Tough Guys

Tough Guys

2017
1h 16m
7.5

7.5/10

2 votes • View on IMDb
Overview

10 years before the debut of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. In 1979, Bill Viola and Frank Caliguri dreamed up a contest pitting barroom bigmouths against wrestlers, martial artists, boxers, bouncers and brawlers, billed as no-holds-barred new type of competitive fighting. When the fights succeeded beyond their wildest expectations, they were swept up in a chain of events that ended in the first mixed-martial arts ban in the nation. “Tough Guys” chronicles the inception of Caliguri and Viola’s first bouts and the colorful, crazy cast of fighters who made them a hit as well as the politicians who brought it all crashing down. The film brings to life a moment when the national martial arts craze was building to a crescendo as the economies of Pennsylvania steel towns were plummeting to levels of unemployment never seen, breeding desperate men looking for a chance to prove their worth and make some money in the ring.

Status: Released

Language: EN

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Production Information

Production Companies
Warrior Poets Fictionless MinusL Productions
Production Countries
United States of America

Quick Facts

Release Date September 15, 2017
Status Released
Language EN
IMDb ID tt5023566
Website Visit Site

Cast

Bill Viola
Bill Viola

Himself

Frank Caliguri
Frank Caliguri

Himself

Dann Carr
Dann Carr

Himself

Jacquet Bazemore
Jacquet Bazemore

Himself

Jimmy Cvetic
Jimmy Cvetic

Himself

Key Crew

W.B. Zullo
Director
Henry Roosevelt
Director
Morgan Spurlock
Executive Producer