{img1 alig=left}You do remember Easy Rider, don’t you? The classic American road movie, starring Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, which tells the story of two bikers who travel through the country aiming to achieve freedom on their motorcycles?
The movie turned 40 yesterday, so it seemed like the perfect moment for Harley-Davidson to be showcasing one of America’s two-wheeled icons in its museum, which also celebrates the brand's 106-year history.
For those of you who don’t remember much about Easy Rider, the “Captain America” character was played by Fonda, making his bike one of the most recognizable motorcycles in history. There were originally two “Captain America” choppers used in the movie, created from Harley-Davidson FLH police bikes.
The motorcycles, based on hardtail frames and Panhead engines, were designed and built by chopper builders Cliff Vaughs and Ben Hardy, following ideas of Peter Fonda, and handled by Tex Hall and Dan Haggerty during shooting.
Unfortunately, according to Harley-Davidson, one of the original choppers was destroyed during the filming of the movie, while the other mysteriously disappeared from the movie set. Rumors say that it was most probably stolen. Ten years ago, in order to celebrate the film’s 30th anniversary, an exact replica was created with the help of Fonda and those who created the original bikes.This replica is currently featured at the Harley-Davidson Museum.
“Harley-Davidson motorcycles have inspired filmmakers since the beginnings of modern film,” said Curatorial Director, Jim Fricke. “Our bikes have been featured in countless movies to portray the spirit of individualism, freedom and rebellion, and we have many examples of this at the Museum.”
The Museum also features a bike Elvis once owned, a replica of Evel Knievel’s bike from his attempt at jumping 13 buses at London’s Wembley Stadium, and bikes used in Lucasfilm’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
The movie turned 40 yesterday, so it seemed like the perfect moment for Harley-Davidson to be showcasing one of America’s two-wheeled icons in its museum, which also celebrates the brand's 106-year history.
For those of you who don’t remember much about Easy Rider, the “Captain America” character was played by Fonda, making his bike one of the most recognizable motorcycles in history. There were originally two “Captain America” choppers used in the movie, created from Harley-Davidson FLH police bikes.
The motorcycles, based on hardtail frames and Panhead engines, were designed and built by chopper builders Cliff Vaughs and Ben Hardy, following ideas of Peter Fonda, and handled by Tex Hall and Dan Haggerty during shooting.
Unfortunately, according to Harley-Davidson, one of the original choppers was destroyed during the filming of the movie, while the other mysteriously disappeared from the movie set. Rumors say that it was most probably stolen. Ten years ago, in order to celebrate the film’s 30th anniversary, an exact replica was created with the help of Fonda and those who created the original bikes.This replica is currently featured at the Harley-Davidson Museum.
“Harley-Davidson motorcycles have inspired filmmakers since the beginnings of modern film,” said Curatorial Director, Jim Fricke. “Our bikes have been featured in countless movies to portray the spirit of individualism, freedom and rebellion, and we have many examples of this at the Museum.”
The Museum also features a bike Elvis once owned, a replica of Evel Knievel’s bike from his attempt at jumping 13 buses at London’s Wembley Stadium, and bikes used in Lucasfilm’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
Google News