Michael Bannon (Michael Sarrazin), a wealthy but bored businessman, issues the code word "Gumball" to his fellow automobile enthusiasts, who gather in a garage in New York City to embark on a coast-to-coast race "with no catalytic converter and no 55-mile-per-hour speed limit." Their nemesis, LAPD Lieutenant Roscoe (Norman Burton), also learns of the race and most of the film is devoted to the adventures of the various driving teams and Roscoe's ineffectual attempts to apprehend them. A number of running gags ensue - the Jaguar that will not start; the silent Lapchick's (Harvey Jason) numerous mishaps; Italian race driver Franco Bertolli's (Raúl Juliá) frequent detours to seduce beautiful women - as well as some splendid stunts and driving sequences. The race ends at the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California where the finishers celebrate their adventures and the defeated Roscoe sulks off to one side - until a fleet of police cars and tow trucks arrive to impound the illegally-parked vehicles. Bannon congratulates Roscoe on his final victory and again utters the command "Gumball" to initiate a race back to New York.

• Colleen Camp
• Gary Busey
• Michael Sarrazin
• Norman Burton
• Raúl Juliá
• J. Pat O'Malley
• Tim McIntire
• Harvey Jason
• Tricia O'Neil
• Steven Keats
• Nicholas Pryor
• Vaughn Taylor
• Wally Taylor
• John Durren
• Susan Flannery
• Joanne Nail
• Lázaro Pérez

Genres:

Road Movie, Sport, Action, Adventure, Comedy, Family

Release date:

1976-08-20

External links:

The Gumball Rally at IMDB The Gumball Rally at Wikipedia