What would happen if a 9.7 magnitude earthquake were to strike the L.A. area? This is what "Cracking Up" looks at from the lighter side. The movie is composed of individual skits of original material by the actors spun around this hypothetical disaster.
Acting
Firesign Theatre's rapid-fire character switches.
Writing
Dense wordplay that rewards repeat listening.
Production
DIY disaster on shoestring 1977 budget.
Director
Rowby Goren
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Also released as 'Cracking Up' and 'Smorgasbord,' this film was buried by distributors who had no idea how to market sketch comedy.
Peter Bergman's 'Shake-N-Bake' energy spokesman parodies the era's commodification of catastrophe—still relevant, unfortunately.
US
