Motion Pictures Making American Graffiti

I believe that no movie has done more to kickstart the resurgence and interest into Hot Rods & Customs than AG, at least for me anyway. When I saw the Pharohs Merc that solidified what would be my next project. After 35 years of ownership I still enjoy it as much if not more than back then. After discovering this site I see that I'm not alone in my way of thinking!

 

In Denver it was the Scotchman. Then go cruse 16 ST. And no that's not me with the side burns.

 

Of course, but not at the time as I was only 1 year old

It wasn't until well into the late 1970's, or maybe even the early 1980's before I found out about that '64 Tour.

 

Funny you should mention Fresno, as it was there that I first experienced cruisin/drive-in's etc for real for the first time during my first ever trip to the USA back in late summer 1987. Was on a Greyhound bus tour (mostly full of Brits) around the West Coast and we had an overnight stop in Fresno on a Friday night and after arriving in the late afternoon/early evening a few of us walked up from the hotel to try and find somewhere to eat, and as we were walking up to a diner, I heard a whining noise behind, and spun around to see a T-Bucket with a blown small-block come past.....followed by a few muscle cars and a Tri-Five Chevy.......the other Brits thought I'd gone a bit crazy at this point.........
Anyway, turns out we were only a couple of blocks from Fat Jacks and it was cruise night - I was in heaven. Stayed there most of the evening, chatting to anyone that would listen to an over excited Brit - so if there's anyone on here that was at Fat Jacks on a Friday in September 1987 listening to some Brit babbling on about lord knows what - I'm sorry it was me.
Still have the 'Fat Jacks - Where the Fifties Come Alive' tee-shirt I bought that night, although it ceased to fit me a long time ago

 

Grew up cruising Stockton, Lodi and yes Modesto in that time. What makes this movie so good is you can relate to it no mater what town you grow up in. Put the movie in every once in a while, and I always enjoy.

 

I pointed out to some friends a few months ago that while they are watching the so called Street Outlaws race on tv that the starting the race with a flashlight was being done way before they were even born . Shit just keeps comin' back around.

 

Nice film.
But I always hated the "trunk-error" in the end:

 

I started paying attention to cars, when "Muscle Cars" were just regular new cars. My friends and I knew they were fast, but they weren't special. AG changed all that. I remember sitting there slack jawed and wondering, "What the hell kinda cars are these and why do I want one."

I saved up enough lawn cutting money and bought the sound track. Wore that SOB out!

 

Lucas also nailed the ominous undercurrent that ran through the movie of the two options facing male HS grads, collage or Viet Nam. Maybe being made about a point 10 years in his past gave Lucas great 20/20 hindsight because the "graffiti" was a snapshot of the car culture at a point in time that was destined to change and never to be again, except as a nostalgia trip. Most of the key characters were heavy with the changes washing over them, including some of the "adults". It could be said that the car culture was used to represent the broader, at large culture.

 

You're right on the money, Don!

 

I drove this to the Ohio Valley drive-in to see American Graffiti Bill

 

Bomber, are you obsessed with Cars?! You are not alone. Another great post, Thanks

 

Thanks Jive Bomber !

 

..

Always loved the 55 - and was glad to see it's the same car as in 2 Lane Blacktop!
http://unofficialamericangraffiti.weebly.com/the-1955-chevy.html

.
.[/COLOR

 

Would you believe that's the first time I saw that?

I must say I'm became far more forgiving of stuff like that once I became a TV editor. We get backed into corners like this all the time and have to break continuity.

A well known editor once offered up his top ten list of most important things editors should worry about. Guess where continuity was on the list?

Not on the list at all.

 

I am one of those guys that can watch the movie over and over again. The errors simply do not even phase me. I suppose it is a movie that I can really relate to as I cruised both Woodward and Telegraph in the 60s. Many a night it was not all that exiting if I had to relate what happened but it was great fun at the time. The movie takes me back and so do my cars. I try to do my cars period correct as to how they were (within reason). I was sitting at a car club breakfast the other day and guys were saying how cool it was to put LS-3s in their hot rods and although I have one in my daily driver Sierra I would never consider it in a hot rod. I don't get their thinking and I suppose they don't get mine. Will take a lot of the cruising memories to my last days I am sure. Cool times.

 

I just talked with an old friend with a better memory than mine. The guys name was Dicky Walker and we called him Farmer. He wore a Cowboy hat. The Ford was a 53 with a Buick motor that he bought from another old friend that lived on the same street as I did (Seaside Ave.) Walker was originally from Texas. He did actually look like Harrison Ford in the movie.

 

I graduated high school in '60 and when I saw American Graffiti I can honestly say it was the most impactful movie I had ever seen. That was my generation, little books from the United Cigar store showing us the CA hot rod scene that was absent from upstate NY. And there it was, brought to life on the big movie screen. The music of our youth combined with bitchin' cars, what else do you need!

 

Hey old! I too graduated in 60. I drove a 56 Ford like the green coupe that pulls in to the drive in during the opening scene. I have watched AG more times than I can count. So many that I know the script by heart. After seeing the movie I decided to turn my 57 Chevy Into a custom! Not the normal thing to do back in the 70s when every one was restoring. I have never regretted doing that because it is the type of car I would have wanted to drive in high school
. in upstate NY. Anyway AG the best car movie ever made if not the best movie period!

Sent from my QMV7A using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Thanks Jay, that was a neat little addition to the AG movie.

I grew up in Livermore, in east San Francisco bay area. Livermore had one of the last cruising spots in the bay area, I think it finally passed some laws and killed it around 1984-ish. Had a lot of fun cruising there, and when we wanted any bigger city cruising action we would go to across the bay to San Mateo and cruise El Camino Real. San Mateo and Livermore were some of the last cruising spots in the bay area.

 

Totally AWESOME!!!! Brought back many memories

 

Exactly. Those were our choices in S. Ark at that time.

 

E.

Sent from my ZTE A2017U using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Hell ! Back in the 60's, I lived the movie American Graffiti (w/ the exception of hooking a cable on a cop car), Milwaukee Wisconsin, Street racing, cruising, car culture was huge, Saturday night, Wisconsin Ave was a BIG event, hundreds of cars, crowds of people walking, cops on every corner, could take up to 45 minutes to make a lap, about 2 miles max. 1 Up and 1 back. Their were several meet/hangout spots, north side, BigBoys or Kit's on Capitol drive, A&W on Villard ave, south side, BigBoys on Hwy 100, Leon's custard on Oklahoma ave, east side, Pig & Whistle, Kops custard on Port Washington Rd. Street racing well organized w/ different areas marked off, guys w/ police radios/scanners and I think the police looked the other way, as they usually showed up after everything was over, but after some fatality's that changed and we had to go farther out of town to avoid police. I have many stories and great memories of fun had, the girls in cars would moon you when cruising the ave, even the beat cops laughed at that, I was So Fortunate to be in the right place at the right time, have said this many times, I was and am a very Lucky man.

 

I'd do an LS if I wanted that old car as a daily or long travel cruiser. Not that and sbc won't do it well, but the LS is more effient, lighter and more reliable. I think the SBC is classic tho and will stand test of time.

I like the story about Toad and the Vespa scene.

 

Graffiti made a big impact down in Australia too ,,,We built a reasonably good replica in Australia in the mid 70s from a previously chopped and ruined 4 door sedan and a sport coupe ,,no 5 window coupes built in oz,,,,Milner signed the pic on a trip down here,,loved the movie I can just about recite it word for word ,,

 

I have a copy of the script here, if anybody is interested?

 

I still have my VHS copy, I used to rent AG until I bought a copy through that VHS club from Columbia Records. My kids laugh and shake their heads that people used to rent VCRs, kids these days have it so easy with technology.

 

What's VHS??!!!