I ended up buying a 1969 Cadillac ambulance a year later! Because of the popularity of the film and the sales success of the Trans Am, the president of Pontiac Alex Mair promised to supply Reynolds with a Trans Am each year. [8] Niver provided much of the western attire worn in the film, as well as the custom-made sheriff's uniforms (waist size 64") that Gleason wore throughout the film. But would the black and gold T/As be as desirable today without the movie? 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. 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. After the movie did well, Pontiac gave Burt a free Trans Am to drive for a few years. I also own a Etrl replica of the Pontiac Bonneville Buford T. Justice drove in Smokey and The Bandit II. Gleason probably wanted too much money to provide the dubbing, which is a shame because it ruins the TV version. One of our favorite movies. . Two units were 1974 models, as evidenced by standard silver Kenworth emblems on the truck grille, and one unit was a 1973 model, as evidenced by the gold-painted Kenworth emblem on the truck's grille, signifying Kenworth's 50 years in business. 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. 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. Funny that T/A isnt on the movie poster, considering it was the obvious star of the show. He's a proud member of the TopSpeed team since early 2014. Oh, and a hooker girlfriend that looked like Annie Potts. Probably the most interesting thing about this movie and Burt Reynolds is that he is not originally a Southern boy at all he was actually born in the Wolverine State Lansing, Michigan to be precise. Gas was a buck a gallon at the time so fuel economy wasnt a major issue. [12] The area around Helen, Georgia, was used for some locations. As a former Club Wagon pilot, I happen to like his Econoline. The sticker read "T/A 6.6," which was a reminder of the engine's 6.6-liter displacement. When Smokey & The Bandit first aired on television in the early 1980s, the Gleason phrase "sum bitch"-a regional butchering of "son of a bitch"-had to be dubbed out. I did help a friend rebuild a late 60s 400 to replace the anemic 301 in his 79, Trans Am. When I was a kid I thought they were the same person. 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. Were they dummies? Revisit this scene featuring "East Bound and. The Pontiac Firebird Trans Am from Smokey and the Bandit is one of the most famous movie cars of all time. I just dont like car novices that assume the Pontiac T/A was soley a movie tie in car and the it started in 1977.. and used hard. Because sales were so high, Pontiac decided to delay the third-generation model. [11] The movie was primarily filmed in Georgia, in the cities of McDonough, Jonesboro, and Lithonia. I loved the fact that Jackie Gleasons brown Lemans had a blue vinyl interior and it even had the luxury cushion steering wheel! I know that Trans Am that . The third-generation Firebird was introduced in 1982, a full two years later than planned. As luck and script writing would have it, Frog has left her groom at the altar. From living there for my first two decades, I noticed the accent didnt get going good until around Sikeston (not Saxton as it would seem) and it progressed as you went deeper into the Bootheel. Depends upon what he converted it from. Below is probably another DeKalb County cop car. Regular film-goers might not pay much attention to the car's engine sound, but gearheads will quickly notice that something is off. Chevy almost did the same with its counterpart, the Camaro. For Smokey and the Bandit II (1980), Needham asked for and received 10 Trans Ams and 55 Bonnevilles with no trouble. [28] However, this is inaccurate; within seconds of Bandit picking her up, Frog tells him "there is a wedding in search of a bride" and goes on to explain her ill-advised romance with Junior, as the Bandit holds up the CB mic for the Snowman to hear. Another one is, Theres no way youre from my loins.. Smokey and the Bandit was one of the most iconic movies of the 1970s. It had not been used for some time and was repainted for the film. Im pretty sure that the car that barks second when he takes off with Frog had to be a stick. 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. Always loved this movie growing up. 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. The film was followed by two sequels: Smokey and the Bandit II (1980) and Smokey and the Bandit Part 3 (1983). (Still). Just do a search for Crown Victorias on your local CL. 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. This movie was filmed in Georgia as well. Great article! Thats all true. That girl from the McCoys video probably looks like Paula Deen now. At the drive-in of all places. The Trans Am was a high-performance package for the Firebird, Pontiac's take on the Chevrolet Camaro. Jackie Gleason ad libbed a lot of his lines too. A Pontiac wagon from earlier in the decade. Was it a heathen? Well, the Corvettes success is clearly due to Corvette Summer, @Jim I remember that movie! All I know is, at the time, if you lived in the east, Coors was some really special beer not unlike microbrews are now. http://www.imcdb.org/vehicle_301466-Ford-LTD-II-1977.html. The Trans Am used in the movie was a 1976 model with the front end of a 1977 car. If you somehow managed to miss Smokey and the Bandit in the years between the films 1977 release and now, you should rectify that situation immediately (to be fair, it was released two days after Star Wars, so its understandable if it slipped through the cracks). 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 . Luckily, both cars survived, and the Trans Am became famous only five years later. The Bandit Run quickly became a fixture, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the movie with a special 2017 screening of the film attended by Reynolds and a recreation of the jump undertaken by the Bandit and Frog across a river. The next movie, Smokey and the Bandit II, featured the same cast and an updated version of the Trans Am.The second version of the Smokey and the Bandit car was a 1980 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am that had a similar paint job, the updated front end, and gold "Turbine" style wheels.The 1980 models featured a turbocharged 4.9L Pontiac V8, but that still wasn't enough power for the stunt personnel. [17], In 1977, Coors was unavailable for sale east of Oklahoma. Burt Reynolds recently revealed the ridiculous number of Pontiac Trans Ams they went through filming 1977s Smokey and the Bandit. But while the cars shown in the movie look like 1977-model-year Trans Ams, they were actually 1976 models. 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. They return one minute after their time limit, but instead of taking the payoff, Carrie and Bandit accept a double-or-nothing offer from Little Enos: a challenge to run up to Boston and bring back clam chowder in 18 hours. I have since moved on from them, mainly because in stock form, they were not particularly great cars (though good enough for the times). I enjoyed the hell out of my 1976 Dart Pursuit. During this time, the Firebird also surpassed sales figures of the Chevrolet Camaro. I'm afraid I was responsible for a good few of those. Let me get the popcorn for this one. I had a 78 Trigger lookalike for a while in the mid 90s, until a wrist pin went out, ended up selling it to one of my brothers buddys uncles. Reynolds was the top box office draw from 1975 to 1982, then his movies really started to go downhill. The value of their stock rose a startling 70 percent after the films release, and to show their appreciation to Reynolds, the president said they would give the actor a new car each and every year. Other sources in East Texas (from whence Sheriff Justice hails) are familiar with the popular regional delicacy known as the Diablo Sandwich. News . Free shipping for many products! The secrets behind the cars and stunts in 'The Italian Job'. However, the scene and the obscured expletive were played for comedy value and written as such, with the passing truck being the gag of the scene more than a way to avoid the censors. [35], The "diablo sandwich" ordered by Sheriff Justice in the Arkansas barbecue restaurant scene has entered popular culture as a minor reference to the film. Lets take a look at some more cars found in the movie. The site's consensus states: "Not much in the head but plenty beneath the hood, Smokey and the Bandit is infectious fun with plenty of car wrecks to keep your eyes glued". His expletive is obscured when a passing big rig sounds its horn. 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. February 27, 2023 . The roller coaster in the movie was the Greyhound. 1-Smokey and the Bandit-The classic, the original, and the best one by FAR. A blackguard? Reynolds is referenced by name in several early episodes of the series. Two cars were reportedly badly damaged in early stunts in the film, while a third car was completely destroyed during the famous bridge jump scene. The dubbed version isnt as bad as the Remastered Blu-ray. He gave Needham a preview of the song and, getting no reaction, offered to rewrite it. A CC for a 1973 Grand Ville convertible can be found here. how many cars were destroyed in smokey and the bandit 2. Needing a fast set of wheels to distract law enforcement, Reynolds character purchases this 1977 Pontiac Trans-Am. 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). This gives rise to various continuity errors with Justice's patrol car, which during some chase sequences is shown with a black rear fender, which then reverts to the car's bronze color again in later scenes. As if GM owes them something. Producers of Smokey and the Bandit wrecked 26 cars while filming the movie in 1977. They find local legend Bo "Bandit" Darville at a roadeo at Lakewood Fairgrounds and offer him US$80,000 (equivalent to $357,738 in 2021) to haul 400 cases of Coors from Texarkana (the closest place it could be legally sold at that time) to Atlanta in 28 hours. Before Gleason was cast in the film, Richard Boone was originally considered for the role of Buford T. 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. Buford, with Junior along, ignores his jurisdiction and doggedly chases Bandit all the way to Georgia to retrieve Carrie while various mishaps cause his cruiser to disintegrate on the way. This movie trailer gives you an taste of this provocative film, but fails to effectively capture all the subtleties and nuances it contains. Alan Reed was the original voice of Fred Flintstone; Henry Corden only took over after Reeds death in 1977. When Smokey and the Bandit first aired on American network television in the early 1980s, censors were faced with the challenge of toning down the raw language of the original film. It outsold its Chevrolet Camaro counterpart for the first time. Comments The remaining Smokey and the Bandit Trans Am is currently owned by Florida car collector John Staluppi. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1975 Plymouth Fury Police Pursuit Arkansas State Police "Smokey and The Bandit" at the best online prices at eBay! In Smokey and the Bandit, there were eight 1977 Trans-Am cars and approximately the same number of police cars (but some said ten). It cornered amazingly well for such a large car, but the posi rear end emitted ominous sounds so I passed on it (I was in college and didnt have any place to do major repairs). It airs on cable tv all the time. 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. His personaround, dumpy, and clipping wordsreminds one of another fictional southern sheriff. I dont know if I ever saw one in real life at the time, although I was pretty young then. 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. 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. And back then what I wanted most of all was a highly customized Vette with exposed headlights. 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. Burt Reynolds plays truck driver Bo Bandit Darville. The man does get around. Burt Reynolds as the Bandit can always count on the truckers on the other end of his C.B. Many people believed beforehand that the film was not right for . Here are 20 facts about the Trans Am from Smokey and the Bandit. The movies are rated PG with a run time of 282 minutes and released to video by Universal Studios. . I really enjoyed this discussion. Good silly fun. Smokey and the Bandit star Burt Reynolds passed away in 2018 . 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. I was just tweaking Jason. 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. He paid $550,000 for it, likely a record for any Pontiac Firebird. The original Blues Brothers movie from 1980 is a classic, and fans were excited when a sequel was announced in 1998. . Anyone with insight is encouraged to share their knowledge on this. Filmmakers destroyed 230 cars in the filming of 'Furious 7.' Smokey And The Bandit: A Car-chase Classic. In response, Needham told Reed that he liked the song so much that if Reed changed even a word or a note, Needham would "choke him". A series of four made-for-TV spin-off films (Bandit Goes Country, Bandit Bandit, Beauty and the Bandit, and Bandit's Silver Angel) were produced in 1994 for Universal Television's Action Pack with actor Brian Bloom playing a younger version of the Bandit. ARRGH! Except that shes not sagging. Just after re-entering Georgia, Snowman is rescued by Bandit after being stopped by a Georgia State Patrol motorcycle trooper, and state and local police intensely pursue Bandit with roadblocks and a helicopter to track his movement. Ask him to choose between a BMW M4 and an Audi RS5, and hell gladly trade both for a beat-up Cuda. 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. [6] It would become one of Reed's biggest hits and his signature song.[7]. HotCars covers all things automotive: the latest auto news and informative reviews on the car, pickup truck and motorcycle industries. I distinctly remember my mother buying Coors and being asked if she lived in Missouri or Illinois by the cashier. Likely this isnt any rare engine venting package, but I could be wrong. Jason, Using the words nuance, subtlety, complexity and intellect to describe this movie, is, as they say, trs amusant! According to director Hal Needham in the DVD documentary, Pontiac gave them three Trans-Ams and two LeMans (Sheriff Justice's patrol car) for the film. Some weren't that lucky and were discontinued altogether. That came out in 1981. After passing Buford's badly damaged cruiser on the roadside, Bandit gets on the CB and initially directs him to the Burdettes, but then respectfully gives his real locationright behind Buford, who continues his chase leaving Junior behind, and with more parts falling off his cruiser as he limps off after Bandit.