Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Wondering About The General Lee.

General Robert E. Lee was the commander of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia.

No, I am not talking about that Robert E. Lee but this Robert E. Lee depicted in this painting:

Yep, it shows a typical chase by the local sheriff who was under the control of the evil Boss Hogg.  I remember that show, The Dukes of Hazard, very well and enjoyed watching it although I knew no automobile could withstand the terrible and exciting stuff that they put that car though and survive.

Do you remember the three who usually rode in that car?  Yep, they were Bo and Luke along with their cousin, Daisy.  Here is a picture of all three of them and the famous car:

 These characters along with Uncle Jesse made up most of the cast, along with Waylon Jennings who sang the theme song, but the most famous member and the one that got the most fan mail, was the car, The General Lee.

Here is a composite picture showing many of its huge, huge jumps.

No car could take that kind of punishment and survive.  Even though the cars used as The General Lee had beefed up suspension and a protective push bar on the front, they demolished at least one car per episode.  The producers sent people out to purchase all the Dodge Chargers they could find around the 1969 vintage.  They also loaded the trunk with either concrete or lead weight to keep the car from flipping over during the long jumps, and they tampered with the brakes to allow it to allow it to make those 180 degree turns.

Do you remember the tune that the car's horn played?  It was the first 12 notes of "Dixie".  To me, it was a silly show, but fun to watch.  Yes, I watched it and I bet some of you did, too.  Now if you venture out today don't drive like the Dukes but be safe and have a great day, you hear?

P.S., the reason I wrote about them today is that on this day in 1978, the General Lee made its first jump over a police car and that jump (16 feet high and 82 feet long) made TV history. 

20 comments:

  1. Like you i watched it a few times, was silly to me too

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    1. It was silly but fun. I did watch it and got a few laughs out of it.

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  2. My boys and all their friends loved that show. I always watched it with them, and I liked it too.

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  3. They had quite the collection of those cars. I wonder how many idiots tried to drive their cars like that. I knew a few. :)

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    1. A lot of idiots did, for sure. In fact those dodges where quite a hot seller because of that show. I had a friend who had a Plymouth Road Runner and he took it to Don Garlits and had his mechanics make it into a super car. What impressed me was it was even able to get traction on wet roads. What a ride!!!

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  4. I think they had about 10 or so of the cars.. I remember back in the late 80's one of them was on tour with Boss Hogg actor at the Monster Truck Show in Green Bay. My nephew has a pic posing with them... it's a treasure to an 8 year old boy back then!

    Also Katherine Bach who played Daisy is now starring on a daily soap Young and the Restless as the money-greedy never-do-well mom to Chelsea... she helped scheme her daughter into getting preggers from a rich boy to gain a hefty increase in living conditions. LOL

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    1. The car builders involved with the show say there were 256 General Lees, others claim about 321. Yep, every huge jump ruined the car.

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  5. Uncle Jesse made a good Mr Darling , head of the Darling clan, long before The Dukes.

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    1. Oh yes, on the Andy Griffith Show. Hay, I liked them, they played blue grass music.

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  6. "The" in the title gave it away.....

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    1. Yes I know. I didn't want to make it too hard to guess what I was going to write about. . . (grin)

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  7. AH YES, Daisy. The last episode of the show was almost 30 years ago and Daisy Shorts are as popular as ever. She sure make her mark on American culture.

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    1. It is hard to believe that it was that long ago. Time sure does fly, and the older I get the faster it goes.

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  8. Hey, can I get a credit for the use of my General Lee artwork here please?
    Thanks

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  9. My Dukes of Hazzard painting features so strongly on your page here I think I deserve a credit!
    motoringartist.com/product/general-lee/

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  10. I used to work as a Radiographer in an E.R. at a hospital in Southeastern Pa., on the night shift. One night coming in on my 11-7 shift, I saw a General Lee parked in the night shift lot ! I couldn't believe my eyes! Being on the smaller staff night shift, in a smaller hospital, I was able to ask around, and found it belonged to a resident physician, who, on his off hours, presided as the President of a local D.O.H. fan club ! He talked about the car, and told me he took it around to parades and charity events and such. Pretty cool !

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