202 - THE SIDE HACKERS (1969; R; 82m)

a.k.a. THE SIDEHACKERS (poster title)
a.k.a. FIVE THE HARD WAY (original)

Ad: "HARD RIDERS! Mounted on Burning Steel!
...with only their leathers between THEM and HELL!"

Ad: "Filmed in NEW wide-screen FANTASCOPE! You are pulled into the action, tasting the dust, smelling the sweat, and feeling the dangers!"

Plot: Side-hackin' biker-mechanic avenges his girlfriend's murder.

Exec/Cin: Jon Hall
(dir/The Beach Girls and the Monster)
Prod: Ross Hagen* (also star)
Dir: Gus Trikonis*
Asst Dir: Tony Lorea (also actor)
Scr: Tony Houston (209-The Hellcats;
actor/418-Attack of the the Eye Creatures)
Sto: Larry Billman (actor/Miracle of the White Stallions)
Ed: Pat Somerset (The Swimmer; The Mad Room)
PMgr: Eric J. Lidberg (also actor)
Score: Mike Curb*
Score: Jerry Styner (512-Mitchell; Cycle Savages; Ski Fever)
Score: Guy Hemric (Ski Fever)
Song: Five the Hard Way; Nothing Lasts Forever (The New Life)

Rommel / Ross Hagen*
Rita / Diane McBain (Spinout; Maryjane; The Mini-Skirt Mob)
J.C./ Michael Pataki (K15-Superdome; 1010-It Lives By Night)
Luke / Richard Merrifield (209; Sheba Baby)
Paisley / Claire Polan (Bikini Drive-In)
Nero / Edward Parrish
Gooch / Michael Graham (Curse of the Fly; The Bedford Incident)
Crapout / Hoke Howell (Marlowe; Shenandoah; The Klansman)
Debbie / Diane Tessier
Dirty John / Erik Cord (Tron)
Tork / Eric Lidberg (209)
mechanic / Irv Ross
Billy / Joey Tessier
Jake / Robert Tessier (Born Losers; The Glory Stompers; The Deep)
announcer / Tony Lorea (209; Bad Charleston Charlie)
Lois / Toni Moss (TV's Helter Skelter)
mechanic / Warren Hammack* (209/418; Mars Needs Women)

Trivia: THE SIDE HACKERS was originally released as Five The Hard Way in order to cash in on a very successful movie with a similar name...Five Easy Pieces, released earlier that same year and starring Jack Nicholson.

ROSS HAGEN and some of the above cast and crew also worked on 209-THE HELLCATS. Unfortunately, Hagen continues to make movies to this day, most of which go straight to video. Here's some of his other films to avoid: 1989-Alienator; 1972-Angels' Wild Women; 1974-Foul Play; 1993-Dinosaur Island; 1979-Night Creature; 1968-Speedway (with Elvis!); The Mini-Skirt Mob; and 1988-Warlords. You can also see him in reruns of the TV series Daktari.

GUS TRIKONIS also directed Take This Job And Shove It; The Student Body; The Swinging Barmaids; Elvis and the Beauty Queen; Foul Play (with Hagen); and Jungle Heat. As an actor, he appeared as Scorpio in 209-THE HELLCATS, and was one of the Shark gang in West Side Story! Plus you can catch him in 1964's The Unsinkable Molly Brown (starring Debbie Reynolds). Trikonis married actress/comedienne Goldie Hawn in 1969!

WARREN HAMMACK, who has a small part as a mechanic here, also appears as an attorney in 209-THE HELLCATS, and was the goofy Lt. Robertson in 418-ATTACK OF THE THE EYE CREATURES.

MIKE CURB has held these various jobs: composed the soundtracks of many trashy flicks (Maryjane; It's A Bikini World; The Devil's Angels); produced and promoted 1970's bubblegum acts like The Osmond Family and Shaun Cassidy; headed MGM Records Division (remember the 1974 hit "Burning Bridges" by the Mike Curb Congregation?); was protege of politician Ronald Reagan and lieutenant governor of California; and handled the entertainment for Richard Nixon's first inaugural ball! Wonder what he's up to now?

Last Updated: 6/20/1999