A movie star, well perhaps not so much.....

There are tons of iconic vehcles out there. Bullit's Mustang. 007's Aston Martin. Fonda's Panhead. Mcqueen's Triumph. I could go on forever but there are two unknown actors who had the joy of riding a 1949 Norton Model 7. Their good fortune is forever though briefly part of cinematic history!

1949 Model 7 in Le Corniaud

Le Corniaud filmed in 1965 is a franco-italian comedy featuring the famous French comedian Louis De Funes. Interestingly this plunger framed bike features a two person seat. It is feature that I have never seen before.

The second movie appearance of a Norton Model 7 is in another but more obscure french comedy called Le Distrait. The movie was filmed in 1970 and it features what I think is the exact bike used five years earlier in Le Corniaud. If it's the same bike I am sure its reappearance is due to its classic beauty and unwavering reliability.

1949 Norton Model 7 in Le Distrait

This still photo from Le Distrait I consider very important in that within Model 7 circles there is a great debate regarding the silencers. Some believe the tailpipe exits from the top of the silencer body while others believe it exits from the middle. There are few period pictures that definitively confirm one way or another. In this case we can see that it exits from the middle. I personally have Triumph tailpipes for the moment. Anyway, I have always felt like a movie star riding mine!