‘Dukes of Hazzard’ Stars Reunite & Talk Memories of the Famous General Lee Car
The stars of The Dukes of Hazzard — John Schneider (Bo Duke), Tom Wopat (Luke Duke) and Catherine Bach (Daisy Duke) — came together to celebrate the General Lee, a 1969 Dodge Charger that is now on display in ICONIC RIDES: A Drive Through Time, along with the car from Herbie: The Love Bug and Scooby Doo‘s Mystery Machine at The Hollywood Museum in Hollywood.
The General Lee on exhibit was used in three movies after the series ended: the TV movies The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion! (1999) and The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood (2000), and the theatrical film The Dukes of Hazzard (2005), starring Johnny Knoxville, Seann William Scott and Jessica Simpson, in which this version of the General Lee was the primary one used on camera. Steve Charger, the owner of the car, told ReMIND, “In the reunion movie, John [Schneider] mainly drove that car. Then in the second movie, where they go to Hollywood, [John] brought his own car and used it, but the car was still used as the secondary car.”
The stars share some rare inside knowledge about the General Lee
Credit: Mike Pingel
“Few people know that the General Lee was originally gray. They were going to paint it gray, as in the confederate gray,” Tom Wopat shared during a talk at the event. “But when they started to film in the countryside of Georgia, ‘Where’s the car?’ [Tom pointing and acting like he could not see the car]. So, they painted it orange, and then we got it into the air. I think it’s only fair to mention that the great preponderance of the action and excitement of the show should be credited to our stunt team.”
John Schneider added, “They say General Lee received 30,000 fan letters a month — I happen to know for a fact that General Lee only got 28,000 fan letters.”
Tom Wopat had a different relationship with the car, as he directed five episodes of the show during its sixth and seventh seasons. “I ended up directing half a dozen episodes,” he told the crowd, “and I can tell you that Dodge is beautiful from every angle — side, front, top, bottom, back. We shot every side we could, as much as we could. We had so much fun doing it.”
The Dukes of Hazzard was a stunt-heavy show, with car chases and crashes in every episode. A lot of effort went into ensuring such a high-octane production was also safe for the performers involved. Catherine Bach shared one such story with event attendees: “There was so much stuff behind the velvet rope that happened. We all became such a family; there were so many pranks. There was a guy that I’ll never forget [John points at Tom] — actually, it was his [Tom’s] friend, Gary Baxley [a stuntman on the show]. They said, ‘OK, we need you to do this scene and stand right here by the General Lee.’ Somehow, they got handcuffs on him, and they had the water truck spray him, soaking him. He froze to pieces! There were things like that behind the scenes that were so much fun.”
Credit: Mike Pingel
The General Lee now sits behind glass, alongside a huge poster of the original TV cast and many outfits used in the series, donated by cast members, while a large TV screen shows the best shots of General Lee from the show. If you look closely inside the car, there are Bo and Luke shirts — a nostalgic nod to whenever the Duke boys got in or out of the General Lee, often losing their shirts in the process!
The shirtless Dukes caught the eyes of female fans, just as Daisy Duke in her famous short Daisy Dukes drew attention from male fans. Catherine Bach shared this story about her iconic clothing: “As you can see, the show was a frat-boy/cowboy/bad-boy thing. There was one girl on the show. Because the producers didn’t know much about women — it was all guys — I got to do my own wardrobe. I made all my clothes on the show, including the shorts. My mother always wanted me to have something I could fall back on if acting didn’t work out, so I went to design school for two years. I can sew anything.”
Credit: Mike Pingel
Tom Wopat added: “We had the best stunt guys in the business. Before that show, you never saw a car commercial where they peeled out, got sideways or got into the air. After the car show [The Dukes of Hazzard], you started to see that.”
When these actors and longtime friends get together, it’s magic in a bottle — a family friendship that’s undeniable. Catherine Bach shared, “What would a Dukes of Hazzard reunion be without you standing here [Tom to her right] and you standing right here [John to her left]? To show you how much of a family we were — Mary Ellen, who was my stand-in, went on to be a big casting director in Hollywood. We had more fun … we didn’t get in trouble … maybe a little trouble. We traveled everywhere together, and we had a fantastic time.”
Credit: Mike Pingel
John Schneider reflected, “We had such a great time doing the show. I hope you can see the love and camaraderie we had for each other. CBS and Warner Bros. understood that because, in those days, they cast for chemistry. Occasionally it happens now, but it’s an accident. I don’t know what it was, but for some reason, they took great pains to figure out the right people to put together — and when they did, it was magic. I love that guy [points to Tom] and I love that girl [points to Catherine]. I love these people as much as anyone I share blood with. That’s why we’re here tonight, why General Lee is here tonight and why people celebrate this show — not time or politics trying to forget it. I’m so honored that this car is in this room at this crossroads because it means the audience matters — it’s the fans that matter. You don’t watch for us; we work for you.”
Credit: Mike Pingel
Tom Wopat shared a final memory: “The people involved in creating The Dukes of Hazzard — Gy Waldron and a bunch of terrific producers — kind of let us do what we wanted a lot of the time. Sometimes, John and I would have a scene in the car. They’d strap a camera to the side, give me the clapperboard, and John would take off. I’d clap it, we’d do the scene once or twice, and then we’d come back and say, ‘I think we got her.’ That’s how we shot stuff — it was amazing.”
If you want to check out ICONIC RIDES: A Drive Through Time, the Hollywood Museum is located at 1660 N. Highland Avenue, CA, 90028 (Hollywood Blvd. and N. Highland Ave.) and is open Wednesday-Sunday from 10am-5pm. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for seniors (62+), $12 for students with ID and $5 for children under 5.
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Stars & Cars
April 2018
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