I am so excited about this one. I just acquired this beautiful Dukes of Hazzard Television Show Cast and Crew Jacket. These were only given out to the cast members and select members of the crew. This is an extremely rare item.
It's styled after police jackets from the era. The only part of it that doesn't look police official is the giant Dukes of Hazzard logo on the back.
Yep, it's giant, and it's wonderful.
The left arm has the Hazzard County Sheriff's Department badge on it. This was made during the run of the show, so this was probably made by the same prop makers that made the badges worn on Rosco, Enos, and Cletus' costumes. That's incredible.
The right side has a great American flag patch. There is minor fraying around the patches, but that is the only issue with the condition on the whole jacket.
The only tag in the jacket reads Butwin Sportswear Co. Google tells me that Butwin Sportswear was founded in the 1930s and popularized the letterman jacket. This jacket is guaranteed to meet LAPD specifications. This is the real deal.
When the studio gifted the jackets to the cast and crew, they were personalized. I've seen Cooter's before and his has Ben stitched into it. Mine says "Len." I'm not entirely sure who Len is. I got the jacket from someone in California who discovered it in a storage locker. It is in such perfect condition that it might have been in there since it was given to Len. It appears never to have been worn. Knowing that it was given to cast and crew, I did some research and it might have belonged to writer Leonard Kaufman. He was a writer and executive story editor on the show for most of its run. Mr. Kaufman was also a writer and producer on classic shows like Hawaii 5-0 and Flipper. He lived in Hollywood and passed away in 2009. The jacket could have belonged to him.
When I received it, my first thought was it looked too small for me, but when I tried it on, it fit perfectly. I love this jacket.
I was born to wear this jacket. It is in such great condition. Len must never have worn it because it almost seems brand new. I love having a giant Dukes of Hazzard logo on my back.
You can just call me Len. This thing seriously fits perfectly. It is a jacket built to LAPD specs. It isn't brittle or weak at all. I'm going to wear it on occasion. If there is a cool weather Dukes event in Sprerryville this year, look forward to seeing me in this bad boy.
I was able to locate a few behind the scenes shots of the cast in their jackets. On top is Catherine Bach wearing hers, and below is Sorrell Booke and Ben Jones in theirs. That's obviously Daisy, Boss Hogg, and Cooter sporting the same jacket I now have in my collection!
I'm a collector of little orange cars. To think that three jackets would be centerpieces in my collection is a strange notion. But these three jackets, my new TV Cast and Crew Jacket, the movie Carhartt Cast and Crew Jacket, and the movie Columbia Stunt Crew Jacket are just amazing. They compliment the little orange cars very nicely.
If you spotted a few orange cars in the above picture, here's a fun shot. The jackets look great where they are. I think I'll keep them there.
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