George Schlatter. A man you might’ve never known, not without the efforts of Director Chris Coronado’s recent feature documentary: Sock It to Me: The Legend of George Schlatter. 

Sock It to Me details Schlatter’s robust six-decade career, which revolutionized television through Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In and changed how we consume and produce comedy. It laid the groundwork for shows like Saturday Night Live and In Living Color. Schlatter’s special was unafraid to push television’s boundaries, delivering bold political commentary, cutthroat satire, and a vibrantly colorful show. 

The film features a star-studded ensemble of artists whose lives have been forever impacted by Schlatter’s efforts in the industry. Lionel Richie, Goldie Hawn, Tom Hanks, Lily Tomlin, Martin Short, Billy Crystal, and many other stars detail their experience with Schlatter and his legacy. 

With the use of archival footage and images, and animated sequences, Coronado paints the large strokes of Schlatter’s career, accompanied by the lived experiences of stars and Schlatter’s narration and appearance on screen as well. 

Coronado joins The Rolling Tape to delve into his friendship with Schlatter, how it was to work with so many stars, his creative process throughout the making of Sock It to Me, and more. 

Listen to the full conversation here:

On why laughter is so critical in the times we live in, Coronado says: 

[George’s] take on that exact question is ‘laughter is a panacea.’ It truly is. This world is, I don’t even know where to begin with that. But if we don’t have laughter and love, understanding, respect, tolerance, especially tolerance, then we’re lost. So, laughter is the key. Laughter brings us all back. We’re the only beings on Earth besides one other that laughs. And they spent a lot of time analyzing that. Why don’t other beings laugh? We’re special. We’re a creation of whether you’re celestial beings or whatever, but our makeup is that of fun, laughter, love. We’re only taught the other things. We get those through our upbringing, you know, the prejudice. So I believe that laughter is our golden ticket to make us understand the way the world should be viewed.

Sock It to Me premiered at the Newport Beach Film Festival on October 17. 

Follow our interviewee online: 
Chris Coronado 

Interview Courtesy of Mariana Fabian

Feature Image Credit to GSP Originals