David Carradine stars as Coy “Cannonball” Buckman, a onetime top racer who landed in prison following a car wreck that left his old girlfriend dead.
Eager for redemption – and the race’s $100,000 prize money – Coy enters the Cannonball race alongside such peculiar characters as Perman Waters (Gerrit Graham), a country singer who tries to conduct live broadcasts while riding in a car driven by maniacal redneck Cade Redman (Bill McKinney); Sandy Harris (Mary Woronov), leader of a trio of sexpots who use their wiles to get out of speeding tickets; Terry McMillan (Carl Gottlieb), a suburban dad who has his car flown cross-country in a brazen attempt to steal the first-place prize; and Wolf Messer (James Keach), a German racing champ determined to smite his American counterparts.
Carradine is appealing, even if his martial arts scenes seem a bit out of place, and Cannonball is never boring. But it’s also never especially engaging.
Cannonball was the first of four pictures inspired by the real-life Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash, an illegal race from New York to LA that attracted speed-limit-averse rebels for several years in the 1970s. It was followed by The Gumball Rally (also 1976), The Cannonball Run (1981), and Cannonball Run II (1984).
Coy ‘Cannonball’ Buckman
David Carradine Cade Redman
Bill McKinney Linda Maxwell
Veronica Hamel Perman Waters
Gerrit Graham Jim Crandell
Robert Carradine Maryann
Belinda Balaski Sharma Capri
Judy Canova Zippo
Archie Hahn Terry McMillan
Carl Gottlieb Sandy Harris
Mary Woronov Wendy
Diane Lee Hart Ginny
Glynn Rubin Wolfe Messer
James Keach Bennie Buckman
Dick Miller Beutell
Stanley Bennett Clay Sharpe
John Herzfeld Louisa
Louisa Moritz Brad Phillips
Patrick Wright Terry’s Daughter
Deirdre Ardell
Gretchen Ardell Panama
Allan Arkush Len
Gary Austin Lester Marks
Paul Bartel Deke Scanton
Jim Connors District Attorney
Roger Corman Kid
Joe Dante Dr Magritte
Samuel W. Gelfman Brad Phillips’ Aide
David N. Gottlieb Mrs McMillan
Lea Gould David
Aron Kincaid Mr Schulenberg
Saul Krugman Mrs Schulenberg
Mary-Robin Redd Mafioso
Martin Scorsese
Sylvester Stallone Assistant District Attorney
Don Simpson
Director
Paul Bartel
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Coy ‘Cannonball’ Buckman
Linda Maxwell
