Filed under: Marketing/Advertising, Motorcycles, Celebrities
Harley-Davidson gets into product placement in new Indiana Jones flick
Click on the image for more shots of Indiana's Harley-Davidson
It seems that the marketing folks at Harley-Davidson have managed to get a bit of product placement for themselves, following the likes of Audi with Iron Man, Volkswagen with The Bourne Ultimatum and GM with Transformers. The new Indiana Jones movie, titled 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Crystal Skull' features both Harrison Ford and Shia
As a celebration of the upcoming movie's use of the bike, every Harley dealership will reportedly get the chance to order 30 pairs of free tickets to the movie to be given away as a promotion to customers.
Gallery: Indiana Jones Harley Springer
[Source: Cyril Huze Blog, Harrison Ford Web]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
pacman 9:56AM (4/30/2008)
Harley needs to sell this bike as is! That is a sweet Harley. Also, that is a NEW Sportster tank. The old sportsters have the high tank.
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John 10:06AM (4/30/2008)
I second that. Nothing wrong with a retro styled bike with modern running gear...especially when it looks so good.
Andy 10:05AM (4/30/2008)
Nice reprint of an irrelevant press release. Can we get back to decent content?
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Dave T. 10:12AM (4/30/2008)
it is so sad to see Indy look this old. This movie may ruin my childhood. We were saved geriatric Han Solo at least.
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Jesse 10:16AM (4/30/2008)
But... but.. Indie doesn't ride bitch!
Seriously they need to sell this bike. Not as a limited production whatever. I needs to come out as a model cause I'd buy it as is.
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ricotubbs 10:19AM (4/30/2008)
Isn't there a rule about two dudes riding on a bike? Those pictures look like they are making a live-action remake of that SNL Robert Smigel cartoon Ambiguously Gay Duo. :)
Oh, and I sincerely hope Shia Le Beouf isn't nearly as annoying in this movie as he was in Transformers!
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evlfred 10:33AM (4/30/2008)
That's a modified Crossbones for sure.
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j.tuck 10:42AM (4/30/2008)
Looks like it overheated... nice P.R. for HD. ;^P
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Rocketboy 11:00AM (4/30/2008)
Yep, Harley is sure the choice of rebels and outlaws everywhere...
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Mallory 11:29AM (4/30/2008)
Like Apple, HD is a classic example of how image is everything and product is irrelevant.
Rocketboy 1:20PM (4/30/2008)
Shh! You're going to ruin it!
pacman 11:19AM (4/30/2008)
so when is this film set? The late 50's? No Nazis? Man I hope this movie does not suck. I dont see how it can't. I woudl have rather seen a spinoff that takes place in the 40s to keep the "feel" of the movie the same.
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mr t 12:37AM (5/29/2008)
the harley in the movie which is set in the 1950s had disc brakes and belt drive .this design was not in the 50s nor was a evolution engine,a bit sad to see a lack of detail.in steven s/berg movie.
Ian 12:51PM (4/30/2008)
Some performance details for this bike please. As a retro look it almost seems more Vinvcent/HRD in looks.
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Scott 1:23PM (4/30/2008)
Forget the chromed out horrors you spot dentists and lawyers riding, that's what a HD should look like.
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Ammocaby 10:22PM (4/30/2008)
Does this bike actually appear in the movie? I'm no Harley expert, but I wasn't aware there were disc brakes on Harleys in this particular time period (1950s?). I wonder if it also has modern belt drive, too; it looks as though it may have chain drive, but I'm not quite certain.
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Axel 11:20PM (10/08/2008)
Obviously, it would be ridiculous to use a period bike to do the stunts involved in a movie. One of the beauty things about Harleys is that they're still styled much the same way as they have been since the first OHV bike debuted in '36. The modern performance along with the better frame strength of modern bikes, not to mention the expense of obtaining and damaging several classic old panheads, make use of "antique'd" new bikes in moviemaking a common sense choice.
Ric Kaysen 8:08AM (5/01/2008)
Please tell me they aren't actually committing this Frankenbike to film! It will totally destroy any authenticity to whatever scene in which it might appear. I plan on seeing the movie, but I know I'll be distracted from what's going on in the story if I have to be picking out all the parts of the bike that are just wrong for that year.
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Justin Kell 3:22PM (5/15/2008)
I built he bikes for the film. Harley Davidson supplied us with the bikes, and we had the job of rebuilding cosmetically as well as mechanically to make be able to handle the stunts. We had 6 weeks to do the bikes, and then we had to handle the daily upkeep while filming. We dropped a considerable amount of weight from the bikes as well as dramatically increased the horsepower. The bikes ran great. Although ideally we would have liked to use period bikes, product placement as well as safety issues kept us with new bikes. The stunt rider Lee Morrison is one of the best riders out there. He made these bikes do things that we didn't think were possible.
For period stuff, check out Hell Ride this summer. We used lot's of good period bikes in that one.
Justin Kell
GLORY
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mr t 12:46AM (5/29/2008)
why could you not use a tricked up harley of that 50s era ?
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