Under the hood of the incredible Trans Ams used for the film sat a 400 ci V8 engine, which pushed out somewhere in the realm of 200 horsepower. The scene where Carrie (Frog) announces her ending the relationship to Bandit was written by Sally Field, who was about to break up with Burt Reynolds at the time. With a big hood and a ton of power under the hood, the truck is inspired by a twin turbocharged Cummins< /b> hauled, with the occasional truck hauling a 3408 Cat instead. He enlists the help of fellow truck driver Cletus The Snowman Snow, played by country music singer Jerry Reed. 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 Bandit's car was a second-generation Trans Am and the prize for completing the run was a . The three Mini drivers in the film myself, Barry Cox and Richard Essame drove three Minis back from Turin, all in a line, all racing along, all 20-year-old boys being stupid. 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. The name / word "Smokey' is C.B. 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. The . Nah, they survived by coming up with bras with very thin cups. It was a sort of quasi-documentary so I had to find the exact vehicles that were used in the Great Train Robbery. Call Of Duty 4 Max Takes On The Raiders In Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior. When he sees Charlotte in tears, Bandit finally comes to his senses and apologizes. I drive a conversion van. 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. Around the 23 minute mark Burt Reynolds breaks the fourth wall when he looks into the camera and says "She still loves me" referring to Sally Field's character Carrie (Frog). DS: I had done a movie called Robbery where Id supplied all the cars. At the beginning of the film, Sheriff Buford T. Justice stands in front of a church named "Texarkana Reformed United Evangelical Fundamental Church of God, the Twelve Apostles and Assorted Saints.". Is It Better to Do a Face Mask at Night or in the Morning? 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. Pontiac should have made a radio that played that song automatically simply by pushing a button, or maybe made it the horn sound. 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. The 'Smokey and the Bandit' Trans Am was a 1976 model, and three were destroyed. Luckily, both cars survived, and the Trans Am became famous only five years later. There is a Basset Hound in the Smokey and the Bandit movie series. That was the end of that. We pick the brains of stunt driver-turned-actor David Salamone. Im gonna barbecue your ass in molasses., Re: The picture with 4 ladies and the wagon and van. He and Cora literally grew up together. Whaddya expect outta a guy what drives a conversion van? 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. The 1977 Firebird Trans Am, once owned by Burt Reynolds, fetched $495,000 at a Barrett-Jackson auction on Saturday. Gleason probably wanted too much money to provide the dubbing, which is a shame because it ruins the TV version. 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. How long does it take to replace ignition coil? 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. Alan Reed was the original voice of Fred Flintstone; Henry Corden only took over after Reeds death in 1977. This website is made by BBC Studios Distribution. Id be surprised. Even today when I stumble across this cinematic masterpiece being rerun on cable tv, Ill watch the entire thing. Haul my wife and four shelter adoptee mutts in it. Round and dumpy, just like the Colonnade LeMans! NY 10036. Unfortunately he passed away a few months ago or that would have been a great question to ask. Burt Reynolds recently revealed the ridiculous number of Pontiac Trans Ams they went through filming 1977s Smokey and the Bandit. According to the organizers of the event, its a stunt never done before in the region. Web. I grew up in Illinois, within eyeshot of the banks of the MIssissippi River, and ten miles from Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Mr. Reynolds made a bunch of low budget films before this , all had wild chase scenes with cop cars crashing & going into swamps . In addition to the four Trans Ams, Needham also received two Pontiac LeMans models to serve as patrol cars in the movie. I have always loved this movie, watched it dozens and dozens of times on TV, video, DVD, laserdisc, almost any form of media. 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. The dog, Fred, was personally picked by lead actor Burt Reynolds because it refused to obey commands. How many cars did they wreck in Smokey and the Bandit? And how did you as stunt drivers get on with the big-name actors that you were working alongside? Jackie Gleason's scenes were filmed first because he was ill and he wanted to be finished with the movie as soon as possible. Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. 2 The Mini Cooper Chase In The Italian Job. Buford intends to call for help from his brothers Reggie, a Mountie Sergeant in Quebec, and Gaylord, an effeminate Texas State Patrolman. Smokey and the Bandit II was filmed simultaneously with The Cannonball Run, in which Burt Reynolds and Dom DeLuise also starred. It was also shown in the background during the first Smokey and the Bandit (1977) movie. The roundup sequence in the desert shows many new Pontiac Le Mans sedans decorated as police cars being destroyed. RCMP constable Reginald Van Justice and the woman with whom he sings are supposed to lampoon Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald. . 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. The film was written and produced before it was announced that the 1980 Republican National Convention would be held in Detroit rather than Dallas. A CC for a 1973 Grand Ville convertible can be found here. While watching the movie (yes, I did have to diligently research this article), one shot seemed to indicate this may be a dummy scoop. What Happens When 50 Ml of Water and 50 Ml of Alcohol Are Mixed? This movie came out during my early formative years pre grade school. My drivers ed driving range car was an ex-patrol colonnade Pontiac LeMans Enforcer. Here is the LeMans; Gleason literally drives the wheels off: As an aside, heres a curious bit of trivia. I prefer Buford T. Justices 1980 Pontiac Bonneville and his 1983 Pontiac Bonneville in Smokey and The Bandit III. Both of his sons have also worked add elephant trainers. Thats all well and good, and it worked smooth as silk for a good while. I also own a Etrl replica of the Pontiac Bonneville Buford T. Justice drove in Smokey and The Bandit II. 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 third-generation Firebird was introduced in 1982, a full two years later than planned. The movie made everyone believe that the Trans Am was a 1977 model. So, it seems apt to end on this one, how was that final cliffhanger scene filmed? 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. Reynolds replied: We went through 12. Here, he drives a silver and blue 1980 GMC General. Torque numbers were a lot higher at around 320 ft/lbs. After failing to get the outgoing governor's endorsement, Big Enos overhears him on the phone ordering a crate in Miami to be delivered in nine days to the Republican National Convention in Dallas. Why isnt Burt Reynolds in Smokey and the Bandit 3? I went to police stations and got photos, all that nonsense. How many cars did they wreck in the Blues Brothers movie? Amazing how a combination of desire and unobtainability can make an ordinary product special. The two escape by crossing a makeshift trailer bridge with Buford and his brothers in pursuit. You want to questions bra sales, check out the youtube video of Hang on Sloopy by the Mccoys, the color version.wowza! It seems Plymouth was in a distant second for product placement. The roundup sequence in the desert shows many new Pontiac Le Mans sedans decorated as police cars being destroyed. Movies like Mad Max: Fury Road and Furious 7 may ruin a lot of cars, but they were far from the first. He then tells her that he has not yet taken Charlotte to Dallas, but they can still make it. Reynolds was the top box office draw from 1975 to 1982, then his movies really started to go downhill. At the time, it was illegal to transport Coors east of the Mississippi River and a series of other truckers had been apprehended for trying to accomplish this feat for the Burdettes. The scoops were added by the department because the engines ran so hot. A world-record automobile jump was captured on film during the "roundup sequence", when stuntman Gary Davis jumped a 1974 Dodge Monaco over 150 feet. Some people have ripped this film as being thin on plot; others have called it a documentary about life south of the Mason-Dixon Line. 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. However, Reynolds only makes a small cameo in the second sequel. Duarte or maybe ir was Arcadia , it was white with a red & blue pinstripe , we dropped $400 (an ungodly sum back then) on a re paint and pin striping but could _not_ sell that wretched POC , it took us two years IIRC . Both the 1976 and '77 models had a similar body except for a few bumper and grille modifications. Anyone with insight is encouraged to share their knowledge on this. The MASSIVE year over year sales gains came from somewhere. Coors was legal in Missouri and illegal in Illinois. The group arrive at the pier in Miami only to find out the manifest is quarantined for three weeks. Hes fodder enough for his own article at some point. 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. Although 1977 models also featured 6.6-liter engines, they were rated at only 200 horses. It was practiced and worked at first, then hed modify things if it wasnt quite right. Football players Joe Klecko and Terry Bradshaw also appear in both films. What was your favourite stunt to be involved in? According to Motorious, there are four Trans Ams in the film, but three were destroyed. His personaround, dumpy, and clipping wordsreminds one of another fictional southern sheriff. The films are indeed classic and very funny to this day. The film received almost completely negative reviews from critics who felt that it suffered badly in comparison to the original. Other than Jackie Gleason upstaging every other cast member, the perceived star of the show is this 1977 Pontiac Trans Am. 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. Great fun! Thank you for signing up to CinemaBlend. What Trans Am was in Smokey and the Bandit 2? I will confess, however, that it was a fun movie to watch and I have caught it on TV a time or two in recent years with my kids. Always a favorite. Later that night, a drunken Bandit makes his drawing a reality, and Doc agrees that his idea will work. And it was worth it for the brand, as the nameplate sales decided following the redesign. In Smokey and the Bandit, there were eight 1977 Trans-Am cars and approximately the same number of police cars (but some said ten). I didn't do the river crossing, which I was pleased about because I cant swim. A guy we knew drove his half-ton pickup from western WA to his reserve 2-week stint in his home state in California. I remember reading somewhere that one of the cars was equipped with a 455 for some of the higher speed scenes. About two seconds after this picture was taken, these motorcycles were doing their best imitation of a stack of pancakes. When the sequence was concluded, US $250,000 worth of vehicles had been smashed. Just do a search for Crown Victorias on your local CL. In fact, after Smokey and the Bandit became a box office hit, Pontiac saw a marked increase in their stock prices. That said, an uncomplimentary accent does exist. 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. To give the 1976 model the look of the upcoming vehicle, the automaker installed the bumper of the 1977 Pontiac. Why Is It Important to Break the Vacuum Seal Before Turning Off the Vacuum? It was a quick, quick bodge, but thats the car that went over the cliff. The film was a . The movie featured a number of American country and western music stars who acted in the movie as well as sung. 12/14 A Total Of 3 Trans Ams Were Destroyed During Filming via iconic premier Out of four Trans Ams used for the filming of Smokey And The Bandit, three were completely totaled in the process. Charlotte, the Asian elephant in Smokey and the Bandit II, was portrayed by an elephant named Cora. The singular form of the word is ''smokey''. Another one is, Theres no way youre from my loins.. Originally I was taken on as a stunt coordinator in addition to supplying all the cars, but while I was running around finding them, they found Rmy Julienne. 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. En route, they stop at a remote fuel station and notice something wrong with Charlotte. Behind Sheriff Justices Pontiac, there is a nice looking 1965 or 1966 Ford Mustang fastback and a Toyota pickup. Not a bad deal, but on the fourth year, no new car. Anyone who enjoys Colonnade sedans will love Smokey & the Bandit. So lets explore this car (and truck) heavy flick, all while giving those who have not seen it a glimpse into a movie whose complexity and intellect remains unparalleled within the history of cinema. Radio slang for any member of Law Enforcement. 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