FAQ

"Dream" pills, according to Mr. Bartholomew: "You know what that'll make you dream, Moonpie? You'll dream you're an executive. You'll wear a grey suit, you'll have your hands on all the controls, and you'll make decisions. But do you know what those executives dream, Moonpie, out there behind their desks? They all dream they're great Rollerballers, they dream they're Jonathan. They have muscles, and they bash in faces..."

Rollerball is a violent sport invented in a future society after a series of devastating corporate wars have left the world's major corporations with a monopoly on basic social services. Energy production, food supplies, water supplies, basic goods & other items are heavily controlled. To keep the masses from revolting, Rollerball was introduced. In the game, players wear roller skates and race around an inclined circular track, attempting to seize a small steel ball & score goals against the opposing team. Players are assisted by teammates who ride small motorcycles that can tow a player to build up speed. Despite being required to wear body armor & helmets, many players are severely injured or killed during matches. Rules change constantly, as in the last two matches depicted in the film where no substitutions are allowed and no penalties are called, even if a player cheats or commits another act of obvious unsportsmanlike conduct.

The corporate directorate (a sort of board of directors) felt threatened by Jonathan's increasing popularity in the sport, which they felt may contribute to a rising feeling of individualism among the general population, a concept they were trying to discourage. By providing Rollerball, the corporate directorate hoped that the masses would be sufficiently distracted from the squalor in their own lives to not think at an individual level. Independent thought would lead to revolt and the possible loss of power.

The hit United Artists film, Rollerball, opened in Chicago at the McClurg Court Theatre, 330 East Ohio Street, on Thursday, June 26, 1975. The film was rated "R." An ad reads: "Wars Will No Longer Exist . . . But There Will Be Rollerball!"

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Rollerball is played by two teams over three twenty-minute periods, for an hour of total game time. Each team has a dozen players: nine skaters and 3 bikers (riding motorcycles). The skaters hang onto the motorbikes, in order to gain or regain momentum.

A steel ball is shot into a circular arena with two zones: outer and inner. (The "sidelines" for both teams are in the arena's center.) The first team to recover the ball before it strays into the central "gutter" goes on offense, and attempts to score a point by placing the ball in the opposing team's goal at one side of the stadium. The defensive team protects their goal while attempting to steal the ball.

The ball must be held in plain view at all times; otherwise, it is declared "dead" (that is, out of play) and a new ball is fired. Likewise, if the ball strays into the gutter before either team recovers it, the ball dies and a new one must be fired.

Injured players are retrieved by medics and replaced by alternates.

FOULS

*The bikers can block opposing players (both skaters and other bikers), but cannot use force against them.

*Skaters can use force against each other but not against bikers, or against players who have already been downed (that is, injured).

Fouls are punishable by three minutes out of play. Moreover, if the defensive team commits a foul, the offensive team is automatically awarded a point. If the offensive team commits a foul, the defensive team is automatically awarded possession of the ball and goes on offense.