Stroker Ace, a champion NASCAR driver, is standing at the top of his career, but is getting fed up with having to do as he’s told. In between rebelling against his sponsor (a fried chicken chain)’s promotion gimmicks (like making him dress up in giant chicken suit) he spends the rest of the movie trying to bed the buxom Pembrook.
Stroker Ace is a 1983 American action comedy film, directed by Hal Needham and filmed in North Carolina and Georgia. Burt Reynolds stars as the eponymous Stroker Ace, a NASCAR driver.
The movie was filmed on location at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway and the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. The theme song was performed by Charlie Daniels.
Burt Reynolds turned down the role of astronaut Garrett Breedlove in Terms of Endearment to do this film. The role went to Jack Nicholson, who went on to win an Academy Award. Reynolds said he made this decision because “I felt I owed Hal more than I owed Jim” but that it was a turning point in his career from which he never recovered. “That’s where I lost them,” he says of his fans.
The movie was adapted from the 1971 novel Stand On It, an autobiography of fictional driver “Stroker Ace.” The novel’s joint authors, William Neely and Robert K. Ottum, based the book on actual events from the racing world but with their protagonist as the subject.
Stroker Ace (1983)
Directed by: Hal Needham
Starring: Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Jim Nabors, Parker Stevenson, Loni Anderson, Cassandra Peterson, Warren Stevens, Alfie Wise
Screenplay by: Hugh Wilson, Hal Needham
Cinematography by: Nick McLean
Film Editing by: William D. Gordean, Carl Kress
Costume Design by: Norman Salling
Set Decoration by: Rochelle Moser
Art Direction by: Paul Peters
Music by: Al Capps
Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures, Universal Pictures
Release Date: July 1, 1983
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