Before They Were Stars: Samuel L. Jackson (dubbed in German!) in “Magic Sticks”

In tribute to the Shouts from the Back Row podcast we recently recorded about Samuel L. Jackson, I have gone to the trouble of digging up what is probably the most obscure title in his filmography, a 1987 film called Magic Sticks. Though it was shot in New York, Magic Sticks was a German production used as vehicle for George Kranz, a popular dance music singer in that country during the eighties. Kranz plays a drummer who obtains a pair of magical drumstricks which he can use to make people dance uncontrollably. And how does he obtain these magic sticks? Three minutes into the film, they are given to him by a bum played by Samuel L. friggin’ Jackson! Magic Sticks is apparently so hard to find these days that it only be seen in the German-dubbed version on Youtube, so, yes, this is your chance to see Samuel L. Jackson dubbed over in German! As if that wasn’t insane enough, Magic Sticks also features early roles for two other notable actors: Jack McGee and Reginald VelJohnson. In the following clip, a scene Family Matters would reject for being too absurd, Kranz actually uses his magic drumsticks to cause the future Carl Winslow to dance uncontrollably while robbing an armoured car!