''Hot Rod'' is a 1979 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

George Armitage George Brendan Armitage (December 13, 1942 – February 15, 2025) was an American filmmaker and writer best known for directing the films ''Miami Blues'' (1990) and ''Grosse Pointe Blank'' (1997), as well as for frequent collaborations with Ro ...

and starring

Gregg Henry Gregg Lee Henry (born May 6, 1952) is an American actor. He is best known for his performance as serial killer Dennis Rader in the television film '' The Hunt for the BTK Killer'' and for playing various "heavies" in various films, such as in ' ...

and

Pernell Roberts Pernell Elven Roberts Jr. (May 18, 1928 – January 24, 2010) was an American stage, film, and television actor, activist, and singer. In addition to guest-starring in over 60 television series, he was best known for his roles as Ben Cartw ...

Production

The film was made by ABC Circle, a division of ABC. Armitage says they just had a title, ''Hot Rod''. In an interview with Nick Pinkerton, George Armitage stated, "And I went over there and talked to them, they said: 'Yeah, go ahead.' It was a street racer movie, that’s what I came up with, and we shot that in 15 days—TV was not generous with their time. We shot that up in Northern California, in Calistoga, wine country, and at the Fremont drag way."Nick Pinkerton, "Interview with George Armitage", ''Film Comment'' 28 April 2015
/ref> Armitage says the story is based on the life of a friend of his, Bob Edelson, who was a top mechanic and with whom Armitage used to race. Armitage used a number of actors who were under contract to ABC at the time.

References

External links

* 1979 television films 1979 films 1979 drama films American auto racing films American Broadcasting Company original films Films directed by George Armitage American drama television films 1970s American films 1970s English-language films English-language drama films {{US-tv-drama-film-stub