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''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American
action comedy TV series Action comedy is a genre that combines aspects of action and comedy. The genre is most prevalent in film with action comedy films, though several TV series fit this genre. Film The action comedy film is a film genre that combines aspects of actio ...
that was aired on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
from January 26, 1979 to February 8, 1985. The show aired for 147 episodes spanning seven seasons. It was consistently among the top-rated television series in the late 1970s (at one point, ranking second only to ''
Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
'', which immediately followed the show on CBS's Friday night schedule). The show is about two young male cousins, Bo and Luke Duke, who live in rural
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
and are on
probation Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offender, ordered by the court often in lieu of incarceration. In some jurisdictions, the term ''probation'' applies only to community sentences (alternatives to incarceration), such ...
for
moonshine Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...
-running. The young men and their friends and their female cousin
Daisy Duke Daisy Duke is a fictional character, played by Catherine Bach, from the American television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. She is the cousin of Bo and Luke, the main protagonists of the show, and the three live on a farm on the outskirts of ...
, and other family (such as patriarch Uncle Jesse), have various escapades as they evade the corrupt county commissioner
Boss Hogg Jefferson Davis "J.D." Hogg, known as Boss Hogg, is a fictional character featured in the American television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. He was the commissioner of Hazzard County, and the county's political boss. Boss Hogg almost always wo ...
and law officer
Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane Rosco Purvis Coltrane is a fictional sheriff character who appeared in the 1975 film '' Moonrunners'', which inspired the creation of the American TV series '' The Dukes of Hazzard'' (and related spin-off films). In ''Moonrunners'', he was played b ...
. The young men drive a customized 1969
Dodge Charger The Dodge Charger is a model of automobile marketed by Dodge in various forms over seven generations since 1966. The first Charger was a show car in 1964. A 1965 Charger II concept car resembled the 1966 production version. The Charger has ...
nicknamed ''
the General Lee ''The General Lee'' (sometimes referred to as simply "the General") is an orange 1969 Dodge Charger driven in the television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' by the characters the Duke boys, Bo and Luke, along with cousins Coy and Vance (i ...
'', which became a symbol of the show. The series was inspired by the 1975 film ''
Moonrunners ''Moonrunners'' is a 1975 action comedy film starring James Mitchum, about a Southern family who runs bootleg liquor. It was reworked four years later into the popular long-running television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard'', and the two product ...
'', about a bootlegger family which was also created by
Gy Waldron Gyneth Markley "Gy" Waldron (born August 5, 1932) is an American screenwriter and director best known as the writer/director of the movie '' Moonrunners'', and creator of the television series, ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. Life and career Born in ...
and had many identical or similar character names and concepts. The show was the basis for a film of the same title in 2005.


Plot overview

''The Dukes of Hazzard'' follows the adventures of "the Duke boys", cousins
Bo Duke Beauregard "Bo" Duke (born circa 1957) is a fictional character in the American television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard'', which ran from 1979 to 1985. He was played by John Schneider. Bo and his cousin Lucas K. "Luke" Duke (Tom Wopat) live ...
( John Schneider) and
Luke Duke Lucas K. "Luke" Duke is a fictional character in the American television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' which ran from 1979 to 1985. Luke was played by Tom Wopat. Luke and his younger cousin Bo Duke live in an unincorporated area of the fictio ...
(
Tom Wopat Thomas Steven Wopat (born September 9, 1951) is an American actor and singer. He first achieved fame as Lucas K. "Luke" Duke on the long-running television action/comedy series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. Since then, Wopat has worked regularly, ...
) (including Coy and Vance Duke for most of season 5), who live on a family farm in fictional Hazzard County, Georgia (the exact location of which was never specified, though Atlanta was mentioned several times as the nearest big city), with their female cousin Daisy (
Catherine Bach Catherine Bach (born Catherine Bachman; March 1, 1954) is an American actress. She is known for playing Daisy Duke in the television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' and Margo Dutton in ''African Skies''. In 2012, she joined the cast of the CBS ...
) and their wise old Uncle Jesse (
Denver Pyle Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920 – December 25, 1997) was an American film and television actor and director. He was well known for a number of TV roles from the 1960s through the 1980s, including his portrayal of Briscoe Darling Jr. in se ...
). The Duke boys race around in their customized 1969
Dodge Charger The Dodge Charger is a model of automobile marketed by Dodge in various forms over seven generations since 1966. The first Charger was a show car in 1964. A 1965 Charger II concept car resembled the 1966 production version. The Charger has ...
stock car Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...
, dubbed '' (The) General Lee'', evading crooked and corrupt
county commission A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the county government in some states of the United States; such commissions usually comprise ...
er
Boss Hogg Jefferson Davis "J.D." Hogg, known as Boss Hogg, is a fictional character featured in the American television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. He was the commissioner of Hazzard County, and the county's political boss. Boss Hogg almost always wo ...
(
Sorrell Booke Sorrell Booke (January 4, 1930 – February 11, 1994) was an American actor who performed on stage, screen, and television. He acted in more than 100 plays and 150 television shows, and is best known for his role as corrupt politician Jefferson ...
) and his bumbling and corrupt
Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane Rosco Purvis Coltrane is a fictional sheriff character who appeared in the 1975 film '' Moonrunners'', which inspired the creation of the American TV series '' The Dukes of Hazzard'' (and related spin-off films). In ''Moonrunners'', he was played b ...
(
James Best Jewel Franklin Guy (July 26, 1926 – April 6, 2015), known professionally as James Best, was an American television, film, stage, and voice actor, as well as a writer, director, acting coach, artist, college professor, and musician. Duri ...
) along with his deputy(s), and always managing to get caught in the middle of various local escapades and incidents. Bo and Luke were previously sentenced to probation for illegal transportation of
moonshine Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...
; their Uncle Jesse made a
plea bargain A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendan ...
with the U.S. Government to refrain from distilling moonshine in exchange for Bo and Luke's freedom. As a result, Bo and Luke are on five years' probation and not allowed to carry instead, they often use
compound bow In modern archery, a compound bow is a bow that uses a levering system, usually of cables and pulleys, to bend the limbs. In general, compound bows are widely used in target practice and hunting. The pulley/cam system grants the user a mechan ...
s, sometimes with arrows tipped with or to leave Hazzard County unless they get probation permission from their probation officer, Boss Hogg. The exact details of their probation terms vary from episode to episode. Sometimes it is implied that they would be jailed for merely crossing the county line; on other occasions, it is shown that they may leave Hazzard, as long as they are back within a certain time limit. Several other technicalities of their probation also come into play at various times. Corrupt county commissioner Jefferson Davis (J. D.) "Boss" Hogg either runs, or has his fingers in, virtually everything in Hazzard County. Hogg is forever angry with the Dukes, especially Bo and Luke due to their habit of foiling his crooked schemes. Many episodes revolve around Hogg's attempts to engage in some such scheme, sometimes with the aid of hired criminal help. Some of these are
get-rich-quick scheme A get-rich-quick scheme is a plan to obtain high rates of return for a small investment. The term "get rich quick" has been used to describe shady investments since at least the early 20th century. Most schemes create an impression that partic ...
s, though many others affect the financial security of the Duke farm, which Hogg has long wanted to acquire for various reasons. Other times, Hogg hires criminals from out of town to do his dirty work for him, and he often tries to frame Bo and Luke as part of these plots. Bo and Luke always seem to stumble over Hogg's latest scheme, sometimes by curiosity, and often by sheer luck, and put it out of business. Despite the Dukes often coming to his rescue, Hogg never loses his irrational dislike of the clan, particularly Bo and Luke, often accusing them of spying on him, robbing or planning to rob him, or other nefarious actions. The role of Boss Hogg was played by
Sorrell Booke Sorrell Booke (January 4, 1930 – February 11, 1994) was an American actor who performed on stage, screen, and television. He acted in more than 100 plays and 150 television shows, and is best known for his role as corrupt politician Jefferson ...
, who performed frequently on radio, stage, and film prior to his role in ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. Boss Hogg is one of only two characters to appear in every episode of the series, the other being Uncle Jesse Duke. The other main characters of the show include local mechanic
Cooter Davenport ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy TV series that was aired on CBS from January 26, 1979 to February 8, 1985. The show aired for 147 episodes spanning seven seasons. It was consistently among the top-rated television series ...
( Ben Jones), who in early episodes was portrayed as a wild, unshaven rebel, often breaking or treading on the edge of the law, before settling down to become the Duke family's best friend (he is often referred to as an "honorary Duke") and owning the local garage.
Enos Strate ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy TV series that was aired on CBS from January 26, 1979 to February 8, 1985. The show aired for 147 episodes spanning seven seasons. It was consistently among the top-rated television serie ...
(
Sonny Shroyer Otis Burt "Sonny" Shroyer Jr. (born August 28, 1935) is an American actor and singer who has appeared in various television and movie roles. He is known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Enos Strate in the television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. ...
) is an honest, but naive young
deputy Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spai ...
who, despite his friendship with the Dukes (and his crush on Daisy), is reluctantly forced to take part in Hogg and Rosco's crooked schemes. In the third and fourth seasons, when Shroyer left for his own show, his character was replaced by Deputy Cletus Hogg (
Rick Hurst Richard Douglas Hurst (born January 1, 1946) is an American actor who portrayed Deputy Cletus Hogg, Boss Hogg's cousin, in the 1980 to 1983 seasons of ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' as well as '' The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!'' in 1997 and '' The Du ...
), Boss's cousin, who is slightly more wily than Enos but still a somewhat reluctant player in Hogg's plots. Owing to their fundamentally good natures, the Dukes often wind up helping Boss Hogg out of trouble, albeit grudgingly. More than once Hogg is targeted by former associates who are either seeking revenge or have double crossed him after a scheme has unraveled in one way or another. Sheriff Coltrane also finds himself targeted in some instances. On such occasions, Bo and Luke usually have to rescue their adversaries as an inevitable precursor to defeating the bad guys; in other instances, the Dukes join forces with Hogg and Coltrane to tackle bigger threats to Hazzard or one of their respective parties. These instances became more frequent as the show progressed, and later seasons saw a number of stories where the Dukes and Hogg (and Coltrane) temporarily work together.


Production

The series was developed from the 1975 film ''
Moonrunners ''Moonrunners'' is a 1975 action comedy film starring James Mitchum, about a Southern family who runs bootleg liquor. It was reworked four years later into the popular long-running television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard'', and the two product ...
''. Created by Gy Waldron in collaboration with ex-
moonshine Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...
r
Jerry Rushing Jerry Elijah Rushing (September 1, 1937 – July 23, 2017) was an American best known for his years as a bootlegger or "moonrunner" ( moonshine runner, "running" being a form of smuggling). Rushing was born into a family business making illega ...
, this movie shares many identical and very similar names and concepts with the subsequent TV series. Although itself essentially a comedy, this original movie was much cruder and edgier than the family-friendly TV series that evolved from it. In 1977, Waldron was approached by
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
with the idea of developing ''Moonrunners'' into a television series. Waldron reworked various elements from ''Moonrunners'', ultimately devising what became ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. Production began in October 1978 with the original intention of only nine episodes for a mid-season filler. The first five episodes were filmed in Covington and
Conyers Conyers is an Atlanta suburb, the county seat of and only city in Rockdale County, Georgia, Rockdale County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. The city is 24 miles (38.6 km) east of Atlanta, downtown Atlanta and is a part of t ...
,
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
and surrounding areas, including some location work in nearby
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
. After completing production on the fifth episode, "High Octane", the cast and crew broke for Christmas break, expecting to return in several weeks to complete the ordered run of episodes. In the meantime, executives at Warner Bros. were impressed by the rough preview cuts of the completed episodes and saw potential in developing the show into a full-running series. Part of this plan was to move production from Georgia to the Warner Bros. lot in
Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, w ...
, to simplify production as well as develop a larger workshop to service the large number of automobiles needed for the series. Rushing appeared as shady used car dealer Ace Parker in the third episode, "Repo Men" (the fourth to be broadcast). Rushing believed this to be the start of a recurring role, in return for which he would supply creative ideas from his experiences: many of the ''Dukes'' (and thus ''Moonrunners'') characters and situations were derived from Rushing's experiences as a youth, and much of the character of Bo Duke, he states to be based on him. However, "Repo Men" would turn out to be the character's only appearance in the show's run, leading to a legal dispute in the following years over the rights to characters and concepts. Despite this, Rushing remained on good terms with cast and crew and in recent years has made appearances at several fan conventions. By the end of the first (half) season, the family-friendly tone of ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' was mostly in place. When the show returned for a second season in
fall Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southe ...
1979 (its first full season), with a few further minor tweaks, it quickly found its footing as a family-friendly comedy-adventure series. By the third season, starting in fall 1980, the template which would be widely associated with the show was evident. As well as car chases, jumps and stunts, ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' relied on character familiarity, with each character effectively serving the same role within a typical episode. Deputy Cletus replaced Deputy Enos in Seasons 3 and 4, and Coy and Vance Duke temporarily replaced Bo and Luke (due to a salary dispute) for most of Season 5, but these were the only major cast changes through the show's run. Only Uncle Jesse and Boss Hogg appeared in all 145 episodes; Daisy appears in all but one, the third season's "To Catch a Duke." The General Lee also appears in all episodes except "Mary Kaye's Baby". The show was largely filmed in Hidden Valley in
Thousand Oaks, California Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, United States. It is in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles, approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown. It is named af ...
, with scenes also shot at nearby Lake Sherwood and also at
Paramount Ranch A movie ranch is a ranch that is at least partially dedicated for use as a set in the creation and production of motion pictures and television shows. These were developed in the United States in southern California, because of the climate. The fir ...
in nearby
Agoura Hills Agoura Hills () is a city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Its population was 20,330 at the 2010 census, which decreased to 20,299 in 2020. It is in the eastern Conejo Valley between the S ...
.


Episodes

The show ran for seven seasons and a total of 147 episodes. Many of the episodes followed a similar structure "out-of-town crooks pull a robbery or commit a crime or scandal, Duke boys blamed, spend the rest of the hour clearing their names, the General Lee flies and the squad cars crash".


Cast and characters


Main characters

* Lucas K. "Luke" Duke (
Tom Wopat Thomas Steven Wopat (born September 9, 1951) is an American actor and singer. He first achieved fame as Lucas K. "Luke" Duke on the long-running television action/comedy series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. Since then, Wopat has worked regularly, ...
), is the dark-haired, older Duke boy. More mature and rational than his cousin Bo, he is typically the one who thinks of the plan that will get the two out of whatever trouble they have gotten into. Luke wears a checked blue shirt (a plain blue shirt in most, though not all, second-series episodes) and a denim jacket over it in first season and a few later second-season episodes. He is a veteran of the
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
and a former boxer. Luke was the first Duke to perform the "hood slide" across the ''General Lee'', which is seen in the opening credits of the show (a shot taken from the second episode, "Daisy's Song"). According to Wopat the slide was an accident, because his foot got caught on the side of the ''General Lee'' when he attempted to jump across the hood; he also caught his arm on the hood's radio antenna, resulting in such antennas being removed from later versions of the ''General Lee''. However, the "hood slide" quickly proved popular and became a regular staple of the rest of the episodes. The only episode to directly reference the age difference between Luke and Bo is in the seventh season opener, the "flashback" episode "Happy Birthday, General Lee", where it is stated that Luke had already been in the Marines while Bo was in his last year at high school. Though Bo and Luke share the CB call sign "Lost Sheep", in the season one episode "Money to Burn", Luke refers to himself (singularly) as "Sittin' Duck". * Beauregard "Bo" Duke ( John Schneider) is the blonde-haired, younger Duke boy. He is more of the "shoot first, ask questions later" type than Luke, and is often the one to get the duo into the various scrapes in which they find themselves, although the character did mature slightly as the series progressed. In the first-season episode "High Octane", his actual first name is revealed to be Beauregard (as in Confederate General
Pierre Beauregard Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard (May 28, 1818 - February 20, 1893) was a Confederate general officer of Louisiana Creole descent who started the American Civil War by leading the attack on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. Today, he is commonly ...
). Bo is also more likely to have his eye, or heart, distracted by a pretty girl. Bo has a crush on many women in some episodes, which proves to be the
Achilles' heel An Achilles' heel (or Achilles heel) is a weakness in spite of overall strength, which can lead to downfall. While the mythological origin refers to a physical vulnerability, idiomatic references to other attributes or qualities that can lead to ...
that leads the Dukes into trouble in several episode plots. Bo usually wears a cream-yellow shirt; for the first two seasons he wears a blue T-shirt underneath (brown in the first episode). This was slowly phased out during the third season. An ex-
stock car Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...
driver, Bo is the one who drives the ''General Lee'' most of the time, with Luke
riding shotgun "Riding shotgun" was a phrase used to describe the bodyguard who rides alongside a stagecoach driver, typically armed with a break-action shotgun, called a coach gun, to ward off bandits or hostile Native Americans. In modern use, it refers ...
. He and Luke take turns of driving the ''General Lee'' in some episodes as they share the car with each other (very early episodes suggest that it belongs solely to him; Luke is said to have a car that Cooter had wrecked shortly prior to the start of the opening episode, "One Armed Bandits"). Bo is known for his
rebel yell The rebel yell was a battle cry used by Confederate soldiers during the American Civil War. Confederate soldiers used the yell when charging to intimidate the enemy and boost their own morale, although the yell had many other uses. No audio ...
, "''Yeeeee-haaa,''" which he usually yells when the ''General Lee'' is airborne during a jump. The Duke boys share the CB
call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...
or handle "Lost Sheep". *
Daisy Duke Daisy Duke is a fictional character, played by Catherine Bach, from the American television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. She is the cousin of Bo and Luke, the main protagonists of the show, and the three live on a farm on the outskirts of ...
(
Catherine Bach Catherine Bach (born Catherine Bachman; March 1, 1954) is an American actress. She is known for playing Daisy Duke in the television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' and Margo Dutton in ''African Skies''. In 2012, she joined the cast of the CBS ...
) is Bo, Luke, Coy, and Vance's cousin. She is beautiful, honest, and kind, although she can sometimes be slightly over-trusting and naïve, which has led the Duke family into trouble on a number of occasions. She sometimes aspires to be a songwriter and singer, and at other times, a reporter. She races around Hazzard with her cousins, first in a yellow and black 1974
Plymouth Road Runner The Plymouth Road Runner is a mid-size car with a focus on performance built by Plymouth (automobile), Plymouth in the United States between 1968 and 1980. By 1968, some of the original muscle cars were moving away from their roots as relativel ...
(later a 1971 Plymouth Satellite was used) and then, from mid-season 2 on, in her trademark white 1980
Jeep CJ-7 The Jeep CJ models are a series and a range of small, open-bodied off-road vehicles and compact pickup trucks, built and sold by several successive incarnations of the Jeep automobile marque from 1945 to 1986. The 1945 Willys Jeep was the world' ...
, christened ''Dixie'' with a golden eagle emblem on the hood (and the name "Dixie" on the hood sides). Daisy works as a waitress at the Boar's Nest, the local bar and
pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
owned by Boss Hogg, as part of an agreement with Boss Hogg so that he would give Uncle Jesse and the boys a loan for a lower interest rate so the boys could purchase the entry fee for a race in which they wished to race the ''General Lee''. The arrangement was supposed to be for an indefinite time, but there are several times throughout the series when Hogg fires her. However, he always ends up rehiring her at the end of each episode because of various circumstances. Although Hogg is a nemesis to Daisy and her family, she is friends with Hogg's wife Lulu. Daisy often uses her charming personality and sex appeal to influence male policemen or henchmen into going easier on other Duke family members and/or cause them to become too distracted to carry out their assigned duties or evil plans. Daisy also utilizes her position at the restaurant to get insider information to help the Dukes in foiling Hogg's various schemes. She also has the distinction of having her trademark provocatively high-cut jean short shorts named after her: "
daisy dukes Shorts are a garment worn over the human pelvis, pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" b ...
". Her CB handle is "Bo Peep". Occasionally, the variant of "Country Cousin" is used. * Jesse Duke (
Denver Pyle Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920 – December 25, 1997) was an American film and television actor and director. He was well known for a number of TV roles from the 1960s through the 1980s, including his portrayal of Briscoe Darling Jr. in se ...
), referred to by just about everyone in Hazzard other than Boss Hogg as "Uncle Jesse", is the patriarch of the Duke clan, and the father figure to all of the Dukes who stay with him on the Duke farm. Jesse apparently has at least five siblings but no children of his own, and he happily provides for his nephews and niece in the unexplained absence of all of their parents (Gy Waldron, the creator of the show, states on the DVDs that their parents were killed in a car wreck, but it was never mentioned in the show). In the third broadcast episode, "Mary Kaye's Baby", Jesse says that he has delivered many babies, including Bo and Luke. Jesse Duke, in his youth, had been a ridgerunner in direct competition with Boss Hogg, whom he always calls "J.D.". However, while both Boss Hogg and Uncle Jesse would scowl at the mention of the other's name, the two enjoyed a lifelong "friendship" of sorts, with one helping the other when in desperate need. Jesse educated his nephews against Hogg, and often provides the cousins with inspirational sage advice. Uncle Jesse drives a white 1973
Ford F-100 The Ford F-Series is a series of light-duty trucks marketed and manufactured by Ford since the 1948 model year. Slotted above the Ford Ranger in the Ford truck model range, the F-Series is marketed as a range of full-sized pickup trucks. ...
pickup truck. In the barn, he also has his old moonshine-running car, called ''Sweet Tillie'' in its first appearance (in the first-season episode "High Octane"), but referred to as ''Black Tillie'' in subsequent appearances. In the second-season episode "Follow That Still" and the sixth-season episode "The Boar's Nest Bears", the marriage to, and death of, his wife is mentioned; he also mentions marrying her in the first-season episode "Luke's Love Story". His CB handle is "Shepherd", a reference to his always seeking out and saving his "lost sheep"—Bo and Luke—from their various irresponsible mishaps. *
Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane Rosco Purvis Coltrane is a fictional sheriff character who appeared in the 1975 film '' Moonrunners'', which inspired the creation of the American TV series '' The Dukes of Hazzard'' (and related spin-off films). In ''Moonrunners'', he was played b ...
(
James Best Jewel Franklin Guy (July 26, 1926 – April 6, 2015), known professionally as James Best, was an American television, film, stage, and voice actor, as well as a writer, director, acting coach, artist, college professor, and musician. Duri ...
) is the bumbling and corrupt
sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...
of Hazzard County and right-hand man and brother-in-law of its corrupt county administrator, Jefferson Davis "J.D." Hogg ("Boss Hogg"), whom Rosco calls his "little fat buddy", "Little Chrome Dome", "Little Meadow-Muffin", and several other names. In the early episodes, it is mentioned that Rosco spent the first 20 years of his career as a mostly honest lawman, but after the county voted away his pension, Rosco joined Hogg in an effort to fund his retirement in his last couple of years as sheriff. Early episodes also portray him as a fairly hard-nosed, somewhat darker policeman character, who even shoots a criminal during the first season. As the series progressed and producers recognized how popular it had become with children, Best altered his portrayal into a more bumbling, comical character. By the end of the first season, his origin had been virtually forgotten (and his job as sheriff appeared to become open-ended). Rosco is also the younger brother of Lulu Coltrane Hogg (Boss Hogg's wife). Rosco frequently initiates car chases with Bo and Luke Duke, but the Duke boys usually elude Rosco by outwitting him, with Rosco typically wrecking his patrol car as a result from which he would nearly always escape unscathed (only two episodes—the fourth season's "Coltrane vs. Duke" and the sixth season's "Too Many Roscos"—toy with the concept of him being injured. The first episode has him faking injury so that the Duke boys would lose the General Lee while the latter has Best playing two characters. His normal character, Rosco, is presumed drowned while a criminal that looks like Rosco has a headache). These chases are often the result of Rosco setting up illegal speed traps such as false or changing speed limit signs and various other trickery, which would evolve into being increasingly more cartoonish and far-fetched as the seasons passed. While he enjoys "hot pursuit" he seemingly (Boss Hogg as well) never intends for anyone to get seriously hurt. His middle initial, "P", was added at the start of the second season, and only one episode (the third season's "Mrs. Rosco P. Coltrane", in which he is subjected to a scam marriage) reveals his middle name, "Purvis". Rosco also has a soft spot for his
Basset Hound The Basset Hound is a short-legged breed of dog in the hound family. The Basset is a scent hound that was originally bred for the purpose of hunting hare. Their sense of smell and ability to ''ground-scent'' is second only to the Bloodhound.Har ...
Flash, introduced at the start of the third season. His radio codename is "Red Dog". When Best briefly boycotted the show during the mid-second season, he was temporarily replaced by several "one-off" sheriffs, the longest standing being Sheriff Grady Bird, played by
Dick Sargent Richard Stanford Cox (April 19, 1930 – July 8, 1994), known professionally as Dick Sargent, was an American actor, notable as the second actor to portray Darrin Stephens on ABC's fantasy situation comedy ''Bewitched''. He took the name ''Dick ...
, who appeared in two episodes ("Jude Emery" and "Officer Daisy Duke"). * Boss Jefferson Davis "J.D." Hogg (
Sorrell Booke Sorrell Booke (January 4, 1930 – February 11, 1994) was an American actor who performed on stage, screen, and television. He acted in more than 100 plays and 150 television shows, and is best known for his role as corrupt politician Jefferson ...
) is the wealthiest man in Hazzard County and owns most of its property and businesses—whether directly or by holding the
mortgages A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law jurisdicions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners to raise funds for any pu ...
over the land. Usually dressed in an all-white suit, he is the fat, greedy, corrupt county commissioner with visions of grandeur and a voracious appetite for food, who constantly orders Rosco to "Get them Duke boys!" He is also Bo and Luke's probation officer; when Bo and Luke need to leave Hazzard they always get permission from him. Boss Hogg is also married to (and dominated by) Rosco's "fat sister" (Lulu Coltrane Hogg), a point that does not always sit well with either Boss Hogg or Rosco; Hogg sometimes claims that Rosco is indebted to him because of it, though his on-screen interactions with Lulu typically show him loving her deeply (and giving in to her stronger personality). In addition to his role as county commissioner, he is also the police commissioner, land commissioner, and bank president. Boss is also the chief of the Hazzard Fire Department and the owner of, or primary mortgage holder on, most of the places in the county, including the Boar's Nest, Rhubottem's Store, Cooter's garage and the Duke farm. It is implied in some episodes that he is the Justice of the Peace, but in others Hazzard relies on a circuit judge. In the episode "Coltrane vs. Duke", Hogg represents Rosco when he sues the Dukes, implying that he is a licensed attorney. His vehicle is a white 1970
Cadillac Coupe de Ville The Cadillac DeVille is the nameplate used by Cadillac over eight generations, originally used to designate a trim level of the 1949 Cadillac Series 62 and later to designate a standalone model in the brand range. The last model marketed specif ...
convertible, with bull horns mounted on the hood. In the first few seasons, he is almost always driven around by a
chauffeur A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine. Originally, such drivers were often personal employees of the vehicle owner, but this has changed to speciali ...
. His old moonshine-running car was called ''The Gray Ghost''. Every morning, Boss Hogg would drink coffee and eat raw liver (Booke, a
method actor Method ( grc, μέθοδος, methodos) literally means a pursuit of knowledge, investigation, mode of prosecuting such inquiry, or system. In recent centuries it more often means a prescribed process for completing a task. It may refer to: *Scien ...
, actually ate the raw liver). Boss Hogg is described in one analysis as "an ineffectual bad guy—hence amusing". * Cooter Davenport ( Ben Jones) is the Hazzard County mechanic, nicknamed "Crazy Cooter" (a " cooter" is a large freshwater turtle, common in the southeastern U.S.). In the early episodes, he is a wild man, often breaking the law. By the end of the first season, he has settled down and become an easygoing good ol' boy. Although not mentioned in the first couple of episodes, by the mid-first season, he owns "Cooter's Garage" in Hazzard County Square, directly across from the Sheriff's Department. Cooter is an "honorary Duke", as he shares the same values and often assists the Dukes in escaping Rosco's clutches, or helps them to foil Boss Hogg's schemes. During the second season, Jones left the series for a few episodes due to a dispute over whether the character should be clean-shaven or have a full beard. In his absence, Cooter's place was filled by several of Cooter's supposed cousins who were never mentioned before or since. Jones returned when the dispute was solved—Cooter would be clean-shaven (although, for continuity reasons, with the episodes being broadcast in a different order to that which they were filmed, he was not clean-shaven until the third season onwards). Cooter drives a variety of trucks, including
Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...
s,
Chevy Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941) and oust ...
s, and GMCs. His CB handle is "Crazy Cooter" and he often starts his CB transmissions with "Breaker one, Breaker one, I might be crazy but I ain't dumb, Craaaazy Cooter comin' atcha, come on." * Deputy Enos Strate (
Sonny Shroyer Otis Burt "Sonny" Shroyer Jr. (born August 28, 1935) is an American actor and singer who has appeared in various television and movie roles. He is known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Enos Strate in the television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. ...
) is a friend of the Dukes but, while working for Rosco and Boss, he is often forced into pursuing the Dukes and/or arresting them on trumped-up charges. In the early episodes, Enos is shown to be a rather good driver (and respected as such by Bo and Luke) but, by the end of the first season, he is shown to be as incompetent a driver as Rosco. His common catchphrase is "Possum on a gumbush!" When he returns from his stint in Los Angeles, he seems to be able to stand up to Boss and Rosco slightly more, and sometimes refuses to participate in their schemes. In the early episodes, Rosco frequently calls him "jackass", which soon evolved into the more family-friendly "dipstick" as the show became a hit with younger viewers (though Boss Hogg, who would also use the term "jackass" of Sheriff Rosco, would occasionally return to calling Enos this in later seasons). Enos has a crush on Daisy Duke that she often uses to the Dukes' advantage in unraveling Hogg and Rosco's schemes. Enos is very much in love with Daisy, and although Daisy seems to love him back, it is supposedly only as a close friend. In the penultimate episode, "Enos and Daisy's Wedding", the two plan on getting married, only to have Enos call it off at the last minute due to an attack of
hives Hives, also known as urticaria, is a kind of skin rash with red, raised, itchy bumps. Hives may burn or sting. The patches of rash may appear on different body parts, with variable duration from minutes to days, and does not leave any long-lasti ...
, brought on by the excitement of possibly being married to Daisy. Later, in the first reunion movie, Enos and Daisy become a pair again and plan to get married, but this time ''Daisy'' backs out at the last minute upon the unexpected sight of her ex-husband. * Deputy Cletus Hogg (
Rick Hurst Richard Douglas Hurst (born January 1, 1946) is an American actor who portrayed Deputy Cletus Hogg, Boss Hogg's cousin, in the 1980 to 1983 seasons of ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' as well as '' The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!'' in 1997 and '' The Du ...
), Boss Hogg's second cousin twice removed, is generally friendly and dim-witted. Like Enos, Cletus is often forced by Rosco and Hogg to chase the Dukes on trumped up charges. While Cletus is good-hearted, and sometimes resentful of having to treat the Dukes in such a way, he is somewhat more willing to go along with Hogg and Rosco than Enos. Cletus has a crush (though not as bad as Enos' crush) on Daisy and is even convinced she wants to marry him. Like Enos and Rosco, Cletus frequently ends up landing in a pond when pursuing the Duke boys in a
car chase A car chase or vehicle pursuit is the vehicular overland chase of one party by another, involving at least one automobile or other wheeled motor vehicle in pursuit, commonly hot pursuit of suspects by law enforcement. The rise of the automotive ...
. Cletus makes his first appearance as the driver of a bank truck, part of Hogg's latest get-rich-quick scheme, in the first-season episode "Money To Burn", and becomes temporary deputy while Enos is away in the second-season episodes "The Meeting" and "Road Pirates". Leaving a job at the local junkyard, he becomes permanent deputy in the third season's "Enos Strate to the Top". After Enos' return, the pair both serve as deputies and share the same patrol car until 1997's reunion movie. Each of the Hazzard County Sheriff's Department officers drives various mid- to late-1970s Chrysler mid-size B body patrol cars, most often a
Dodge Monaco The Dodge Monaco is an automobile that was marketed by the Dodge division of Chrysler Corporation. Introduced as the flagship of the Dodge product line, the Monaco was introduced for 1965 to replace the Custom 880, later then later joining as a su ...
or
Plymouth Fury The Plymouth Fury is a model of automobile that was produced by Plymouth from 1955 until 1989. It was introduced for the 1956 model year as a sub-series of the Plymouth Belvedere, becoming a separate series one level above the contemporary Belved ...
. * Coy Duke (
Byron Cherry Byron Cherry (born April 17, 1955 in Atlanta, Georgia) is an American actor. He portrayed Coy Duke, one of the new Duke Boys, in the 1982–1983 season of ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' for the first 19 episodes of season 5. ''The Dukes of Hazzard' ...
) is another blonde-haired cousin who moves to Uncle Jesse's farm along with his cousin Vance after Bo and Luke left Hazzard to join the
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
circuit in season 5. Like his cousin Bo, he often drives the ''General Lee'', is a bit wilder than Vance and chases women; he and Vance are only in the first 19 episodes of season 5 and Coy and Vance are in only one episode with their cousins Bo and Luke when they return from the NASCAR circuit. Supposedly, with cousin Vance, Coy had previously lived on the Duke farm until 1976, before the series had started. * Vance Duke ( Christopher Mayer), an obvious replacement for Luke, filled the void of a dark-haired Duke on the show. Like Luke, Vance is more the thinker and the planner of the duo, along with being more mature than Coy. He is also a former Merchant Mariner. * The Balladeer (voice of
Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
) sings and plays the ''Dukes of Hazzard'' theme song, "Good Ol' Boys", and also serves as the show's narrator. During each episode, he provides an
omniscient Omniscience () is the capacity to know everything. In Hinduism, Sikhism and the Abrahamic religions, this is an attribute of God. In Jainism, omniscience is an attribute that any individual can eventually attain. In Buddhism, there are diffe ...
viewpoint of the situations presented, and regularly interjects comical asides during crucial plot points (often, during a freeze frame of a
cliffhanger A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode or a film of serialized fiction. A cliffhang ...
scene right before a commercial break) and "down home" aphorisms (these freeze-frame cliffhangers were often abridged in showings in some countries, such as the commercial-free
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
in the United Kingdom). After numerous requests from fans to see the Balladeer on-screen, Jennings finally appeared in one episode, the seventh season's aptly titled "Welcome, Waylon Jennings", in which he was presented as an old friend of the Dukes. * Flash (Sandy and others) is a slow-paced
Basset Hound The Basset Hound is a short-legged breed of dog in the hound family. The Basset is a scent hound that was originally bred for the purpose of hunting hare. Their sense of smell and ability to ''ground-scent'' is second only to the Bloodhound.Har ...
and Rosco's loyal companion, who hates Boss Hogg but loves the Dukes. She first appeared in the first official third-season episode "Enos Strate to the Top" (the two-part third season opener "Carnival of Thrills" was held over from the previous season), although the dog was not formally "introduced" in that episode. Initially referred to as a boy, Flash is later regularly a girl (despite an occasional male reference afterwards). Flash was added at the start of the third season, after James Best suggested to the producers that Rosco have a dog. Rosco doted on Flash, often calling her "Velvet Ears". Flash was portrayed by several Basset Hounds during the series (distinguishable by different facial colors), the most regular being Sandy. James Best bought a share of Sandy, who was rescued from an
animal shelter An animal shelter or pound is a place where stray, lost, abandoned or surrendered animals – mostly dogs and cats – are housed. The word "pound" has its origins in the animal pounds of agricultural communities, where stray livestock would ...
and was trained by Alvin Mears of Alvin Animal Rentals. Sandy lived to age 14. A stuffed dog named Flush was used for dangerous stunt work in a few episodes. The pilot episode was to include a barber modeled after
Floyd Lawson Floyd Lawson (Floyd the Barber) is a fictional character on the American sitcom ''The Andy Griffith Show.'' Floyd was primarily portrayed by actor Howard McNear. Character overview Floyd the Barber was the slow-paced, somewhat absent-minded ba ...
on ''
The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color. The ...
'' as a regular character, but was eliminated when the final draft of the pilot's script was written and before the show was cast. When John Schneider auditioned for the role of Bo Duke, he came to the audition in a dilapidated pickup truck, sporting a week-long beard growth, wearing overalls and a white T-shirt with a pack of cigarettes rolled up in a sleeve collar, and carrying a can of beer, trying to look the part. At the audition, Schneider drank the beer and said he was from
Snellville Snellville is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States, east of Atlanta. The population was 18,242 at the 2010 census, and in 2019 the estimated population was 20,077. It is a developed suburb of Atlanta and a part of the Atlanta metr ...
. The producers bought his "good ol' boy" act and Schneider was hired on the spot.


Recurring characters


Notable guest appearances

Throughout its network television run, ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' had a consistent mix of up-and-comers and established stars make guest appearances. *
Robert Alda Robert Alda (born Alfonso Giuseppe Giovanni Roberto D'Abruzzo; February 26, 1914 – May 3, 1986) was an Italian-American theatrical and film actor, a singer, and a dancer. He was the father of actors Alan and Antony Alda. Alda was featured in a ...
* Carlos Brown/Alan Autry *
Anthony De Longis Anthony Charles De Longis (born March 23, 1950) is an American actor, stuntman, and fight choreographer. Life and career De Longis was born in Glendale, California. He attended California State University, Northridge where he was initiated ...
*
James Avery James La Rue Avery (November 27, 1945 – December 31, 2013) was an American actor. He was best known for his roles as Philip Banks in ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'', Shredder in ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'', Judge Michael Conover on ''L. ...
*
Norman Alden Norman Alden (born Norman Adelberg, September 13, 1924 – July 27, 2012) was an American character actor who performed in television programs and motion pictures. He first appeared on television on ''The 20th Century Fox Hour'' in 1957. He p ...
*
Rayford Barnes Rayford Barnes (October 23, 1920 – November 11, 2000) was an American film and TV character actor from Whitesboro, Texas. Early years Barnes was born in Dallas, Texas, and attended the University of Texas. He acted in plays at the universit ...
*
Pat Buttram Maxwell Emmett "Pat" Buttram (June 19, 1915 – January 8, 1994) was an American character actor. Buttram was known for playing the sidekick of Gene Autry and for playing the character of Mr. Haney in the television series ''Green Acres''. He had ...
*
Dennis Burkley Dennis Henry Burkley (September 10, 1945 – July 14, 2013) was an American actor. In a career spanning four decades, he appeared in numerous films and television series. He was best known for his role as Theo in Son in Law. Early life Burkley ...
*
Clancy Brown Clarence John "Clancy" Brown III (born January 5, 1959) is an American actor. Prolific in film and television since the 1980s, Brown is often cast in villainous and authoritative roles. Brown's film roles include Viking Lofgren in ''Bad Boys'' ...
*
Regis Cordic Regis John Cordic (May 15, 1926 – April 16, 1999) was an American radio personality and actor, also known and credited as Rege Cordic. His career in entertainment was divided roughly in half. From 1948 to 1965, he was the dominant mornin ...
*
Charles Cyphers Charles Cyphers (born July 28, 1939) is an American actor who is known in the horror movie community for his work in the films of John Carpenter, especially his role as Sheriff Leigh Brackett in Carpenter's 1978 movie ''Halloween''. He reprised ...
*
Roz Kelly Roz Kelly (born Rosiland Schwartz on July 29, 1942) is an American actress, perhaps best known for playing Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli's ( Henry Winkler) girlfriend Carol "Pinky" Tuscadero on the television series ''Happy Days''. Career Before ...
*
Ji-Tu Cumbuka Ji-Tu Cumbuka (March 4, 1940 – July 4, 2017) was an American actor. He is best remembered as "Torque" in the hit TV series ''A Man Called Sloane'' together with Robert Conrad and Dan O'Herlihy. In 2011, Cumbuka published his autobiography ...
*
Ben Davidson Benjamin Earl Davidson (June 14, 1940 – July 2, 2012) was an American football player, a defensive end best known for his play with the Oakland Raiders in the American Football League (AFL). Earlier in his career, he was with the Green Bay ...
*
Elinor Donahue Elinor Donahue (born Mary Eleanor Donahue, April 19, 1937) is an American actress, best known today for playing the role of Betty Anderson, the eldest child of Jim and Margaret Anderson on the 1950s American sitcom ''Father Knows Best''. Early ...
*
Jason Evers Jason Evers (born Herbert Everberg or as Herbert Everin; January 2, 1922 – March 13, 2005) was an American actor. He was the star of the 1963 ABC television drama '' Channing''. Early life Evers was born either as Herbert Everberg or Herbert ...
*
Jonathan Frakes Jonathan Scott Frakes (born August 19, 1952) is an American actor and director. He is best known for his portrayal of Commander William Riker in the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' and subsequent films and series. Frakes als ...
*
Janie Fricke Jane Marie Fricke ( ; born December 19, 1947), known professionally as Janie Fricke, is an American country music singer, songwriter, record producer, and clothing designer. She has placed seventeen singles in the top ten of the ''Billboard'' Ho ...
*
Michael Fairman Michael Fairman (born February 25, 1934) is an American actor and writer. Career He is best known for his various roles during his long career, which started when he was 31 years old. This includes the role of Nick Szabo on the daytime drama, ...
*
David Gale David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
*
David Graf Paul David Graf (April 16, 1950 – April 7, 2001) was an American actor, best known for his role as Sgt. Eugene Tackleberry in the ''Police Academy'' series of films. Early life and education Graf was born in Zanesville, Ohio, and later ...
*
Joy Garrett Joyce Irene Garrett (March 2, 1945 – February 11, 1993) was an American actress and vocalist. She is best known for her role on ''Days of Our Lives'' as Jo Johnson between 1987 and 1993. In addition to her work in film and television, Garrett ...
*
M. C. Gainey Michael Connor Gainey (born January 18, 1948) is an American character actor best known for his appearances in ''Lost'', ''Con Air'', ''Sideways'', ''Tangled'', and ''Django Unchained''. Early life Gainey was born in Jackson, Mississippi. In the ...
*
Henry Gibson Henry Gibson (born James Bateman; September 21, 1935 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor and poet. His best-known roles include his time as a cast member of the TV sketch-comedy series ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' from 1968 to 19 ...
*
Burton Gilliam Burton Gilliam (born August 9, 1938) is an American actor. He is best known for memorable roles in several popular 1970s movies, such as '' Blazing Saddles'' and '' Paper Moon'', as well as comedic cameos in '' Back to the Future, Part III'' and ...
*
Linda Hart Linda Hart (born July 5, 1950) is an American singer, musician, and actress, mainly appearing in musical theatre. Life and career Hart was born in Dallas, Texas, United States. As a child, Hart sang in her church choir; at age seven, she joine ...
*
Dennis Haskins Dennis Haskins (born November 18, 1950) is an American actor known for his role as School principal, Principal Richard Belding in the teen situation comedy, sitcom ''Saved by the Bell'', which ran from 1989 to 1993 on NBC. He then went on to star ...
*
Ernie Hudson Earnest Lee Hudson (born December 17, 1945) is an American actor. His roles include Winston Zeddemore in the ''Ghostbusters'' film series, Sergeant Darryl Albrecht in ''The Crow'' (1994), and Warden Leo Glynn on HBO's '' Oz'' (1997–2003). Hu ...
*
Kevin Peter Hall Kevin Peter Hall (May 9, 1955 – April 10, 1991) was an American actor. Hall stood tall, and frequently played monster characters during his career. He was the original title character in the science fiction ''Predator'' franchise, appearing ...
*
Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
* Stepfanie Kramer *
Lance LeGault William Lance LeGault (May 2, 1935 – September 10, 2012) was an American actor. He was best known as U.S. Army Colonel Roderick Decker in the 1980s American television series ''The A-Team''. Early and personal life LeGault was born May 2, 193 ...
*
Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as " You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My M ...
*
Britt Leach Britt Leach (born July 18, 1938 in Gadsden, Alabama) is an American character actor. Biography and acting career Leach was born on July 18, 1938 in Gadsden, Alabama. He graduated from The McCallie School, McCallie School, a boys college-prepara ...
*
Jon Locke Joseph Lockey Yon, also known as credited as Jon Locke, (October 10, 1927 – October 19, 2013) was an American actor who appeared in many television and film westerns. Early life Locke was borne in Orlando, Florida. He became involved in theat ...
*
Brion James Brion Howard James (February 20, 1945 – August 7, 1999) was an American character actor. He portrayed Leon Kowalski in ''Blade Runner'' and appeared in ''Southern Comfort'', '' 48 Hrs.'', ''Another 48 Hrs.'', '' Silverado'', ''Tango & Cash'', ' ...
*
Arte Johnson Arthur Stanton Eric Johnson (January 20, 1929 – July 3, 2019) was an American comic actor who was best known for his work as a regular on television's ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In''. Biography Early life Johnson was born January 20, 1929, in ...
* L. Q. Jones *
Frank Marth Frank Marth (July 29, 1922 – January 12, 2014) was an American film and television actor. He may be best known as a cast-member of ''Cavalcade of Stars'' (1949; 1950–1957), especially segments of ''The Honeymooners'', which later became a ...
*
Robin Mattson Robin Mattson is an American actress. She is best known for her roles on the daytime soap operas ''General Hospital'', '' Santa Barbara'', and ''All My Children''. Career Daytime television Mattson made her daytime debut as troubled teen Hope B ...
*
John Matuszak John Daniel Matuszak (October 25, 1950 – June 17, 1989) was an American football defensive end in the National Football League who later became an actor. Matuszak was the first overall pick in the 1973 NFL Draft and played most of his career ...
*
Donald May Donald Adam May (February 22, 1929 – January 28, 2022) was an American actor who was known for his roles in '' Colt .45'' (1957–1960) and ''The Edge of Night''. Early years May was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Leontine Frances (T ...
*
Gerald McRaney Gerald Lee McRaney (born August 19, 1947) is an American television and film actor. McRaney is best known as one of the stars of the television shows ''Simon & Simon'', '' Major Dad'', ''Promised Land'' and ''House of Cards''. He currently stars ...
*
Louise Minchin Louise Mary Minchin (born September 1968) is a British television presenter, journalist and former news presenter who currently works freelance within the BBC. Beginning in 2012, Minchin was a regular anchor on the BBC One programme ''Breakfas ...
*
Richard Moll Charles Richard Moll (born January 13, 1943) is an American actor. He played the role of Aristotle Nostradamus "Bull" Shannon, a bailiff on the NBC sitcom ''Night Court'' from 1984 to 1992. He has also done extensive work as a voice actor, typical ...
*
Chris Mulkey Chris Mulkey (born May 3, 1948) is an American film and television actor. Career Mulkey played the supporting role of husband to Annie Potts's character in '' Any Day Now'' from 1998 to 2002. He has also appeared in '' Captain Phillips'', '' ...
* Charles Napier * Tim O'Connor *
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*
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Kim Richards Kim Erica Richards (born September 19, 1964) is an American actress, socialite, and television personality. She began her career as a child actress, and rose to prominence from her roles in '' Nanny and the Professor'', '' Escape to Witch Mount ...
*
Hari Rhodes Hari Rhodes (April 10, 1932 – January 15, 1992) was an American author and actor whose career spanned three decades beginning around 1960. He was sometimes billed as Harry Rhodes, and appeared in 66 films and television programs, such as ABC ...
* Roger Robinson *
Dick Sargent Richard Stanford Cox (April 19, 1930 – July 8, 1994), known professionally as Dick Sargent, was an American actor, notable as the second actor to portray Darrin Stephens on ABC's fantasy situation comedy ''Bewitched''. He took the name ''Dick ...
*
Ronnie Schell Ronald Ralph Schell (born December 23, 1931) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. He appeared on the May 28, 1959, episode of the TV quiz ''You Bet Your Life'', hosted by Groucho Marx. Schell demonstrated a comic barrage of beatnik jive t ...
*
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*
Judson Scott Judson Earney Scott (born July 15, 1952) is an American stage, film and television actor. He has appeared in a number of science fiction productions, especially within the '' Star Trek'' franchise, as well as '' V'' and three episodes of ''The X- ...
* William Smith *
Don Stroud Donald Lee Stroud (born September 1, 1943) is an American actor, musician, and surfer. Stroud has appeared in over 100 films and 200 television shows. Early years Stroud was the son of vaudeville actor Clarence Stroud (of "The Stroud Twins" team ...
*
Les Tremayne Lester Tremayne (16 April 1913 – 19 December 2003) was an English actor. Early life Born in Balham, London, he moved with his family at the age of four to Chicago, Illinois, where he began in community theater. His mother was Dolly Trema ...
*
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Mary Treen Mary Treen (born Mary Louise Summers, March 27, 1907 – July 20, 1989) was an American film and television actress. A minor actress for much of her career, she managed to secure a plain, unassuming niche for herself in the Hollywood of the ...
*
Lurene Tuttle Lurene Tuttle (August 29, 1907 – May 28, 1986) was an American actress and acting coach, who made the transition from vaudeville to radio, and later films and television. Her most enduring impact was as one of network radio's more versatile a ...
*
Lewis Van Bergen Lewis Van Bergen (November 9, 1938 – April 6, 2018) was an American actor, best known for his role as Jon Sable on the short-lived 1987 television series '' Sable''. He was in the film '' Bugsy'' in the role of Joey Adonis, with whom Bugsy ...
*
Joseph Whipp Joseph Whipp (born July 12, 1941) is an American actor who has starred in many films and starred on television. He is known for playing police officers in films and on television. Career Whipp taught drama at Carlmont High School in the 1970 ...
*
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*
Hal Williams Halroy Candis Williams (born December 14, 1938) is an American actor, best known for his recurring roles as Police Officer Smith ("Smitty") on '' Sanford and Son'' (1972–1976), Harley Foster on ''The Waltons'' (1973-1980), and as the patriarch L ...
*
Steven Williams Steven Williams (born January 7, 1949) is an American actor in films and television. He is known for his roles as Captain Adam Fuller on ''21 Jump Street'', Lt. Jefferson Burnett on '' The Equalizer'', Det. August Brooks on '' L.A. Heat'', X on ...
* Terry Wilson (final role) *
Morgan Woodward Thomas Morgan Woodward (September 16, 1925 – February 22, 2019) was an American actor who is best known for his recurring role as Marvin "Punk" Anderson on the television soap opera ''Dallas'' and for his portrayal of Boss Godfrey, the sungla ...
*
Tammy Wynette Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music artist, as well as an actress and author. She is considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Along with Loretta Ly ...
* Cale Yarborough


Others

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
driver
Terry Labonte Terrance Lee Labonte (born November 16, 1956), nicknamed Texas Terry or The Iceman, is an American former stock car driver who raced from 1978 to 2014 in the former NASCAR Winston Cup and Sprint Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Series). A two ...
makes a brief, uncredited appearance as a crewman in the episode "Undercover Dukes Part 1". The race cars supplied for both "Part 1" and "Part 2" of "Undercover Dukes" were supplied by Labonte's race owner, Billy Hagan. However, the emblems of the sponsors of the cars (at that time Labonte was sponsored by
Budweiser Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, part of AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States. ''Budweiser'' may also refer to an unrelat ...
) were covered to avoid paying royalties.


The celebrity speed trap

During the show's second season, the show's writers began incorporating a "celebrity speed trap" into some of the episodes, as a means to feature top
country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...
stars of the day performing their hits. On its first couple of instances, the "speed trap" was featured early in the story, but for most of the cases, it was featured in the last few minutes of an episode, often used when the main story was running too short to fill episode time. The "celebrity speed trap" feature was essentially the same each time: Aware that a big-name country star was passing through the area, Boss Hogg would order Rosco to lower the speed limit on a particular road to an unreasonable level (using a reversible sign, with one speed limit on one side and another, far lower, on the back), so that the targeted singer would be in violation of the posted limit. The singer would be required to give a free performance at the Boar's Nest in exchange for having their citations forgiven; the performer would then perform one of their best-known hits or other popular country music standard, while the Dukes, Boss, Rosco, Enos, Cletus, Cooter, and other patrons whooped and hollered in enjoyment of the performance. More often than not, the performer would give a sarcastic parting shot to Boss and Rosco. Singers who were featured in the "speed trap" segments were: *
Hoyt Axton Hoyt Wayne Axton (March 25, 1938 – October 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He became prominent in the early 1960s, establishing himself on the West Coast as a folk singer with an earthy style and powerful voic ...
*
Donna Fargo Donna may refer to the short form of the honorific ''nobildonna'', the female form of Don (honorific) in Italian. People *Donna (given name); includes name origin and list of people and characters with the name * Roberto Di Donna (born 1968), Ita ...
*
Freddy Fender Freddy Fender (born Baldemar Garza Huerta; June 4, 1937 – October 14, 2006) was an American Tejano, country and rock and roll musician, known for his work as a solo artist and in the groups Los Super Seven and the Texas Tornados. He was bes ...
*
Doug Kershaw Douglas James Kershaw (born January 24, 1936) is an American fiddle player, singer and songwriter from Louisiana. Active since 1948, he began his career as part of the duo Rusty and Doug, along with his brother, Rusty Kershaw. He had an extens ...
(on the original soundtrack) *
The Oak Ridge Boys The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet originating in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The group was founded in the 1940s as the Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in Southern gospel during the 1950s. Their name was change ...
(twice) *
Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. His music was described by critics as ...
*
Buck Owens Alvis Edgar Owens Jr. (August 12, 1929 – March 25, 2006), known professionally as Buck Owens, was an American musician, singer, songwriter, and band leader. He was the lead singer for the Buckaroos, Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, which had 21 ...
*
Johnny Paycheck Johnny Paycheck (born Donald Eugene Lytle; May 31, 1938 – February 19, 2003) was an American country music singer and Grand Ole Opry member notable for recording the David Allan Coe song "Take This Job and Shove It". He achieved his greates ...
(lip-syncing an original recording) *
Mel Tillis Lonnie Melvin Tillis (August 8, 1932 – November 19, 2017) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s as part of the outlaw country movement, ...
*
Dottie West Dorothy Marie Marsh West (October 11, 1932 – September 4, 1991) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Along with her friends and fellow recording artists Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn, she is considered one of the genre's most in ...
*
Tammy Wynette Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music artist, as well as an actress and author. She is considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Along with Loretta Ly ...
*
Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
(the show's narrator) Honorable mentions:
Mickey Gilley Mickey Leroy Gilley (March 9, 1936 – May 7, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he started out singing straight-up country and western material in the 1970s, he moved towards a more pop-friendly sound in the 1 ...
,
Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as " You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My M ...
Gilley's and Lynn's appearances were not solely for the celebrity speed trap. After performing a concert in Hazzard, Gilley was nabbed while leaving and forced to do a second show to nullify his citation. Loretta Lynn was kidnapped by criminals wanting to break into the music business. Lynn was the very first country music guest star on the show in 1979 and had an entire episode dedicated to her, titled "Find Loretta Lynn".
Janie Fricke Jane Marie Fricke ( ; born December 19, 1947), known professionally as Janie Fricke, is an American country music singer, songwriter, record producer, and clothing designer. She has placed seventeen singles in the top ten of the ''Billboard'' Ho ...
was the only country music guest star who did not perform a song, celebrity speed trap or otherwise. She played an accomplice to a robber who hid money in the dashboard of the car that was to become the ''General Lee''.


Casting of Coy and Vance

''The Dukes of Hazzard'' was consistently among the top-rated television series (at one point, ranking second only to ''
Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
'', which immediately followed the show on CBS' Friday night schedule). With that success came huge profits in merchandising, with a wide array of ''Dukes of Hazzard'' toys and products being licensed and becoming big sellers. However, over the course of the show's fourth season, series stars Tom Wopat and John Schneider—who had already previously voiced their concern and discontent about increasingly inferior scripts being written for episodes—became increasingly concerned about a contract dispute over their salaries and merchandising royalties owed to them from the high sales of ''Dukes'' products. They felt that neither of them was being paid what was owed to them and this became very frustrating to the duo. As a result, in the spring of 1982, as filming was due to begin on the fifth season, Wopat and Schneider did not report to the set in protest over the matter. Catherine Bach also considered walking out due to similar concerns, but Wopat and Schneider convinced her to stay, insisting that if she left, there might not be a show to come back to, and that settling the issue was up to them. Production was pushed back by a few weeks as fairly similar looking replacements were hastily hired:
Byron Cherry Byron Cherry (born April 17, 1955 in Atlanta, Georgia) is an American actor. He portrayed Coy Duke, one of the new Duke Boys, in the 1982–1983 season of ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' for the first 19 episodes of season 5. ''The Dukes of Hazzard' ...
as Coy Duke and Christopher Mayer as Vance Duke. Bo and Luke were said to have gone to race on the
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
circuit; how they managed to do this, bearing in mind the terms of their probation, was never explained. Cherry and Mayer were originally contracted at just 10 episodes as stand-ins, still with hope that a settlement might be reached with Wopat and Schneider (in total, they made 19 episodes including one with Bo and Luke). Some scripts for Coy and Vance were originally written for Bo and Luke but with their names quite literally crossed out and Coy and Vance penned in. The new Dukes—previously unmentioned nephews of Uncle Jesse, who were said to have left the farm in 1976 before the show had started—were unpopular with the great majority of viewers, and the ratings immediately sank. Much of the criticism was that Coy and Vance were nothing but direct clones of Bo and Luke, with Coy a direct "carbon copy" replacement for Bo and Vance for Luke, with little variation in character. This was something that even show creator Gy Waldron has said was wrong, and that he insisted, unsuccessfully, that audiences would not accept direct clones and the two replacements should be taken in a different direction character wise, but was overruled by the producers. Waldron also commented that if Bach too had walked, the show would probably have been canceled. It was reported that prior to filming, Cherry and Mayer were given Bo and Luke episodes to watch, to study and learn to emulate them, although Cherry has said in interviews that he does not recall this ever happening. Hit hard by the significant drop in ratings, Warner Bros. renegotiated with Wopat and Schneider, and eventually a settlement was reached, and the original Duke boys returned to the series in early 1983, four episodes from the conclusion of the fifth season. Initially, part of the
press release A press release is an official statement delivered to members of the news media for the purpose of providing information, creating an official statement, or making an announcement directed for public release. Press releases are also considere ...
announcing Wopat and Schneider's return suggested that Cherry and Mayer would remain as part of the cast (though presumably in a reduced role), but it was quickly realized that "four Duke boys" would not work within the context of the series, and due to the huge unpopularity associated with their time on the show, they were quickly written out of the same episode in which Bo and Luke returned.


Return of Bo and Luke

Although Coy and Vance were never popular, viewers were disappointed by their departure episode, "Welcome Back, Bo 'n' Luke", which was for the most part a standard episode, with the return of Bo and Luke and the departure of Coy and Vance tacked onto the beginning (Bo and Luke return from their NASCAR tour just as Coy and Vance leave Hazzard to tend to a sick relative). More than a few viewers commented that they were disappointed by this, and that they would have liked to see both pairs of Duke boys team up to tackle a particularly dastardly plot by Boss Hogg before Coy and Vance's departure, but as it turned out, Coy and Vance had little dialogue and were gone by the first commercial break, never to be seen, heard from or even mentioned again. While the return of Bo and Luke was welcomed by ardent and casual viewers alike, and as a result ratings recovered slightly, the show never completely regained its former popularity. One of Wopat and Schneider's disputes even before they left was what they considered to be increasingly weak and formulaic scripts and episode plots. With Wopat and Schneider's return, the producers agreed to try a wider scope of storylines. However, although it continued for two more seasons, the show never fully returned to its former glory. Many cast members, such as Tom Wopat, decried the miniature car effects newly incorporated to depict increasingly absurd ''General Lee'' and patrol car stunts (which had previously been performed with real cars by stunt drivers). The miniature car effects were intended as a budget saving measure (to save the cost of repairing or replacing damaged vehicles) and to help compete visually with
KITT KITT or K.I.T.T. is the short name of two fictional characters from the adventure franchise ''Knight Rider''. While having the same acronym, the KITTs are two different entities: one known as the Knight Industries Two Thousand, which appeared i ...
from the
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
series ''
Knight Rider ''Knight Rider'' is an American entertainment franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The core of ''Knight Rider'' is its three television series: the original ''Knight Rider'' (1982–1986) and sequel series ''Team Knight Rider'' (1997–1998) ...
''. In February 1985, ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' ended its run after seven seasons.


Vehicles

The show is estimated to have gone through 250–355 cars during filming.


The ''General Lee'' (Dodge Charger)

The ''
General Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, towards the end of which he was appointed the overall commander of the Confederate States Army. He led the Army of North ...
'' was based on a 1969
Dodge Charger The Dodge Charger is a model of automobile marketed by Dodge in various forms over seven generations since 1966. The first Charger was a show car in 1964. A 1965 Charger II concept car resembled the 1966 production version. The Charger has ...
owned by Bo and Luke. It was orange with a
Confederate battle flag The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and ...
painted on the roof, the words "GENERAL LEE" over each door, and the number "01" on each door. In the original five Georgia-filmed episodes, a Confederate flag along with a checkered racing flag in a criss-cross pattern could be seen behind the rear window; this was removed because the extra decal was impossible to replicate over and over again. The name refers to the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...
General Robert E. Lee. The television show was based on the movie ''
Moonrunners ''Moonrunners'' is a 1975 action comedy film starring James Mitchum, about a Southern family who runs bootleg liquor. It was reworked four years later into the popular long-running television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard'', and the two product ...
'', in turn based on actual moonshine runners who used a 1958 Chrysler named ''Traveler'', after General Lee's horse (with a slight spelling change). ''Traveler'' was originally intended to be the name of the Duke boys' stock car too, until producers agreed that ''General Lee'' had more punch to it. Since it was built as a
race car Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organi ...
, the doors were welded shut. Through the history of the show, an estimated 309 Chargers were used; 17 are still known to exist in various states of repair. A replica was owned by John Schneider, known as "Bo's General Lee". In 2008, Schneider sold "Bo's General Lee" at the
Barrett-Jackson Barrett-Jackson is an American collector car auction company headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was founded by Scottsdale business partners Tom Barrett and Russ Jackson. They initially launched a car show, Fiesta de los Autos Elegantes, in 19 ...
automobile auction for $230,000. An eBay auction which garnered a bid of $9,900,500 for the car was never finalized, with the purported bidder claiming his account had been hacked. The underside of the hood has the signatures of the cast from the 1997 TV movie. Schneider has also restored over 20 other ''General Lee''s to date. In 2008, a replica of the ''General Lee'' fetched a high bid of $450,000 at the Barrett-Jackson auto auction. In 2012, the ''General Lee 1'', the first car used in filming the series, was purchased at auction by golfer
Bubba Watson Gerry Lester "Bubba" Watson Jr. (born November 5, 1978) is an American professional golfer. He has played predominantly on the PGA Tour, and is a multiple major champion, with victories at the Masters Tournament in 2012 and 2014. In February 201 ...
for $110,000. The car had been scrapped after being wrecked during the famous opening jump shoot, and was later discovered in a junkyard by the president of the North American General Lee fan club. In 2015, following a wave of sentiment against Confederate symbolism in the wake of shootings in Charleston, SC (relating to photos where the attacker had posed with the Confederate flag), Bubba Watson announced that he would remove the Confederate Flag from the roof of the ''General Lee 1'' and repaint it with the U.S. National Flag. The show also used 1968 Chargers (which shared the same sheet metal) by pop-riveting the "I" piece to the center of the 68's grille, as well as cutting out the tail lights, pop-riveting the '69 lenses in place, and removing the round side marker lights. These Chargers performed many record-breaking jumps throughout the show, almost all of them resulting in a completely destroyed car. No 1970 Chargers were used, as backdating them proved to be too time-consuming. The Duke boys added a custom air horn to the ''General Lee'' that played the first 12 notes of the song "
Dixie Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas shift over the years), or the extent of the area it cover ...
". The Dixie horn was not originally planned, until a Georgia local
hot rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...
racer drove by and sounded his car's Dixie horn. The producers immediately rushed after him asking where he had bought the horn. Warner Bros. purchased several Chargers for stunts, as they generally destroyed at least one or two cars per episode. By the end of the show's sixth season, the Chargers were becoming harder to find and more expensive. In addition, the television series ''
Knight Rider ''Knight Rider'' is an American entertainment franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The core of ''Knight Rider'' is its three television series: the original ''Knight Rider'' (1982–1986) and sequel series ''Team Knight Rider'' (1997–1998) ...
'' began to rival the ''General Lee''s stunts. As such, the producers used 1:8 scale miniatures, filmed by Jack Sessums' crew, or recycled stock jump footage—the latter being a practice that had been in place to an extent since the second season, and had increased as the seasons passed. Some of the 01 and Confederate flag motifs were initially hand painted, but as production sped up, these were replaced with vinyl decals for quick application (and removal), as needed. During the first five episodes of the show that were filmed in Georgia, the cars involved with filming were given to the crew at the H&H body shop near the filming location. At this shop, the men worked day and night to prepare the wrecked cars for the next day while still running their body shop during the day. Time was of the essence, and the men that worked at this shop worked hard hours to get the cars prepared for the show. The third episode "Mary Kaye's Baby" is the only one in which the ''General Lee'' does not appear. Instead, the Dukes drove around in a blue 1975
Plymouth Fury The Plymouth Fury is a model of automobile that was produced by Plymouth from 1955 until 1989. It was introduced for the 1956 model year as a sub-series of the Plymouth Belvedere, becoming a separate series one level above the contemporary Belved ...
borrowed from Cooter that Luke later destroyed by shooting a flaming arrow at the car, whose trunk had been leaking due to the moonshine stowed in the back. The Duke boys' CB handle was (jointly) "Lost Sheep". Originally when the show was conceived, their handle was to be "General Lee" to match their vehicle, but this was only ever used on-screen on one occasion, in the second episode, "Daisy's Song", when Cooter calls Bo and Luke over the CB by this handle, although they were actually driving Daisy's Plymouth Road Runner (see below) at the time. As it became obvious that the "General Lee" handle would be out of place when the Duke boys were in another vehicle, the "Lost Sheep" handle was devised (with Uncle Jesse being "Shepherd" and Daisy being "Bo Peep").


Hazzard police cars (AMC Matador, Dodge Polara, Dodge Monaco, Plymouth Fury)

The 1975 AMC Matador was one of many Hazzard County police cars used on the series, mostly in the first season; they had light bars and working radios. A 1970
Dodge Polara The Dodge Polara is an automobile introduced in the United States for the 1960 model year as Dodge's top-of-the-line full-size car. After the introduction of the Dodge Custom 880 in 1962, the Polara nameplate designated a step below the full-size ...
and a 1974
Dodge Monaco The Dodge Monaco is an automobile that was marketed by the Dodge division of Chrysler Corporation. Introduced as the flagship of the Dodge product line, the Monaco was introduced for 1965 to replace the Custom 880, later then later joining as a su ...
were used during the pilot episode "One Armed Bandits"; these were also seen in the show's title sequence. From the second season, the 1977
Dodge Monaco The Dodge Monaco is an automobile that was marketed by the Dodge division of Chrysler Corporation. Introduced as the flagship of the Dodge product line, the Monaco was introduced for 1965 to replace the Custom 880, later then later joining as a su ...
was mostly used. From mid-season four the similar looking 1978
Plymouth Fury The Plymouth Fury is a model of automobile that was produced by Plymouth from 1955 until 1989. It was introduced for the 1956 model year as a sub-series of the Plymouth Belvedere, becoming a separate series one level above the contemporary Belved ...
was used instead. The Matadors and Furies were former Los Angeles Police Department vehicles, while the Monacos were former California Highway Patrol units.


Plymouth Road Runner

A 1974
Plymouth Road Runner The Plymouth Road Runner is a mid-size car with a focus on performance built by Plymouth (automobile), Plymouth in the United States between 1968 and 1980. By 1968, some of the original muscle cars were moving away from their roots as relativel ...
(yellow with a black stripe) was Daisy Duke's car in the first five episodes of the first season. For the last episodes of the first season a similarly painted 1971 Plymouth Satellite Sebring with a matching "Road Runner" stripe was used. In the second season Bo and Luke send it off a cliff in "The Runaway". Another identical Plymouth 1971 model car appeared in the background for a few more episodes along with the Jeep CJ-7 until it was finally dropped altogether.


Jeep CJ-7

''Dixie'' was the name given to Daisy Duke's white 1980
Jeep CJ-7 The Jeep CJ models are a series and a range of small, open-bodied off-road vehicles and compact pickup trucks, built and sold by several successive incarnations of the Jeep automobile marque from 1945 to 1986. The 1945 Willys Jeep was the world' ...
"Golden Eagle" which had a golden eagle emblem on the hood and the name "Dixie" on the sides. Like other vehicles in the show, there was actually more than one Jeep used throughout the series. Sometimes it would have an automatic transmission, and other times it would be a manual. The design of the roll cage also varied across the seasons. When the Jeep was introduced at the end of the second season's "The Runaway", it was seen to have doors and a slightly different paint job, but, bar one appearance in the next produced episode, "Arrest Jesse Duke" (actually broadcast before "The Runaway", causing a continuity error), thereafter the doors were removed and the paint job was made all-white, with ''Dixie'' painted on the sides of the hood. These Jeeps were leased to the producers of the show by
American Motors Corporation American Motors Corporation (AMC; commonly referred to as American Motors) was an American automobile manufacturing company formed by the merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and Hudson Motor Car Company on May 1, 1954. At the time, it was the ...
in exchange for a brief mention in the closing credits of the show.


Ford F-100 pickup truck

Uncle Jesse's truck was a white
Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...
pickup truck A pickup truck or pickup is a light-duty truck that has an enclosed cabin, and a back end made up of a cargo bed that is enclosed by three low walls with no roof (this cargo bed back end sometimes consists of a tailgate and removable covering) ...
, most commonly a sixth-generation (1973–1977) F100 Styleside. However, in the earliest episodes it had a Flareside bed, and varied between F100 and F250 models throughout the show's run. Bo, Luke and Daisy also drove Jesse's truck on occasion.


Cadillac De Ville

A white 1970
Cadillac de Ville The Cadillac DeVille is the nameplate used by Cadillac over eight generations, originally used to designate a trim level of the 1949 Cadillac Series 62 and later to designate a standalone model in the brand range. The last model marketed specif ...
convertible was used as Boss Hogg's car, notably with large bull horns as a hood ornament. In early seasons, Hogg was almost always driven by a
chauffeur A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine. Originally, such drivers were often personal employees of the vehicle owner, but this has changed to speciali ...
, who was normally nameless and had little or no dialogue, but identified on occasion as being called "Alex"; and played by several uncredited actors, including stuntman Gary Baxley. This chauffeur would often be dressed in a red plaid shirt and deep brown or black Stetson hat, but on occasion would be an older man, sometimes dressed in more typical chauffeur attire. Hogg is first seen to drive for himself in the second-season opener "Days of Shine and Roses", where he and Jesse challenge each other to one last moonshine race. From the fourth season onward, except for a couple of brief reappearances of the chauffeur (during the fourth season), Hogg drove himself around in his Cadillac (or occasionally driven by Rosco and, in the series' finale, by Uncle Jesse) and frequently challenged others by invoking his driving expertise from his days as a ridge-runner. Unlike other vehicles in the series, Boss Hogg's Cadillac is typically treated with kid gloves. The car is almost always seen with its convertible top down, with the top only being seen in two episodes, "Daisy's Song" (the chauffeur was called "Eddie" in this episode), the second to be produced and broadcast, and briefly in the second-season episode "Witness for the Persecution", when Cooter is returning it to the Court House after repairs. When filming close-up shots inside the studio, a similar-looking 1967 De Ville is used. The door vent windows (eliminated for 1969), as well as the small, round, chrome exterior mirror being noticeably different from the 1970 model’s large, square, brushed stainless mirror.


Ford Custom 500

A green and blacked out 1971 Ford Custom 500 sedan named ''Black Tillie'' was once used by Uncle Jesse to make moonshine runs. This car was used in "Days of Shine and Roses" (season 2 episode 1). It was not used to make moonshine runs but for a race between Jesse Duke and Boss Hogg, where because of the agreement with the federal government they carried 10 gallons of water to replace the moonshine.


Theme song

The theme song "Good Ol' Boys" was written and performed by
Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
. He was also "The Balladeer" (as credited), and served as narrator of the show. However, the version released as a single is not the same version that was used in the show's opening credits; the single version has a repeat of the chorus and an instrumental to pad out the length, uses a different instrumental mix that emphasizes the bass, and replaces the last verse with an inside joke about how the TV show producers "keep on showing (Jennings's) hands and not (his) face on TV". In 1980, the song reached No. 1 on the American Country chart and peaked at No. 21 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.


Broadcast history


United States

* The series was originally broadcast in America by
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
on Friday nights, at 9:00 p.m. and later 8:00 p.m., preceding ''
Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
'' from January 26, 1979, to February 8, 1985. * Until TNN (
The Nashville Network The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, game shows, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows. On September ...
) was purchased by
Viacom Viacom, an abbreviation of Video and Audio Communications, may refer to: * Viacom (1952–2006), a former American media conglomerate * Viacom (2005–2019), a former company spun off from the original Viacom * Viacom18, a joint venture between Par ...
, it aired reruns of ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. Some months after the creation of " The National Network" (shortly before its change to "Spike TV"), the program was absent from much of television for quite some time.
Viacom Viacom, an abbreviation of Video and Audio Communications, may refer to: * Viacom (1952–2006), a former American media conglomerate * Viacom (2005–2019), a former company spun off from the original Viacom * Viacom18, a joint venture between Par ...
's country music-themed cable network CMT (the former sister network to TNN) aired the show from 2005 to 2007 at 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time every weekday. CMT began airing the series in late February 2005. It also aired Monday–Thursday on
ABC Family The American cable television, cable and satellite television network that is now known as Freeform (TV channel), Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through several different owners (and s ...
. * CMT aired ''The Dukes Ride Again'', a special marathon which featured episodes from the first two seasons, on the weekend of September 10, 2010, and have begun airing episodes weeknights at 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern Time starting September 13, 2010. * CMT began to re-air ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' reruns in high definition, on January 5, 2014. *
TV Land TV Land is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its networks division. Originally a spinoff of Nick at Nite consisting exclusively of classic television shows, the channel now airs a combination of recent and cla ...
began to air ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' reruns on June 10, 2015, but removed them just three weeks later as a response to the
Charleston church shooting On June 17, 2015, a mass shooting occurred in Charleston, South Carolina, in which nine African Americans were killed during a Bible study at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Among those people who were killed was the senior past ...
and the ensuing debate over the
modern display of the Confederate flag Although the Confederate States of America dissolved at the end of the American Civil War (1861–1865), its Flags of the Confederate States of America, battle flag continues to receive modern display. The modern display began during the 1948 ...
.


Syndication

Soon before the series ended its original run on CBS, ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' went into off-network syndication. Although not as widely run as it was back in the 1980s and the years since, reruns of the program do continue to air in various parts of the United States. Notably, television stations that aired the show in syndication include
KCOP KCOP-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of MyNetworkTV. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Fox outlet KTTV (channel 11). Both stations ...
Los Angeles,
WGN-TV WGN-TV (channel 9) is an Independent station (North America), independent television station in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States. Owned by Nexstar Media Group, it is sister station, sister to the company's sole radio property, talk ra ...
Chicago, KBHK San Francisco,
WKBD WKBD-TV (channel 50) is a television station in Detroit, Michigan, United States, affiliated with The CW. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS owned-and-operated station WWJ-TV (channel 62). Both stations share studios on ...
Detroit, WTAF/WTXF Philadelphia,
KTXL KTXL (channel 40) is a television station in Sacramento, California, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. The station is owned by Nexstar Media Group, and maintains studios on Fruitridge Road near the Oak Park district on the southe ...
Sacramento,
WVTV WVTV (channel 18) is a television station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, affiliated with The CW and owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group. The station's studios are located on Calumet Road in the Park Place office park near the I-41/US 45 ...
Milwaukee, KMSP Minneapolis–Saint Paul, among others. Nationwide, the show also aired on
ABC Family The American cable television, cable and satellite television network that is now known as Freeform (TV channel), Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through several different owners (and s ...
(2000–01, 2004) and CMT (2005–07, 2010–12, 2014–15) and
TV Land TV Land is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its networks division. Originally a spinoff of Nick at Nite consisting exclusively of classic television shows, the channel now airs a combination of recent and cla ...
(2015); TV Land dropped the show in the wake of protests and controversy surrounding the display of the Confederate flag.
The Nashville Network The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, game shows, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows. On September ...
bought ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' from
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
in 1997 for well over $10 million; not only did it improve the network's ratings, the show was also popular among younger viewers, a demographic TNN had a notorious difficulty in drawing; ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' has run either on TNN or sister network CMT ever since.


Nielsen ratings


International

* The series was broadcast by
BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...
in the United Kingdom, debuting on Saturday March 3, 1979 at 9:00 p.m. (just several months after it began in the U.S.). Popular with all ages (and as some of the more adult elements of very early episodes faded out of the series), it quickly moved from its post- watershed position to a more family-friendly Monday evening slot at 7:20 p.m. Soon a massive hit, it moved from Monday evenings to prime-time Saturday evening (times varied, but typically around 5:25 p.m.), where it stayed for a number of years. Later when ratings began to dip (partly caused by the change to Coy and Vance, and partly to do with competition from
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
, with new hit shows such as ''
The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American action-adventure television series that ran on NBC from January 1983 to March 1987 about former members of a fictitious United States Army Special Forces unit. The four members of the team were tried by court marti ...
''), it moved back to Mondays, making the odd return for short runs on Saturdays. Late episodes also popped up occasionally on Sunday afternoons, and the remaining episodes of the final season were broadcast on weekday mornings during school holidays in the late 1980s. * In 1992, U.K. satellite channel
Sky1 Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non-terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...
bought a package of the program, owning the rights to the first 60 episodes produced (running up to "The Fugitive"), showing the series on Saturday afternoons at 4 p.m. They later showed the episodes they owned again, including a stint showing it in a weekday 3 p.m. slot, running for 50 minutes (including commercials) with the episodes heavily edited for time as a result, often leaving gaps in the plot. Despite requests from fans, they did not secure the rights to later episodes. The series was later run on the satellite channels
Granada Plus Plus was a digital channel run by Granada Sky Broadcasting. It was launched on 1 October 1996 under the original name of Granada Plus, and during its availability it underwent successive rebrands as G Plus, G+ and then simply Plus. However, it ...
and
TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...
. U.K. satellite channel
Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels *Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 *Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing company ...
began airing reruns in August 2005. Reruns are currently shown on
Forces TV The British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) provides radio and television programmes for His Majesty's Armed Forces, and their dependents worldwide. Editorial control is independent of the Ministry of Defence and the armed forces themselve ...
. * In Brazil, the series was named ''Os Gatões'' (''The Big Hunks''), which limited its popularity among the male audience. * The series was also shown in the Netherlands by Dutch broadcasting organization
AVRO AVRO, short for Algemene Vereniging Radio Omroep ("General Association of Radio Broadcasting"), was a Dutch public broadcasting association operating within the framework of the Nederlandse Publieke Omroep system. It was the first public broad ...
, with Dutch subtitles, rather than being dubbed. * It was shown on
Ten Network Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...
in Australia from September 1979 until the end of the series, and repeated throughout the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. It was quietly rerun on
pay TV Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, b ...
channel TV1 in the 2000s, but is now shown on Nine Network's subchannel, Go!. * The series aired weekdays on New Zealand's channel The BOX. Previously it aired on
TVNZ , type = Crown entity , industry = Broadcast television , num_locations = New Zealand , location = Auckland, New Zealand , area_served = Nationally (New Zealand) and some Pacific Island nations such as the Cook Islands, Fiji, and the So ...
for its original run, being repeated on Saturday afternoons in the early 1990s. In May 1984, a doctor and member of the Auckland Health Board called for the programme to be taken off-air for promoting reckless driving; the production of the story for the ''
Network News News broadcasting is the medium of broadcasting various news events and other information via television, radio, or the internet in the field of broadcast journalism. The content is usually either produced locally in a radio studio or televi ...
'' was featured in the 1985 documentary ''Network New Zealand''. * The series was popular in
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
, dubbed into Spanish. Some late-night reruns continue to the present day. * In Italy, the series started to air in September 1981 on
Canale 5 Canale 5 () is an Italian free-to-air television channel of Mediaset, owned by MFE - MediaForEurope. It was the first private television network to have a national coverage in Italy in 1980. On 4 December 2012, Mediaset launched Canale 5 HD, a s ...
, under the title ''Hazzard'' and quickly became popular with the viewers.


Spin-offs

* A spin-off named ''
Enos Enos or Enosh (Hebrew: , Standard ''Enosh'', Tiberian ''ʼĔnôš''; "mortal man”) may refer to: People in religious scripture * Enos (biblical figure), a genealogical figure in the Bible. * The Book of Enos, one of the books that make up the B ...
'' aired on CBS in 1980 starring
Sonny Shroyer Otis Burt "Sonny" Shroyer Jr. (born August 28, 1935) is an American actor and singer who has appeared in various television and movie roles. He is known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Enos Strate in the television series ''The Dukes of Hazzard''. ...
and lasted 18 episodes before being cancelled. * An animated version of the show called '' The Dukes'' aired in 1983 and was produced by
Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...
. The first season fell under the Coy and Vance era of the live-action show and thus they were adapted into animated form. By the second season, Bo and Luke had returned, and they replaced Coy and Vance in the cartoon. * Several video games based on the show were created: ** ''
The Dukes of Hazzard ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy TV series that was aired on CBS from January 26, 1979 to February 8, 1985. The show aired for 147 episodes spanning seven seasons. It was consistently among the top-rated television series ...
'' for
ColecoVision ColecoVision is a second-generation home video-game console developed by Coleco and launched in North America in August 1982. It was released a year later in Europe by CBS Electronics as the CBS ColecoVision. The console offered a closer expe ...
(1984) and
ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer. Referred to during development as t ...
(1985); also planned for the
Atari 2600 The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocessor- ...
** '' The Dukes of Hazzard: Racing for Home'' (1999) ** '' The Dukes of Hazzard II: Daisy Dukes It Out'' (2000) ** '' The Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee'' (2004) * In 2005, the
Humana Festival of New American Plays Humana Festival of New American Plays is an internationally renowned festival that celebrates the contemporary American playwright. Produced annually in Louisville, Kentucky by Actors Theatre of Louisville, this festival showcases new theatrica ...
premiered a full-length comedy drama entitled '' Hazzard County'' by
Allison Moore ''Dexter's Laboratory'' is an American animated television series created by Genndy Tartakovsky for Cartoon Network and distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. It follows Dexter, a short, enthusiastic boy-genius with a hid ...
. The story centers on a young widowed mother and a visit she receives from a big city television producer. Interspersed with recollections of Bo, Luke, and Daisy, the play takes a deep look at southern "good ol' boy" culture and its popularization through the lens of American mass media. * In 2014, AutoTrader made a commercial where Bo and Luke shop for a new car while being chased.


TV movies

Two made-for-TV reunion movies aired on CBS, '' The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!'' (1997) and '' The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood'' (2000).


Films

The film ''
The Dukes of Hazzard ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy TV series that was aired on CBS from January 26, 1979 to February 8, 1985. The show aired for 147 episodes spanning seven seasons. It was consistently among the top-rated television series ...
'' was released in 2005, and a direct-to-video prequel '' The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning'' in 2007. These films were more
buddy Buddy may refer to: People *Buddy (nickname) *Buddy (rapper), real name Simmie Sims III (1993–Present) *Buddy Rogers (wrestler), ring name of American professional wrestler Herman Gustav Rohde, Jr. (1921–1992) *Buddy Boeheim (born 1999), Amer ...
comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
road film A road movie is a film genre in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the theme of alienatio ...
in tone than the original TV series, which was an action-comedy.


Home media


DVD

Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. (formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video ...
has released all seven seasons of ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' on
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
in Regions 1 and 2. The two TV movies that followed the series were released on DVD in Region 1 on June 10, 2008, and in Region 4 on June 4, 2014. In Region 4, Warner has released only the first six seasons on DVD and the two TV movies. ''The Complete Series and Two Unrated Feature Films Box Set'' was released on DVD in Region 1 on November 14, 2017.


Streaming

The TV series was also made available for streaming and download through a variety of services.


Reception

Season 1 garnered a mixed reception from critics.
Tom Shales Thomas William Shales (born November 3, 1944) is an American writer and retired critic of television programming and operations. He was a television critic for ''The Washington Post'' from 1977 to 2010, for which Shales received the Pulitzer Pr ...
(''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
''): "Within five minutes, the program is out of breath from pandering so pantingly to its audience. ..If this show succeeds, every television critic in America may as well quit." Peter Hartlaub, writing for the ''
San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...
'': "Unfortunately, the first ''Dukes'' season wasn't the best, with a low budget and characters who found their footing as the series continued (Cooter started out a numbskull type)." Conversely, Danny Graydon ( ''Empire'') writes: "Today, ''Hazzard''s considerable charm endures, even if the sheer predictability is wearing."


Legacy and influence in popular culture

In 2005, Tom Wopat and John Schneider were reunited during "Exposed", a fifth-season episode of the television series ''
Smallville ''Smallville'' is an American superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produced by Millar Gough ...
''. Wopat guest-starred as Kansas State Senator Jack Jennings, an old friend of
Clark Kent Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publish ...
's adoptive father Jonathan Kent (portrayed by Schneider). In the episode, Jennings drives a 1968 Dodge Charger—the same body style as the ''General Lee''. Daisy Duke was almost always dressed in very short high waist jean shorts. That style of shorts became known as "Daisy Dukes". The series is referenced in the British sitcom ''
Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses....'' is a British television sitcom created and written by John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas specials aired until t ...
''; it is one of Grandad's favourite television programmes. ''
Lizard Lick Towing ''Lizard Lick Towing'' is an American reality television show that originated as a spin-off of the series ''All Worked Up'' and ran for four seasons on truTV from February 7, 2011, to August 18, 2014. The show follows Ron and Amy Shirley, Bobby B ...
'' featured an episode with its repossession specialists Ronnie Shirley and Bobby Brantley repossessing a ''General Lee'' replica.


Confederate flag controversy

After the 2015
Charleston church shooting On June 17, 2015, a mass shooting occurred in Charleston, South Carolina, in which nine African Americans were killed during a Bible study at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Among those people who were killed was the senior past ...
, renewed debate about the symbolism of the Confederate battle flag (which was prominently featured on the ''General Lee''s roof, and the panel behind the rear window in the first five episodes) prompted
TV Land TV Land is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its networks division. Originally a spinoff of Nick at Nite consisting exclusively of classic television shows, the channel now airs a combination of recent and cla ...
to pull reruns of the original series. Warner Bros., which owns the property, announced it would also no longer create merchandise bearing the flag, including miniatures of the ''General Lee''. During the 2020
George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil unrest against police brutality and racism that began in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020, and largely took place during 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of internati ...
, Amazon reportedly considered removing the program from its streaming service.


Tourist attraction

Artifacts from the show are on display in
Luray, Virginia Luray is the county seat of Page County, Virginia, Page County, Virginia, United States, in the Shenandoah Valley in the northern part of the Commonwealth. The population was 4,895 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. The town was starte ...
;
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
; and
Pigeon Forge, Tennessee Pigeon Forge is a mountain resort city in Sevier County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 6,343. Situated just 5 miles (8 km) north of Great Smoky Mountains National Par ...
. Cooter's Place in Luray is overseen by Ben "Cooter" Jones from the series. The Pigeon Forge location features a gift shop and a small display of costumes, collectibles and artifacts from the show. Covington and Conyers, Georgia, where the original five episodes were produced, have been two major tourist attractions for ''Dukes of Hazzard'' fans.


See also

*


References


Further reading

* ''Redneck Boy in the Promised Land: The Confessions of "Crazy Cooter"'', by Ben "Cooter" Jones, 2008. Crown.


External links


''The Dukes of Hazzard'' official Facebook page
*
''The Dukes of Hazzard''
at CMT
Who sang the theme song and also served as the narrator on The Dukes of Hazzard?
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dukes Of Hazzard, The 1970s American comedy-drama television series 1979 American television series debuts 1980s American comedy-drama television series 1985 American television series endings American action adventure television series American action comedy television series American action television series American adventure television series Appalachia in fiction CBS original programming English-language television shows Fictional duos Self-censorship Television duos Television series about cousins Television series about families Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios Television shows adapted into films Television shows adapted into video games Television shows filmed in Georgia (U.S. state) Television shows filmed in Santa Clarita, California Television shows set in Georgia (U.S. state)