Smokey & The Bandit: Rare Facts And Stories Behind The Film

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Left: Sally Field and Burt Reynolds in 'Smokey And The Bandit.' Right: Poster art for 'Smokey And The Bandit.' Source: IMDB; IMPAwards.com

Smokey and the Bandit was a 1977 action comedy film with just a touch of romance that starred Burt Reynolds as the Bandit, Jerry Reed as Cledus "Snowman" Snow, Sally Field as Carrie or "Frog," and Jackie Gleason as Sheriff Buford T. Justice -- or as cops are called in trucker parlance, Smokey. In the movie, Bandit and the Snowman are tasked with driving a truckload of contraband beer from Texarkana to Atlanta; along the way, they run afoul of Smokey, who becomes obsessed with stopping them.

Smokey and the Bandit. was without a doubt the blockbuster comedy of '77, finishing the year as the second-highest grossing movie. The top film was, of course, Star Wars -- so there was no shame in second place. The story itself was comical but, like with all movie productions, there was more than met the eye.