Official Dukes Fan Club site back up

[TimDuke]

http://www.officialdukesofhazzardfanclub.org/ Upgraded some since it was up last.This is the fan club that started a lot of things we have today.Possibly even this website. Definitely the NAGLFC and the CGLFC. Yes Dukes fandom was pretty much unheard of till 1992 when this young fellow Aneesh Sehgal decided to start an Official fan club. Go read the history and you'll see a familiar name. Yes the mega event Dukesfest even sprang from this fan club.

[Meadowmufn]

The forerunner of this site, The Hazzard County Sheriff's Department, started back when I first logged on to the net in 1993 or so. I had never heard of the DOHFC when I started that site, so it certainly had no influence on me and my DOH sites. In fact, my sites and the core group of DOH/Net veterans that visited and communicated regularly there probably had more impact on the club, since, once the club became common knowledge, we eventually drove membership to the club via postings on how to join via snail mail long before the club had a presence on the internet.

When I started my first DOH site, there were only 2 or so small Dukes sites on the web. A quick search of Google just now doesn't show any of those sites left.

As for the Dukes fandom being practically unheard of, I have no idea what rock you were hidin' under in the late 80's/early 90's. I was still a huge fan, writing fan fic and enjoying the show in syndication, as were several of my fellow HazzardNet members. When the Net became widely accessible in the early 90's, that provided a way for geographically disperse fans to get together. Let's face it, the DOHFC couldn't reach as wide an audience as they did without the help of the original DOH web sites plugging them.

So before you go trumpeting the praises of one club, perhaps you should recognize the contributions of others, most of whom are right here on HazzardNet and have been with me in cyberHazzard for damn near a decade and a half.

[Brian Coltrane]

HazzardNet is independent of all other Dukes clubs and websites, and always has been, and unless MeadowMufn gets her brain reprogrammed by aliens I doubt that will ever change.

Tho' over the years, we've been good neighbors with the Confederate General Lee Fan Club. We recognize that several people on HNet hail from there, and that's cool. You're always welcome. As are members of whatever other sites and clubs.

I'm going to break from HazzardNet's officially neutral stance on all the fandom politics and tell you exactly what I think of the "official" DOH fan club as run by Aneesh. I used to be a dues-paying member of it. The opinions expressed from here on out are my own, and not necessarily those of HNet, or Mufn, or MaryAnne.

Aneesh, by his own admission, is a kid who never wanted to work for a living. So he came up with a fan club and suckered people into paying $15 to join. I was one of the morons who fell for his ad in a trade publication back in the mid-90's.

What I got for fifteen dollars was diddly-squat. Aneesh would send out a poorly photocopied "newsletter" about three times a year, that was barely legible.

His partner in slime, Michael Streit, helped him a lot. Michael had an impressive Dukes collection. The purpose of the first Dukesfest that he and Aneesh put on in Covington, GA, was more or less an opportunity to pimp Michael's Dukes collection. Aneesh also sold bootleg copies of photographs along with items that had been donated to the "club." Michael had told me back then that he was getting ready to get out and that's why he was letting go of all the stuff he could. In short he was cashing in now that he had an opportunity.

One of the things Michael cashed in on, was an autographed photo he'd received free from Jimmy. Michael turned around and sold it to a fan for $35.00. The fan took it to Jimmy at a later appearance, and asked if he could personalize it. Jimmy recognized it, found out what the fan paid for it, and was very upset. This was just one example of many.

This happened with many materials that the "official" club got for free from cast members and WB. I'd like to say that the proceeds went to the club to "cover expenses" but that'd be baloney. Isn't that why they charged a membership fee - and still do? These are the same guys who can barely send a newsletter or keep a website running.

I do give them credit for organizing a fan event of any kind, and in getting Ben and Sonny and Jerry Rushing and Don Pedro to hang out for awhile. Tho' Aneesh charged $25 to fan club members for advance tickets. Yet if you walked in off the streets of Covington, as whoever, you got in for $10. ( It was a tiny set up in an empty retail store in a strip mall. )

There were a handful of Chargers there, but they couldn't stay put long enough for fans to see them. They were busy running around town and showing off. There was supposedly a "guided tour" of filming sites, and cars were supposed to follow a GL. The GL went so fast that many people got lost.

There was no schedule of events. There was a party at the original Boar's Nest, a half-assed affair that required more money to attend. I think I paid $20 more to get into that. Other people later showed up at the door and got in free. I realized fast that there was no altruism in this "fan club" and members were not treated equally.

I could tell ya'll a lot of dirt. But what speaks louder than anything I could say, is the fact that Ben himself banned the "official" DOH club from representation at DukesFest. Wanna know why? Aneesh/Marky B. had bought a bunch of photos from Cooter's Place, back when this was at Sperryville, and then marked them up to sell at their "club" table. There were other issues, but out of respect to the parties concerned and our usual neutrality, I won't detail them.

I realize that there's very few saints in the fandom, and the cast members themselves are very dollar-driven. This is a fandom, this is a family, but it's also a business and means of income to many people and I'm keenly aware of that.

When it comes to the "official" fan club, my advice is, save your money.

Brian

[MinDuke]

When it comes to DOH sites, Ive been with Hnet since it was knee high to a grasshopper. In my opinion its the best DOH website out there and always will be. No one can touch Hnet and MeadowMufn, Brian and MaryAnne have invested years in this place to make it what it is today and for that, I know I speak for all of us when I say THANK YOU!!

As for the Official DOH fan club, its never struck my interest really, why go there when Hnet has more to offer? Never have been impressed with the official club before and I doubt it can strike my fancy now. After reading Brian's post, Im really not impressed with the official club. In fact, it sounds like a huge ripe off! I think I'll take your advice Brian and save my fifteens bucks for the real place thats for DOH fans, Dukesfest!

Jax

[Enos Fan]

I've seen more fan organizations pull stunts like that than I could shake a stick at. Thanks Brian for the warning, and thanks to all of the admin here at Hazzardnet for keeping things fair.

I came into this thread out of slight interest, but now I'm leaving it again, a smarter person and a few dollars richer.

[DukesFan82]

HazzardNet is independent of all other Dukes clubs and websites, and always has been, and unless MeadowMufn gets her brain reprogrammed by aliens I doubt that will ever change.

Tho' over the years, we've been good neighbors with the Confederate General Lee Fan Club. We recognize that several people on HNet hail from there, and that's cool. You're always welcome. As are members of whatever other sites and clubs.

I'm going to break from HazzardNet's officially neutral stance on all the fandom politics and tell you exactly what I think of the "official" DOH fan club as run by Aneesh. I used to be a dues-paying member of it. The opinions expressed from here on out are my own, and not necessarily those of HNet, or Mufn, or MaryAnne.

Aneesh, by his own admission, is a kid who never wanted to work for a living. So he came up with a fan club and suckered people into paying $15 to join. I was one of the morons who fell for his ad in a trade publication back in the mid-90's.

What I got for fifteen dollars was diddly-squat. Aneesh would send out a poorly photocopied "newsletter" about three times a year, that was barely legible.

His partner in slime, Michael Streit, helped him a lot. Michael had an impressive Dukes collection. The purpose of the first Dukesfest that he and Aneesh put on in Covington, GA, was more or less an opportunity to pimp Michael's Dukes collection. Aneesh also sold bootleg copies of photographs along with items that had been donated to the "club." Michael had told me back then that he was getting ready to get out and that's why he was letting go of all the stuff he could. In short he was cashing in now that he had an opportunity.

One of the things Michael cashed in on, was an autographed photo he'd received free from Jimmy. Michael turned around and sold it to a fan for $35.00. The fan took it to Jimmy at a later appearance, and asked if he could personalize it. Jimmy recognized it, found out what the fan paid for it, and was very upset. This was just one example of many.

This happened with many materials that the "official" club got for free from cast members and WB. I'd like to say that the proceeds went to the club to "cover expenses" but that'd be baloney. Isn't that why they charged a membership fee - and still do? These are the same guys who can barely send a newsletter or keep a website running.

I do give them credit for organizing a fan event of any kind, and in getting Ben and Sonny and Jerry Rushing and Don Pedro to hang out for awhile. Tho' Aneesh charged $25 to fan club members for advance tickets. Yet if you walked in off the streets of Covington, as whoever, you got in for $10. ( It was a tiny set up in an empty retail store in a strip mall. )

There were a handful of Chargers there, but they couldn't stay put long enough for fans to see them. They were busy running around town and showing off. There was supposedly a "guided tour" of filming sites, and cars were supposed to follow a GL. The GL went so fast that many people got lost.

There was no schedule of events. There was a party at the original Boar's Nest, a half-assed affair that required more money to attend. I think I paid $20 more to get into that. Other people later showed up at the door and got in free. I realized fast that there was no altruism in this "fan club" and members were not treated equally.

I could tell ya'll a lot of dirt. But what speaks louder than anything I could say, is the fact that Ben himself banned the "official" DOH club from representation at DukesFest. Wanna know why? Aneesh/Marky B. had bought a bunch of photos from Cooter's Place, back when this was at Sperryville, and then marked them up to sell at their "club" table. There were other issues, but out of respect to the parties concerned and our usual neutrality, I won't detail them.

I realize that there's very few saints in the fandom, and the cast members themselves are very dollar-driven. This is a fandom, this is a family, but it's also a business and means of income to many people and I'm keenly aware of that.

When it comes to the "official" fan club, my advice is, save your money.

Brian

Wow, it's for fraud for that website?