Get Out N Drive Podcast
Get Out N Drive Podcast
Lee 1 - Part 2: Who, How, And Where Did Travis Bell Find The First General Lee??
Ride along with Jason OldeCarrGuy Carr & John CustomCarNerd Meyer as they put this episode into gear with Travis Bell as he recounts the story of how he found Lee 1. Yep, the General Lee from the Dukes Of Hazzard!
Travis Bell has quite a story! He wanted to find and buy Lee 1. Ride along as Travis details a 4 year journey that led him to Lee 1.
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Transcript
John
On this episode of. The Get Out N Drive podcast we talk with Travis Bell. If you don't know who he is. He rescued Lee 1 the very first General Lee.
Announcer
You're listening to the Get Out N Drive podcast with John Custom Car Nerd Meyer and Jason OldeCarrGuy Carr, we'll be bringing you gear heads everything you never wanted to know about cars and why they should be on the road and not in your garage. Are you ready to get out N drive?
Travis
So we're sitting there, like going OK and then so we hear something come down the road and not so many people live on this road and move up the driveway, you know, here goes to Astro van Boom man. I'm like going. I'm like, shoot, man, Mr. Shaw is ticked off man like.
John
He passed right by. You did not stop.
Travis
Didn't say how y'all are. Peace Out, Girl Scout. He didn't say. What are you damn Yankees doing down here? He drove past us. And up the driveway, which was about a two acre driveway. And of course, you know, it's the gravel that washes out with the ruts in it. Like it was just and you know, you guys, they had the Red Georgia clay peeking through all this mess, and now it's raining and washing down in this.
Jason
And I'm like.
Travis
And they're all looking at me like you go talk to him. I'm like, bro, I don't want, you know.
John
Rock, paper, scissors on who's going to talk to.
Travis
Yeah. So. So about 10 minutes goes by and. There's nothing. I'm like, alright. Well hell, I'm you know. It's time to go. Figure out what's going on with Mr. Shaw and he's about. 1/2 an acre coming down the driveway and I could see him. So I was like, I'll just start walking up that way. And we met out about the Pintos and. Simply said, hey Travis, I. I talked to June. And I apologize for being so ill toward you, he said. I just wanted you to know that I do not work on a Sunday and you know, he's a very religious man and he had to. He went to church that morning and you know my buddy that it was about 20 feet behind me was like dude he probably got some religion. While some like no, he said. Know he he, I. Mean he literally cussed me out in his driveway. I went to church, you know? So he felt pretty bad. And I was very nice to him and very nice to his grandson for the last year and. You know, he confirmed that June did tell me to come on down, so I came on down and he told me to see what I could do when I did it. So at this point, it's on the trailer or it's on the flatbed and you know, we don't know what we're going to pay for this thing. Because no one has negotiated price, no one has even said if it's for sale. If he wants us to roll it back off and haul ass like. You know, so. He he goes. Well the NASCAR race is on? Why don't you come up here and we'll sit down and talk about that old car? And so we had a we had a lean to on the side of the house and had a picnic table and a. And A and a TV out there and. NASCAR was on, so we're sitting there watching me, Cliff and my two friends. Went with me. Are watching NASCAR with Cliff Shaw on a Sunday in the rain. And I I said, you know, Cliff, I got a hell of a drive home. And I did. And I said I need to know what I'm gonna give you for this thing. And I do appreciate you selling it. To me kind of thing. And he said, what will you give me for? And you know at that point, you don't know if you're going to give. $2000 or $20,000 for this thing because he knows what he has. I said, well, Cliff, you know. I didn't bring a pocket full of money, but I brought enough to buy. I think us out, he said. Well, let me tell you what we gonna do. We'll make this quick. We'll make it short and I have done this probably 10 times since Mr. Shaw showed me how to do this. He, of course, his overalls. He takes a pen out of his overalls. He said. Travis, I'm. Gonna write a number on my hand. I'm going to give you the pen you're going to write a number on your hand. We're going to turn 'em over. And now we're going to know where to start. And it was. That was the coolest thing, you know. Of course I'm in my I'm. I'll be 50 I was, you know in the late 20s, early 30s and I was like. Damn, Mr. Shaw's cool as a cucumber man. He is rad and right, but the problem was Mr. Shaw did bam. Like literally 2 seconds and then handed it to me. And I got my friends looking over my shoulders. And they're like. You know what do you write? I mean, John, what do you write? Jason, what do you write on your hand at that? Point you have found. The first, generally the Holy Grail of the Dukes of Hazzard. Everything else is a replica. So you. Don't quite own it yet, but you can run down the driveway and start flatbed and haul ass like it's yours. But it's not. You've just driven. So what I mean, what do? You write John.
John
I I I don't put the price on the Ark of the Covenant. I I I mean you're you're standing there.
Travis
Right.
John
I mean, you know the the the Nazis haven't melted yet. You you have no idea the power of this thing.
Travis
That's right.
John
I mean. You, you. You.
Travis
And and and you've been a fan of the show since the first episode came on, when you, when you were on your father's lap waiting for the Incredible Hulk. To come on on.
John
Oh yeah.
Travis
On January 26th, 1979, but it was replaced with the Magic Car that flew, and you have been the biggest fan in your entire life and you are this. Close from owning the Ark of the Covenant.
John
Right. I mean, I I have no idea the number that I I know your number, the number I would have written down was. $2000.
Travis
Jason, are you in that neighborhood too?
Jason
I I probably would have been in that in that neighborhood knowing the the the historic value, the the, the TV value, the the. What that thing? Holds I'm a car salesman. I'm a used car salesman. Is my day job and I I also know not to give up your hand right away. And again, I know your number, but I I probably would have been way high.
Travis
Yeah. So yeah.
Jason
I probably would have like you. Know what? If I put 2? Grand on my hand. I'm probably going to insult the guy.
Travis
So you know all of. My friends are looking at me like Travis is. About to spend a whole. Hell of a lot. Of money. But I simply wrote $500.00 on my hand and that I just was like we have to start somewhere. And, you know, he could have told me to go fly a kite. Take the damn thing off the truck. You know, you just wasted all this time I went to church XY and insert all the crap. So I wrote $500.00 on my hand and Mr. Shaw turned his over and I turned mine over and he had written $300.00 on his. Hand. And so I said, where we'll meet in the middle. Sounds like. So I bought the first General Lee from the Dukes of Hazzard for $400.00. And then he said if you're interested in the police cars. I'll sell them to you both for the same money. So I gave him $1,200 and told him that I would see him again. In the future. And I left and I walked down the driveway and all of my friends are like. What even why I would have, you know, they're like, right. They're ready. That we brought 10 grams down there with us. So we were ready to spend some money, but I was and they're looking at me and. I was like, let's talk about it when we get to South Carolina and put some wheels on this thing. So we towed it on the tow truck all the way to the Carolinas, put some wheels on it, put it back on the trailer and and took it back to Indianapolis.
John
Did you trailer it?
Speaker
Are closer.
John
Did you trailer it covered?
Travis
No, no, no, no, it's.
John
OK.
Travis
Sitting there flapping with the with the the headliner still blowing around inside of it and everything else, and just put the so we already so the wheels that were on it when it was the. Green wreck Richard Petty race car. Gosh, his name slips me and I can see him. He was so nice to me. Pete Hamilton won the 70. Yeah, he working for Richard Petty. So 1970 Daytona 500. Super nice guy. But he had a shop that butted up with her H&H Henry Holman shop. And the wheels that were on the car in the television show were provided by him because they needed NASCAR wheels and he had won for he, for Richard Petty Racing. He won the 70 Daytona 500. In a superbird. And anyhow, he we had his wheels to put back on it again because we had already acquired those and all we had to do is acquire the car. So we put the same wheels back on it. And uh ran home back to Indianapolis with it.
Jason
So you went. There, with 10 grand in your pocket. Were you prepared to walk away and was money no object? What if you had written 10 grand on your hand and he had come back with 50?
Travis
And we were either going to catch a case that day. Or we were going to come back and give him a pocketful of money. So I don't know. I it was probably skys the limit at that point. You know, if there's no, if he'd ask. 20 grand for it. I'd have probably figured out how to. We only had 10. I'd be like, you know. I'll see you in. A minute?
Speaker
Right.
Travis
Yeah, there's at that point, you, you're so. Invested in it. You've you've got to bring home the prize some.
John
Were you willing to walk if he said get this thing off your trailer, it's still my car.
Travis
I don't know. I I knew we were gonna come home with it. So I I I that's a great question, but I really don't know. So I told everybody I. Said we're either going to buy a car or we're going to come out of there with a case and buy now the statutes of limitations would have. I'd probably suck it away in my parents barn. They had a barn back then they they no longer they live in a little gated community now. So I don't know where the hell it would be now, but yeah, I was leaving with it. One way or the other.
John
So you've got the remainder of the General Lee Lee one. You take it back to South Carolina, you take it back. To Europe.
Travis
Yeah, looking to South Carolina and put the wheels back on it because of course I had no. Wheels and tires. And then I was able to roll for the IT. It had not rolled under its own power since it flew Saturday, November Saturday, November 11th, 1978, and then after that it just became a prop. And so they had originally. Remove the the two orange doors that had the old ones on it and put them on another car because it was. It was easier to replace the doors than to repaint another set. They cut the tail light panel out of the 69 and put it into one of those 60 eights that Mister Schisler had built. Because that way, you know, they're relatively unidentifiable because now you have the grill out of a 68 or 69 and a 68. If you smooth over the turn signals, which most of them did. The only thing you can identify is kind of the pointy dashboard for the 68. So we had one door that was off of Lee 2 that was on the other side that had the 70 ones on it. This is a power window door and leave one was not a power window car. And then we had, you know, holes in the floorboard for where they had cut the roll bar out and put into what would be Mr. Schussler's third car that he built, that he was to ship later. But he that that's another cool red store on where that car is. And so we take off with it with one door missing. See Hamilton's wheels back on it and start heading back toward Indianapolis from the Carolinas. With it now all this. This is all in the same day, like no sleep, kind of. Thing let's go home kind of thing.
John
So other than than I I found the Ark of the Covenant. I've I've found you know, the the best thing ever in, in, in automotive movie history. What are you thinking on your way home? I mean, put us inside Travis Bella's head on the way home, driving in the rain.
Travis
Well, and we still can't tell anybody because yeah, we still can't tell anybody because the two police.
John
That's what I'm that's kind of what? I'm getting at.
Travis
Cars are left behind.
John
Right, right, right.
Travis
And we haven't gone and picked them up yet. So we had instructed the tow truck friend in South Carolina and said, hey, you know, over the next couple of weeks, go snap these up real quick.
John
OK.
Travis
Which he did. So once we got it back into, you know basically Indian airspace, we. Just kind of sat on it for a little bit and and at that point, I know the website calledgenerallyfanclub.com we were going to do a Dukes of Hazzard or a generally fan club convention and this is pre Dukes Fest and all that crap. So I called Ben Jones, Cooter on the Dukes of Hazzard and and he had a little was a fruit stand that turned into a. You know tourist trap. And I was like, hey, I want to unveil the first General Lee at a Dukes Hazzard fan club convention. Can we bring, you know, 2,000 of our closest friends down there? We made this convention thinking ohh one 2001, so we unveiled the car there with them and realized that it was very, very difficult to babysit because though it had sat, you know, in the woods forever and then it sat and on my property in Indianapolis. When people realized what it was, they would pick paint off of it or pick roll bar or padding off of it or things so they had a piece of the original. Early and it became very bad and it was painted with some rather toxic paint. Back in the day and it became and kids would be jumping in and out of it. And it's got, you know, very sharp edges on everything. And all we did is is remove the pine needles and things out of it, lightly washed it. And and that's it. And it just. Kind of sat. They're on the property for a while, but then, like I said that we realized as we would go to these events. Hence how difficult it was to babysit, and we actually have signs. They're probably still, renter says, please do not pick paint. Things like that and it it became very, very tough to dip to babysit. We really had no idea what what I was going to do with it at that point because it is a disaster of a mess. Still has this motor still has this? Transmission in it. The transmission tunnel is bent over the top of itself. From when it landed on the ground and kind of crushed through so. If it were to be restored, it would be a heavy, heavy, heavy restoration, so I don't want to say the Dukes has a fans ruined it for me, but it it became very, very difficult to enjoy yourself and and keep one eye on. It at all times so. Because you would leave and go and do something, you'd come back with, you know, 50% less of the car and everybody would have like, A-frame at their house with a piece. Of chip of paint on it.
Jason
We know you enjoy the get out. And drive podcast. John, let our listeners know how. They can support the show.
John
Where you can buy the show a. Gallon of gas, you've.
Jason
Please explain.
John
Heard of? Buy me a coffee, right? Oh, yeah. But who needs coffee we need? A gallon of gas. Just go to our. Website get out. And drive dot. Com scroll to the bottom of any screen and you'll see the buy us a. Gallon of gas. This link just click and you'll help to keep our show running.
Jason
So you've got the car and you're showing it off at this. You know this big festival. But at some point in time, the car gets sold restored. How how do? We go from sitting in a big festival. With lead paint and and sharp edges and all this stuff to a complete restoration. How how do we go from that from one end to the other?
Travis
I had my own generally that I would drive a lot. I have had not been in a fist fight since high school and catching people pick paint off of the. Bar led to probably the first fist fight that I had gotten into in years. And you know, people don't even if you own a generally right now and you go to Pizza Hut and have something to eat and you leave it out in the parking lot, somebody is sitting on your hood getting their picture taken with it because they don't realize that someone owns it. They still think Bo and Luke. Drive it known. It, Whatever else, it's very, very, very difficult to drive a Hollywood. Our car, let alone the General Lee, so especially in the in the in the world in which we live, there was a group of five gentlemen that were out of Ohio that were Dukes Hazzard fans and they said Travis, would you ever consider selling the car? I said Ohh yes we would consider because at this point I had had it for for four years. So we're Fast forward into about 2004. I sold it to them. For $20,000. And so they all pitched $5,000 apiece in it. And they towed it around for about a year or less, and then they realized how difficult it was. To own the car and.
John
Now they've got the hot potato.
Travis
They have the problem and it's their problem now so. A gentleman by. The name of Marvin Murphy contacted me out of Florida and Marvin had done well for himself. He was up there many years, but he was a very, very nice guy and he had owned the convertible kit from Knight Rider and things and he had kind of like the star card bug, but he would send me like a generally picture and said, hey, this one's for sale. And I'd be like, cool, you know, you buy that one. Whatever. And then he'd send me one of the real Wayne Wooten 17 cars and I go. You have to realize, if you buy one of those cars, they are a disaster. They are very real, but they are a mess. Guys from Ohio recontacted me and said, hey, we're looking to sell this again. And I called Marvin Murphy and I was like. Murphy, I said Lee. One is for sale, but you realize it is an absolute complete and total basket case. And he said, do you have everybody's information, blah, blah, blah. I gave it to him. And Mr. Murphy called me back and said, hey, I'm going to be at Indianapolis International Airport on like, Thursday. This is a Monday. We're gonna ride over to Ohio and pick his car up. So you bought it? He said. Yeah, I bought it off of them. And you know, I'm like, cool. So Mr. Murphy fly in, we drive over, not probably 2 hours away. Pick it back up. Hook it back up. I drove back and he says OK, I got a flight out here at 4:00 o'clock and also just drop me back. Off at the airport. And I'm like, look at him. I'm, like, going, you know, you got to get your car home, you know? So I literally pulled into Indianapolis International Airport. In a Ford expedition back then, towing a towing their trailer, we got their trailer with the deal. The same car exactly as I left it a year earlier. And I said, you know, Marvin, what are we gonna do? This thing and his exact words getting his suitcase out, said if someone spray painted all over the Mona Lisa, someone would have to fix it and that someone is you. And I'm like, you know, dude, that's heavy, you know? And you know, I'm a disc jockey, but I'm a car guy, but I'm not like a Body Shop per guy. And I've got Body Shop friends and but this is a rest or ration like this is not a bumper cover. The thing, and Mr. Murphy's, you know, said, you know, just let me know what I yeah. And they're, like walking away. I'm like, dude, I mean, what are we doing here? So I hired that my friend who's a Mopar mechanic. And we pulled the motor and trans. Out of it. Then we had the rolling shell and then we took the shell to Walter's Body Shop here on the South side of Indianapolis. You still do all my paint, paint work to this day. I said, you know, where do you want to start? And then we had one of the greatest pinstripers he's still alive. Bob, I can't think of his bikini Caddell. Anyhow, he we had to have him come over because you could see the flag bleeding through the green paint. He said. Do you care if I wet sand on the roof here and I'm like, you know, it's all gotta get fixed anyhow. So he lightly wet sands the roof and you know the flag and the it's coming back to life in front of your eyes and things like this. And you're like, going wow, this is so crazy. So then he had he had unveiled the flag, but we knew it, said John Marende. And he'd beat the roof to death. But underneath Miranda, it's all generally and all this stuff. And I'm like, Oh my God, this is so crazy, right? So we're, you know, we're wet sanding for half an evening and we've got it all kind of revealed and we have all the measurements we need for the flag, which is kind of tricky on the car and all, all the, all the hand, the, the, the generally text kind of changes from Georgia to California. Because they went to vinyl graphics versus hand paint. So we had everything, all the templates and everything we needed and now this is pre AMD sheet metal. This is pre, you know, order it and we'll have it. You know you need a quarter panel kind of thing this is. This is, you know, where the hell are we gonna get these parts from? And we had bought a 19. Another complete 1969 Dodge Charger. We bought a 68 and a 69. We bought another 69 that someone had turned into a low rider project. Got to help him and it was like on airbags and just this ridiculous mess but it was straight as an arrow. No motor, no trans. I don't even think I had a dash, but it had every part we needed to complete the the restoration of the car so that car lost its wife as we picked and and cut parts off of the off of the that car to put on to leave one. And then of course, the motor and trends got finished and done. You know, you're looking for all these parts and pieces. The only aftermarket part in the whole car is the trunk pan, and everything else is 1969 sheet metal. You know, we got it running and driving, hit a jump Saturday, November 11th, 1978 and we were going to unveil it. Never November 11th. So I called John Schneider and I said, hey, what are you doing in Georgia on this day? And I mean, you're this one that. Supposedly jumped it on that day. So I called the college and asked him if. I can I use the college happened to be like a Sunday. So they were kind of. That day, and we had towed it back down to Georgia and right where it landed in the TV show. We backed it out the trailer and that Mister Schneider backed it out of the trailer and unveiled it back that it was alive and well, exactly with the crooked numbers on it and exactly as it appeared. So it just like, it just continued driving, basically. It was crazy and it took it probably took about a year and a half. To to restore the car, but it is running and driving still to this day on its same motor and transit flue, just the sheet metal has has been obviously updated because there wasn't much left of it so.
John
Does the car still wear the same restoration that you gave it or it it had been a different a different restoration since?
Travis
Yes, you have to this you have. To this day. No, it's it's still is exactly as I turned it over when we sold it at Barrett-jackson whenever we sold it. I can't remember, it's been probably. 10 years now. So. And everybody you know. Car people sometimes think you're Barrett-jackson experience if if that's where you want to go is is the Holy Grail of experiences. And people saw that that we were going to sell it and and turn it over. And they, you know, the year before Bears had sold the Batmobile for an outrageous amount of money. And John Schneider stood on the roof of his car. I stole his car there like 2 years before and everybody's like, you know, Travis, what do you think is gonna bring? What do you think is going to? And by that time, we had already filmed like. The Dukes of Hazzard movie and and and. We're on the downside of of Phantom of Dukes of Hazzard, but you still have to remember that this is simply a 1969 Dodge Charger with a goofy paint job and a flag and a backwards 10 like it was. If it is like millions of this and I go man, I said. But they made 300 and, you know, 21 of these cars and over 600 police cars and the amount of replicas. I mean, it doesn't really hit home that this thing is not gonna bring huge money. And they were, you know, going to do it on the Saturday night and roll it out. There and do all this stuff and we're. Yeah, they're like Travis. What do you expect? And I said if it breaks 100. $1000 I'll be a man. And they were just like, oh, man, why are you shooting so low? I said because I'm very realistic. I said there's 17 real ones plus a couple more have been found. Plus this one, you know, it's leave one, but everything else is a replica. But what do you do with? It if you buy it so. And it was very weird to watch it happen because you know, you were. It rolls out there and everybody clap, clap, clap and all this stuff. But then it took off. I mean, you know, 10203040506070 I'm like, Dang, I mean, we are making money, bro. Like here we go, right? It was very weird to watch the minute that Bubba Watson from the Sky Box bid on it. You'll watch on the on the on on the footage it hits a wall. Like everybody, he was bid up one time and he rebid and everybody got out of his way and let him, you know, it was kind of a, you know, everybody knew not to bid against him because that was his dream car. And he had done. A lot of you know Internet things that he was going to buy it and just. Everybody got out. Of his way and good for him. I think he had sold for 100 and. 27,000 or something like that. Which is more than what I and everybody's. Like I'm already. Depressed and like dude, I gave $400.00 for this. Car and a. Disc jockey and a luthier restored it for let's say 60. 1000 and so it probably doubled its money. It went on that Bubba Watson was the greatest caretaker for that car and took a lot of flak for the car because that's when everything got heated over the Confederate flag and he had to put out a lot of fires that that were not his fault because of sponsorships. He he had tweeted that he was going to take the flag off the roof of the car and boss say this and be like oh, you know, kill Bubba Watson, you know, and all the people that believe that the Dukes of Hazzard is a documentary. We're like burn Bubba Watson to the mistake, you know, and I'm like going, it's his car. If he wanted to paint it pink, he can do whatever he wants to with. But he never did he he just had to. He had to. He was supposed to cause he lives in Arizona. He was supposed to lead a pay slap at Phoenix with the car for a NASCAR race, and NASCAR said if you cover the flag, you can but the like. So I told Bubba I was like, hey, just put the low if you want to do this. Put the logo of the racetrack on the roof on like a like one of those removable fatheads kind of sticker or something and and Bubba was true to form.
John
Right.
Travis
He was like man F These guys, I I'm not gonna do that. And I said, you know, so then he put the tweet out. I knew he never did it. Put a little vinyl piece over it in case he ever had to drive it, but he never drove it again. They ruined it for him, so he never. So then he learned the hard lessons that I had learned. And he had it for about 10 years. And he since sold it to a great guy that lives in Texas and and he has removed the vinyl on it and it is. It is exactly as it appeared. The only thing they did is changed the windshield. And change like one more or the front seats and that's about it and it's it's still exactly as it appeared when it left my property. So I like to see it again and they call me all the time from 2 points and you know, where's this or how do you start that or what's so so, but yeah, there's some some terrific people own it now. So and then it's really been in good hands ever since.
Jason
So we've been talking about this car now and this this story for for a bit. You know, maybe we can kind of wind this up with, you know, how has this whole experience from start to finish from the first time you said you wanted to find this car to the time we were at right now, how has this affected you? I know there's been some ups and downs. I mean.
Travis
Yeah, it's, it's and I would hate to say it's been more downs because. You know, I'm the most hated man in Hazzard County because I restored the first General Lee and they don't really realize you know how difficult it was to make that decision. And I was hired to do that, to restore the first, generally because I left it alone. If you know, I would do it all over again, I would be so much easier now to restore it. I would. Not change a thing. I don't miss, you know, going to Dukes Hazzard events. John Schneider still calls and said, hey, do you want to go and do this or do that? Like I said, I I hate to say the fans ruined it, but you know there are. There are some die hards out there that. You know what's left when they call it a a replica of the first General Lee? I'm like, dude, I mean. They reskinned the entire Statue of Liberty, and they still call the damn thing the Statue of Liberty.
John
That's my that's my biggest thing is is the ship of thesis.
Travis
That's where.
John
Is is how how do you feel about that? Did you Jack up the VIN tag and build a car underneath it? Is it the same car? I mean, explain your thoughts of that.
Travis
Yeah, and that was, I mean, it would have been so much easier for me to just pull the dash out, put it in another 69 charger and be like Lee won. But I stayed true to form and rebuilt Lee one. So yeah, it's upsetting, but we are, you know, 20 years past it right now or whatever else. And there's still, you know, there was a a website. That had a. Had a message board. Thread that had 20-6 pages of the Trav ask files on how much they liked me so much about restoring the generally, and you know Travis is this and Travis is that. But you know what? They're still doing the same thing, and they're still answering the same questions. And where was this filming location? All the stuff that I had already knew and I shared with the whole community. 20 years ago, the Dixie Hazard Community and the fan fans, but it bit me in the ***. But you'll find that with. You know, a lot of people are. These are all my toys and I'm going to play with these toys and you're not allowed to play with these toys. And these are my toys. I took Lee one and shared it with everybody, but then they picked crap off of it and then they would do this. And then when I restored it, you know, they're like, hey, do you have any parts left over over the car? Do you have? Any you know is a front balance available is whatever. Whatever else, and I'd be like. But yeah, we were told to, Mr. Murphy said he wanted nothing of the green card to still exist because that was not the General Lee and they're like. Would you sell it to me? But they would never say that they got it from Travis Bell and I'd be like. Don't be those people. So yeah, it's been difficult, but moving on past that it it lit a fire on some other things. I'm trying to find celebrity cars and things that exist. It made a lot of terrific friends out of the people that saw through the BS and and the and the like. I said, the folks that believe that the Dukes of Hazzard. As a as a documentary, I mean, we're talking about this car that most people would be like, yes, the generally whoever, but still to this day, the gentleman that owns it still calls me on tips and pointers. And what should I do with it and whatever else. So I'm forever the caretaker for. This car and I wouldn't change a thing about it and I wouldn't change that the that the fans are jerks. But you know. There's there's ******* fans in every community out there and anybody who listens to this or watches this would be like, Oh yeah, you know, if you're a, if you're a night Rider fan is you don't buy from. The Italian people you only buy from it. But if you buy from the US people, you wait two years. I'm like, man, I wanna build my car tonight. I'm gonna send my money to Italy, you know, or you know, the back to the future DeLorean. Guys, I mean, they can't. They fight like cats and dogs. And I'm like, alright well.
Jason
Before you know it, national, get out. And Drive Day 2023 we'll be.
John
Yeah, it's October 1st this.
Jason
Year and I heard we already had someone sign up for drive day. 2023, before we even started promoting.
John
It yes. Nathan Lipinski, the owner of Lipinski's auto body he signed up before I did. Nathan wasn't just the first to sign up this year. He's been one of the first to sign up since the very first national get out and drive. Day we'll be.
Jason
Giving out more details and some exciting news about drive day. 2023 very soon. Subscribe to the get and Drive podcast on your favorite platform and follow our social media pages to be the. 1st to know.
Travis
It's isn't any different from from Hazzard County.
John
I I stopped going on the the Herbie Love Bug Fan Club board.
Travis
I did two years ago, yeah.
John
Holy cow it. Got to a. Point that I was I was like you. You can't have this light or this part or this color interior and this and that and everybody's beating the hell out of each other. And I had to switch it.
Travis
And the stripe goes up and over the bottom or over the top or does it go over the top or which way does it go? And yeah. Did they really paint that stripe onto the rag top and everything? I mean, it's just, I mean, Jesus.
John
200 different ways to build 1 car because it was 200 different ways in six movies.
Travis
Right. And so, you know, it's. The lesser of 200 evils.
Jason
Oh my. Well, if we go back to our to our teenage years, we're going up and we're we're trying to learn what brand of pickup truck is our favorite Ford, Chevy, Dodge, whatever.
Speaker
You know.
Jason
And even to this. Day you got guys butting heads with the Chevy, Ford, Dodge and even Toyota now like. This takes that to a whole new level because you're not just dealing with car aficionados, you're dealing with super fans, yes. The the of a TV show and A and a huge generation of people that some who are like me, don't know every single detail of. The show I just enjoyed it for the entertainment value, the car chase. Daisy Duke and some of you. Some people don't even know that. And I had to look it up myself that that race car, that 71 race car was. In the episode called Repo Man. Right. I never would have known that. I didn't even know they named the episodes. Go figure. Like I just the point that I'm trying to make is for anyone who's listening right now, take something that you cherish and something that you love right now, whether it's cars, whether it's music, what whatever it happens to be. There's somebody out there that doesn't like it the same way that you do, or they don't like your genre of music. They don't like the car you drive, they don't. Like how you vote whatever it happens to be, we. Don't want to. Get into that, but the idea is, is that we we try to bring. Everybody together as a community. And the reason why we had Travis on the show today is we wanted to share that story because a, it's an awesome story, but B, there's history there, history within the car history within the show. History within the. Automotive niche of movie car collecting and I think that you being able to Share your story with us, Travis today was was absolutely an honor and I'm glad that we get to share that with our fans and I want to thank you so much for being a part of the show because I think there's a lot of people that are going to enjoy listening. How this car came to? Be even through the ups and downs.
Travis
And Mr. Schall has since passed away, but his property has been completely, you know, got it. There's there's nothing left on the property. I just drove past it three days ago. I haven't been down there since the day I pulled it and you know, but it's completely different. It's nice and it's grass and all the cars are gone. So and all the all the transmissions are gone and everything. So it's it looks completely different. So if we wouldn't have saved. Read it. It would have been gone to and you know, the Dukes of Hazzard community fights a good fight, because of course they, you know, are cruising around with the with the hate signal on the roof of their car. And it matters who you ask. It could be the Confederate battle flag, or it could be I hate symbol. I sure wouldn't show up at at John's. I'll send a chevet with a swastika on the roof of it, but someone had taken that symbol and turned it into a hate symbol. And I I I always got the problem driving my own generally where the kid would be handing me my food at McDonald's and have no idea why I'm driving this goofy car with a rebel flag or Confederate flag on the roof because he had never seen the show. And I just look like some racist jerk driving around with this thing. And but the problem was the racist jerk driving around with the two flags hanging off the back of his four. That's just trying to push everybody's buttons. He I would do it. I'd buy him. He'd be like, yes, I'd be like. No, I mean, like, man, don't. I don't want to be a part of your whole. So I always tell the Dukes of Hazzard people that if they ever get into this big toss up match over the Confederate flag, which is very tough because that is my childhood show and Uncle Jesse, you could not cuss in his house and you would have to pray before every meal. But everybody forgets that stuff and I would just simply tell them that we. John Jason myself can watch the Cosby Show right now, but we cannot watch the Dukes of Hazzard on. And if you think of it like that, you go him. You know, that sucks. But that's just the world which we live in. So I've been without a. General Lee I've I've had a the gentleman that owns my car. I sold mine about four years ago. 6 foot four bald. It's kind of rough to drive around in a car with a Confederate. Flag on the roof of it, but. That's, you know, I I have the opportunity to purchase it back, but it's been fun. I had my fun wallet and I. You know, it's it's an honor to be friends with a lot of these people. And like I said, I I really I it never really hit home until just three days ago. Driving back past Mr. Shaw's property, he's he's probably passed away about 15 years ago and that if we hadn't had rescued it, it would have never been rescued and the police cars would have gone to.
John
Now I know we talked about the General Lee this whole time and and we can certainly cut. This if you if you wish. What were you hinting to? To what you did this weekend so.
Travis
No, I can say now, I couldn't say four days ago.
Announcer
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Travis
What drives you?
Jason
Can you use that, Paul?
John
Please don't ever start over.
