# Billy Jack - Have you seen it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 26, 2011, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317 "2011-05-26T16:56:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/81 "2011-05-27T19:53:42Z")
> [@shiftless](#): > > Interestingly, I saw a documentary that claimed the _Billy Jack_ movies were instrumental in opening the doors for independent movie distributors. As in, up unto Billy Jack you either played by the studio rules or you couldn’t get your film shown to a wide audience. I don’t know how true that is, but it fits nicely into the “rebel against authority” motif. Laughlin was part of the independent movie boom but he came in pretty late. People like James Nicholson, Samuel Z. Arkoff, Roger Corman, Russ Meyer, Herschell Gordon Lewis, William Castle, and George Romero were making independent movies before _Billy Jack_ - in some cases twenty years before. ---
**Author:** ![kath94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/67e7ee/32.png) [@kath94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kath94)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/82 "2011-05-27T21:27:27Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > I’m 47 and I _think_ I saw it when I was a kid. But it’s possible I’m just remembering the Mad magazine parody, _Billy Jerk_. As I recall, the spoof made fun of how he kept talking about how peaceful he was, but still kicked the crap out of everybody. > [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I’m 46. I never saw it (I was too young when it was in the theaters), but I definitely remember _Billy Jerk_ in _Mad_. 😃 1. And a half. And I came in here to say this. My old Mad Magazine collection has got to be stashed somewhere in Mom’s house. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_A.Robrin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sam_a.robrin/32/14497_2.png) [@Sam\_A.Robrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_A.Robrin)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/83 "2011-05-27T22:37:31Z")
I’m 57, a former Quaker and early '70s San Francisco hippie who was way ahead of the pacifist pack when the films were released. _The Trial of Billy Jack_ is far and away my favorite bad movie–but when I watch it, I’m self-deprecatingly laughing at the parts of my past that stick out all over it like a baby born with its organs on the outside of its body… * * * > [@koeeoaddi](#): > > someone ought to suggest it to Rifftrax. The next best thing is this novelization-style “RazzTrak” for _Trial_: > **[The Trial of Billy Jack B-Movie Review](http://www.badmovies.org/movies/trialbilly/index.html)** ---
**Author:** ![ryan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a8b319/32.png) [@ryan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ryan)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/84 "2011-05-27T22:53:24Z")
I’m 43 and I saw it. On HBO in the early 80’s. I also saw _Born Losers_ and _The Trial of Billy Jack_. Never did see _Billy Jack Goes to Washington_ and I’m glad. I’d probably miss the brain cells that would’ve killed. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/85 "2011-05-27T22:58:06Z")
The only part I remember is his chat with his “inner self”, who was covered in blue paint for some reason. That and the evil army/cops shooting the peaceful hippies full of holes, which I found incredibly cool. I think that was the first movie I had seen that had exploding blood bag bullet hits. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/86 "2011-05-27T23:08:45Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > It’s not that, it’s that I genuinely don’t think the movie has a female lead. Dolores Taylor’s character is not really a lead character. The young girl who gets pregnant and runs away from her father (the sheriff’s deputy) is probably the closest to a female lead, but she’s pretty poorly acted (like most of the film) and also not conventionally attractive. The movie I’m thinking of had a girl with short dark hair that rode a Honda 50 type thing into town, was harassed by some ruffians and rescued by the male lead. I think later in the movie some guy gets shot right through the bridge of his sunglasses by the hero. Any idea what movie I’m thinking of? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/87 "2011-05-27T23:22:05Z")
mid 50’s seen it. thought it was great as a kid, and think it’s horrible as an adult. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_A.Robrin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sam_a.robrin/32/14497_2.png) [@Sam\_A.Robrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_A.Robrin)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/88 "2011-05-28T04:33:25Z")
> [@River\_Hippie](#): > > The movie I’m thinking of had a girl with short dark hair that rode a Honda 50 type thing into town, was harassed by some ruffians and rescued by the male lead. I think later in the movie some guy gets shot right through the bridge of his sunglasses by the hero. > > Any idea what movie I’m thinking of? That’s _Born Losers_. Also, the curious should be warned that _Billy Jack Goes to Washington_ is not the internal hemorrhage - inducing laughfest that _Trial_ was, but a boring, too-faithful remake of _Mr. Smith_ with just enough tweaking to shoehorn the character in. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/89 "2011-05-28T15:14:51Z")
Yes, 54. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/90 "2011-05-28T15:16:57Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > For anybody too young to remember, this is the song > > [One Tin Soldier](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTBx-hHf4BE) > > During the 1970s this song was freaking HUGE. It was on TV, the song was a hit and sold for years, it was added to church hymnals, I remember seeing it sung on the Sonny & Cher show, there was a cartoon, etc., and it was especially huge in the religious private school I attended and at many others. I remember my music teacher crying when it was sung and also praising the movie _Billy Jack_. The fact that a few years before (I learned this later) she’d been among the ones screaming at Freedom Riders and opposing integration was irrelevant, this was about fictional Indians. I taught myself to play that on the guitar in around 1973 and thought it was so cool–groovy even (kidding, even when it was popular I would have never used that word)–that I could play and sing it. But church hymnals? Really? ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/91 "2011-05-28T16:48:17Z")
I’m 62 and a martial artist. The fight scene in the park is nice. The rest of the movie sucks yak wang. ---
**Author:** ![Find\_Friends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/92 "2011-05-28T20:09:25Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > I taught myself to play that on the guitar in around 1973 and thought it was so cool–groovy even (kidding, even when it was popular I would have never used that word)–that I could play and sing it. But church hymnals? Really? I was a little bit taken aback by that one. Especially about an actual entry in a church hymnal. OTOH, I seem to recall that locally, in the decade following Vatican II’s release, “Hey Jude” featured in at least one [folk mass.](http://kencanedo.com/folk_mass_composers.html) * * * BTW,\*\*\* Mad \*\*\*had a field day with Billy Jack’s claim to be slow to anger. _ **- Jack, but not Billy** _ ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/93 "2011-05-28T20:17:18Z")
49, saw it when it first came out. It seemed pretty cool at the time, like the ‘Kung Fu’ TV series. It hasn’t aged well. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/94 "2011-05-28T20:52:10Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > 49, saw it when it first came out. It seemed pretty cool at the time, like the ‘Kung Fu’ TV series. It hasn’t aged well. I liked the original Kung Fu movie. I prefer action scenes that are plausible versus today’s ridiculous stuff. I still remember the bar scene in the movie where he’s holding a glass of milk and knocks some guy senseless without spilling it. If I remember it correctly he does it with the arm that’s holding the glass. ---
**Author:** ![Prelude\_to\_Fascination](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Prelude\_to\_Fascination](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prelude_to_Fascination)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/95 "2011-05-28T22:47:04Z")
I’m 49 and have seen Billy Jack numerous times. I hold films like that up to my kids as a greatly exaggerated example of what the early 70s were like. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/96 "2011-05-28T22:51:50Z")
I remember “One Tin Soldier” in the songbooks that we’d use in Sunday school and youth group sort of stuff; the actual hymnal for official big people services was considerably more traditional. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2011, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/97 "2011-05-29T00:06:42Z")
28, and I saw _The Trial of Billy Jack_ after reading about it on [Jabootu’s Bad Movie Dimension](http://jabootu.net/?p=647). I haven’t seen the other films in the series, yet. I actually built a 3D model of _Trial_’s Freedom School, so I could use it as flight simulator scenery…um, on a bombing range. The “dirty commie-land” themed section of the range. [insert “nervous sweatdrop smiley face” icon, here] ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2011, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/98 "2011-05-29T01:19:09Z")
> [@Ranchoth](#): > > I actually built a 3D model of _Trial_’s Freedom School, so I could use it as flight simulator scenery…um, on a bombing range. The “dirty commie-land” themed section of the range. [insert “nervous sweatdrop smiley face” icon, here] Nervous sweatdrop nothing! You deserve every one of your Freedom School Hero Hugs. Right there, on the right side of your face. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2011, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/99 "2011-05-29T04:38:12Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Replica Hat $ 585.00 Pure Awesomeness. ORIGINAL BILLY JACK HAT REPLICA (Retail Price $575! ) Code:PCBJ6ORIG Price: $585.00 Um, ok. The “retail price” is an outrageous $575, but I can get it straight from the Billy Jack website for only $10 more? Wow. Sign me up for two! ---
**Author:** ![JoelUpchurch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@JoelUpchurch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoelUpchurch)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2011, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317/100 "2011-05-29T16:40:51Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > I’m 47 and I _think_ I saw it when I was a kid. But it’s possible I’m just remembering the Mad magazine parody, _Billy Jerk_. As I recall, the spoof made fun of how he kept talking about how peaceful he was, but still kicked the crap out of everybody. Now that you bring it up, I wonder how much influence **Billy Jack** had on **Kung Fu** getting on the Television. **Billy Jack** was 1971 and **Kung Fu** started in 1972. I saw **Billy Jack** in High School and I thought it was cool, but I couldn’t get through it the last time I watched it. I had the same problem when I tried to watch a rerun of **The Man From UNCLE**. Now **The Avengers** , are still cool, although the stunt doubles are laughably obvious on DVD. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billy-jack-have-you-seen-it/583317.md?page=6)