Ya see I was one of the actors in the film!!  Back in the '70's I was an actor and  I worked in the restaurant business in Atlanta while getting degrees at Oglethorpe Univ. and Georgia State.

I was cast in a small speaking part and got to be on the set for many days!!  I say a small part, after the "cutting room floor" took a lot of what was filmed with me.  I played a Mississippi Cop trying to stop Burt and Sally as they barreled down the road.  A neat stunt was part of the scene, as it looks like I can't drive worth a darn and end up going backward down an embankment in my Police Car and into a river!  My lines that stayed in the film were, "Here they come Sarge!!" and " You OK Sarge???!!" 'Since both our cars went into the water!!

The stunt guys did a great job and Hal Needham, the Director, then had us wade through the water and climb into the cars. Needham squatted on the bank and gave us "direction" as to what he wanted us to do.  Ha! I'll never forget my co-actor in the other car across from me (his name escapes me...) cut his foot wading to his car and a nurse on the set was on the floorboard of the car to stop the bleeding while he said his lines!!  Hal didn't want to waste time stopping the scene to get this guy out of the car and back up to the road to fix his cut!

I have a lot of memories:  Standing around with Jackie Gleason and several other actors on a chilly early am "call" some place on a North Georgia blacktop.  We all had coffee, but Mr. Gleason's coffee cup....well, lets say we weren't really sure what he had in it (!!). I remember the chit chat being fun and Gleason in his sheriff uni., but wearing his comfortable purple patten leather shoes !!!  He knew they weren't shooting his feet that day!!

I was allowed on the set by Hal Needham that day for the "bridge jump".  I was on the camera barge in the middle of the river with my Lieca m-2 camera set at 1000 / sec. and caught the Trans Am perfectly in mid-flight.  The photo is still with me today!!  The stunt guy and gal in that car...the car they did all stunts in...(.'what a set up in that vehicle!!.)...well, that couple were married shortly after!!  Sadly I remember hearing later he was killed doing a stunt some other place and film....

Did you know that bridge was supposed to collapse when the car landed and kept going??  Yeah, a special effects crew worked days to set up pumps and cables under the structure that would be activated to pull the bridge support legs down when the Trans Am hit a trip wire when it landed.  But alas, the stunt driver landed beyond the wire !!!!  'And nothing happened!!  There was dead silence for a second....and then everybody cheered anyway for an incredible leap!!  A lot of laughter erupted when Hal Needham asked everybody if they should do the stunt again to get the landing - end of the bridge to collapse.  Not !!!  They'd got quite a shot anyway!!!

I could go on here but enough for now.  We always wondered about one thing concerning this film that no one ever answered ( that I know of..?):  This extremely popular film has no "Credits"...not actor's names, nothing......we figured it had to do with some legal, marketing, business decision....'just never knew the real reason.  Ha, now watch you write me back and say, "Well, the reason was......"  !!

After that film my journeys carried my overseas for several years...'missed an audition for "Sharkey's Machine" by not being in Atlanta at that time!! 

Good memories.... 

Keep up the work!!  I'd love to join yall on a "run" someday. 

Sincerely,

Ed Henderson (end of first email) 

Response from me:

Sorry another question? How many Trans Ams for the bridge jump? I always heard the first one didn't make it. How many T/As were used in the movie?       If you are not sure, please guess, I've heard 3 all the way up to 13??? Can I publish this? 

Tyler:  I have no problem with you publishing my comments.  Thanks for asking. Now, about your Trans Am Bridge Jump question.  Only one Trans Am was used.  'And it was a special one to say the least!!  I remember a guy on the set saying about $50,000 had been put into this particular vehicle: suspension, frame, engine, and roll cage that wasn't all that visible.  I was told this was the car used for all the stunts.  No, there was no Trans Am that "didn't make it" on a first attempt.  They got that shot in one attempt, one take and with that one car.  I remember well, 'cause I was there on that camera barge all morning!!  The wait for the actual jump seemed forever as scenes go in the shooting process. Oh, there were many "run - ups" shall we say.....'meaning the driver made many high speed runs up to certain points before he got to  the specially build ramp hidden on the take off side of the bridge.  It was a way to gage if his speed was OK at certain sections of the run so when he hit the ramp, the car would be going fast enough to carry him and his female stunt rider across the gap and then hit that "trip - wire" I mentioned.

I don't remember who exactly calculated all the mathematical details of how fast it was needed to be traveling, angle of take off, distance to be covered by a Trans Am,  landing scenarios etc. etc., but somebody did!!!  I remember everyone connected with this stunt  being very very concerned about detail and safety.

OK....how many Trans Am's used for the movie?  Well, I wasn't on the set for the entire film, but a close friend of mine, Bob Cernelli, who was a "stand - in" for Burt R,, told me one day he knew of at least 10 black Trans Am's used in different shooting locations that didn't involve heavy duty stunts.  Bob had many stories.  He'd sit in a Trans Am for long periods for "long shots" and even in a Trans Am with scaffolding and cameras bolted on to the car for rolling shots.  They'd also use Bob just to gage how long the car might have to be moving for certain scenes before they put Burt in the car. Sadly Bob died several years ago; 'great guy and also a great singer!!

Hope all this helps...don't hesitate to keep testing my memory banks!!

Later,Ed


Here is an article that was posted in Hot Rod magazine  and their website concerning the Bandit Run and movie tour  by Christopher Campbell.   Chris was  with us for the entire trip, including the movie tour.