Electra Glide in Blue (1973)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

James William Guercio

Writers:

Robert Boris (screenplay)
Robert Boris (story) ...

Release Date:

4 October 1973 (France)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

He's A Good Cop. On A Big Bike. On A Bad Road.

Plot:

A short Arizona motorcycle cop gets his wish and is promoted to Homicide following the mysterious murder of a hermit...

Plot Keywords:

Desert | Motorcycle Cop | Cop | Motorcycle | Hermit

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Robert Blake	...	John Wintergreen
Billy Green Bush	...	Zipper (as Billy 'Green' Bush)
Mitch Ryan	...	Harve Poole (as Mitchell Ryan)
Jeannine Riley	...	Jolene
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Willie (as Elisha Cook)
Royal Dano	...	Coroner
Hawk Wolinski	...	VW Bus Driver (as David J. Wolinski)
Peter Cetera	...	Bob Zemko
Terry Kath	...	Killer
Lee Loughnane	...	Pig Man
Walter Parazaider	...	Loose Lips
Joe Samsil	...	Sgt. Ryker
Jason Clark	...	L.A. Detective
Michael Butler	...	Truck Driver
Susan Forristal	...	Ice Cream Girl

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Todd-AO) | 4-Track Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Arizona, USA

Company:

Guercio-Hitzig

Trivia:

Bassist and lead vocalist for the group "Chicago", Peter Cetera, plays a character named "Bob Zemko". A real actor who plays a bit part is also in the cast. His actual name was Bob Zemko. He died a year after making this, his only film.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the final driving scenes, the van and the bike, supposedly driving along a long straight road, drive by the same distant butte at least three times.

Quotes:

John Wintergreen: [about his motorcycle] I'm here to tell you there ain't nothin' in the world I hate worse than that elephant under my ass.

Movie Connections:

References Valley of the Dolls (1967)

It's in Arizona, Not California

Robert Blake's Character in "Electra Glide in Blue" was a motorcycle policeman in the fictional town of Stockman, Arizona, not California or the CHP. Also, the title "Electra Glide in Blue" refers to the Harley-Davidson motorcycle, Electra Glide, favored for many years by law enforcement agencies in this country, before the influx of foreign bikes, (namely Kawaski, etc.) and the "Blue" in the title refers to the Men in Blue, aka the police. A previous commenter referred to these in their comments incorrectly. Several references are given in the film, by Officer Wintergreen (Robert Blake), referring to areas around the Valley of the Sun, namely the Phoenix, Arizona area. Among the aforementioned are "Buckeye Road", "Camelback"(Camelback Mountain), "The Superstitions/Superstition Mountains". Strangely, the Mounument Valley area also appears as a backdrop in several scenes; this area is nowhere near the Phoenix area. The soundtrack from this movie was available on LP, after it's release. It is sometimes seen on Ebay; collectors should note that inserts of the Electra Glide motorcycle, the cover picture and glossy pictures of the cast and action sequences, in booklet form, from the movie were included in the original release of the album, and should be included in the sale of this collector recording. They greatly increase the value of the record. I have seen this movie almost 100 times since it's release, in theaters, on TV and Cable, and in video form. It is among my favorites of all time.