Documentary on Comedy Pioneer George Schlatter Lands Digital Release Deal

Freestyle Digital Media, the digital film distribution arm of Byron Allen's Allen Media Group, has acquired the North American video-on-demand rights to the documentary Sock It To Me: The Legend of George Schlatter. The film will be available on digital platforms starting Dec. 8.

The feature profiles Schlatter, creator of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, the groundbreaking comedy variety hour that premiered on NBC in 1968. The show launched the careers of Goldie Hawn and Lily Tomlin, and it helped give rise to late-night television, including Saturday Night Live.

Schlatter was also behind the NBC reality series Real People, which he created and produced beginning in 1979. The program featured an 18-year-old Byron Allen in his first television job, as a regular co-host.

Looking back on a career spanning seven decades as a prolific television producer and director, the documentary draws on archival footage and interviews to explore how Schlatter, now 96, transformed TV comedy. Those appearing include Hawn, Tom Hanks, Tomlin, Martin Short, Billy Crystal, Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel, Lionel Richie, Lisa Ann Walter, Berry Gordy and Allen.

Schlatter said in a statement that people had long urged him to write an autobiography, and that he had always suggested someone else do it. "They then explained to me that it wouldn't be an autobiography, so here we are," he said.

He also described the partnership with Allen's company as a "full circle moment." Referencing a catchphrase associated with Laugh-In, Schlatter added: "You bet your sweet bippy I'm excited for audiences to see it and remind them of the power of laughter!"

Sock It To Me was written and directed by Chris Coronado, who produced it alongside Greg Myers and Dayna Winston. Coronado has been creative director at George Schlatter Productions since 2016, where he oversees creative development and production of documentary and entertainment projects.

Freestyle Digital Media negotiated the acquisition directly with the filmmakers and George Schlatter Productions.