All Things Dukes of Hazzard

The Dukes of Hazzard was a phenomenally successful action comedy series originally aired on CBS from January 1979 to February 1985.  All told, CBS produced 145 episodes.  The creator, a man named Gy Waldron, probably drew influences from both Live and Let Die and a 1975 film called Moonrunners.  The original Dukes of Hazzard starred Tom Wopat  and John Schneider as Luke and Bo Duke, owners of a farm in Hazzard County Georgia and moonshine runners.

These "good old boys" inevitably antagonize the local law officials, Boss Hogg (played by Sorrell Booke) and Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane (played with bumbling efficiency by James Best).  Of course, they are often joined by the ever-scrumptious Daisy Duke (played for the TV series with wanton abandon by Catherine Bach).  Typical episodes revolve around the Duke brothers getting in trouble with Boss Hogg and/or Boss Hogg's crazy get rich quick schemes.

Part of the fun of the Dukes of Hazzard TV series was the car chases.  The Duke brothers drove a 1969 Dodge Charger that was simply referred to as the General Lee. Touch the horn, and the car would beep out a few bars of the Confederate Anthem.

In 2005, the <i>Dukes of Hazzard</i> finally made it to the silver screen. The film starred Johnny Knoxville and Jessica Simpson (as Daisy Duke).  While the film performed moderately well at the box office, it has recouped significantly on DVD.  The franchise and the General Lee in particular have earned their place in the pantheon of pop culture kitsch.