TITLE: Cannonball
YEAR OF MOVIE RELEASE: 1976
FILM STUDIO / PRODUCTION COMPANY: Cross-County Productions, Shaw Brothers and Harbor Productions
AUSTRALIAN DISTRIBUTOR: Roadshow
TAGLINE: “A rollicking, rocketing, riotous, rowdy cross country road race without rules!”
DIRECTOR: Paul Bartel
CAST: David Carradine, Bill McKinney, Veronica Hamel, Belinda Balaski and Archie Hahn
PRODUCER: Samuel W. Gelfman, credited on the poster as Sam Gelfman
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Run Run Shaw and Gustave Berne
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Tak Fujimoto
SCREENPLAY: Paul Bartel and Donald C. Simpson
FORMAT: Australian One Sheet
GENRE: Action / Comedy
COLLECTOR’S NOTE
Cannonball brings together an unusual combination of American independent filmmaking and Hong Kong studio backing, with Shaw Brothers credited alongside Harbor Productions and Cross-County Productions. Its cross-country racing story also features appearances by filmmakers including Martin Scorsese, Roger Corman and Joe Dante.
For Australian collectors, this One Sheet carries the local Roadshow release credit and a diamond-shaped R classification symbol. Australian Classification records confirm that Roadshow submitted the film for theatrical classification in October 1976, when it received an R rating.
POSTER DESIGN FEATURES
Magenta-purple linework and lettering stand out against a yellow background, creating a bold two-colour design. A large illustrated portrait of David Carradine gripping a steering wheel dominates the centre, surrounded by a sports car, police pursuit, a van and running figures.
Road signs reinforce the motoring theme, including a prominent “MAX 55 SPEED” sign and a curved directional arrow. Sketch-like outlines and halftone shading give the montage an energetic, comic-strip character, matching the exuberant road-race tagline across the top.
The oversized CANNONBALL title anchors the lower section beneath “David Carradine is”, with supporting cast and production credits below. A narrow magenta border encloses the composition, while “A Roadshow Release” identifies the Australian distribution campaign.