Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

The 335 FG recently seen on this board has an interesting story...made in 1967, it was used as a prop in the 1972 motion picture "Steelyard Blues," starring Jane Fonda and Donald Sutherland.

The guitar was...er, in storage and missing some parts until Mr. Hall and I recently put a bit of elbow grease into reviving it.

This 335, in the film, was supposed to have the appearance of an "old" guitar (I've never seen the film, so I don't know the plot) and so the guitar was sprayed down with some kind of crud to take some of the shine off and make it look dirty and old (remember, the guitar was only five years old). There is still some residue on the pickguards and tailpiece from it...

The craziest thing is, this guitar still has the original Maxim flatwounds on it, and, while the treble strings are rusty and yucky, the guitar as it plays today has such mojo! Definitely cool.

Any of you folks who are in a position to do screen captures, and who might have the film, feel free to post some pics here.

The 335 now resides in the RIC museum.

If it's really a Jane Fonda model, shouldn't it have come in a left handed model only, with liberal applications of red paint?

story to follow on CNN...

Digging this up in the interest of historical accuracy.

The Rick seen in the movie (yes, I rented it and watched it some time ago) is a 340. The one in the museum is a 335. Both fireglo. Mysterious.

Also in the film was a Transonic which was certainly an empty shell as it was being picked up and thrown around as a prop without a lot of effort on the actor’s part...