MovieChat Forums > Convoy (1978) Discussion > Rubber Duck Truck Wreckage???

Rubber Duck Truck Wreckage???

posted 20 years ago by jason-728
10 replies | jump to latest

I LOVE this movie! Just bought the DVD recently...poor quality DVD, but still classic.

Anyway; I am a Colorado River boater, and I have a trailer in Needles. Needles is where the final bridge scene was filmed. The bridge is the old "one way" bridge that was just South of Jack Smith Marina. It was replaced by the current hwy 95 Needles Bridge, which was already built when the movie was filmed. The one way bridge was destoyed for the movie. Though it didn't fall down in hte movie, it was slated for destruction when the film was made, and destroyed completely soon after filming. That much is known fact....

My question is.....does anyone know where the wreckage of the Mack Truck was taken after filming? Knowing the Needles area, it wouldn't surprize me too much to find out it is still in a wrecking yard or field out there somewhere. Just curious if anyone might know that bit of trivia.

Jason.

[–] jerryfar 20 years ago

I don't know, but I would be curious to get ahold of some of that myself..

Incidentally, if you buy the Kinowelt version of Convoy (from Germany), you won't be disappointed. The quality is excellent.

[–] convoy31 20 years ago

I talked to Johnny Bruhn, son of Frank Bruhn, who was called to supply the trucks for the movie. He said they used one damaged truck (there were four RD Trucks), pulled it by cable via the actual tank seen in the movie. The stunt was done twice. The finale and credit shot which shows the movie going backward. John said he knows the location of three of the RD Trucks. He also said when the truck turns off the bridge, that was controlled by remote.

One thing I found interesting is watch the truck hit the river, it seems to stop/stand in the water then the next shot submerged? That had to be cut I assume, removed from the water. I dont think that river was that deep. Plus John said most location shots especially the bridge/river scene was VERY HOT weather.

David Frederick
www.convoytm.com

[–] jason-728 20 years ago

Thanks, that's great info!!!

It had always puzzled me a bit that the wreckage stopped, then went under. Now that I've been boating that section of river for a few years, I know that you are correct. The water level was very low when that scene was filmed. The sandbars were the crowd is standing give this away. Even at "high" flow rates the water at that spot is only about 10' deep.

[–] stop_sine 19 years ago

You're right Jason...the water level was very low at time of filming. I know because I was there...not at the bridge but I was upriver about 1 or 2 miles at Needles Marina Park camping/boating with my family like we did every summer. Everyone there was warned to take their boats out of the water the night before and by mid-morning the next day the river was down to a trickel....you could easily walk over to the Arizona side. Somewhere in my mom's collection of photos she has a one of me as a 10 yr old standing out on the sand. I don't know how the movie studio pulled off getting the river shut down for the day but I do remember seeing a large barge or dredging machine parked in the cove just downstream from the bridge....It wouldn't fit between the narrow openings in the bridge. I also remember a boat running into the new concrete bridge and leaving some nice yellow scrapes about 2 feet above the waterline....

[–] jason-728 19 years ago

Wow, that's great info!!! We stay at Needles Marina Park all the time. That's where we put our trailer. Do you still go there???

[–] stop_sine 19 years ago

No...I haven't been there in 20 years....but I am dying to go back....from the photos I have seen on their website it pretty much looks the same as before except the opening to the lagoon has been filled in more. A couple weeks ago I took my family to the grand canyon and we had breakfast in Needles. I wanted to go by NMP so bad but I didn't think the wife would go for it but the other night she said she would have....you can contact me at [email protected] I'm sure I can get my hands on some old photos you might be interested in seeing...

[–] sosllc 19 years ago

So would it be possible to get some pix of 3 RD Trucks since he knows where they are at. Are they in a museum or something? I believe I read somewhere they are rumored to be in a museum.

[–] convoy34 19 years ago

Check out www.stlouisdumptrucks.com. He runs a great section of RD Truck movie shots and just added shots taken this year of wreckage of one of them.

www.convoytm.com

[–] mshawme 18 years ago

Convoy31, how do you know Johnny Bruhn? I know him and his family too as I'm from the Logan area.

[–] convoy34 18 years ago

I dont remember how but made contact with him in 2001.

www.convoytm.com
www.titosantana.net