New Dukes Stuff - 12/2/2024 - 8mm Mego Commercial, Thor Motorcross Gear, Macho Man and Andre Original Art

Who's been slacking on new blog posts?  I sure haven't been slacking on new blog posts.  Here's another slew of pickups consisting of unique additions and a downright, hard-to-believe-it-exists piece. 

First up as motocross gear from Thor MC.  You may say, "but Larry, you covered this piece way back in 2017" to which I would say "you know a lot about my collecting habits" but you would not be wrong.  I did blog about a Thor MC jersey back in 2017, but that was a beat up shirt that didn't have matching pants. This set, or kit as it's called in the motocross world, is in pristine condition and it does included the matching pants.  Not only that, it has some interesting history to it.

If I gave you two guesses as to which year in the modern age of Dukes these pieces were released, you'd get it on the second guess.  Dukes took over the world in 2005, when the movie made everyone appreciate the original.  This didn't come out in 2005, which was probably you first guess, but your next guess might have been 2006, the aftermath, and you would be correct.  This is not a licensed by WB item, but there is no question this is a Dukes inspired "kit."

We've seen the jersey before, but the pants are new to us at DukesCollector HQ, and they do not disappoint. The beautiful 01 on the leg really sends home the Dukes inspiration.  

 

This is the complete package with jersey and pants and it's not just any Thor General Lee motocross kit, but it's the set used in the advertising campaign when this set was released.  

I searched high a low, but couldn't find any pictures from the campaign, but I was assured this is the exact set worn for the photoshoot.  The inclusion of the handwritten "Sample" is all the proof I need.  I bought it from a reputable source and my research shows they still have professional ties to Thor, so I'm sold.  It is really cool to have this Dukes kit with prominence attached to it.  Below are some images of the details of the shirt and pants.  

This is my favorite detail.

The best part about this kit, is that it fits me perfectly.  The motocross rider who wore it in the photoshoot must have had the perfect body.  

It's not just that it fits all right, it fits like a glove.  Like a a bodysuit.  Exactly how you would like protective clothing to fit.  This thing was made for me.  

Ok, Thor is a Norse God and not just a Marvel Superhero, but I had to make a connection to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and break out Mjolnir.  I feel like a Dukes themed Thunder God in my ThorMC gear!  I might go save Midgard and Hazzard County later.  

Next up is a unique little piece of French cinema.  It's a press pamphlet for the movie, totally in French.  

 Not a word in English.  It includes a bunch of nice photos from the movie and has about twenty pages.  It's in all black and white.  Of course we know the title of the Dukes in France is Sherif Fais-Moi Peur, Le Film.  I don't think I've seen "Le Film" added before, which obviously means "the movie."  We need more items that say Dukes Of Hazzard The Movie on them to differentiate.

  

Ok, here's proof that I will buy anything that has the Dukes on it.  ANYTHING!

These are giveaway game demo discs that included a playable sample of the 2004 video game The Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee.  They were given out with magazines at the time.  

C'mon, you put Prince of Persia and Dead or Alive on the covers and not Daisy Duke of the General Lee?!  Regardless, twenty years later, I tracked down these nearly worthless discs and added them to my collection.  I'm curious about exactly what is included in the demo of our beloved game.  The first level of the game involves Bo and Luke driving the pre-General, black Charger around the junkyard finding things like orange paint and better brakes to make the car we all love.  I would think if you are trying to sell the game, you would give away a level that includes the complete General Lee.  Now I got to find a working original X-Box to play this demo.  Maybe I'll include that on a future blog.  

Next up is a non-Dukes item, but a very-Larry item.  Jeff is always looking for unique gifts for me and he really nailed it with this one.  This is a piece of original art from a story about Hulk Hogan.  It features Macho Man Randy Savage, Andre the Giant, and the Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase.  The artist's name is Steve McGarry. I reached out to him and he responded almost right away letting me know that the artwork was for an eighteen episode series called The Hulk Hogan Story that ran in a British publication called The Today in the early '90s.  Thanks for getting back to me Steve!  It is such a cool piece.  Great gift Jeffrey!

Here's another one of those, how does this exist, items.  This is film reel containing the commercial for the 8 inch Dukes figures.  This is crazy.  

The box has "Dukes 8"" "OCDK 1012" and "Mego Corp. 30 sec."  There is also "Exchange Media" and the date of February 6, 1981 hand written on the box.  I'm not sure if this was sent to local stations for broadcast.  

 

I unraveled a good bit of the film.  It took some distance to get past the broadcast countdown and I finally saw a familiar face.  Old Mego Luke starts off the commercial.  It appears the film has turned a little red with age.   Google tells me this is caused by different factors that could include the cyan, magenta, and yellow dyes decaying faster than red, or interaction with acetic acid or acetate bases.  Interesting stuff.  

The reel is in perfect condition.  

Here's the commercial on youtube so you can compare it to my reel.  Mine is just a little redder.  

I have an episode of the show on 8mm and several different film trailers for the movie. This is yet another cool film addition to the collection.  I love the unique pieces!