Dirt is a 1979 documentary film about off-road racing directed by Eric Karson and Cal Naylor.[2]
| Dirt | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Eric Karson Cal Naylor |
| Screenplay by | S.S. Schweitzer Bud Freidgen Tom Madigan R. R Young |
| Produced by | Allan F. Bodoh John Patrick Graham |
| Starring | Parnelli Jones |
| Cinematography | Jim Deckard |
| Music by | Dick Halligan |
Production company | Pacific Films |
| Distributed by | American Cinema Releasing |
Release date |
|
Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $7.9 million[1] |
Premise
editA man, Fred Cordon follows the off road racing circuit.[3]
Cast
edit- Clarke Gordon as Fred Gordon
- Curtis Credel as Tommy Robertson
- Kenny Griswold as Randy Gardner
- Debbie Gunn as Dee Williams
- Sunshine Parker as Swamp Rat Pickering
- Lisa Lindgren as Janice Hoffer
- Robert Hackman as Bob Holmes
- Parnelli Jones as Himself
- Rick Mears as Himself
- Mickey Thompson as Himself
- Malcolm Smith
Production
editThe film was modeled on the motorcycle documentary On Any Sunday (1971), which had featured an executive producer of Dirt, Roger Riddell. The film was made over three and a half years. Parnelli Jones, who appears in the film, was an investor.[4]
The film involved over 13 cameraman and two helicopters covering thousands of miles to shoot the footage.[5]
Reception
editThe film had was first released in Columbia and Albuquerque, then was rolled out throughout the country throughout 1979.[5]
The Los Angeles Times called it a "friendly but boring docudrama about off-road racing without focus... like watching an interminable home movie."[3]
However, it was a box office hit, earning rentals in the US and Canada of $7.9 million.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b Donahue, Suzanne Mary (1987). American film distribution : the changing marketplace. UMI Research Press. p. 302. Please note figures are for rentals in US and Canada
- ^ "Four films opening this week". The San Francisco Examiner. 16 April 1979. p. 28.
- ^ a b Gross, Linda (24 August 1979). "Docudrama about off road racing". The Los Angeles Times Part 4. p. 35.
- ^ "Dirt (1970)". American Film Institute.
- ^ a b "Racing documentary premieres in Columbia". The Columbia Record. 13 January 1979. p. 28.