List of sports films
Roller skating
Table:
Title

Year

Genre

Notes

The Rink

1916

Comedy

A 24-minute silent film starring Charlie Chaplin as a waiter who becomes a skater.

The Fireball

1950

Drama

Mickey Rooney becomes a sensational skater, only to be stricken with polio.

Derby

1971

Documentary

An inside look at professionals like Charlie O'Connell and Ann Calvello.

Kansas City Bomber

1972

Drama

Roller Derby story with Raquel Welch ending in one-on-one race versus her nemesis.

Unholy Rollers

1972

Drama

A girl quits her job in a cannery to become a Roller Derby skater.

Skatetown, U.S.A.

1979

Drama

L.A. skaters including Patrick Swayze compete in a contest for prize money.

Roller Boogie

1979

Romance

Linda Blair skates in a California disco while her boyfriend aims for the Olympics.

Roll Bounce

2005

Family

A group of disadvantaged youths in 1970s Chicago enter a roller disco competition at the ritzy uptown rink.

Hell on Wheels

2007

Documentary

Austin, Texas women try to revive Roller Derby for the 21st Century.

Whip It

2009

Comedy-drama

A young woman (Ellen Page) tries her luck at Roller Derby.

Looking at the accompanying table along with the article excerpts listed at the end.

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The Rink , a silent film from 1916 , was Charlie Chaplin 's eighth film for Mutual Films . The film co-starred Edna Purviance , Eric Campbell , Henry Bergman , and Albert Austin , and is best known for showcasing Chaplin 's roller skating skills .
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin KBE ( 16 April 1889 - 25 December 1977 ) was an English comic actor , filmmaker , and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film . He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona , The Tramp , and is considered one of the most important figures in the history of the film industry . His career spanned more than 75 years , from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977 , and encompassed both adulation and controversy . Chaplin 's childhood in London was one of poverty and hardship , as his father was absent and his mother struggled financially , and he was sent to a workhouse twice before the age of nine . When he was 14 , his mother was committed to a mental asylum . Chaplin began performing at an early age , touring music halls and later working as a stage actor and comedian . At 19 , he was signed to the prestigious Fred Karno company , which took him to America . He was scouted for the film industry and began appearing in 1914 for Keystone Studios . He soon developed the Tramp persona and formed a large fan base . He directed his own films and continued to hone his craft as he moved to the Essanay , Mutual , and First National corporations . By 1918 , he was one of the best-known figures in the world . In 1919 , Chaplin co-founded the distribution company United Artists , which gave him complete control over his films .
The Fireball is a 1950 American drama film starring Mickey Rooney and Pat O'Brien , and directed by Tay Garnett . The cast also includes Beverly Tyler and one of the first screen appearances of Marilyn Monroe . The film , released by 20th Century Fox , had its screenplay written by Horace McCoy based on a story by McCoy and Garnett .
Mickey Rooney ( born Ninnian Joseph Yule Jr. ; September 23 , 1920 - April 6 , 2014 ) was an American actor , vaudevillian , comedian , producer , and radio personality . In a career spanning nine decades and continuing until shortly before his death , he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the silent film era . At the height of a career that was marked by declines and comebacks , Rooney performed the role of Andy Hardy in a series of 16 films in the 1930 's and 1940 's that epitomized American family values . A versatile performer , he became a celebrated character actor later in his career . Laurence Olivier once said he considered Rooney the best there has ever been . Clarence Brown , who directed him in two of his earliest dramatic roles , National Velvet and The Human Comedy , said he was the closest thing to a genius I ever worked with . Rooney first performed in vaudeville as a child and made his film debut at the age of six . At 14 , he played Puck in the play and later the 1935 film adaptation of A Midsummer Night 's Dream . Critic David Thomson hailed his performance as one of the cinema 's most arresting pieces of magic . In 1938 , he co-starred in Boys Town . At 19 , he was the first teenager to be nominated for an Oscar for his leading role in Babes in Arms , and he was awarded a special Academy Juvenile Award in 1939 . At the peak of his career between the ages of 15 and 25 , he made 43 films , which made him one of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 's most consistently successful actors and a favorite of MGM studio head Louis B. Mayer .
Derby is a 1971 American documentary film directed by Robert Kaylor about the world of professional roller derby in the 1970s . The film is also known as Roller Derby in the United Kingdom .
Charlie O'Connell ( May 7 , 1935 - February 9 , 2015 ) was a roller derby skater , considered the premier male star of his sport . He was inducted into the Roller Derby Hall of Fame in 1967 , after his first retirement . A native New Yorker , at 6 ft 1 in ( 1.85 m ) and 200 pounds ( 91 kg ) , he was one of the larger and speedier players , considered a prototype pivotman . He made an immediate impact in his 1953 debut season with the New York Chiefs and was named rookie of the year . Nicknamed Mr. Roller Derby , he went on to win the league 's Most Valuable Player award eight times . He was most commonly associated with the Bay Bombers for most of his career . He initially retired in 1967 , but soon returned to the sport and played until 1978 , before finally hanging up his skates for good . He estimated he had played well over 3000 games during his career . He was one of the focal points of the 1971 documentary film Derby . He died aged 79 on February 9 , 2015 .
Ann Theresa Calvello ( August 1 , 1929 - March 14 , 2006 ) was an American athlete and notable personality in the sport of roller derby . Ann Calvello graduated from Presentation High School in San Francisco in June 1947 . Calvello competed in roller derby in seven decades , the 1940s through the 2000s . She broke into the sport in 1948 originally skating for a league called International Roller Speedway . Skating with the original Roller Derby , beginning in 1948 , she would be named women 's 'Captain ' of her team within six months . Calvello , who often sported dyed hair and color-coordinated uniforms , was known for her temper . She was nicknamed Banana-Nose by legendary skater , Buddy Atkinson , Sr. She traveled the world skating in Europe , Guam , Philippines , Cuba , Australia and all over the United States . She broke her nose 12 times during her career . Her most famous rival on the track was Joan Weston . Ann gave birth to a daughter , Teri Ann Langley-Conte , on August 11 , 1953 . She was a perennial Roller Derby All-Star and league MVP in 1963 skating with the Mexico City Cardenales . After skating with the rival Roller Games league for two years , she was inducted into the Roller Derby Hall of Fame when she returned to the original Derby in 1968 .
Kansas City Bomber is a 1972 American drama film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer , directed by Jerrold Freedman and starring Raquel Welch . It also marks one of the earliest film appearances of Jodie Foster .
Raquel Welch ( born Jo Raquel Tejada ; September 5 , 1940 ) is an American actress and singer . She first won attention for her role in Fantastic Voyage ( 1966 ) , after which she won a contract with 20th Century Fox . They lent her contract to the British studio Hammer Film Productions , for whom she made One Million Years B.C . ( 1966 ) . Although she had only three lines of dialogue in the film , images of her in the doe-skin bikini which she wore became best-selling posters that turned her into an international sex symbol . She later starred in notable films including Bedazzled ( 1967 ) , Bandolero ! ( 1968 ) , 100 Rifles ( 1969 ) , Myra Breckinridge ( 1970 ) and Hannie Caulder ( 1971 ) . She made several television variety specials . Welch 's unique film persona made her an icon of the 1960s and 1970s , due to her portrayal of strong female characters and breaking the mold of the archetypal sex symbol . Because of this , her rise to stardom in the mid 1960s was partly credited with ending Hollywood 's vigorous promotion of the blonde bombshell . She won a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actress in a Musical or Comedy in 1974 for her performance in The Three Musketeers . She was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in Television Film for her performance in the film Right to Die ( 1987 ) .
The Unholy Rollers is a 1972 American action comedy film directed by Vernon Zimmerman and starring Claudia Jennings .
Skatetown , U.S.A. is a 1979 American comedy film produced to capitalize on the short-lived fad of roller disco . Directed by William A. Levey , the film features many television stars from the 1960s and 1970s , among them Scott Baio , Flip Wilson , Maureen McCormick , Ron Palillo and Ruth Buzzi . Patrick Swayze 's leading role as the skater Ace was his first movie performance . Also in the cast are Sydney Lassick , Billy Barty and Playboy centerfold model Dorothy Stratten .
Patrick Wayne Swayze ( /ˈsweɪzi/ ; August 18 , 1952 - September 14 , 2009 ) was an American actor , dancer , singer , and songwriter . Gaining fame with appearances in films during the 1980s , he became popular for playing tough and romantic male leads , giving him a wide fan base with female audiences and a status as a sex symbol . He was named by People magazine as its Sexiest Man Alive in 1991 . During his career , Swayze received three Golden Globe Award nominations , for Dirty Dancing ( 1987 ) , Ghost ( 1990 ) , and To Wong Foo , Thanks for Everything , Julie Newmar ( 1995 ) . He wrote and recorded the popular song She 's Like the Wind and was posthumously awarded the Rolex Dance Award in 2009 . Swayze died in 2009 from cancer . He was 57 years old .
Roller Boogie is a 1979 American romantic musical drama film starring Linda Blair and introduces Jim Bray , a former competitive artistic skater from California . The film also stars Beverly Garland , Mark Goddard , and Kimberly Beck , and is directed by Mark L. Lester . The film is set in the Venice , California suburb of Los Angeles at the height of the roller skating fad of the late 1970s . Two characters , Bobby James ( Bray ) and Terry Barkley ( Blair ) , fall in love while boogie skating to disco music . Along the way they must thwart a powerful mobster who wants the land their favorite roller rink sits on and compete in the Boogie Contest . The film received mostly negative reviews during its theatrical release but in recent years has become a cult classic and a time capsule of the late 70 's disco era . Linda Blair did several more movies .
Linda Denise Blair ( born January 22 , 1959 ) is an American actress . Blair played the possessed child , Regan , in the film The Exorcist ( 1973 ) , for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Golden Globe . She reprised her role in Exorcist II : The Heretic ( 1977 ) , for which she was nominated for a Saturn Award . Blair would go on to star in numerous controversial dramatic television films , such as Born Innocent ( 1974 ) and Sarah T. - Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic ( 1975 ) before establishing herself as a sex symbol in the musical Roller Boogie in 1979 . The 1980s saw Blair starring in numerous exploitation and horror films , such as the slasher film Hell Night ( 1981 ) , the prison drama Chained Heat ( 1983 ) , and the Grindhouse cult thriller Savage Streets ( 1984 ) . Throughout the 1990s , Blair appeared in various independent films and B movies , as well as several television credits : From 2001 to 2003 , she was the host of the Fox Family reality series Scariest Places on Earth , and in 2006 had a guest role on the series Supernatural . She also appeared as herself on the Animal Planet series Pit Boss from 2010 to 2012 . In addition to her acting credits , Blair has publicly supported various charitable causes , specifically animal rights . In 2004 , she founded the Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation , which serves to rehabilitate and adopt rescue animals .
Roll Bounce is a 2005 American comedy-drama film written by Norman Vance Jr. and directed by Malcolm D. Lee . The film stars hip hop artist Bow Wow as the leader of a roller skating crew in 1970s Chicago . The film also stars Nick Cannon , Meagan Good , Brandon T. Jackson , Wesley Jonathan , Chi McBride , Kellita Smith , and Jurnee Smollett . The name of the film is derived from the 1979 song Bounce , Rock , Skate , Roll by Vaughan Mason & Crew .
A roller disco is a discothèque or skating rink where all the dancers wear roller skates of some kind ( traditional quad or inline ) . The music played is modern and easily danceable , historically disco but in modern times including almost any form of dance , pop or rock music . The concept originated as a fad in the 1970s when the disco craze was at its height , peaking around 1980 and inspiring several roller-disco magazines . In 1984 the fad arrived in the United Kingdom and many roller discos popped up all over the country As of 2006 [ update ] , the craze has largely discontinued , although many 1970s era roller-discos are still open and successful . Also , it experienced a mild revival in the early 2000s , especially in the mid-eastern United States [ where ? ] , where certain clubs continue to host roller disco nights . Some now use in-line roller-blades . [ citation needed ] Roller discos are also popular among older children and young teenagers , especially for parties . As in other discos , special effects such as fog machines and flashing traffic lights are often used . [ citation needed ] To minimise the risk of injury , the organisers of roller discos often only allow participants to skate in one direction at a time , so that they do not crash into one another , although many roller discos have a free skate section in the middle of the roller rink . [ citation needed ]
Hell on Wheels is a 2007 documentary film telling the story of a group of Texas women who band together to resurrect roller derby for the 21st century . Emerging from the Austin music and arts scene , these women create a rock-and-roll fueled version of all-girl roller derby that has spawned the derby craze that 's sweeping the nation .
Austin ( UK : /ˈɒstɪn , ˈɔːstɪn/ , US : /ˈɔːstən/ ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas , as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County , with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties . It is the 11th-most populous city in the United States , the fourth-most-populous city in Texas , and the second-most-populous state capital city ( after Phoenix , Arizona ) . It is also the fastest growing large city in the United States and the southernmost state capital in the contiguous United States . As of the U.S. Census Bureau 's July 1 , 2018 estimate , Austin had a population of 964,254 , up from 790,491 at the 2010 census . The city is the cultural and economic center of the Austin-Round Rock metropolitan statistical area , which had an estimated population of 2,168,316 as of July 1 , 2018 [ update ] . Located in Central Texas within the greater Texas Hill Country , it is home to numerous lakes , rivers , and waterways , including Lady Bird Lake and Lake Travis on the Colorado River , Barton Springs , McKinney Falls , and Lake Walter E. Long . U.S. News & World Report named Austin the No . 1 place to live in the U.S. for 2017 and 2018 . In 2016 , Forbes ranked Austin No . 1 on its Cities of the Future list , then in 2017 placed the city at that same position on its list for the Next Biggest Boom Town in the U.S. Also in 2017 , Forbes awarded the South River City neighborhood of Austin its # 2 ranking for Best Cities and Neighborhoods for Millennials . WalletHub named Austin the # 6 best place in the country to live for 2017 . The FBI ranked Austin as the # 2 safest major city in the U.S. for 2012 .
Whip It is a 2009 American sports comedy-drama film directed by Drew Barrymore in her directorial debut and written by Shauna Cross , based on her novel Derby Girl . The film is co-produced by Barrymore and Barry Mendel . It stars Ellen Page as a teenager from the fictional town of Bodeen , Texas , who joins a roller derby team . The film also stars Barrymore , Alia Shawkat , Marcia Gay Harden , Daniel Stern , Carlo Alban , Landon Pigg , Jimmy Fallon , Kristen Wiig , Zoë Bell , Eve , Andrew Wilson , Juliette Lewis , and Ari Graynor . The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 13 , 2009 and was theatrically released on October 2 , 2009 in the United States by Fox Searchlight Pictures . It received generally positive reviews from critics but did not perform well financially , having made $ 16.6 million worldwide against its $ 15 million budget . It received two WIN Award nominations for Outstanding Actress , as well as Feature Film for Page and Barrymore , respectively . Whip It was released on DVD and Blu-ray on January 26 , 2010 by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment . The movie has inspired many people to start playing roller derby , including several current top-level players like Scald Eagle .
Ellen Grace Philpotts-Page ( born February 21 , 1987 ) is a Canadian actress and producer . Her career began with roles in television shows such as Pit Pony , Trailer Park Boys and ReGenesis . She starred in the 2005 drama Hard Candy , for which she won the Austin Film Critics Association 's Award for Best Actress . Her breakthrough role was the title role in Jason Reitman 's film Juno ( 2007 ) , for which she received nominations for an Academy Award , a BAFTA , a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress and won the Independent Spirit Award , an MTV Movie Award and a Teen Choice Award . Page played Kitty Pryde in the X-Men films ( 2006 , 2014 ) . She also appeared in An American Crime ( 2007 ) , The Tracey Fragments ( 2007 ) - a role that won her the Vancouver Film Critics Award for Best Actress - Smart People ( 2008 ) , Whip It ( 2009 ) , Super ( 2010 ) and Inception ( 2010 ) . She provided the voice , motion capture and likeness of Jodie Holmes in the video game Beyond : Two Souls ( 2013 ) . In 2017 , she was cast as Vanya Hargreeves in the Netflix series The Umbrella Academy .