how many cars destroyed in smokey and the bandit

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: . Five-string banjo player Bobby Thompson is prominent toward the end of "East Bound and Down". Great article! However, in more recent years, the original version has been shown (on ITV, a commercial channel), usually with the stronger language edited out, often quite awkwardly. Many nameplates lost their performance credentials, and some of them, like the Ford Mustang, were redesigned without a V-8 engine. Some fellow classmates were extras on the film set, and it was a big deal around here at the time. I thought at the time that it was a newer version of White Lightning (also with Burt Reynolds) and that Smokey would be forgotten just as soon. Get ready to tear up the highway with the Bandit (Burt Reynolds), a fun-loving, fast-talking trucker who takes on his craziest haul yet - delivering 400 case. The Bandit takes the bet on the risky and unprecedented task, and recruits his partner Cledus "Snowman" Snow to drive the truck, while Bandit drives a black Pontiac Trans Am bought in advance from the Burdettes as a "blocker" to divert attention away from the truck and its illegal cargo. Here are 20 facts about the Trans Am from Smokey and the Bandit. Stroker Ace is after S&B, 1983, and features the then new for 83 aero Fox Body Thunderbird. The movies are rated PG with a run time of 282 minutes and released to video by Universal Studios. I remember reading somewhere that one of the cars was equipped with a 455 for some of the higher speed scenes. On the DVD, there is a brief interview with both Burt Reynolds and Hal Needham, who directed this film. We stopped in that same Safeway later on the way back home from southern Cal, and they had a huge display of cases of Coors out on the floor near the checkstands. The 1977 model wasn't out yet when filming began, so General Motors provided 1976 cars with front clips from the soon-to-be-released 1977 update. How much did the Smokey and the Bandit car sell for? 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. Gleason has a treasure trove of hilarious lines and it was this movie that started my love affair of cars back in the early 1980s. If you notice there are several different angled skid marks on the road in the scene where the Bandit picks up Frog, you can see that they did a couple of takes of the T/A skidding to a stop and taking off again. On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, it has a 78% rating based on 32 reviews. Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, . Ive also looked at a Fox based LTD cop car and an early 1991 whale Caprice 9C1 detective model, burgundy on burgundy cloth. . Many people believed beforehand that the film was not right for . A Pontiac wagon from earlier in the decade. Funny that T/A isnt on the movie poster, considering it was the obvious star of the show. The scoops were added by the department because the engines ran so hot. It had not been used for some time and was repainted for the film. I think thats another line theyve edited out for the television version. Dont let his grumpiness fool you though; hes more than excited to provide the latest news and reviews on the most interesting cars in the industry. In particular, the scene where Sheriff Justice unknowingly encounters the Bandit in the "choke and puke" (a roadside diner) was not in the original story but was rather Gleason's idea. I enjoyed the hell out of my 1976 Dart Pursuit. Some differences included the use of a supercharged 454-CID (7.4-liter) Chevrolet-sourced engine that put out 840 HP, and four round headlights, which appeared on the 196769 Firebirds/Trans Ams only; the actual 197781 models had rectangular headlights. Pontiac gave Needham a total of four cars, three to use in the movie, and one as a promotional vehicle to drive around and advertise Smokey and the Bandit following its release. I think you may be confusing the movie Honky-Tonk Freeway with the filming done during I-75 construction near Sarasota. But would the black and gold T/As be as desirable today without the movie? As the 1969 classic 'The Italian Job' turns 50 years old, TG.com caught up with David Salamone, the man who piloted the red Mini in . The second film was a modest box office success, earning $66.1 million against a $17 million budget. [22] It premiered at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, where it performed badly. One guy did a while ago a fan-made trailer of Smokey & the Bandit 4. S&B is one of my all-time favorite movies and Im not apologizing. The Trans Am was a high-performance package for the Firebird, Pontiac's take on the Chevrolet Camaro. I have always loved this movie, watched it dozens and dozens of times on TV, video, DVD, laserdisc, almost any form of media. Behind Sheriff Justices Pontiac, there is a nice looking 1965 or 1966 Ford Mustang fastback and a Toyota pickup. And Burt may be from GA originally, but he calls Florida home, which is another reason I heard the movie was filmed here. Seven: (Three with Burt Reynolds and Crew, and Four without) Smokey and the Bandit - 1977 Smokey and the Bandit II - 1980 Smokey and the Bandit III . Id been driving for years by the time I was 15, so I just wanted to complete the course with as little static as possible. Frederick Amon smuggled it from Colorado to North Carolina and sold it for four times the retail price.[19]. Due to his financial difficulties in 2014, Reynolds put his vast collection of artwork and memorabilia up for auction, including the Trans Am. I was to be paid a salary plus own 7% of the profits. How did any bra manufacturers survive the 70s? Its weird how it works. Cledus "Snowman" Snow (Jerry Reed) drives the truck while his good buddy Bo "Bandit" Darville (Reynolds) serves as the "blocker," a fast car used to divert police attention away from payload. . Frog not included. Of the many cars saved from the fire was the only surviving Knight Rider KITT Super Pursuit Mode car created by Jay Orberg. Want proof? There was still a market for bras in the 1970s. Mr. Reynolds elevated the dreck that he appeared in to a higher level, that is, enjoyable. Needing a fast set of wheels to distract law enforcement, Reynolds character purchases this 1977 Pontiac Trans-Am. I only got one of them LOL. These new models were built off the same Camaro platform, came with the Pontiac arrowhead, flaming bird, and Bandit logos, and the instrument panels, center consoles, and hood scoops emulating their 1977 counterparts, and were signed by Reynolds. Of course, it's difficult to asses whether these small decals did something to change buyer perception about the Trans Am, but it's an interesting part of the Smokey and the Bandit Trans Am's history. Additionally, he can give you several reasons why theres still no replacement for displacement. Below is probably another DeKalb County cop car. There has never been anything quite like late 1970s fashion in clothing. The Pontiac Firebird Trans Am from Smokey and the Bandit is one of the most famous movie cars of all time. The scene featuring the racetrack was filmed at Lakewood Speedway at the old Lakewood Fairgrounds on Atlanta's south side. The 79-year-old 70s and 80s heartthrob made a rare public appearance over the weekend at Wizard World Chicago. When it is finally torn off along with the car's roof in the impact with the girder, the missing fender still reappears later on in the film. The cars were wrecked on purpose to create the illusion of a high-speed chase. A paper on Cognitive psychology was published in the 1990 issue of Computers in Human Perception. Free shipping for many products! [34] In 2015 a Florida-based automobile customization company built 77 Trans Ams modeled after the car that Reynolds drove in the film. And theres this nugget from the director of the coming new Shazam movie; I first watched Smokey on quiet swing shifts from the drivers seat of a 1977 Pontiac Le Mans patrol car, parked by thr back fence of the drive-in theater at the far end of town. A few other examples of sound effect replacement occur when the Bandit takes off after getting the reluctant Cledus involved in the bet, the Bandit comes to a screeching halt on a roadway moments before picking up Carrie, and when Buford's car top comes off. Mines never gone away, especially now that I spend every thee month in Memphis. Conversely, I could go to Paducah and be asked where up north I was from. UNIVERSAL CUT THE BUDGET JUST AS PRODUCTION WAS ABOUT TO BEGIN. He contacted Pontiac and an agreement was made that four 1977 Trans Ams and two Pontiac LeMans four-door sedans would be provided for the movie. Gotta love that guy! Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Pontiac should have made a radio that played that song automatically simply by pushing a button, or maybe made it the horn sound. Will Walker: Independence Return For Season 2 Amid CW Shakeups? That is why there are not any left. 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%. The dubbed version isnt as bad as the Remastered Blu-ray. Naturally, it fetched the highest price with a . However, the U.S. government introduced new emission controls in 1972, and automakers had to step back. A group of Trans Am owners and fans of the movie take part in an annual road trip from Texarkana to Jonesboro, recreating the route taken by the characters in the film. With four miles left, Bandit, discouraged by the unexpected mounting attention, is ready to give up, but Snowman, who initially thought they would fail, takes the lead and smashes through the roadblock at the fairgrounds' main entrance. That song often pops into my head at the start of long drives. That is an excellent question. Learn how your comment data is processed. Just do a search for Crown Victorias on your local CL. NY 10036. From what I have read the artist did the poster rendering from some blown up stills that he was shown from the movie, and none of them for some mysterious reason included the Trans Am, the truck, Reynolds, Gleason, Sally Field, crashing police cars, but no T/A. Only one survived, and it's priceless. "Smokey and the Bandit Pursuit Pack" is formatted as a box set that in presented in full color in widescreen. Here in Canada they didnt censor it, so we always got the sumbitch version. A 1975 Pontiac Grand Prix with a Buick Electra behind it. It was the second highest-grossing film of the year, trailing only Star Wars: A New Hope, and it made Burt Reynolds into a certifiable superstar. While it's sad that the other two cars were destroyed . a custom mandrel bent dual exhaust, and the Mondello bottom end plate to stabilize the windowed mains. That's because Pontiac almost canceled the Firebird in the early 1970s. I agree, despite people saying you sound cute, it seems like they think Ellie Mae Clapett or Jethro Bodean. I was just tweaking Jason. I think Stroker Ace is after Smokey and the Bandit, though there was Hooper, which was about a stuntman, it also had Sally Field, it was from 1978 or so. Sales almost doubled in two years, which is a very big deal given that the Trans Ams 1978 facelift was rather minor save for the front fascia. S/E T/A with the round headlights. 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 . Several other groups, such as the U.S. rock band Tonic and U.K.-based country cover band We Be Ploughin' have also covered it. The differences between the two are major. The LeMans police car did nothing for me because there was a colonnade LeMans sedan in the garage at home. It was his idea to have Junior alongside him throughout the film. As a feature-length car chase, the car was as much of a star as Burt Reynolds, and the film gave birth to the cult of the Trans Am. In fact, after Smokey and the Bandit became a box office hit, Pontiac saw a marked increase in their stock prices. Its W.W. The directorial debut of stuntman Hal Needham, the film follows Bo "Bandit" Darville (Reynolds) and Cledus "Snowman" Snow (Reed), two bootleggers attempting to illegally transport 400 cases of Coors beer from Texarkana to Atlanta. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1980 ERTL SMOKEY & THE BANDIT PONTIAC FIREBIRD DIECAST CAR police car set at the best online prices at eBay! There was a problem. [23] It then opened in just the South of the United States over the Memorial Day weekend and grossed $2,689,851 in 386 theaters. In return, Reynolds portrayed Boss Hogg (originally portrayed by Sorrell Booke) in the film adaptation The Dukes of Hazzard (2005). Smokey & The Bandit is the greatest movie of the 20th Century! Luckily, both cars survived, and the Trans Am became famous only five years later. According to an interview with Susie McIver Ewing on The RetroZest Podcast, she was picked to play the role of Hot Pants Hilliard after the dailies footage (shot in the Atlanta area) of the original actress playing the role was inadvertently destroyed on its way from Atlanta to Los Angeles. And the 400 Pontiac or 403 Olds versions could be made to run well. A couple of years ago, I was sitting around on a lazy Saturday afternoon and it was on TV. I was in the Air Force during this era, stationed in California. Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox would bring several cases after playing on the West Coast, by stashing them in the equipment trunks on the team's plane. I think even the 2nd gen Camaro enjoyed some of the blast wave from Smokey and the Bandit, 1979 was the best year ever for Camaros as well, with over 280,000 Camaros being sold. Sure Smokey helped, but was not the sole reason T/A and F body sales went up. Trigger had a big impact on my taste in cars with the Trans Ams of the late 70s being my favorite. I imagine that they borrowed some of the character from Sheriff JW Pepper from the 1973 and 1974 James Bond movies, Live and Let Die and The Man with the Golden Gun. 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!. I recall a big smokey burnout right after they left Snowmans house that looked 455-worthy and also after Bandit picked up Fields he left two strips after nailing second (right before the tire thieves crossed the road), which makes me think there was also a 4 speed car used. This is obvious, because there is no fuel tank on the underside of the trailer to power the refrigeration unit, and the unit is never heard running. 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. Because sales were so high, Pontiac decided to delay the third-generation model. Many of the film's original sounds were replaced. It is now sold in all states as Coors ships it in refrigerated train cars and bottled locally and sold in different parts of the country including the eastern US states. For Smokey and the Bandit II (1980), Needham asked for and received 10 Trans Ams and 55 Bonnevilles with no trouble. how many cars were destroyed in smokey and the bandit 2. And lets not forget the Trans Am rental car Steve McQueen drove in his very last movie, The Hunter from 1980. At the time, Reynolds was the top box office star in the world. 2-Smokey and the Bandit II-Pretty bad, still has some funny campy crap, the Dom DeLuise Italian Dr. bit is ok, Gleason is still pretty funny, the Turbo T/A is pretty weak, but still cool to see. The 1978 Trans Am is an exact duplicate of the "Smokey and the Bandit" movie car, finished in black and gold with a screaming chicken on the hood. Originally, the film was going to be a B-movie played only in the Southern United States. With this, the Sheriff begins his pursuit of the Mann Act-violating Banditall the way to Georgia. And back then what I wanted most of all was a highly customized Vette with exposed headlights. Needham saw an advertisement for the soon-to-be-released 1977 Pontiac Trans Am and knew right away that would be the Bandit's car, or, as Needham referred to it, a character in the movie. They destroyed all those cars in the films he said. Good silly fun. Neither Buford nor any other lawmen know of Snowman's illegal manifest, while Bandit is likewise unaware that Buford is chasing him because of Carrie, whose jumpiness inspires Bandit to give her the CB handle "Frog". Let us dissect this flick to better examine it. Unfortunately he passed away a few months ago or that would have been a great question to ask. The tow truck driver was a local garage owner, Berlin Wike. Your email address will not be published. This same restaurant was used for a scene in the 1983 Stephen King Movie Christine, which was ultimately cut in the final film (it can be viewed as a deleted scene on the DVD release of the film). Lets take a look at some more cars found in the movie. It opened in other Northern states at the end of July. Ask him to choose between a BMW M4 and an Audi RS5, and hell gladly trade both for a beat-up Cuda. Arguably the most iconic Pontiac Firebird in history. When I was a kid I thought they were the same person. The scene where Sheriff Justice's car has the door knocked off by a passing . The film features the custom clothing and costuming of Niver Western Wear of Fort Worth, Texas. While watching the movie (yes, I did have to diligently research this article), one shot seemed to indicate this may be a dummy scoop. In the original script, Carrie was called Kate while Big Enos and Little Enos were called Kyle and Dickey. and the Dixie Dance Kings, and Burts car was a 57 [56?] I know that Trans Am that jumped that bridge broke the axle when it landed. HotCars covers all things automotive: the latest auto news and informative reviews on the car, pickup truck and motorcycle industries. [5], Universal Studios bankrolled Smokey and the Bandit for $5.3 million, figuring it was a good risk. Thats all well and good, and it worked smooth as silk for a good while. He paid $550,000 for it, likely a record for any Pontiac Firebird. All I know is, at the time, if you lived in the east, Coors was some really special beer not unlike microbrews are now. In the movie . We gonna do what they say cant be done Director Hal Needham convinced Pontiac to feature the Pontiac Trans Am in the movie. In the U.K., the heavily dubbed version was shown for several years, particularly by the BBC. The uncut version is the best. My family did all grocery shopping in Cape. I looked at a Bluesmobile worthy 1977 Plymouth Grand Fury, the big ones, it was an ex Florida Highway Patrol car, but it had a pretty good amount of rust and it was pretty beat. That parking lot was full of Trans Ams! Likely this isnt any rare engine venting package, but I could be wrong. AWESOME! And all of us easterners suddenly discovered it was nothing more than another Budweiser/Miller/etc. And Coors itself limited its distribution to west of the Mississippi. It just seems wrong to see that car in any fashion without hearing that song. A guy we knew drove his half-ton pickup from western WA to his reserve 2-week stint in his home state in California. Ive always wanted some sort of de-commission/ex unmarked cop car, something from the 70s preferably. [18] A 1974 Time magazine article explains that Coors was so coveted for its lack of stabilizers and preservatives, and Coors Banquet Beer had a brief renaissance. Olds 88. Gas was a buck a gallon at the time so fuel economy wasnt a major issue. Most reports of his death still didnt have that right! This movie was filmed in Georgia as well. Her groom? Burt Reynolds once claimed in an interview that there were actually 12 Trans Ams featured in Smokey and the Banditand he wrecked every one. Smokey and the Bandit was the second highest-grossing domestic film of 1977 in the United States. Always a favorite. The truck at the shell station is actually a 75 or 76 Toyota Hilux. In its place was the nonsensical scum bum. The voice over actor? I think more of Smokey and the Bandit II and the awful part 3 were filmed largely in Florida, I dont know if I-75 construction was started by 1976-77, at least the section down to Miami part, when they filmed. thebandit77transam 2009-04-14 14:04. andre1969 wrote Pontiac supplied 5 brand-new cars for "Smokey and the Bandit". If I recall correctly, Firebirds in general (along with Camaros) were selling well prior to 1977, but the Trans Am was not the best-selling one. Bill Justis is the first name on the credits for the soundtrack, as he composed and arranged original music throughout the film. Did I mention how much I enjoy reading all the back stories and niggly details I can only get here ? ARRGH! The Bandit's car was a second-generation Trans Am and the prize for completing the run was a new truck rather than $80,000. They destroyed all those cars in the films he said. So these kind of represented a rebellion attitude to the government mandated diesel econo hatches everyone thought we were going to be forced to drive in the 80sinterestingly 1979 was also the best year for the Corvette too. Burt Reynolds may be 79, but he shows no signs of slowing down. The pair arrive in Texarkana one hour early and load up the truck, but just as they head back, Carrie, a runaway bride, intercepts Bandit and jumps in his car, unwittingly making him an indirect target of Sheriff Buford T. Justice, a career Texas lawman whose witless son Junior was to have married Carrie. I know, Ive owned a 75 for 23 years. It made no sense to me as it was fifty miles north and fifty miles south. Cause theyre thirsty in Atlanta Some weren't that lucky and were discontinued altogether. It was a powerful car, and I was glad to be issued it as my range car instead of one of the new but already disintegrating 1985 Oldsmobiles supplied by a local dealer that most people had. On top of Burt Reynold's top-notch acting, Smokey and the Bandit is also famous for the Pontiac Trans Am that the actor drove throughout the film. This small modification was made to remind viewers of Trans Am models from 1969, which had in excess of 300 horsepower. Not all the police cars had hood scoops. Along the way they tussle with tough as nails Texas Sheriff Buford T. Justice (Jackie Gleason), pick up a runaway bride nicknamed Frog (Sally Field), and have all kinds of awesome times on the highway. Here's What We Know So Far, Jonathan Majors On Getting Jacked To Play Kang The Conqueror: Hes In The Avenger (Weight) Class, How 90 Day Fianc: The Other Way's Kris And Jeymi Might Have Already Spoiled Their Storyline, Why Creed IIIs Michael B. Jordan Avoided Saying Action Or Cut On The Set, Young Sheldon's Iain Armitage Reacting To Surprise Video From Survivor's Jeff Probst Is Like Sheldon Cooper Meeting Leonard Nimoy. Oh, and a hooker girlfriend that looked like Annie Potts. The cashier never batted an eye as she sold us the mass quantities of suds. Remember that Smokey and the Bandit was the 2nd biggest movie of the year, right after Star Wars. 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. The hood scoop on these cars says "6.6 LITRE", which, in 1977, would have denoted an Oldsmobile 403-equipped car or a non-W-72, 180 hp version of the 400 Pontiac engine. As Fred Flintstone was modeled off Ralph Kramden, the Jackie Gleason character from the 1950s television showThe Honeymooners, the tone and intonation of the dubbing was highly convincing. Smokey and the Bandit star Burt Reynolds passed away in 2018 . It airs on cable tv all the time. [5] Sally Field only accepted the part after her agent advised her that she needed a big movie role on her rsum. The sound came from a 1955 Chevrolet Custom, the same car that was used in Two-Lane Blacktop and American Graffiti, films launched in 1971 and 1973, respectively. They called out equipment like Radial Tuned Suspension, Calibrated Speedometer, and Power Disc Brakes. Maybe even the dual exhausts and the 400-4 merited badges. Some of the more recent DVD releases of it redid all of the engine sounds and it sounds much more mellow than the original(not happy about that). With the Smokey and the Bandit actor gone, and the impact the actor had on the Trans Am community, having one of the few connections to him destroyed is too much. Jackie Gleasons Buford T. Justice character is a supposedly an amalgamation of a few characters, including the real Buford T. Justicethere is obviously the Dodge safety sheriff from the 1970s ads, Burt Reynolds father was chief of police of Jupiter Florida, and a friend of his fathers, a Florida Highway Patrol officer was actually the REAL Buford T. Justice. Other sources in East Texas (from whence Sheriff Justice hails) are familiar with the popular regional delicacy known as the Diablo Sandwich. I have since moved on from them, mainly because in stock form, they were not particularly great cars (though good enough for the times). Nothing annoys him more than car electronics, and he just hates it when performance cars lack a third pedal. There was a true concern (for some minuscule reason) about it going east of the Mississippi River. Despite growing up next to Cape, most of relatives are from the Mid-South. 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. MN12 Thunderbirds had the same appeal to me, for similar reasons. One time a friend and I drove back to Kentucky on leave rather than flying; no particular reason, we had plenty of time and wanted to see some of the country. Film critic Leonard Maltin gave the film a good rating (3 stars out of a possible 4) and characterized it as "about as subtle as The Three Stooges, but a classic compared to the sequels and countless rip-offs which followed". American Brands: AMC, Jeep and All Others, Tractors, Lawn Mowers, Off-Road Equipment, CC Outtake: The CC House, and With a New Recent Exotic Addition, CC TV Outtake: This Used Car Commercial Didn't Make It On The Air, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cODPt3T0cHE.

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