Moonrunners

Moonrunners is a 1975 action comedy film starring James Mitchum, about a Southern family that runs bootleg liquor. It was reworked four years later into the popular long-running television series The Dukes of Hazzard, and the two productions share some similarities. Mitchum had co-starred with his father, Robert Mitchum, in the similar drive-in favorite Thunder Road 18 years earlier, which also focused upon moonshine-running bootleggers using fast cars to elude federal agents. Moonrunners, a B movie, was filmed in 1973 and awaited release for over a year. Its soundtrack reflects the outlaw music boom of the 1970s during which the film was released. The film was written and directed by Gy Waldron and is based on the life and stories of ex-moonshiner Jerry Rushing, who has a small role in the movie as a heavy at the Boar's Nest bar. It is listed in the book The Greatest Movie Car Chases of All Time.

Moonrunners is a 1975 action comedy film starring James Mitchum, about a Southern family that runs bootleg liquor. It was reworked four years later into the popular long-running television series The Dukes of Hazzard, and the two productions share some similarities. Mitchum had co-starred with his father, Robert Mitchum, in the similar drive-in favorite Thunder Road 18 years earlier, which also focused upon moonshine-running bootleggers using fast cars to elude federal agents. Moonrunners, a B movie, was filmed in 1973 and awaited release for over a year. Its soundtrack reflects the outlaw music boom of the 1970s during which the film was released. The film was written and directed by Gy Waldron and is based on the life and stories of ex-moonshiner Jerry Rushing, who has a small role in the movie as a heavy at the Boar's Nest bar. It is listed in the book The Greatest Movie Car Chases of All Time.

Cast

James Mitchum as Grady Hagg Kiel Martin as Bobby Lee Hagg Arthur Hunnicutt as Uncle Jesse Hagg Chris Forbes as Beth Ann Eubanks George Ellis as Jake Rainey Pete Munro as "Zeebo" Joan Blackman as Reba Rainey Waylon Jennings as The Balladeer Spanky McFarlane as "Precious" Joey Giordello as Syndicate Man Happy Humphrey as "Tiny" Bill Gribble as "Cooter" Pettigrew Bruce Atkins as Sheriff Rosco Coltrane Ben Jones as Agent Fred Jerry Rushing as Bodyguard

Production

Moonrunners was filmed during the fall of 1973 in Williamson and Haralson, Georgia.

Legacy

Several names, places, and situations from the film were used in The Dukes of Hazzard, with little or no alteration. Waylon Jennings is the Balladeer, and the Boar's Nest is a tavern in both. Although toned down for the TV series, the relationship between cousins Bo (John Schneider) and Luke Duke (Tom Wopat) is similar to that of Bobby Lee (Kiel Martin) and Grady Hagg (James Mitchum) in Moonrunners. Similarly to Grady in the film, in the pilot episode of The Dukes of Hazzard, "One Armed Bandits", Bo half-jokes that half of the children in the local orphanage could be his cousin Luke's, although this and similar concepts were quickly dropped as the series found its more family-friendly tone In both Moonrunners and The Dukes of Hazzard, Uncle Jesse (played by Arthur Hunnicutt in the film and Denver Pyle in the series) is the family patriarch. In both, he is a widowed, bearded moonshiner with strong religious beliefs, raising his nephews. They dress similarly, in overalls and a shirt. The film and series feature a corrupt county boss (Jake Rainey and Boss Hogg) who ran moonshine with Uncle Jesse, owns many local businesses, and bribes local law enforcement. Their opposing views and Jake (George Ellis)'s dishonesty make the Haggses and Rainey adversaries, as the Dukes and Boss Hogg (Sorrell Booke) were in the series. Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane is a once-honest officer who turned to corruption with the county boss after he was cheated out of his pension. This theme carried over to the end of the first season of the series. Much of the Balladeer's dialogue introducing Rosco (Bruce Atkins) in Moonrunners is similar to that in Rosco (James Best)'s first scene in the first episode of The Dukes of Hazzard. In the film and series, the boys have a talented mechanic friend, Virgil in the film and Cooter Davenport (Ben Jones) in the series. On probation for running moonshine, they use hunting bows tipped with dynamite since they are forbidden to use firearms. Other names or roles were altered, while retaining recognizable connections. In the film, Uncle Jesse and the boys have the surname Hagg; in the series, their antagonist's surname is Hogg. In Moonrunners, Beth Ann Eubanks (Chris Forbes) is an honest, naïve young woman in trouble who is taken in by the Haggs; the character resembles Daisy Duke (Catherine Bach), a member of the family. The Haggs' stock car is named Traveller after General Robert E. Lee's horse, and the Dukes' stock car is named The General Lee. Jake Rainey is said to have organized-crime connections, and in early episodes of the TV series, Boss Hogg attempts to ally with a syndicate. Uncle Jesse's mule in the film is named Beauregard, a name which would be given to Bo (Beauregard) Duke in the series. These actors appeared in both Moonrunners and The Dukes of Hazzard: Ben Jones as Fred (a revenue agent) in the film and the Dukes' best friend, Cooter Davenport, in the series C. Pete Munro as Zeebo in the film and Willie in the season two episode "Jude Emery" Bill Gribble as Cooter in the film and Carson in the second episode, "Daisy's Song" Jerry Rushing as Jake Rainey's bodyguard in the film and crooked used-car salesman Ace Parker in the fourth episode, "Repo Men"

See also

List of American films of 1975

References

Further reading

A "Moonrunner's" Tale: From Grit to Gold: How "The Dukes" was Born

External links

"Moonrunners"

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