TCB NEWSLETTER FOR
NOVEMBER 1999


This is a monthly newsletter for communicating information about Then Came Bronson, Michael Parks, and related items of interest, to the general public. It is not affiliated with MGM, TNT or any other company or organization.

Remember that many of the small images in these newsletters can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Below is a list of short-cuts to various sections of this page. Although you may want to read the page through from top to bottom the first time, I put these in so that, if you want to find something later, you can go right to that section (by clicking on the hyperlink).


FROM MY DESK...
FROM THE FOLKS PUTTING OUT THE NEW MICHAEL PARKS CD...
CONVENTION STUFF...
CYCLES...
BIBLIOGRAPHY ADDITIONS...
FROM TCB FANS EVERYWHERE...
BRONSON MEMORABILIA (MODEL, NOVELS, ETC)...
FILMOGRAPHY, ETC...
BRONSON TRIVIA (NEW SECTION!)...
MISCELLANEOUS (& JUST FOR FUN)...

FROM MY DESK...

While traveling around the small towns of New England during foliage season, I stopped into a used bookstore and picked up an interesting paperback, called Truck, by John Jerome (c.1977), about rebuilding an old beat-up 1950 Dodge pick-up that the author bought off an impoverished hippie for $200. Goes into the specifics of the rebuilding process, and also philosophical dissertations on the specific project, technology in general, and society, as well as his day-to-day life. Makes me wish for a book that would be sort of a cross between this and Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance.

Start your Christmas shopping early! Hallmark has put out a red Harley motorcycle Christmas tree ornament, the Franklin Mint has put out a Betty Boop on a Harley salt and pepper shaker. eToys is selling a Betty Boop on a motorcycle, and an H-D Monopoly game. And I just saw at Sears a plastic motorcycle (about 1/6 scale) of a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy, with engine sounds and working headlight (sort of - it flashes). More info on some of these items in the Miscellaneous section, below.

I'm in the process of creating Deja news "forums" (and/or "communities") for the tv show Then Came Bronson and actor Michael Parks. As soon as they are set up and working properly, I'll post the info and directions on the intro page to this site, as well as in upcoming newsletters.

FROM LISTEN RECORDINGS, THE FOLKS WHO RELEASED COOLIN' SOUP, THE MICHAEL PARKS CD...

[Here's their site address, with email function:]

http://www.michaelparks.com

CONVENTION NEWS...

Just a quick note: I've been in touch with the folks who put on the Easy Rider convention in New Orleans last month, and they may be able to help us with future TCB get-togethers. More news as it happens.

CYCLES...


To email me, click here!



Some views of the modified headlight assembly used on the Bronson Sportster:



The first two are from the bike, the third from a Bates motorcycle accessories ad of 1970.

Here's something that wasn't included in the press release that covered modifications to the stock Harley Sportster (two views of the custom footpegs used on the Bronson Sportster):



Two scans of the H-D "low profile" seats from the 1971 and 1972 H-D Accessories Catalogs (thanks, Bruce!), somewhat similar to the Bronson seat, from their accessory catalogs. However, these seats are pleated, so they can't be the ones used on the Bronson bike, which were smooth:



Here's a scan of the "Cobra" seats from Cycle Specialties of Fullerton, CA, from their ad in the February 1970 Cycle magazine (p.77). Interesting that it shows both a 1-inch and a padded 2-inch seat, both sizes of which seem to have been used on the Bronson bike. Click on the b&w image to bring up the full ad. (I've also included two images of the Bronson seat for comparison.)

Click here

Here's a scan from the 1971 H-D Accessories catalog, showing that Bronson Red paint (4th from the bottom) made its first appearance in the 1971 model year (summer of 1970). It wasn't a stock color on any H-D cycles, as far as I can tell, and whether it was a custom color option will have to wait for more research:



=========================

[Email from an owner of a 1970 H-D accessories catalog, which covered the summer of '69 to the summer of '70:]
"Sorry, there is no listing for any Bronson red in the '70 catalogue...only plain "red". It does list the year the color was standard for the paint that is available. Sorry I can't be of more help. Let me know if you have any other thoughts...."

So, it seems likely that Bronson Red wasn't available until after the tv show started, and after the 1970-model-year catalog had already been printed. But the color was definitely available by the summer of 1970, when the 1971-year catalog would have been released, and probably before.
=====================

[Email from Bruce Graham:]
"Hi Jon, I just looked through the AMF Harley-Davidson Motorcycle and Accessory catalogs for 1972 and 1973. I have two different ones of the '73. Real interesting. Has lots of stuff that I'd love to have on my '68 Electra-Glide. None of them have anything on the show [TCB], or the paint color [Bronson Red]."
==========================
[Another email from Bruce Graham:]
"Hi Jon,
In regard to your email of a few weeks ago about the seat & stuff. I'm sending pics of the cover and seat part of the 1972 Accessory catalog. The seat Harley was selling here is a Cobra TYPE seat, but NOT the seat used on Bronson's bike. I remember vividly that the H-D seat was hard, uncomfortable and very PLASTIC. I wanted to get the Bronson seat at the time (for my '72 Sporty) and the Harley one was NOT it. The buttons on it were molded in the plastic even. Not real. I remember the motorcycle mags at the time vilified that seat, and riders who got that seat on their new Harleys (Super-Glides and Sportsters) immediately threw the stock seat out and bought custom 'cuz they were so crummy. The closest seat at that time was made by a company whose name escapes me now, but I was going to order it for my '72 Sportster back then, but hesitated because of funds. I'll try and look through my old catalogs and scooter mags to see if I can come up with it. I think AEE choppers might have been a distributor. Also, it might be Dixie or Custom Cycle Delight. (All now defunct, I think.) I was really into this stuff back then, and that's what I can recall. I saved everything, so I'll will try and do some digging for ya if you're still interested.
There is NO mention of any Bronson type stuff in the '72 Accessory Catalog, not even the books [TCB novels]."

[I'm interested! I'll put the info into the next newsletter. - jonpf]

============================

{Bruce sent me a scan of the 1972 Low Profile seat, and I replied:]

> By the way, the photo of the seat in the 1971 cat is different from the > one you sent (different "pleating"), yet same part #!!!

[He answered:]

"You're right. And notice they raised the price $2.60 also. Alot for back then. I had and gave away seat "D" on pg. 19 of the '71 cat.. It came with my '72 Sporty, and I got a sorta Cobra seat from AEE, only difference was it had a little 4" back on the rear of it. Wish I kept the "buddy seat" 52486-60c. They're worth a small fortune now.
Did you know that the last 2 numbers on most all H-D parts are the first year they were manufactured? The "A" or "C" or whatever letter that are on them sometimes are special connotations of one type or another, (such as "W" denotes white metal a part is made of instead of regular steel or aluminum. The last numbers as the first year are used till today, and some that are still made end with 29! (1929. Same part, still used now. Boy, that's longevity!)"

In the vein of MY OLD MOTORCYCLE FIASCO, I've started a new fiasco - building a replica Bronson bike. Well, sort of... "from the air down" (rather than "from the ground up"). It sure looks like the Bronson sissy bar, when it is parked at the fort in the beginning of the movie.
Now all I need is something to go under it. It doesn't have any manufacturer or part number markings on it, but I've posted something on Deja.com to see if anyone recognizes it. For all I know, it could have come from a Sears catalog, so if anyone out there has anything with bicycle accessory ads from the mid- to late-60's, could you check into this for me? Thanks!





BIBLIOGRAPHY ADDITIONS...


To email me, click here!

Five more scans from Harley's motorcycle mag, The Enthusiast, contributed by TCB fan Jim B. Some things to note: the second image shows the more padded seat used in the later episodes, the third image shows the Sportster that was hooked up to a sidecar camera platform, and the fourth/hillclimb image (from the pilot movie) seems to show Michael Parks, not Bud Ekins, doing the stunt, on the Sportster, not the CZ. The fifth image is from the episode Mating Dance For Tender Grass, and that is probably Buffy St. Marie on the back of Bronson's bike. Click on the images to bring up larger versions.

Click here Click here Click here Click here Click here

JON;
I'M THE GUY THAT SENT YOU THE E MAIL ABOUT THE SUCCESS UNLIMITED MAGAZINE ARTICLE ABOUT M.P.
YOU ASKED WHAT THE ARTICLE CONSISTED OF AND WHAT PHOTOS. THE INTERVIEW WAS CONDUCTED PERSONALLY WITH M.P. AND TALKED ABOUT HIS EARLY CHILDHOOD, WEARING BIB OVERALLS, NO SHOES, AND OFTEN NOT ENOUGH TO EAT. EARLY JOBS WERE FIREMAN, BERRY PICKER AND, "UGH", CASKET UPHOLSTERER. TWO PHOTOS ARE OF A BRONSON STREET SCENE, AND THE OTHER IS OF THE HILL CLIMB.
CARE FOR A COPY ???

[Absolutely!!! Send it to my home address. - jonpf]

FROM TCB FANS EVERYWHERE...


To email me, click here!

(Anonymous, unless requested otherwise. I put these on because so many people asked me to make a fan web page so they could tell their "Bronson" stories. Also, some emails are in other sections of this newsletter, where appropriate.)
Two more great photos of Bronson from the collection of Bruce Graham (click on the images):

Click here Click here

[From a guy who has the Bronson poster:]

Jon,
I will take a photo of the Bronson poster as soon as I can. No, I don't have the bottom part of the poster. I'm actually surprised you don't have one yourself in your excellent stash of Bronson stuff. Yes, it is definitely not Michael Parks in the poster, it is Bud Ekins. The Webco "eye" was bought at a Vancouver Washington Harley shop when was still in high school. It had nothing to do with the Bronson poster at all. I will try to get a close up of the decal also. If you have ever seen the movie Little Fause and Big Halsey, there is a seen in the flic where Robert Redford is wearing a Webco Industries "T" shirt. I think Webco was a motocross, off road cycle parts outfit. I seem to remember buying mufflers for my Honda from them.

I have been riding my Harley all week. I guess I am getting ready to say good-bye to my old '69, maybe, for I have just bought a 2000 Sportster. I have been riding the '69 FLH for many years, and my wife now rides the '70 XLH. I've decided to get into the new millennium with a new bike, allowing me to travel greater distances without the worry of having to truck my bike back. I bought the 1200 S model, which is a bare bones, no frills souped up version of the standard 1200 Sporty, different compression ratio, cams, heads, suspension, tires etc. When I travel I will have to go back to the Bronson bags and bungie cords, as I got spoiled by the saddle bags on my FLH. I pick up the new bike on Saturday in San Francisco. You can bet I will be taking the loooong way home.

Hi Jon!
What can I say, another great news letter [October]! I attended the Arkansas HOG rally last week and put my bike in the show. (Didn't win anything) They only had 1st place trophies. I set up a display with my bike that included the picture from the model box of Bronson's bike. This drew some attention to my bike and people are now figuring out what my bike is suppose to be. I had a chance to talk to a few folks and it was great reminiscing about the show. I gave several people your web page address and you might hear from them. There were almost 2000 people in attendance and great weather. I've been thinking of selling my bike and finding an original 1969 XLH Sportster and doing a replica of the Bronson bike. If you or any fans know of one I would appreciate any information.
Thanks again for a great web site and newsletter, I always look forward to the next one. Keep up the great work and hang in there!
Tom
======================
Hi Jon!
You made alot of sense about finding a 1969 and selling my '99, so I might as well keep my bike and find a fixer upper 1969 to see how accurately I can replicate the original bronson bike. (CHALLENGE!)
Anyway, I sent my sissy bar off a week ago and it should be back in a couple of weeks, when I get it back I will send you a picture of it on my bike. The next step is replace the front tire with a ribbed one. I also thought about finding an original size gas tank (2 .25) but I really like the fact that I can go 160 to 175 miles to a tank befor reserve! I've got 4000 mile on it now. By the way I sent an article I wrote and pictures to American Iron magazine. I have no idea how it works so I guess I will just have to buy every issue for the next few months to see.
Every so often I check the web page for the eye decals to see if my bike is included but it hasn't. [It's there now, Tom!] That's why I thought maybe I should re-write my comments. I really do like the decals alot, and have gotten alot of attention because I leave them on all the time. It's funny, I was self conscience about having them on, because I thought people would make fun of them, but now it really adds to the bike apearance. That finishing touch!
Any way hope all is well with you and yours.
Tom

Jon,
I wrote a while back and have to Thank You for some great tips on finding a few TCB memories. I don't know if you put me on your mailing list though! If you didn't...PLEASE DO!! It is so great to be part of a group of good people who remember and still want TCB back on the air. I've e-mailed TNT, Columbia House, TBS and a couple of other networks in an attempt to have the show aired again but think I'm beating a dead horse! You try to make people understand that in today's society it would be nice to watch a TV show with very little sex and violence but they don't want to hear it! But I will keep trying!!!!
Reading your Oct. newsletter I had a laugh at one of the readers' letters asking if Bronson ever had his bike stolen!.....I remember the pilot movie when the town dummy tries to ride the bike and runs it into the lake!!!, I think that it was the only time I saw MP whack somebody!....(the dummy deserved it!).
Well I don't want to take up your time so I'll close here. Please put me on your mailing list and keep up the good work. (Being in NJ, the riding season will be ending soon and the newsletter is a good way of getting through the winter.
"Hang in there"

I am the friend of a serious Then Came Bronson fan...he can quote dialogue. Although my enthusiasm pales by comparison, I remember the series with fondness. My love of motorcycling and Harleys was encouraged by the show. I would appreciate being placed on the e-mailing list. Thank you.

I am interested in being kept informed of any THEN CAME BRONSON episodes being put on video. I own a video store, and just came back from the east coast video show and had the honor of meeting Michael. He told me about this web site. Please keep me updated.
thank you,
Dawn

==========================
[Further email from Dawn:]

I met Michael at the EAST COAST VIDEO SHOW in Atlantic City for video store owners. He was promoting his new movie FROM DUSK TILL DAWN 3: THE HANGMAN'S DAUGHTER, which is coming to video stores in January. We got a sneak preview of the movie then the next day we got to meet him and 2 other stars of the movie. When I was talking to him I mentioned the [TCB] tv show and that's when he mentioned this web site. We have a large Classic section in our store which includes classic tv shows so if THEN CAME BRONSON ever gets on video we will have it here. Please keep me informed.

bronson has been my idol since childhood and up until 2 months ago i didnt have a clue about any of this info, until one day i typed in his name and it blew me away, then came bronson. since then i now have 2 shrink-wrap copies so i can look at the front and the back at the same time. to see even one showing [of TCB] would now be a dream, and could be the neatest thing to enter my world since 69/70
thanx for your support
JIM

Dear Jon,
Add me to your ever expanding list of die-hard "Bronson" fans. AOL finally did something GRAND, their monster search engine has finally paid off! My next e-mails will be to plead to get the show back on the air. I own the 1st two of Mr. Parks' albums, my favorite cut is the lullaby he sang with his Mom. I never realized there were anymore, this needs looking into. I also have a tape of the pilot of TCB, a treasure to me. My husband and I dust it off every now and again and just enjoy. I never knew the name of the bridge in Big Sur, tho I do own a Polaroid of it, in the photo album "Bronson's Bridge" to us. Had the pleasure of spending a couple of weeks around there. As many times as we've been to Colorado, I love that country best. However, in my "old age"-51, almost-I'm leery of the natural disasters that plague the area. And we still haven't made it to Jackson Hole, one day, maybe. But that was another draw of the show for us-we always were looking to see what new, glorious part of the country he would bring us to next. Well, I'll quit, but this is GREAT and I'll be back often. Thanks so much!

Jon:
Went through some of my Bronson things today(have been collecting on and off for ten years or so) and found the January 1970 Cycle World magazine with the article by Clyde Earl. I visited with Mr Earl a number of years ago about his work with the Bronson seris and also his work on the Great Escape. I believe he has since passed away. I have most of the episodes from dubbed tapes as well as the movie. There was a man in Texas I was corresponding with a few years ago that had a complete set of episodes on tape. I will try to copy the Cycle world article and scan it to you as soon as I better master the operation of my new scanner.

Best Regards,

Subject: THEN CAME BRONSON

I've caught the show once or twice on TNT, but the reason I make note of it is that the folks at "Mystery Science Theater 3000" used it as a reference. In several of the films they did, when there was a scene of someone on a motorcycle next to someone else, they'd say "Where to?/I don't know/Man, I wish I was you", or something to that effect. It just goes to show how impact this show had on some people, despite its short run.

Paul

Subject: Michael Parks site

Hi, I've been checking out your page! Saw Michael Parks on tv tonight (From Dusk til Dawn) and ran over here to see if I could find info on him. I was a major fan when I was 15-16 (MP was a dead ringer for my boyfriend at the time!)

Love that show, loved that too-cool opening, each week. Had the album (which had a scratch on LLHighway and I had to put a penny on the record arm to try to keep it playing, aaah, memories).

I'll be bookmarking and checking back -- and definitely will write TNT. I would so love to see that show again...
Nancy

Hi,
I'm a Michael Parks fan -- I heard that a cable network was doing a TV update of the Bronson series called, "Bronson Returns." I guess he comes home to deal with some stuff he left behind and then the story ends with a couple experiences with him back on the road again. Is this true? I read it on a chat line from a data search--no author.
Later,

[Sorry, but I don't know anything about it. I did contact my source inside TNT, but haven't gotten a reply yet. Nor have the good folks at MP's record company heard anything. I think it's just a rumor. But I'll post any info as soon as I get it! - jonpf]

Hi, Jon!
Billy Ingram finally got my Bronson article out on http://www.tvparty.com

He retained the info about your site and the link, so you should be getting a lot more traffic shortly!

Best regards,
Mike Ransom
Tulsa TV Memories
http://netword.com/tulsatv

[Here's a shortcut to the TVParty TCB page. It has a couple of RealAudio files, but I couldn't get them to play. Maybe I have an old RA player. - jonpf]

http://www.tvparty.com/recbronson.html

Just like to say cool site. i am a bronson fan from the UK and its been some years since i've seen either the film or series.
Do you know where i can get a video of then came bronson?
THANKS AGAIN FOR A COOL SITE
all the best
spider & sue from the uk
PS I STILL GOT MY [TCB] PAPERBACK!!

I just can't believe it. When I was 16 I saw Wild Seed on the late nite show (up all alone after my parents and brothers and sisters had gone to sleep). It was so much my fantasy. I never knew of anyone else who had even seen the movie or knew of it. Not that I've spent alot of time talking about it. When I got my computer it was one of the first things I attempted to search. What a thrill to download pictures from the newsletter! Kind of silly maybe. But, "oh well", it's a private "inner life" kind of thing. The only thing better would be a video. Anyway, thank you for the web site. I used to have a Michael Parks album, and really like him and "Then Came Bronson", but it's "Fargo" (I think that was the character's name) I wanted to see again. Thanks again.

Any news on when/if Michael's old albums will be out on Compact Disc?

[Sorry, I haven't heard anything. But you can bet that if they ever become available, I'll put a notice on the site the moment I hear about it. - jonpf]

Hey Jon....I made my first "Bronson" trip in 25 yrs this summer and what a time I had! Ok, so I was in my Prelude, but with the windows down and top back - almost as good as a bike. I rode to Bar Harbor, Maine and back from my home in Alabama. I am close to retiring now, (I am in early 40s you know how lucky us firefighters are) and we have an empty nest, my time is my own and I am now able to do the things I had to put on hold for so many years. There is nothing like a cross country road trip to clear one's senses. I had almost forgotten how a road trip makes you feel so independent.

I loved touring the Northeast and seeing its many villages and small towns. I have traveled the USA but I find the Northeast to be the most interesting. In New England each has its own personality and look. Like Bronson, I met many fine people on my trip, I guess a guy in a red sports car traveling alone, seeing the country, is good for conversation anywhere. I did all my riding on state roads and avoided the freeways and interstate. It is sad most people in this country only know it from the interstate. They are clogged with big trucks, RVs and mini vans, all in a hurry to get somewhere. They eat in chains and sleep in the franchises. This one the same as the last, 1,000 miles away. I remember the diner in Milford, Mass. where my southern accent was greeted with smiles and the best hamburger steak I ever had. You could never get that in Mcdonalds. I remember the stone fences in Ct. The cool weather of Maine in June. The farmer in Vt. who spent the morning showing me around his farm in the post card-like valley he had called home all his life. His sign advertising maple syrup for sale caused me to stop. Two hours later, I had my syrup along with some great pics and good memories. Here are some more memories of my trip:

-The ferry ride from Orient Pt. to Ct. and the cute blonde I shared my popcorn with.
-Crossing the Verranzanos into NYC.
-My uncle in PA that reminds me so much of my deceased father.
-My childhood neighborhood in Va. and eating chili dogs in the same place my father took me after my first communion (they are still just as good).
-Antietam battlefield and the horror that took place there.
-Speeding ticket on Skyline drive in the Shennandoah.
-Answering the question how does a guy from Ala. wind up so far up north.
-The race with 3 "crotch rocket" pilots in the Green Mtns. of VT. (beat 2 up the mtn)


I plan on several Bronson trips each year. Just to see what is out there. Look for me, I will be sure to wave back.
Hang in there.

What a great site! then came bronson changed my course of life back when i was a kid. This sure brings back memories. been riding a harley since i was 17 (now 41).
thanks....
gypsy
p.s I still have the model of the bike

I am a 40 year old, losing his mind, and couldn't remember the name of one of my favorite shows in my youth, but due to your page I can now sleep tonite. It was driving me crazy!!! Could remember Michael Parks and Long Lonesome Highway but not the show's name! I had an album of him singing the theme song but in many moves I have lost it and would love to get my hands on another copy of it. Do you know of any way to get a copy of it?
Thank you for your web page!!!!!!!!! Please add me to your list.
Dennis

Hi Jon
Wasn't it a bummer when [Michael] gets killed off so soon in From Dusk Till Dawn? I think Tarentino should have kept him in the film for a little longer anyway. Have you see the sequel? Michael's real son plays the sheriff who is the son of the sheriff in From D til D...whew.
Talk to you later. Write when you can.

Jon,
Whitehorse Press is a great source of motorcycle books and videos. They have lots of old movies available on video. I'm also e-mailing them in hopes that maybe one day they can get TCB movie/TV shows on video. The homepage is

http://www.whitehorsepress.com/

Please put me on your mailing list.
I just discovered your site and it is great.
For years I have wondered if anyone else remembered the show. It's nice to see that there are others who remember.

This morning I was driving to my stressful computer job in my not-terribly-reliable '85 Oldsmobile. The sun had just crested as I crossed over the Little Manatee River, the mist rising off the water and giving the pines and palmettos a peaceful look. I started not wanting to go to work today, wishing instead that I could spend the day just wandering aimlessly, when suddenly a dialog I've not heard in years popped into my head:

"Taking a trip?"
"What's that?"
"Taking a trip?"
"Yeah."
"Where to?"
"Oh, I dunno. Where ever I end up, I guess."
"Man, I wish I was you."
"Really?"

"Well, hang in there."

It took me back 30 years to what was, in my opinion, the best show that has ever been on television. I got to work, went to Hotbot, and told it to search for the exact phrase, "Then Came Bronson", ending up here.

Thanks for creating this site. It takes me back, if only for a moment, to a simpler time when I would crank up the BMW R69 (Not exactly Old Glory, but nice!) and find a road - any road, it didn't matter - as long as it was winding, interesting, and one I had never been down before.

Take care, and watch for the high side.

Phil

hi,
i have been riding motorcycles since 1966. I loved the show when it was on and i really hope to see it come back.
That's about all i have to say, but i like your website and i hope something comes of the 30th anniversary.
Ride on!!
bob

Greetings.
I wanted to thank you for your "Then Came Bronson" web page. I was a big fan of this series when it first aired and have been lamenting that I have never seen it rebroadcast (though, it apparently has been rebroadcast). I did manage to get the pilot movie on video tape not long after I got my first VCR but I really would like to see the series again.

I am a member of the Columbia Video Club and had emailed them, some months back, requesting that they bring out the series on videotape. After reading on your web page that Turner Entertainment has the rights to the series, I placed my request for a rebroadcast on TBS.

I enjoyed the show a lot -- I rode a motorcycle for awhile (never managed to afford a Harley) and whenever I took a trip, unless I was in a hurry to get where I was going, inspired by the show, I'd just follow my whims and go to "wherever I wind up" (at least until time dictated that I had to proceed to my planned destination). My adventures and chance-meetings with interesting people were on quite a bit smaller scale than a typical TCB episode but it made for some pretty satisfying trips nonetheless. I still have pipe-dreams about buying another motorcycle when I retire and taking a real trip to wherever I wind up.

It's been fun reading through the site. I'll check back from time to time. Thanks again for your efforts.

Les

MEMORABILIA (MODEL, NOVELS, ETC.)...

As you may recall from previous newsletters, MPC was a subsidiary of AMT, which was recently bought by ERTL, located in Dyersville, Iowa. I called ERTL but couldn't get directed to the department that would know if they still own the rights to the model, or if not, who does. ERTL, it turns out, was just bought by another company, so they seem to be in a bit of a flux. I'll keep you posted in future newsletters.

Bits of trivia on the model parts and assembly...

The model seems to have the kickstarter glued into a hole that, on a real Sportster, is the "clutch push rod adjusting screw" place!!!



The model doesn't have passenger footpegs, neither the stock ones nor the Bronson Sportster custom ones (attached with the bolts used to attach the bottoms of the rear shock absorbers to the fork - see the scans in the CYCLES section, above).

The model uses the stock chrome cover piece (from the XLCH?) on the front fork below the headlight, which is not used on the real Bronson Sportster. See also the scans in the CYCLES section, above.



I'll be working on more corrections to the model assembly this winter, along with parts and directions for wiring the model for lights and sound.

Two scans from the 1971 H-D Accessories Catalog, showing the plastic model and the first TCB novel for sale:


Recently, through the generosity of two fans of TCB, I got hold of copies of the scripts for two episodes, "THE RUNNER" and "WHERE WILL THE TRUMPETS BE?" Thanks, guys!

I'm checking into the possibility that the Bronson "eye" decal had been offered by a company called WebCo, back about 1970. If anyone has a catalog from back then, could you check through it for me and let me know if it was listed? I'm sure it is no longer available from them. In the meantime, check out this site for "eye" decals (adhesive and magnetic): DECAL

FILMOGRAPHY, ETC...


Inside Daily Variety: October 19 [1999]

CINEMATHEQUE BOWS "DUSK 3" FOR HALLOWEEN

HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - The American Cinematheque will hold the West Coast premiere of "From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter" Oct. 30 at Hollywood's Egyptian Theatre. Co-executive produced by Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez and Lawrence Bender, the third "Dusk Till Dawn" installment, a prequel to the first two films, follows an author (Michael Parks as real-life scribe Ambrose Pierce) who stumbles upon a gang of blood-sucking vampires.

BRONSON TRIVIA...


I thought I'd add this to let sharp-eyed fans contribute observations on anything and everything having to do with the movie and episodes. I'll jump-start it with a few observations and such.

To email me, click here!

In the movie and episodes, I don't recall Bronson ever having a wallet or a belt. Or a watch. Can anyone confirm this? But he does have a transistor radio (FOREST PRIMEVAL)!

In the pilot movie, when Bronson first gets to the gas station, there is a shot of him from in front, after he has dismounted. If you look closely, you can see the reflection of one of the film crew guys on the aluminum side of the gas pump.
You can also see, in the shed in the background, an ice machine. Yet a few seconds later, the shed door is closed.
There is also a red Ford Mustang in the scene's background that mysteriously disappears as the scene progresses.

In the pilot movie, after Temple walks out of the department store wearing the blue dress, we see them riding along and she is wearing the tan pants suit, and no box or dress is visible during the ride or at the 2nd campground. However, she is wearing the blue dress and carrying the box when they arrive at the King Island Resort diner. Makes me wonder whether the scenes were supposed to be edited in a different order.

In the pilot movie, when Bronson wipes out (as Temple passes him), his bike ends up on its left side, facing south. Yet when he goes to pick it up, it is on its right side, facing north.
(There are a few more instances of this type, one when the bike is on the dock being cleaned, after the guy drove it into the river, and another, in THAT UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY, when the Amish kid has the bike in the park at night, and the punks try to steal it.)

In the first episode, THE RUNNER, when Bronson is in the cabin listening to the lecture by Dr. Hanrahan (Jack Klugman), he is wearing the navy blue crew neck sweater. Bronson, having heard enough, goes outside for a walk, where a closeup shows him wearing a navy blue sweatshirt that has a front zipper at the neck. (He had the same sweatshirt in the pilot movie, in the scene at the marina, when he is talking to the police inspector after Nick's suicide.)

In the FOREST PRIMEVAL episode, he swaps his leather jacket for a navy blue parka. Someday I'm going to catalog all the things that he kept in that little Bronson bag that was bungi-corded to the handlebars - reminds me of Felix The Cat's magical bag!

Well, that's enough for now.

MISCELLANEOUS (& JUST FOR FUN)...


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Click here Start your Christmas shopping early! Hallmark has put out a red Harley motorcycle Christmas tree ornament! [From the Oct. 3 "Parade" magazine/supplement to the Sunday newspaper]

"Betty Boop has been stopping the show as all kinds of wacky characters since 1930. The "Queen of Cartoons" appears here as a biker chick, complete with her own motorcycle and a great, leather-like biker outfit. The motorcycle makes an engine sound, and Betty gives out her trademark "Boop-Opp-A-Doop." Her outfit comes complete with fishnet stockings. You can pose her on or off her bike, which has white sidewalls, red fenders, and sports her famous "B" logo." [available from www.eToys.com]

Click here The Franklin Mint has put out a Betty Boop on a Harley salt and pepper shaker (Betty's the salty one). This is from an ad in an October TV Guide issue.

Send The Franklin Mint an email and ask if they'll put out a version of the Bronson Sportster motorcycle model. And just hope that it isn't created as a garlic press or something.
Franklin Mint web page for customer feed back: Click here! In the "Topic of your question/comment:" box, select the "Other questions/concerns" from the drop-down menu. Remember to include your name, email address and check the "Would you like a response?" dot for "yes". Then scroll down and click on the "Submit" button. If your input was successful, you will see a notification on the subsequent web page, and you will get an automatic reply via email that your comments were received.

There's a Harley-Davidson version of Monopoly!
"Hit the highway with rich Uncle Pennybags and outmaneuver your opponents to own the ultimate Harley-Davidson collection. Buy such awesome hogs as the Electra Glide Standard and the Heritage Springer as you attempt to be the baddest biker on the block. Progress along the all-new board using eight, custom, pewter game tokens: the Evolution engine, eagle with bar and shield logo, helmet, boot, gas tank, and four classic bikes. Get ready to kick-start your way to riches." [Available from www.etoys.com]

Click here Chips on a Harley? And doesn't he look a bit too big for that bike? Maybe Ponch has been puttin' on a little weight!?

Two things for the kiddies, also from eToys.com:

Wonder what it's like to drive a motorcycle? Find out when Becky and Dave give you a close look at different types of bikes--everything from super-fast racing bikes to death-defying stunt bikes. They'll visit the police to learn how they maneuver in and out of traffic safely. They'll also see how racers tackle a course filled with rocks, ditches, jumps, and turns. A great way to entertain your little one with motorcycles, while emphasizing safety.

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Tiny Ralph S. Mouse lives in a mousehole in Room 215 of the Mountain View Inn. When Keith and his family stop at the inn for a few days, Keith lets Ralph ride his toy motorcycle and life becomes downright thrilling. A heartwarming story about responsibility and trust from the beloved author of Ramona Quimby and Henry Huggins.



Click here Can anyone ID this plastic model of a Harley? It's about 1/6 scale, roughly, and seems to be for a doll named Patti. It has a motorized rear wheel and may have motorcycle sounds and a working headlight (the battery terminals are corroded, so it doesn't work at the moment). I picked it up at a flea market. (Another interesting thing - I just put it on the scanner and scanned it! Came out pretty good, I think. Tells me that you don't need a fancy digital camera to make photos of anything small enough to fit on your scanner, even when those things are 3-dimensional objects!)

Some links to cycle-oriented sites...

Motorcycle Shopper magazine club listing web page:

http://www.motorcycleshopper.com/clubs/welcome.htm

MotoDirectory.com web site (directory of cycle clubs):

http://www.motodirectory.com

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Have you sent emails to TNT and Columbia House (from my site)? If we can get TNT to show it again, we can all see it again. And if we can get somebody like Columbia House to sell it on video, they might get better copies of it (from master tapes, and no commercials)! Anyway, if you haven't already sent emails to TNT and Columbia House, here are their addresses (for most browsers, just click on them):

TNT (email)

TBS (feed back web page)

COLUMBIA HOUSE (email)

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This page created November 7, 1999 . . . . . . . . . this web page copyright 1999 jonpf@thecia.net, except for certain copyrighted images and text