But would the black and gold T/As be as desirable today without the movie? There are an abundance of cars in this movie. Today, Smokey and the Bandit remains one of the most popular car action films ever made, and the 1977 Pontiac Trans Am will forever be wed to the movie. A dastardly scoundrel? how many cars were destroyed in smokey and the bandit 2 While the initial concern was it having a regional appeal, it would ultimately play as well in New York City and Chicago as it did Atlanta, Georgia, or Biloxi, Mississippi. 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. How Many Police Cars Were Destroyed In Blues Brothers Nothing annoys him more than car electronics, and he just hates it when performance cars lack a third pedal. Gleasons Justice is the stereotypical Southern sheriff, as seen in this clip. NY 10036. The film was a sleeper hit, and following a poor initial performance, it went on to gross $126.7 million in North America, versus a budget of only $4.3 million. He claimed that the Bandit is never made aware of Frog's leaving Junior at the altar, which is why the Bandit continually asks why a Texas sheriff is chasing him. Jesus, did you just call Carmine a car novice? [21], Smokey and the Bandit was a sleeper hit. 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. 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. Anyone who enjoys Colonnade sedans will love Smokey & the Bandit. Lets take a look. 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. They retained the white steering wheels until 72 or so , just the thing to preveny burned fingers in the Desert sun . 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. Producers of Smokey and the Bandit wrecked 26 cars while filming the movie in 1977. Yet when I think of a 70s T/A, thats the one I and Im sure millions of other folks think of. February 27, 2023 . How did any bra manufacturers survive the 70s? Trio of Burt Reynolds movie cars fetch $330,000 at auction, including Frederick Amon smuggled it from Colorado to North Carolina and sold it for four times the retail price.[19]. Let us dissect this flick to better examine it. Check out the entire video below. It follows the adventures of a couple of truck drivers bootlegging Coors, which couldnt legally be sold East of the Mississippi River at the time. Here are 20 facts about the Trans Am from Smokey and the Bandit. [31] Smokey and the Bandit was released in the United Kingdom on August 28 and was a success there, garnering positive reviews. I know, Ive owned a 75 for 23 years. His personaround, dumpy, and clipping wordsreminds one of another fictional southern sheriff. 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. I was in the Air Force during this era, stationed in California. Were they dummies? Notify me of follow-up comments by email. 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. 46,000 in 1976, 68,000 in 1977, 93,000 in 1978, 117,000 in 1979. 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). The scene featuring the racetrack was filmed at Lakewood Speedway at the old Lakewood Fairgrounds on Atlanta's south side. 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. [11] The movie was primarily filmed in Georgia, in the cities of McDonough, Jonesboro, and Lithonia. I also own a 1:18 scale version of the Bandit Trans Am. The Pontiac Trans Am seems like a natural choice for Smokey and the Bandit, but the car was only a few inches close to not being used in the movie. Dodge pitchman Sheriff Joe Higgins. [27] In his review in the Chicago Tribune, Gene Siskel gave the film two stars and complained that the film failed to tell the audience when the clock started on the beer run, thus reducing suspense. The second film was a modest box office success, earning $66.1 million against a $17 million budget. CC Cinema: The Cars of "Smokey & The Bandit - Curbside Classic The movies are rated PG with a run time of 282 minutes and released to video by Universal Studios. Conversely, I could go to Paducah and be asked where up north I was from. Id be surprised. It had an AM transmitter and you would tune in the sound on your AM car radio, or on my case, on a transistor radio. In 1991, it was arranged for orchestra by Crafton Beck and recorded by Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra for their album Down on the Farm. He has no less than four movies listed as coming out, and they run the gamut from romantic drama to family comedy to horror mystery to action thriller. 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. 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. I am pretty sure it was filmed in Florida, when I-75 was under construction so they could use the highways while empty. [original research?] Somewhere along the line, the company acquired a new president who told Reynolds: Im the new president, and I dont like your movies. [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. It was the second-highest-grossing movie of 1977 after Star Wars. I drive a conversion van. It made no sense to me as it was fifty miles north and fifty miles south. If it wasnt for Smokey & the Bandit, the Dukes of Hazzard TV series would not exist. In 2006, a DVD re-release was issued of Smokey and the Bandit featuring a digitally remastered audio track with 5.1 Dolby-compatible surround sound. Everything You Should Know About The The Trans Am From Smokey And The Bandit, 10 Most Potentially Unreliable Electric Vehicles According To Consumer Reports, 10 Reasons Why It's Time You Should Buy A Bagger, Here's How Solid-State Batteries Will Change EVs Forever. Its lack of additives and preservatives meant that Coors could spoil in one week without refrigeration, explaining the film's 28-hour deadline. Smokey & The Bandit is the greatest movie of the 20th Century! I dunno about the Foley sounds, I have a T/A with a 400 and an open/no catalytic true dual exhaust, and it sounds really close to how the Bandit car sounds at idle during some scenes from the movie. Heres how it works. 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. In return, Reynolds portrayed Boss Hogg (originally portrayed by Sorrell Booke) in the film adaptation The Dukes of Hazzard (2005). How many cop cars were destroyed in Smokey and the Bandit? Jackie Gleason ad libbed a lot of his lines too. 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. I distinctly remember my mother buying Coors and being asked if she lived in Missouri or Illinois by the cashier. [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. 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. Naturally, it fetched the highest price with a . I always think scumbum because when I watched it as a kid in the early 90s, it was usually on TBS. 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. HotCars covers all things automotive: the latest auto news and informative reviews on the car, pickup truck and motorcycle industries. 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 . Smokey and the Bandit | 4K Ultra HD | The Bandit Takes a 28 Hour Trip 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 prefer Buford T. Justices 1980 Pontiac Bonneville and his 1983 Pontiac Bonneville in Smokey and The Bandit III. 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. . 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. Even when the 2nd gen was already coasting on fumes, and defanged, and after the reasonably shitty Smokey and the Bandit sequel, Pontiac managed to pump out 107,000 Trans Ams in 1980 and 70,000 for the 2nd gen Trans Ams swan song in 1981. A guy we knew drove his half-ton pickup from western WA to his reserve 2-week stint in his home state in California. No, the T/A was selling fine before the movie, and the black/gold package dates to 1976, a full year before the movie was out in summer 77. There was still a market for bras in the 1970s. New York, I was a junior high school age kid when this film came out. [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. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. I still regret selling mine almost 30 years ago. Burt Reynolds' 1977 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Sold for $240,000. Its weird how it works. And back then what I wanted most of all was a highly customized Vette with exposed headlights. [37], The first run in 2007 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the movie, The Bandit Run was the brainchild of Dave Hall, owner of Restore A Muscle Car. Whaddya expect outta a guy what drives a conversion van? In addition to the four Trans Ams, Needham also received two Pontiac LeMans models to serve as patrol cars in the movie. [12] The area around Helen, Georgia, was used for some locations. I recall reading somewhere that the Trans Am that did the bridge jump had a tweaked Chevy 350 in it with a stick, and of course that it was WO after the jump. All pictures from the movie were acquired from www.imcdb.org, Fred Lives!!! The Trans Am was already pretty popular in the mid-1970s, with sales hitting 68,745 units in 1977. Smokey and the Bandit is a 1977 American road action comedy film starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams and Mike Henry. January 24, 2019 100 comments. I agree, despite people saying you sound cute, it seems like they think Ellie Mae Clapett or Jethro Bodean. After the movie did well, Pontiac gave Burt a free Trans Am to drive for a few years. Most reports of his death still didnt have that right! That came out in 1981. The film's theme song, "East Bound and Down", was written virtually overnight by Reed. 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. The side vents give it away. For this purpose, they overdubbed dialogue deemed offensive, which was common practice. While it's sad that the other two cars were destroyed . Rob's Car Movie Review: Smokey and the Bandit (1977) - Street Muscle In the original script, Carrie was called Kate while Big Enos and Little Enos were called Kyle and Dickey. Watching TV and Movies you would think that sales dropped to nil. By the end of June, it had played in major Southern markets, including Charlotte, Atlanta, Jacksonville, New Orleans, Memphis, Dallas, and Oklahoma City, grossing $11.9 million. 14 Little-Known Facts About The Smokey And The Bandit Trans-Am - HotCars The remaining Smokey and the Bandit Trans Am is currently owned by Florida car collector John Staluppi. While the Snowman drives the truck carrying the beer, the Bandit drives a Pontiac Trans Am to distract law enforcement (called blocking) and keep the attention off the Snowman. [14] The Trans Ams were actually 1976-model cars with 1977 front ends (from 1970 to 1976, both the Firebird/Trans Am and Chevrolet Camaro have two round headlights and in 1977, the Firebird/Trans Am was changed to four rectangular headlights, and the Camaro remained unchanged). I was just tweaking Jason. Many people believed beforehand that the film was not right for . Jana, another oddity was that I could go to Carbondale and be asked where down south I was from. [4] Reynolds said in 2015 that he most enjoyed this film, and had the most fun making it, of his career.[26]. As Frog leaves, we are introduced to Sheriff Buford T. Justice, played by Jackie Gleason. Sally Field and Burt Reynolds began a relationship after meeting on set. So, for years one, two, and three, he got a shiny new Pontiac. There definitely was a halo cast around the 2nd gen F-body from its appearance in the movie, which I believe even did extend to the Camaro, which was probably the cheapest way to at least get some of the Bandit vibe, where there other factors too, probably, the 70s, disco, cocaine, mustaches and probably a bunch others.many thought that these car would be the last hurrah for anything performance oriented. How many cars destroyed Blues Brothers 2000? I have worked a long time to eradicate the one I had but it still crops up periodically from exposure, like you experienced. The most noted change made for network broadcast was the replacing of Buford's often-spoken phrase "sumbitch" (a contraction of "son of a bitch"; usually in reference to the Bandit) with the phrase "scum bum". I was in West Plains the other day and there is yet another variation of it there. How Many Cars Did Blues Brothers Wreck | Car Geek Your email address will not be published. Burt Reynolds as the Bandit can always count on the truckers on the other end of his C.B. Chevy brought back the Z28, and cant say S&B was reason. The LeMans police car did nothing for me because there was a colonnade LeMans sedan in the garage at home. 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). I know that Trans Am that jumped that bridge broke the axle when it landed. 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. The soundtrack album was released in 1977 on vinyl, cassette, and 8-track through MCA Records. Needing a fast set of wheels to distract law enforcement, Reynolds character purchases this 1977 Pontiac Trans-Am. The Smokey and the Bandit Car - Carsforsale.com At the time, Reynolds was the top box office star in the world. Mr. Reynolds made a bunch of low budget films before this , all had wild chase scenes with cop cars crashing & going into swamps . He enlists the help of fellow truck driver Cletus The Snowman Snow, played by country music singer Jerry Reed. 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. I will confess that by the time this movie was out, I was a Mopar guy. Even today when I stumble across this cinematic masterpiece being rerun on cable tv, Ill watch the entire thing. 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! Although 1977 models also featured 6.6-liter engines, they were rated at only 200 horses. Im east bound, just watch ol Bandit run.. Thats all well and good, and it worked smooth as silk for a good while. These Furys, as well as some of the LeMans units, have hood scoops. In its place was the nonsensical "scum bum." . "Buford T. Justice" was the name of a real Florida Highway Patrolman known to Reynolds' father, who was once Police Chief of Riviera Beach, Florida. She is a runaway bride, sitting on the side of the road in her 1973 Chevrolet Impala coupe. How much did the Smokey and the Bandit car sell for? I was to be paid a salary plus own 7% of the profits. As a former Club Wagon pilot, I happen to like his Econoline. Remember that Smokey and the Bandit was the 2nd biggest movie of the year, right after Star Wars. you can find it on amazon.com . Coors is still brewed just outside Denver, Colorado. If you watched the second clip above, this truck should look familiar. Sales of the coupe exploded after the film hit the silver screen and set unprecedented records for both Pontiac and the Firebird nameplate. A couple of years ago, I was sitting around on a lazy Saturday afternoon and it was on TV. A movie for the people, "Smokey and the Bandit" is more - Hagerty 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. . Needham originally planned the film as a low-budget B movie with a production cost of $1 million,[4] with Reed as the Bandit. Behind Sheriff Justices Pontiac, there is a nice looking 1965 or 1966 Ford Mustang fastback and a Toyota pickup. Sheriff Justices son, Junior. Out of four Trans Ams used for the filming of Smokey And The Bandit, three were completely totaled in the process. 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. Additionally, he can give you several reasons why theres still no replacement for displacement. It became Reed's signature song and is on multiple albums, including Country Legends and his live album Jerry Reed "Live!" Sure Smokey helped, but was not the sole reason T/A and F body sales went up. His father was also the inspiration for the word "sumbitch" used in the film, a variation of the phrase "son-of-a-bitch" that, according to Reynolds, he uttered quite often. 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. Director Hal Needham convinced Pontiac to feature the Pontiac Trans Am in the movie.