Jalopnik: General Lee

Original General Lee Up For Auction, Time To Sell The Meth Lab

Matt Hardigree — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 13:30:00 EDT

There were roughly 300 authentic General Lee Chargers used in the original Dukes of Hazzard and we assume that, eventually, all the ones that aren't completely trashed will end up going for sale at an auction. And while everyone seems to have a story like "it was used in episode #76 in which Bo and Luke accidentally kill a hobo," there's only one original General Lee. The 01 of 01. The car from the original jump in the credits and the one to feature the famous "dual flag" design has been fully restored and can be yours if you've got a love of classic television cars and disposable income that you were probably just going to end up blowing on blackjack. Press release below.

duPont REGISTRY SHOWCASES RESURRECTED AMERICAN ICON
St. Petersburg, Fla. (March 2008) - The duPont REGISTRY™: A Buyers Gallery of Fine Automobiles celebrates its 23rd anniversary by offering the original General Lee car seen in the opening credits of "The Dukes of Hazzard." The restored car has been brought back to its original state though a few scars remain including a crack in the windshield incurred when it jumped a police cruiser during the opening credits.

"We feel privileged to have such an iconic car featured as part of our April issue," says Tom duPont, Publisher of the duPont REGISTRY™. "A total of 309 cars were utilized during the filming of 'The Dukes of Hazzard' but Lee 1 is the first, the original and 'The Classic'."

A 1969 Dodge Charger, Lee 1 is powered by a big block 383 engine and still retains many of its original parts thanks to meticulous restoration work which took 16 months to complete. Remnants from its celebrity days also remain: the original parking permit for Los Angeles Southwest College seen in the pilot episode, the label next to the VIN which reads "Lee 1", and the twin flags which are unique to the original Lee have all been preserved making this unique car priceless to collectors.

Restoration enthusiasts, luxury connoisseurs and Hazzard fans will all be thrilled to see the exclusive Lee 1 in the April issue of the duPont REGISTRY™: A Buyers Gallery of Fine Automobiles which hits newsstands March 18. For more information about Lee 1, visitGeneralLeeEnterpirses.com.

[Source: duPont Registery]

Dukes Of Hazzard Replica Stolen, Cooter Not Ruled Out As Suspect

Matt Hardigree — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 13:00:00 EST

In the spirit of them Duke boys, a renegade in Ronkonkoma, NY made off with a 1969 Dodge Charger General Lee replica (complete with Confederate battle flag and everything). The car was reported stolen at about 10:00 pm yesterday and was found abandoned at around 7:00 am the next day. We have a couple of theories about what happened. Either the person stole the car expecting to go for a big of a joy ride and then dump the General before getting popped, or they realized that even Rosco P. Coltrane could find a bright orange Charger in Ronkonkoma and quickly abandoned the vehicle. Either way, looks like these good ole' boys have gotten away so far. [Newsday]

Are These The Most Memorable TV Cars?

Matt Hardigree — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 10:00:00 EST

We occasionally see lists of the best television cars pop up on the Internet, and we always find ourselves at a loss to understand why people feel the need to limit themselves to just ten. A good list should probably come in closer to 30, so it's not just predictable choices like K.I.T.T. and the Batmobile. The list below isn't a bad attempt, though we're sad to see the Ferrari Daytona from Miami Vice didn't make the cut. Anything else missing?

Top Ten Most Memorable TV Cars

10. The Beverly Hillbillies' Truck
9. Starsky's 1975 Ford Gran Torino
8. The Original Batmobile
7.1983 GMC G-Series A Team Van
6. Thomas Magnum's Ferrari 308 GTS From Magnum P.I.
5. The Flintstones' Flintmobile
4. The Vista Cruiser from That 70's Show
3. The Car From My Mother The Car
2. The Original K.I.T.T.
1. The General Lee

[Internet Broadcasting via WKMG]

Fifth Gear Races General Lee Against Starsky & Hutch Grand Torino

Ray Wert — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 15:15:00 EDT

This week's episode of Fifth Gear featured an epic battle of 'merican muscle. Specifically, we get to watch Vicki Butler-Henderson take a couple laps in two automotive icons of TV — the General Lee and the Starsky & Hutch Ford Torino. All we've got to say is watching that Charger chug down the straightaway, barely nicking 100 MPH makes us uber-glad for today's HEMI-fied SRT8. Be that as it may, we'd probably still trade our left arm for one.

01 Number 01: The First General Lee

Davey G. Johnson — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 15:30:00 EST

Inside Line, new home of the Loverman, has the story of the first General Lee — the example that leaps Rosco's cruiser at the close of the Dukes of Hazzard's opening credits. Hastily assembled by a crew at Warners' the O.G. Lee was in sad shape when Travis Bell located the car in the yard of a Georgia transmission shop. After exchanging hands a number of times, Marvin Murphy commissioned Bell, co-founder of the North American General Lee Fan Club, to spearhead the restoration effort with the words, "Travis, if someone spray-painted the Mona Lisa, someone would have to restore it. You're that man." And really, how can one argue with that? – Davey G. Johnson

The Resurrection of the General Lee [Inside Line]

Just Four Good Old Tires: General Lee Audi Drift Spectacular

Mike Spinelli — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 13:27:20 EDT

The gang at Autoblog sent this one over, though too late to be Hoon of the Day. Still, this vid, featuring an Audi 4000 Quattro in General Lee livery, is too good to wait until tomorrow. Oh, the tiremanity.

[via Autoblog]

The Most Unlikely Half Mill Never Spent: The General Lee-Roy

Mike Spinelli — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 17:30:08 EST

Holy crap. We'll bet even Sports Car Market didn't see this one coming. It appears the General Lee-Roy Geo Metro — a diminutive take on the "Dukes of Hazzard" General Lee — is reserve-met at $450,100 on the ol' eBay. Top that you dang old Hemi 'Cudas. (Someone must be 'a funnin'.) [Thanks to Brian for the tip.]

1997 Geo : Metro Geo General Lee [eBay]

Related:
VetteCamino on eBay! [internal]

Insert 1st 12 Notes of 'Dixie' Here: NYT Hops on General Lee Bandwagon

Davey G. Johnson — Fri, 12 Aug 2005 14:27:57 EDT

A prime indicator of when or if something's reached critical mass is if the New York Times decides to pick up the story. Orange '69 Dodge Chargers have now reached critical mass. While Dr. Jim Sirotnak's General is a 318-powered ex-stuntcar from the show, few actual TV cars remain, leading to the rise of shops that actually specialize in General Lee conversions, like Smith Brothers Restorations in Washington. But for all the love these repro-Lees get from the proletariat, vintage Mopar aficionados still turn up their noses at the customized B-bodies; as North American General Lee Fan Club honcho Travis Bell says, "They absolutely hate us." It's okay, Travis, they hate Steve Strope, too. [Thanks to CTE and Brady for the tip]

Redux of Hazzard: The General Lee Flies Again [New York Times]

The Reviews Trickle In: Response to 'Dukes' Mixed

Davey G. Johnson — Fri, 05 Aug 2005 13:19:46 EDT

We've been alternately dreading and anticipating the new Dukes of Hazzard film. Burt Reynolds? Yes! Willie Nelson? Yes! Johnny Knoxville? Sure. Stifler? Uh... Jessica Simpson? D'oh. But the reason we're probably going to go see it is our fetish for flying orange Dodge Chargers and with Rhys Millen behind the wheel of the General, the driving will be necessarily fantastic.

The Dukes was the first show besides cartoons and Children's Television Workshop programming that we loved as a young child, so we were excited to see what our favorite film critic, Slate's David Edelstein, thought of it after seeing CNN's incredibly negative review, calling it "a car wreck with boobs" which actually sounds like a good time to us. Not a fan of the original show (for shame David!), Edelstein seemed to like the movie just fine, but was disappointed by the under-sexualization of Simpson's admittedly incredible gams, as well as Reynolds' portrayal of Jefferson Davis Hogg. But we all knew that Sorrell Booke's suit is hard to fill in more ways than one, even given Reynolds' impeccable Gator/Stroker Ace/Bo "Bandit" Darville credentials.

'Dukes of Hazzard' is Roadkill [CNN]

Hazzard Payoff [Slate]

I'll Blow Your Doors Off Drivin' My General Lee: Movie Inflates '69 Charger Prices

Davey G. Johnson — Thu, 04 Aug 2005 17:16:36 EDT

The mighty Deke Dickerson once sang, "I'm living low, but I'm gonna be livin' larger/I'm gonna buy myself a '69 Dodge Charger/I'll fix it up as nice as it can be/And I'll blow your doors of drivin' my General Lee." The Untamed Youth recorded that for a Gearhead magazine 7" years ago (it's still available on Gearhead's Runnin' On Fumes compilation CD), but 'ol Deke's sentiment seems to have caught up with the rest of the world. Due to the marketing frenzy whipped up by the new Dukes of Hazzard film, '69 Chargers have skyrocketed in price from around 28k to over $43,000 since January. While it remains to be seen whether this is a bubble or not, we recommend getting your mitts on a '77 Trans Am now, before the inevitable 30th anniversary hoopla drives the price of Bandits into the stratosphere.

General Lee promoted: 'Dukes' leads charge for Chargers [Tucson Citizen]

New Dodge Charger "General Lee" For "Sale" on eBay

Mike Spinelli — Wed, 03 Aug 2005 18:10:51 EDT

The boys at CustomSouth created a "Submit Best Offer" auction on eBay to publicize its upcoming 2006 "General Lee" Dodge Charger R/T conversion, ahead of a proper auction to be held on Friday, August 5, opening day of the "Dukes of Hazzard" movie. The buy-it-now price for the newfangled General has been set at $49,000, which puts the customized version close to $20,000 more than a base R/T's sticker — though an unknown quantity compared to dealer prices. [Thanks to Robert for the tip.]

2006 Dodge : Charger GENERAL LEE [eBay]

Top Fuel General Lee Gets Airborne: Clay "Bo" Millican Just Fine After Crash

Davey G. Johnson — Tue, 19 Jul 2005 11:32:58 EDT

The blowover: One of the most absolutely spectacular ways to crash a vehicle. We once heard from a vintage Can-Am car owner about an incident involving legendary racers George Follmer and Denny Hulme. Hulme's car (presumably a McLaren) got light in the front while Follmer was following him and pitched up in the air. Follmer, faced with three choices, could either brake, keep going as he was, or hammer it and try to sneak underneath Hulme's flying racer. He hammered it, scooting underneath Hulme and gaining a position. Both men survived, largely thanks to Follmer's cojones. While IHRA Fuel pilot Clay Millican's blowover last weekend in Milan, MI, at the Dukes of Hazzard Motor City Nationals, only involved his own car (General Lee-themed, we might add), it's amazing to watch. What's more, Millican was uninjured in the wreck, which occured at over 200 MPH. This Julie Sword photo captures the drama perfectly. For more, click on, good buddies.

Clay Millican's Wild Ride [IHRA]

Behind the Leaping Lee: Making the General Jump for the Camera

Mike Spinelli — Mon, 06 Jun 2005 10:08:41 EDT

Ever wonder what kind of stunt riggings made the big-screen "Dukes of Hazzard" remake possible? No, we don't mean Jessica Simpson's gingham boulder-holders — its the system of pneumatic cylinders, pulleys and cables that made the General Lee's signature jumps, sans driver, possible. The New York Times found out how stunt coordinators got the 1969 Dodge Charger to go from 0 to 60 in less than two seconds and fly on autopilot. All in one take.

A Car that Flies on Autopilot [The New York Times]

"Dukes of Hazzard" Dailies, Volume One: Drifting the General Lee

Mike Spinelli — Fri, 20 May 2005 09:37:32 EDT

Ok, so this is the only production clip from DoH we've seen (feel free to send others if you find them). Still, ya'll can keep your figure skaters and ballet divas. Give us a stuntman, a 1969 Dodge Charger, two good 'ole boys never meanin' no harm, and a well-executed four-wheel drift around a busy traffic circle. Beats all you ever saw. [Thanks to Ryan for the tip.]

General Lee [ben.loaded.net]

Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 07 Oct 2004 18:30:05 EDT

First the movie, then the return of the Dodge Charger, now this here vid. Seems them Duke Boys done got themselves in a heap 'a residual checks. Y'all stick around ta see how this'n turns out. Y'hear?

The Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee [All Game]