Late American film and television actor, director & producer,Burt Reynolds played the lead role ofBo Darville, aka the Bandit, in Smokeyand the Bandit. 13 Awesome Movies With Beverly Hills Cop Vibes - MSN Portraying Sheriff Justice's witless son, Henry used his impressive size during the film's many physical comedy sequences. As Reynolds recalled, "The fact that Gleason's career was coming to an end as Mr. Television on one side and starting again in movies." His music has found a new generation of fans, and the documentary "Paul Williams Still Alive" gave his work and career some much overdue respect. Anderson had numerous roles in film and television throughout his long career, including a bit part in "Smokey and the Bandit II.". They return with one minute remaining on their time limit, but instead of taking the payoff, Carrie and Bandit accept a double-or-nothing offer from Little Enos: a challenge to run up to Boston and bring back clam chowder in 18 hours. The real life friends appeared in multiple films together, including the "Cannonball Run" series and "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." 2 on the country charts, stayed on for 16 weeks, and became an anthem for truckers everywhere. A movie star, a TV star, and a country music star rounded out the main cast of Smokey and the Bandit, and musician Jerry Reed gave a surprising performance in the film. Best known as a writer for "The Tonight Show," Pat McCormick's most memorable big-screen role was playing Big Enos Burdette in "Smokey and the Bandit." He was 72 years old. It was the first of several Reynolds and Hal Needham films, and the director helped create some of Reynolds' most iconic characters. ", If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Also Read |What Time Does 'The Dig' Release On Netflix? Smokey and the Bandit Cast and Crew - Cast Photos and Info However, the scene and the obscured expletive were played for comedy value and written as such, with the passing truck being the gag of the scene more than a way to avoid the censors. Mike Henry obituary: actor and NFL player dies at 84 - Legacy.com Read about Smokey and the Bandit cast to knowaboutthe Smokey and the Bandit characters in detail. Gleason died of liver cancer on June 24, 1987, at the age of 71. When Sally Field was cast in "Smokey and the Bandit, her career was enjoying a dramatic upward trajectory. On "Smokey and the Bandit II," he plays Dr. Frederico "Doc" Carlucci, an Italian gynecologist helping Bo and Cledus transport a pregnant elephant from Texas to Florida. The directorial debut of stuntman Hal Needham, the film follows Bo "Bandit" Darville (Reynolds) and Cledus "Snowman" Snow (Reed), two bootleggers attempting to illegally transport 400 cases of Coors beer from Texarkana to Atlanta. You really like me." Field is also known for her roles in the films Smokey and the Bandit, Forrest Gump and Lincoln, along with her Tony-nominated stage work. 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. He received numerous awards in his lifetime, but sadly passed in 2013 after being diagnosed with cancer.Smokey and the Bandit came out in 1977, and the cast starred Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams and Mike Henry. Gleason had spent decades on both the big and small screen before Smokey and the Bandit, and Sheriff Justice was something of a renaissance for the veteran actor. Reynolds died of cardiac arrest on September 6, 2018, at the age of 82. Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox would bring several cases after playing on the West Coast, by stashing them in the equipment trunks on the team's plane. They quickly escape in one of Big Enos's 13 Cadillacs as police flood the racetrack. Is anyone from Smokey and the Bandit still alive? - Wise-Answer Field then went on to acclaimed performances in the dramas "Norma Rae," which won her first Academy Award, "Absence of Malice," "Places in the Heart," which won Field a second Oscar, "Steel Magnolias," "Forrest Gump," "Mrs. Doubtfire," and "Lincoln." Thankfully, we have the work to remember them by. (as Mark Mansbridge) Set Decoration by SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT (1977) Cast Members Then And Now We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right,contact us! Henry was first drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers, and played for the team from 1958 to 1961. By using our Services, you agree to our use of cookies. As played by Jerry Reed, Cledus appeared in all three "Smokey and the Bandit" films, eventually becoming the Bandit in the third entry. McCormick's size paid off as the Ghost of Christmas Present in the Christmas Carol adaptation Scrooged in 1988. Smokey and the Bandit Cast Then and Now (2020) - YouTube Two sequels followed, 1980's "Smokey and the Bandit II" and 1983's "Smokey and the Bandit Part 3." It is now sold in all states as Coors ships it in refrigerated train cars and bottled locally and sold in different parts of the country including the eastern US states. She won her third Emmy Award in 2007, for her portrayal of Nora Walker. After Brothers & Sisters went off the air in 2011, Field returned to the big screen with the 2012 summer blockbuster The Amazing Spider-Man. [5] Reynolds revealed in his autobiography that Needham had written the first draft script on legal pads. How Old Were the Actors - Smokey And The Bandit (It was almost going to be titled"Smokey Is the Bandit."). His comeback reached a peak with Paul Thomas Anderson's "Boogie Nights." She struggled with the feeling that she would never be considered a serious actress, and the show only magnified that fear. The second film was a modest box office success, earning $66.1 million against a $17 million budget. Two-time Academy Award-winning American actor,Sally Field played the role of Carrie in this 1977 film. He started acting more regularly in the 1970s, popping up in films like "The Shaggy D.A.," "Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson," and "A Wedding." Besides established stars, the film was something of a coming-out party for Sally Field, and her award-winning career got the boost it needed from the blockbuster. He was 82. He currently lives in Los Angeles and pursues writing full time. The original Smokey and the Bandit truck can be found in the state of California. The story replaced the Coors beer with Mobil 1 products. DeLuise first made a name for himself with roles in Mel Brooks comedies, co-starring with Brooks and Marty Feldman in"Silent Movie," and turning in high energy performances in"The Twelve Chairs,""History of the World, Part 1," and "Blazing Saddles," where he directed the memorable musical number "The French Mistake. ", Other notable big screen credits include the blaxploitation action film "Cleopatra Jones" and the urban comedy "Uptown Saturday Night." He gained a whole new generation of fans playing the title role in "The Big Lebowski" and appearing in the "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" Christmas special. This new part of her transformation also included divorcing her husband in 1975. The site's consensus states: "Not much in the head but plenty beneath the hood, Smokey and the Bandit is infectious fun with plenty of car wrecks to keep your eyes glued".[27]. (Yeager had a cameo in that film as well.) "Smokey and the Bandit" came out in the summer of 1977, and became the second highest-grossing film of the year, right behind "Star Wars." He passed away in 2008, and has since been inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.Jackie Gleason played Sheriff Buford Justice, or Smokey. But it was "Smokey and the Bandit" that cemented Reynolds' status as an A-list actor, and a sex symbol for women all over the world. Smokey and the Bandit II is a 1980 American action comedy film directed by Hal Needham, and starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jerry Reed, Jackie Gleason and Dom DeLuise. During their run, they are pursued by Texas county sheriff Buford T. Justice (Gleason). Smokey and the Bandit was one of the biggest surprise hits of the 1970s, and its cast was packed with superstars and future icons of the screen. Field received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2014. Mike Henry - IMDb 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. "We had so much fun," he recalled. They find local legend Bo "Bandit" Darville at a rodeo at Lakewood Fairgrounds and offer him $80,000 to haul 400 cases of Coors from Texarkana (the closest place it could be legally sold at that time) to Atlanta in 28 hours. Surprisingly, the cast and crew only had to use three Trans Am cars throughout the entire film. Many of Reynolds' most iconic roles came before he got behind the wheel of Bandit's Trans Am, and he would land many more before his career was over. [9] Though the film Moonrunners (1975) is the precursor to the television series The Dukes of Hazzard (19791985), from the same creator and with many identical settings and concepts, the popularity of Smokey and the Bandit and similar films helped get the Dukes series on the air. Her pregnancy was hidden on the series using creative shots and the folds of her billowy nun's habit. From left, Sean Bailey, portraying Sheriff Buford T. Justice, Jay Hernandez, Bryan Ogburn, and Tim Phillips, portraying Bandit, pose for a photo Friday at Smoke Point restaurant in Texarkana,. 10 Most Influential Drive-In Movies Of All Time, Field had given some of her best performances, Every Major Award Won By 80 For Brady's Main Cast, 10 Best Performances By Athletes (In Movies That Aren't About Sports), The Most Memorable Quotes From Smokey And The Bandit, We Still Haven't Seen Dune's Weirdest Creature, Star Wars Dodged A Bullet: Latest Rumors Suggest Lindelof Would Have Repeated Sequel Mistakes, All 13 Bruce Lee Movie Villains (& The Martial Artists Who Played Them). You can view additional information about each Smokey and the Bandit actor on this list, such as when and where they were born. I never heard him say an unkind word about anyone. Besides sporadic TV spots as himself on various talk shows, Gleason appeared in one of the best Richard Pryor movies when he co-starred in the 1982 comedy film The Toy. Earlier DVD releases and the 40th Anniversary Blu-ray of the film have the original soundtrack intact. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. It was being towed around by another vehicle. The movie star's friends, according to Reynolds in his autobiography, "got down on their knees with tears in their eyes and begged me not to do it." 3. 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. ZOO AND YOU: Topeka Zoo is home to famous Asian elephant - KSNT 27 News The Burdettes' car is a 1974 Cadillac Eldorado convertible painted in a "Candy Red" color scheme and is seen briefly at the beginning of the movie and in the final scene as the Bandit, the Snowman, Fred the dog, and Frog use it to make their escape. He was an athletic professional football player at the time he entered the He obtained the attention of studios and aimed the film at a more mainstream release after his friend Reynolds read the script and agreed to portray the Bandit, with Reed now portraying the Bandit's friend the Snowman. Most remembered for starring in one of the best sitcoms of all time in the form of The Honeymooners, Jackie Gleason was the most accomplished member of Smokey and the Bandit's cast by far. He succumbed to the disease and from complications from CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy) on January 8, 2021, at the age of 84. Among his many memorable roles was that of rascally outlaw Bo Darville, who appeared in all three "Smokey and the Bandit" films (albeit as only a cameo in the third and final entry). But it was as Big Enos Burdette, a wealthy Texas conman who enlists the Bandit (Burt Reynolds) to bootleg some Coors beer from Atlanta, that he became a household name. According to the legend, test audiences reacted poorly, and so the Bandit scenes were re-shot with Jerry Reed playing the role. Henry had already played Tarzan in the 1960s film trilogy, and even appeared alongside Burt Reynolds in the unrealistic sports movie The Longest Yard in 1974, but Smokey and the Bandit was Henry's biggest hit. Reed also penned and performed the song for the opening credits, entitled "The Legend", which tells of some of the Bandit's escapades before the events of the film, and the ballad "The Bandit", which is in several versions in the movie and on the soundtrack. Today, he focuses on music and he is the president and chairman of the ASCAP.Laura Lizer Sommers played Little Beaver, which started her career of playing the desirable female role in a number of films. There was, however, one "promotion" car that traveled hither and thither to plug the movie, which had an initial budget of $1,000,000 and ended up . Often nicknamed "The Great One," Jackie Gleason is of course best known as Ralph Kramden from the all-time comedy classic "The Honeymooners." The country music legend died in 2008 at the age of 71. The new Hot Pants scene had to quickly be refilmed as a part of a second unit in the San Fernando Valley and was shot at a drive-in restaurant near Hansen Dam named Baby Beef Burgers, which has since been demolished. Henry died in 2021 at the age of 84. And drank. In the U.K., the heavily dubbed version was shown for several years, particularly by the BBC. The third film which had no involvement from either Hal Needham or Sally Field and contained only a short cameo appearance by Burt Reynolds revolved entirely around Jackie Gleason's character, was panned by critics, and was a box office bomb, earning only $7 million against a $9 million budget.[41][42][43].