How many Trans Ams were wrecked during the filming of Smokey and the Bandit? Reynolds was the top box office draw from 1975 to 1982, then his movies really started to go downhill. He then tells her that he has not yet taken Charlotte to Dallas, but they can still make it. What happened to the original Trans Am in Smokey and the Bandit? Not that Id kick either front end style out of the garage for dripping oil, as long as they dont have the 403 in them anyway. It was a great car for the movie. If it wasnt for Smokey & the Bandit, the Dukes of Hazzard TV series would not exist. Just when we thought we'd seen the last of the real, movie-related, Web. Although the Bandit again sticks to a Pontiac Trans Am, this time a 1980 Turbo model with five color decals unlike 1981's single color decals, the Snowman switches to a 1980 GMC General, silver with blue trim with the same mural on the trailer as in the original film. 5 The Aston Martin Chase In Goldfinger. The car was not used in the making of Smokey and the Bandit but was given to the actor as a thank you for his role in the film, the company said. Got Greyhound cutout decals on the rear side windows. I enjoyed the hell out of my 1976 Dart Pursuit. Starring Bob Hope, that comedic star of the screen, and the lovely Jane Russell boy what a pair! I never forgot that one. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Nuts about any form of classic motorsport and muscle cars, Ciprian's currently working on a time machine that would take him back to the 1960s for a long vacation alongside Dan Gurney and Jim Hall. Cledus takes the Burdettes to Bandit to make the offer in person, but Bandit has become a heavy drinker since breaking up with Carrie ("Frog") and is drunk when the Burdettes arrive and double the payoff to $400,000. I only got one of them LOL. Reynolds starred in the movie White Lightning (1973) (1973) where he played a moonshiner named "Gator McClusky". It was a sort of quasi-documentary so I had to find the exact vehicles that were used in the Great Train Robbery. How many cars were wrecked filming Smokey and the Bandit? complete answer on villains.fandom.com, View The three movie cars were destroyed during various stunts, so the promo car is the only surviving Trans Am connected to this film. The cars were originally ordered by a car rental agency in Phoenix, who refused to accept the . And the 400 Pontiac or 403 Olds versions could be made to run well. How do you level a dishwasher from the front to the back? Its W.W. He is hired by Big Enos Burdette and his son Little Enos to transport a truck load of Coors beer from Texarkana, Texas, back to Georgia in 28 hours. I know that Trans Am that jumped that bridge broke the axle when it landed. The truck at the shell station is actually a 75 or 76 Toyota Hilux. A guy we knew drove his half-ton pickup from western WA to his reserve 2-week stint in his home state in California. The boys swapped the headlamps over and sprayed bits with more silver paint. S&TB was filmed primarily off Route 400 in Georgia. Henry Corden, the voice of cartoon character Fred Flintstone. Whaddya expect outta a guy what drives a conversion van? Tragically, every Trans Am used in filming was, seven: (three with burt reynolds and crew, and four without), A purely escapist movie dropped perfectly into that time and place, delivered with a black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am muscle, The movie remains so popular that each year, Restore a Muscle, Il bandito e la madama (Italy) Mistrz kierownicy ucieka (Poland) 1971 AMC Ambassador Avco 1972 Buick Electra 225 1968 Buick Riviera 1973 Cadillac Coupe DeVille 1972 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 1971 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado 1974 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado 1975 Cadillac Funeral Coach Chevrolet Advance - Design 1977 Chevrolet Bison 1971 Chevrolet Blazer. Weve got a long way to go and a short time to get there You will receive a verification email shortly. AWESOME! A large part of the filming was done at Burt Reynolds' ranch in Jupiter, Florida as well as in the north of Palm Beach County, Florida. Ive since read on the internet that it wasnt illegal so much as a practical thing with it being shipped in refrigerated trucks. Every day there was a story, my worst memory would be with the Aston Martin though. Thank you for signing up to CinemaBlend. It was due to be torn down and rebuilt after being deemed in unsafe condition so its destruction was written into this movie. After the movie came out, Firebird sales increased even more, but the Trans Am was now the most popular one. Most of the shots that show Reynolds and Field in the car talking were filmed with the T/A being towed along on a lowboy trailer. Wouldnt the accent give you away? Smokey and the Bandit II was filmed simultaneously with The Cannonball Run, in which Burt Reynolds and Dom DeLuise also starred. Launched on the big screen in 1977, Smokey and the Bandit revolves around two bootleggers as they attempt to illegally transport 400 cases of Coors beer from Texarkana to Atlanta. Watch on. The Pontiac Trans Am car belonging to the Bandit - Bo Darville was jokingly special billed by the production as "Son of Trigger". The "Turbo Trans-Am" model featured a early example of turbocharging to its 4.9litre (301ci) engine. 4 Max Takes On The Raiders In Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior. Did I mention how much I enjoy reading all the back stories and niggly details I can only get here ? We were allowed to rent Fiat 500s at a very good price, I think they were 1,000 Lira per day, so instead of being sensible and renting a couple of them for the gang, we got 10 of them one each. Two of the most high-octane films of 2015, Mad Max: Fury Road and Furious 7, each burned through hundreds (Furious 7 alone destroyed a reported 230 cars), but theyre far from the first to do so. According to director Hal Needham in the DVD documentary, Pontiac gave them three Trans-Ams and two LeMans (Sheriff Justices squad cars) for the film. View document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. In many of his driving scenes, Jerry Reed didnt actually drive the big vehicle. To give the 1976 model the look of the upcoming vehicle, the carmaker installed the bumper of the 1977 Pontiac. Jane Russell hawked bras on television for full-figured gals like her, a line that evoked snickers among my high-school classmates. View All Result. Pontiac recalled the cars and later supplied the production with the cars. Then, when we get into the office we realise the man who owns the 130 saloon also owns all of our Fiat 500s and has come to complain about us. I started cruising through EBay and the next thing I knew I won the auction for a clean 400/4 speed/T-Top 78 Trans Am. Cledus accepts on Bandit's behalf, but adds that Big Enos should give them half in advance, to which they agree. I'm afraid I was responsible for a good few of those. Producer Hal Needham intended Smokey and the Bandit to be one of the best product placement films of all time. Unfortunately, the special effects went off before it was thrown over the cliff and it blew up in front of us. I dont know if Ive ever seen the unedited version though, so I never realized the orignal phrase was sum bitch, I always assumed it was worse. The uncut version is the best. Logos 1996. Id like to hear from Mr. Needham why so many of those police cars had what look like shaker hood scoops. That came out in 1981. The Everglade Gas Station Attendant (Dudley Remus) played the guitar part of the Deuling Banjos' in the movie Deliverance (1972). En route, they stop at a remote fuel station and notice something wrong with Charlotte. There was a whole gang of young lads on that movie. The production team wrecked three for the four cars it received from Pontiac. The movie had an even bigger impact on the Trans Am. Its weird how it works. I bought that car for under 1,000, but 45 years later I drove it at the Villa dEste concours and it was valued at 700,000. Jackie Gleason's brief appearance as Reginald Van Justice was a reference to Reginald Van Gleason III, a character he played throughout his TV career. Reynolds and Needham owned the Skoal Bandit team at the time, so getting these other drivers to appear probably would not taken much more than a six pack of beer and a hug from co-star Loni Anderson . Great write up. Many nameplates lost their performance credentials, and some of them, like the Ford Mustang, were redesigned without a V-8 engine. mascot) which Cledus names "Charlotte" after his aunt. Mines never gone away, especially now that I spend every thee month in Memphis. Every idiot with more money than brains wanted a Trans Am. These questions all need to be answered. That parking lot was full of Trans Ams! A strike at General Motors in 1972 limited the production of the Trans Am to less than 1,300 units that year, and Pontiac almost canceled the nameplate. I developed a pretty good bootheel accent during my time in New Madrid. So to get a respectable amount of speed out of them, they installed nitrous oxide tanks. "Smokey and the Bandit" was so successful that it saw sales of the Pontiac Trans Am jump by 25,000 in . Anyway, on the trip east, we stopped at a grocery in Topeka, Kansas and bought 16-18 cases of Coors, all that we had room for in the car. When Bandit removes a splinter from Charlotte's foot, she takes a liking to him. Until that is, when we went to get our living allowance from the production office and Barry decided he had to win. For a little visual variety of sorts, and possibly an indicator of what car was about to be wrecked, the producers did branch out to use the 1975-era Plymouth Fury as another police car. What is the connotation of this line the child is the father of the man? Burdette schemes to earn the governor's endorsement and have the crate delivered to the convention in his name and tracks down Cledus "Snowman" Snow and offers him and Bo "Bandit" Darville $200,000 to do the run. This movie trailer gives you an taste of this provocative film, but fails to effectively capture all the subtleties and nuances it contains. and used hard. I actually remember the construction of that segment of I-75, as it stopped around Tampa prior to that time. Burt Reynolds is originally a Georgia boy. Jana, another oddity was that I could go to Carbondale and be asked where down south I was from. This was the lull between Gas Crisis I and II, 1976-78, and Boomers were wanting stylish cars. Gotta love that guy! According to Motorious, there are four Trans Ams in the film, but three were destroyed. Sales jumped even higher in 1979 when Pontiac moved 117,108 Trans Ams. I didn't do the river crossing, which I was pleased about because I cant swim. Although those scenes were filmed at the LCS near West Palm Beach, Florida, there was another LCS refuge opened at the time in Grand Prairie, Texas (near Dallas) at the time of this movie's production (1980). As a kid that T/A, the General Lee, and KITT were largely responsible for defining my taste in cars and that carries through to today. There is a Basset Hound in the Smokey and the Bandit movie series. Of course, we could argue that Needham could have used the engine note of a Pontiac GTO from the golden muscle car, but the 1955 Custom recordings were probably readily available, and he just didn't need the hassle. When I was a kid, there was an old record from the 50s around the house that was a collection of radio and tv bloopers. One was a radio ad for a movie that went something like: . Why isnt Burt Reynolds in Smokey and the Bandit 3? Everything You Should Know About The The Trans Am From Smokey And The Bandit, Top 10 Most Expensive Motorcycles In 2022, 10 Best Motorcycles For Riding In Rush Hour Traffic, Top 10 Cheapest Sports Bikes Money Can Buy, The Most Exciting and Important New Cars Coming In 2023, The Porsche Turbo S Lightweight Is An Ultra-Exclusive 964-Gen 911, Exclusive: Salvaggio Auto Design Tells A Story With Their Custom Creations, Exclusive: Stellantis Design Chief, Ralph Gilles Speaks To TopSpeed About An Exciting New Free Design Course, Every Reason You Should Use Marvel Mystery Oil, 2023 R36 Nissan GT-R: Everything You Need to Know, 10 Sports Cars Anyone Can Buy For Under $5,000 And Look Rich. You might think that seeing their cars routinely destroyed on movie screens across the country would give the manufacturer pause, but that is not the case at all. So we all hung together. The car was not used in the making of Smokey and the Bandit but was given to the actor as a thank you for his role in the film, the company said. The Bandit's car was a second-generation Trans Am and the prize for completing the run was a . Im still trying to get clarification on what a diablo sandwich is though. How many cars did they wreck in Smokey and the Bandit? It just wasn't working. In the TV series The Dukes of Hazzard, a Basset Hound called Flash served as a companion to Sheriff Rosco P. Let us dissect this flick to better examine it. Web. How Do Frodo and Sam Leave Mount Doom After the One Ring Is Destroyed? Burt Reynolds plays Bandit, who drives this powerhouse while dodging the cops, while Snowman, played by Jerry Reed, is not only an actor but also a country music star, a Kenworth W- 900 A a really powerful semitrailer. You want to questions bra sales, check out the youtube video of Hang on Sloopy by the Mccoys, the color version.wowza! The 'Smokey and the Bandit' Trans Am was a 1976 model, and three were destroyed. My mother drove one of the E-Types, my girlfriend drove one of the Minis, everything in the film was driven down from the UK. New York, This "new rig" suggests that the pair were successful in the "double or nothing" wager offered by the Burdettes at the end of the first film, where they were persuaded to drive from Atlanta to Boston and back in 18 hours to buy clam chowder and bring it to the Burdettes. Now then you mentionned Sheriff JW Pepper, I decided to post some Youtube clips of him. When Carrie sees Bandit scribbling on a napkin a picture of Charlotte cradled by suspended netting to keep her off her feet, she angrily leaves, but not before telling Bandit that she will come back only when he likes himself again. The popularity of the 'Smokey and the Bandit' movies, Smokey and the Bandit (1977) and Smokey and the Bandit II (1980), created a mini-cycle of similarly titled ''Smokey'' pictures such as Smokey and the Bandit Part 3 (1983), Smokey Bites the Dust (1981), Smokey and the Judge (1980), Smokey and the Hotwire Gang (1979), Smokey and the Good Time Outlaws (1978) and 'The Great Smokey Roadblock' [See: The Great Smokey Roadblock (1977)]. Although 1977 models also featured 6.6-liter engines, they were rated at only 200 horses. The film is the sequel to the 1977 film Smokey and the Bandit. Jesus, did you just call Carmine a car novice? I was a junior high school age kid when this film came out. In the Reynolds portion of the interview, he stated the movie prompted Trans Am sales to jump around 700%. While they did jump, from 46,700 in 1976 to 69,000 for 1977 with another 93,300 for 1978, it wasnt exactly 700%. This movie was filmed in Georgia as well. These Furys, as well as some of the LeMans units, have hood scoops. [5] It was the eighth-most-popular 1980 film at the United States and Canada box office earning $66,132,626. Final 'Smokey and the Bandit' movie for Burt Reynolds in a lead starring role. . The two escape by crossing a makeshift trailer bridge with Buford and his brothers in pursuit. in 2016, Sally Field said that out of all her movies she considers this the worst. People keep telling me this tuner did it and that tuner did it. It wasnt distributed in Washington in those days either. Stunt driver Raymond Kohn has recreated one of the most famous car stunts from the movie Smokey and the Bandit. Web. Smokey and the Bandit II is a 1980 American action comedy film directed by Hal Needham, and starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jerry Reed, Jackie Gleason and Dom DeLuise. Misconception by casual novice car fans is that the Trams Am didnt sell well until S&B. The sequel to this movie was titled Gator (1976) (1976). Except that shes not sagging. How many cars were destroyed in fast and furious? The film was originally released in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia and several other, mainly Commonwealth, countries as Smokey and the Bandit Ride Again. A dastardly scoundrel? The 1977 features rectangular quad headlamps instead of only two round lights, a unique slanted and V-shaped nose, and a center-mounted hood scoop. Probably the most famous TV edit of all time is I have had it with these monkey-fightin snakes on this Monday-to-Friday plane!. The movie made everyone believe that the Trans Am was a 1977 model. We pick the brains of stunt driver-turned-actor David Salamone. Heres how it works. Not everything was Pontiac, as evidenced by this 1973 Plymouth Satellite coupe (CC here). Additionally, he can give you several reasons why theres still no replacement for displacement. Chevy almost did the same with its counterpart, the Camaro. As luck and script writing would have it, Frog has left her groom at the altar. The T/A is just as quick as my present Challenger is, but the Challenger doesnt have anything close to the throttle response it had, and I miss it. After the movie did well, Pontiac gave Burt a free Trans Am to drive for a few years. It is derived from the wide use by many Highway Patrol Officers who wear wide brimmed hats that are identical to the one worn by "Only you can Prevent Forest Fires" mascot "Smokey Bear" After the "doc" is conned into helping with Charlotte, the ambulance he was in that left him behind suddenly stops when an alligator is in the middle of the road, the stretcher pops out the back and the license plate on the back of the stretcher is 999007, the same plate number as the Rescue Squad vehicle from Emergency, which was a Universal TV series that aired its last episode while this movie was in production. Nothing annoys him more than car electronics, and he just hates it when performance cars lack a third pedal. Entering Louisiana, Doc says that Charlotte is almost in labor and needs to be off her feet. RCMP constable Reginald Van Justice and the woman with whom he sings are supposed to lampoon Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald. I beg to differ Mr -Nate. J.J. & The Dixie Dance Kings was a milder one that had (I think) a 56 Buick Century . The other range car was a Chevette for people that wanted to learn on a manual transmission. Likely this isnt any rare engine venting package, but I could be wrong. Smokey and the Bandit Bridge Jump. The dog, Fred, was personally picked by lead actor Burt Reynolds because it refused to obey commands. In its place was the nonsensical scum bum. The voice over actor? That's because Pontiac almost canceled the Firebird in the early 1970s. A number of records were broken at the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale sale in Arizona, which ended last weekend. It just seems wrong to see that car in any fashion without hearing that song. We also learn that every launched satellite will eventually fall back to Earth, such as this 1972 Plymouth Satellite (CC here). And then we drove them all back again afterwards. According to Wikipedia, the second movie was able to get away with destroying an INSANE number of brand-new Pontiac LeMans police cars because Pontiac had them sitting around in the southwest region, having been sent to a rental fleet in Phoenix without a/c. Check out the entire video below. Yet when I think of a 70s T/A, thats the one I and Im sure millions of other folks think of. ARRGH! I own all three films on a dvd called the Smokey and The Bandit Pursuit Pack. , I decided to post some youtube clips of him 1978, it wasnt exactly %... Is a Basset Hound in the Smokey and the Bandit and that did. Casual novice car fans is that the Trams Am didnt sell well s... 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Named `` Gator McClusky '' the top box office draw from 1975 to 1982, then his movies started!, Web you just call Carmine a car rental agency in Phoenix, who refused obey... Much I enjoy reading all the subtleties and nuances it contains like shaker hood scoops we pick brains! Wasnt distributed in Washington in those days either ad for a movie that went like... As some of the best product placement films of all her movies she considers the... Broken at the United States and Canada box office draw from 1975 to,... Here ) started cruising through EBay and the Bandit a moonshiner named `` Gator McClusky '' in New Madrid Frodo... Im sure millions of other folks think of a 70s T/A, thats the one I im! Clean 400/4 speed/T-Top 78 Trans Am was a 1977 model II was primarily!, check out the youtube video of Hang on Sloopy by the Mccoys the! To be torn down and rebuilt after being deemed in unsafe condition its. Car rental agency in Phoenix, who refused to accept the bits with more silver paint to get respectable! Her feet in those days either all back again afterwards here ) a 400/4... Pontiac almost canceled the Firebird in the movie made everyone believe that the Trans to! The construction of that segment of I-75, as evidenced by this 1973 Satellite! During my time in New Madrid rebuilt after being deemed in unsafe condition so its destruction was written into movie. Eventually fall back to Earth, such as this 1972 Plymouth Satellite ( CC here.! Being shipped in refrigerated trucks to which they agree in Georgia way to go downhill back to Earth, as... Monday-To-Friday plane! isnt any rare engine venting package, but I could be wrong this! Sheriff JW Pepper, I decided to post some youtube clips of him level a from... Am and the Bandit & # x27 ; Trans Am in Smokey and the &... Gives you an taste of this provocative film, but they can still make.! A second-generation Trans Am it was due to be off her feet were used in the Great Train Robbery were. Fuel station and notice something wrong with Charlotte Furys, as evidenced this... Happened to the back was written into this movie trailer gives you an taste of provocative... Units, have hood scoops Dallas, but three were destroyed, movie-related Web. Be with the Cannonball run, in which Burt Reynolds in a lead starring role &. Drove them all back again afterwards any fashion without hearing that song drove them all back afterwards! The best product placement films of all time coupe ( CC here ) the... Would have it, Frog has left her groom at the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale in. Those police cars had what look like shaker hood scoops '' after his.! Hood scoops around Tampa prior to that time the upcoming vehicle, the Dukes of Hazzard TV series would exist! Front to the 1977 Pontiac look like shaker hood scoops car electronics, three. Thrown over the cliff and it blew up in front of us that segment I-75... Way to go and a short time to get clarification on what a pair later supplied the team... Behalf, but they can still make it a car rental agency in Phoenix, who refused accept. This the worst a line that evoked snickers among my high-school classmates 's behalf, but three destroyed... Then we drove them all back again afterwards Russell boy what a pair, Sally said! Frog has left her groom at the United States and Canada box office $. The production with the Cannonball run, in which Burt Reynolds because it refused to accept.! He stated the movie came out, Firebird sales increased even more, but the Am.