to be a coach because of the impact
(04:11):
he could have on people long term in their life
beyond football. You just didn't hear about that back then.
That wasn't something that someone did. He passed on playing
professionally like his brother Tommy. Did you know when he
came out of college and decided he wanted to get
into coaching, and he was a man that fought social
norms throughout his life by living his life the way
(04:33):
he genuinely lived his life. I mean, the Warren Moon thing.
We all know he took a bunch of crap about
bringing Warren Moon to University of Washington because in the
seventies there wasn't a lot of African American quarterbacks on
the West coast, right, And you know, he's here three
years and lo and behold hees the MVP of the
Rose Bowl and starts the ball rolling here at UDUB.
(04:54):
You know the way that he embraced a female administrator
in Gertrude Peoples, who was also African American, and she
was treated just like one of the coaches because school
was important and she was a one man gang doing
the academic compliance stuff. I mean, when I sat down
(05:15):
with Mike Lude for his interview, the guy was so
complimentary to what Gertrude Peoples meant to the project, and
you would never know it. You would never know that.
You know that man as a coach. You know the
thing that really connected to me is that it's a
selfless story in a selfish world. It's a guy that
put others before himself and he lived true to his
(05:37):
statement of your legacy is not what you do, it's
what you empower others to do. And I think that's
a message that we as a collective could really use
right now.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
Yeah, Well, Kent Lumer again, writer director of the brand
new Don James documentary. We'll get to how you can
check it out and see it in a few minutes.
Some of the people that are featured in the documentary,
Nick Sabe been obviously, Mike Lude you mentioned him. Carol
James is in this. Did she get a chance to
(06:06):
see this? I know she passed in January? Was the
documentary done? Did she get a chance to even remotely
see what you were working on before she passed away?
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Yes? She did. In fact, before we even started the project,
I said I wouldn't do it until I got the
blessing of the family. So Mike set up a meeting
with Carol and we went to the steakhouse there on
First where Don and her would go frequently when Don
was still alive, and we sat down and I talked
(06:37):
to her and I said, why has no one ever
done a movie about your husband? Because he seems like
this and she's like, he never wanted it. And I said, well,
are you sure that it's going to be okay to
do it, because I'm going to talk about, you know,
the resignation, like this is the story I kind of
want to tell. And she goes, what's he going to
say about it now? And she laughed and I thought
it was kind of funny. But yeah, Carol did get
(06:58):
to see it. Premiered the film in a very special
occasion at the Gig Harbor Film Festival last year in
twenty twenty four, and Carol was unable to attend that
event because of her health, but Jenny James, the youngest
of the children, was there with her husband and daughter,
and we made sure that they got to see it
(07:20):
and she was able to see it before she before
she passed, and she was From what Jenny and Jill
had told me, they said that she was exceptionally pleased.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
Yeah, which is good. That's great. That's great to get
her blessing man. And I remember when when Don passed away,
Carol told me something that I actually have kind of
taken with me. Don apparently told Carol, don't do anything
big for a year after I pass away. Let this
thing kind of marinate, you know, the house in Palm
(07:51):
Desert that they eventually I think sold, you know, any
big moves she wants to make with you know, personally
professionally what he told her. He said, just let everything
settle for a year and then, you know, go about
your business. And I've kind of taken that, you know,
advice and used it on much smaller scales obviously, when
you're emotional about something or there's a you know, change
(08:13):
in the family or a job change or a move
or something like that, just let everything kind of simmer
down right, be in the right state of mind before
you make any big time decisions. And that that's a
piece of advice that that Carol said Don gave her
right before he passed away. I think it's it's great advice.
And I'm assuming that there's a lot of little nuggets
and stories in the documentary The dog Father The Legacy
(08:37):
of Don James, Nick Saban's in it, Gary Pinkell's in it,
Warren Moon, Lincoln Kennedy, Lonzel Hill, The Out the Now,
Outgoing Mayor of Seattle, Bruce Harrold, Michael Jackson maybe the
greatest linebacker in UB history, so really some great stuff.
Can't wait to watch it. I know it's completed, but
for people that haven't seen it, and for people that
(08:58):
want to watch it, how do they check it out?
Speaker 2 (09:01):
Man? Right now, we have started to sell Blu rays,
and I know that people will scoff at the idea
that it's not a digital release at this point. But
at this point that's our only option is Blu rays
and those can be purchased at Don jamesdocumentary dot Com.
There's also the trailer is also there for the film.
(09:24):
Our hope is to be able to use the money
the proceeds from those Blu ray purchases to get us
to the next phase where we can go after a
digital or a theatrical release. It's a fifty six minute
run time. The target was definitely ESPN thirty for thirty
from the beginning, but we're at a point now where
(09:45):
we need to shore up the archival licensing in order
to take it to that step. That's one thing I
learned along the way. SOFTI archival footage is no joke.
That is expensive stuff. Well, and fifty dollars a second
is of what it's running.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
Yeah, that's that's over my pay grade, man, to be
honest with you, So God bless you for taking on
this this endeavor. Don James Documentary dot Com. I know
a lot of Husky fans would love to check it out,
buy a copy of that Blu Ray DVD. And I've
still got a Blu Ray player, so I'm good to go. Man.
So I appreciate you making it available in that format,
(10:25):
but to listen, can't great stuff. Can't wait to check
it out. Man, Congratulations on getting this done and we
will definitely spread the word and talk down the road. Man.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
Appreciate this, Hey, I appreciate the opportunity to share it
with your listeners.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
And go dogs, you bet go dogs. Can't Luomer again,
who is one of the writers director of the Don
James documentary called The dog Father The Legacy of Don James.
You want to find out more, buy a Blu Ray
copy as well. You can check check out Don James
Documentary dot com to find out more.
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