Dabney Coleman as "Slap" Maxwell, an egocentric sportswriter for a newspaper called The Ledger, somewhere in the American Southwest. The Ledger is an old fashioned newspaper, and Slap is an old fashioned man, who composes his "Slap Shots" column on a typewriter. Despite the newly litigious environment of journalism, Slap insists on filling his column with rumor and innuendo, which draws lawsuits and frequently results in Slap's termination. After each termination, Slap makes groveling apologies and is rehired.