While Star Wars was indisputably THE big summer hit of 1977, there was another film released at that very same time and in direct competition with that movie that was also a very big hit: the Burt Reynolds/Sally Field/Jerry Reed/Jackie Gleason action/comedy Smokey and the Bandit…

I love Smokey and the Bandit.  Back in the day I saw the film over and over and over again and have large swaths of its dialogue memorized.  Though the film does show its age today, at the time it was easily the most exciting and hilarious action film I’d ever seen…and the stunt work was like something from another planet.

The reason I point this out is because there is an upcoming auction which will feature a Trans Am that was used to promote the film back in the day.  Check it out…

Smokey and the Bandit Trans Am set for auction

From the article, here’s what I assume is a photograph of that particular Trans Am:

Now, note what I said above: The auction features the Trans Am used to promote the film.  While the car looks exactly like the one in the movie, this car was never actually in it and this is partly the reason why I’m pointing the article out.

The other, more interesting to me reason is I’ve always been curious if there were any of the original Trans Ams actually used in the film out there somewhere.  Given the sometimes grueling stunts these cars performed, I also wondered how many were used and how many were destroyed in the process of the film’s production.

And the article answered my questions.  From the article:

The four 1977 Pontiacs that were used for filming were so damaged that they were destroyed soon after filming was complete, according to auction house Barrett-Jackson, which is selling the car.

They “only” used 4 Trans Ams for the film?  That surprises me, to tell you the truth.  As anyone who’s seen the film knows, these cars were really put through their paces.  Some of the bigger showcase stunts, especially those involving the car jumping high in the air, I’ve long suspected left the vehicles useless.

Now I know that all the cars used in the film, alas, didn’t make it.

Now I know and, if you were as curious as I was, so do you!