HazzardNet, Author at HazzardNet

Double Episodes of Dukes of Hazzard on CMT!

Now you have twice as many reasons to stay up all night. CMT is airing 2 episodes of “The Dukes of Hazzard” back-to-back every night this week! So go ahead and have a pot of coffee with dinner, and stay awake to catch these classics:

The Dukes in Hollywood – Wed 11/16 at 1:00 a.m.

Cool Hands Luke and Bo – Wed 11/16 at 2:00 a.m.

Go West Young Dukes – Thurs 11/17 at 1:00 a.m.

Cale Yarborough Comes to Hazzard – Thurs 11/17 at 2:00 a.m.

Danger on the Hazzard Express – Fri 11/18 at 1:00 a.m.

Sittin’ Dukes – Fri 11/18 at 2:00 a.m.

“Cool Hands Luke & Bo” offered fresh excitement late in the series, by getting the Dukes in a heap of trouble outside of Hazzard. For once, the bad guys aren’t coming to Hazzard from out of town – they’re at home in Osage County, and the Dukes just happen to wander over there. Nice goin’, boys. And can anyone listen to Daisy’s emotional protest without feeling sympathy? It’s rare we see Daisy in tears, even if just for a moment.

Another original idea is explored in “Go West Young Dukes.” It’s the closest thing to time-travel that we get in The Dukes of Hazzard, and it’s pulled off rather well. This Duke-ified western admits the remarkable resemblance between the current day Dukes and their storied ancestors, and from there, it’s just plain fun. It’s obvious that John Schneider and Tom Wopat relished the opportunity to do something different.

In the not-so-great department, “Cale Yarborough Comes to Hazzard” is ruined by the over-use of model cars doing stunts that do not look believable in the least. This episode had the potential to be a touching story about how a celebrity race car driver helps a sick little boy. Instead, it was overstuffed with poorly executed, unnecessary “action” scenes of matchbox cars flying over toy buildings and landscapes.

On the positive, Cale performs his role well, and Bo delivers a couple bad puns that are worth it just for Luke’s expression. James Best, as Rosco, delivers an ad-lib that we probably shouldn’t even mention. This scene has often been cut from the TNN and CMT airings to make room for more commercials. Good thing we YouTube’d it.

Thank You Veterans!

HazzardNet salutes our Veterans for their service to our country. The greatest act of patriotism, the greatest love for freedom, is demonstrated by those who have been in our Armed Forces.

To the generations who have served before us, thank you. To those who currently serve, thank you. Your valour has preserved our nation, and continues to protect us all.

HazzardNet would also like to give a personal salute to Dukes of Hazzard cast member James Best, who enlisted in the Army Air Corps during WWII. He became an M.P. while stationed in occupied Germany, courageously facing many ordeals.

Our sincere thanks to you, Jimmie, for your service.

Tom Wopat Lands Role in Quentin Tarantino Flick

Tom Wopat, known to us as Luke Duke from “The Dukes of Hazzard”, has landed the role of Marshall Gill Tatum in Tarantino’s 2012 movie, “Django Unchained.” This is a spaghetti n’ grits southern-western, promising bullets, havoc and revenge.

In a nutshell, freed slave Django teams up with his bounty-hunter mentor to rescue his enslaved wife from a sadistic plantation owner. The latter will be played by Leonardo DiCaprio.

Tom is no stranger to modern westerns, having played Colonel Slocum in the 2010 movie, Jonah Hex. While Tom’s main bread n’ butter has been Broadway musicals for many years, he continues to obtain roles in movies and television. Additionally, he performs live concerts in an array of venues, receiving critical acclaim for his smooth, crooning jazz vocals.

The Django Unchained cast also includes actor M.C. Gainey, who portrayed Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane in the 2005 big-screen Dukes of Hazzard movie.

Another Hazzard connection is that director/screenwriter Quentin Tarantino was once a student of James Best’s camera technique school. In his book Best in Hollywood: The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful, James remarked that he told Tarantino he was a “lousy actor” and that he should “take up writing.” The rest, as they say, is history.

Django Unchained is in pre-production status, and is expected to be in theaters by December 2012.

Dukes of Hazzard “General Lee” Is #1 Iconic Car

Or maybe that should be “#01” most iconic car! The General Lee from The Dukes of Hazzard has been named by Edmunds “Inside Line” site as “The Greatest TV and Movie Car of All Time.” This is no surprise to Dukes fans, but for an outfit like Edmunds to endorse the opinion is pretty cool. They considered 100 popular TV and movie cars for this honor.

Hot Rod Magazine had already crowned the General Lee as king in their November 2011 issue, as a result of their reader poll. But hey, the more on the bandwagon, the merrier!

Hot Rod’s runner-up, The Bandit Trans-Am, came in at #4 on the Edmunds Inside Line list. The Knight Rider 1982 Pontiac Trans Am placed in the top ten at #7.

You can read Inside Line’s Top 100 list here. Meanwhile, let’s give a 21-Dixie horn salute to our favorite car, The General Lee! You can also share your opinions on the rest of the Inside Line 100 List in our Forums.

BREAKING NEWS: Hazzard Homecoming in 2012!

Details are few, but the news is good for Dukes of Hazzard fans: there will be another Hazzard Homecoming in 2012! The announced dates are August 11 & 12. The location for the 2012 Hazzard Homecoming is the same as before, in Sperryville, Virginia. While the cast line up is unknown at this point, we can tell ya this much…this is about as fast as Ben Jones has ever announced the gig for the following year. So he must have somethin’ good cookin’!

While August 11 & 12 of 2012 seems like a long time from now, it pays to make your travel plans early. Sperryville is a small town and you’ll have to find your lodgings in nearby communities; hotels book up fast. On the plus side, the area is very scenic, and it’s worth allowing more time so you can enjoy Skyline Drive and the beautiful mountain scenery.

We will update our home page with more 2012 Hazzard Homecoming details as they become available. Meanwhile, you can follow the buzz in our Forums!