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Each May, beautiful Petaluma, CA throws a 3 day tribute to American Graffiti. Much of it was filmed there. Bo Hopkins told me they filmed the move is 3 weeks, "because we had to. We had no money." This is the best show and get together, at least for me.
How about a 900 HP Ford? He drives it everywhere within 150 miles.
I apologize in advance for the bad pics; too many people to get a better angle.
One of the 55s they used in the movie was also used in Two Lane Blacktop.
Yes - there were 3 cars. On for the road shots, one for the interior shots and one for the roll-over.
A friend of mine had a chance to buy one of them at one point. Apparantly the 454 was cammed down for street use. And I think someone removed the straight axle.
Stories...
The cars didn't have straight axles up front, just taller coil springs. I remember seeing an interview with Director Monte Helman and Driver James Taylor. Taylor didn't know how to drive a stick shift before filming. There was a scene where he was to burn rubber. He was told to rev it to 7000 and dump the clutch. Too bad he forgot to take it out of reverse...
Both Two Lane Blacktop cars were solid axle, built by Richard Ruth. He had a cameo in the begining of the movie. The outside shot car had the 454 dual quad motor. The inside shot car had a 427 with one holley on the engine and another holley bolted to a plate attached to the firewall. The inside car also had air conditioning installed.
The inside car is easy to reconize because the scaffolding mounts are still welded to the frame and the bumperettes are dented. The outside car was the one used in American Grafitti.
Over the years after the movie the inside car had been converted to a Camaro front suspension and steel doors installed. The original fiberglass doors with the sliding windows were found in a junkyard and at one time had been used on a drag car.
The car went back to Richard Ruth and he handbuilt another straight axle and put the car back to the movie status. Except the fake dual quad 427 was replace with the correct 454 dual quad as seen in the outside car.
And James Taylor did grenade the M22 in the car.
Still my favorite cruising movie to date.
Saw it new when it came out before I could drive and I was changed forever.
Milner is still the poster by for cool.
Marshal
Just watched the trailers very cool.
The 56 flips over and the trunk is open.
Car burns and trunk closed.
Sorry to spoil it, my wife hates watching movies with me.
Still the greatest cruise movie on the planet.
A kid who never saw this or the Blues Brothers is really leading a
sheltered life.
Marshal
05-22-2016, 12:22 PM
American Grafitti
on both. 
