diecast general lee

Warner Bros. has reportedly banned the rebel flag from all Dukes of Hazzard “General Lee” diecast cars, effective Jan 1, 2013. For Dukes of Hazzard fans, this could be the night the lights went out in Georgia.

The change to General Lee product licensing has been in the diecast collector’s news for a couple of weeks. The news originally broke on Supercar Collectibles, then was picked up by Mopar Muscle Magazine, and most recently on HobbyTalk.com.  As the reports began to snowball, we found ourselves compelled to pass along the info.

We hold out a small, slim hope that Warner Bros. will re-think this one and not go through with this politically paranoid decision. Otherwise, what’s next? The complete denial that “The Dukes of Hazzard” was ever on the air? Pull all the DVD sets off the market?

And what of the General Lee being consistently ranked as the number one (01) TV and movie car of all time? We’re just going to pretend now that the flag was never on it? Who ya kidding?

For crying out loud, the car is named “The General Lee”, after all. Is it really that shocking to have a rebel flag on it?

Where does it end?

We don’t know, and we’re afraid to find out. Hard to believe that something as innocent as a country stock car could be in so much trouble for a flashy paint job, after wearing it for over 30 years.

Any controversy surrounding the General Lee has been created by extreme stances of political correctness, and not due to any real problem.  Warner Bros would be hard-pressed to find somebody who has been personally devastated by the General Lee. Except, maybe, for Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane.

Thanks to fan Jason Burnett for the heads up on this story.