It seems unlikely that a movie about minor league hockey in the seventies would achieve cult status. It seems even more unlikely that the three goonish nerds who appeared in the movie are still celebrities today. But here they were at the Allen Event Center facing a long line of autograph seekers and well wishers. The goons are The Hanson Brothers, a trio of trouble featured in the 1977 movie Slapshot that starred Paul Newman as player-coach of the Charlestown Chiefs. The Chiefs are a bad – make that really bad – minor league franchise from a depressed Pennsylvania steel town that finds a spark and wins a championship after three misfit brothers join the team. The quirks and fighting that the Hanson Brothers demonstrate in the movie have become legend in hockey arenas and locker rooms ever since.
The movie’s Hanson Brothers are actually two brothers named Steve and Jeff Carlson along with David Hanson. A third Carlson brother would have appeared in the movie but was called up to the Edmonton Oilers NHL team from the Johnstown (Pa) Jets, where all four of them were playing. Combined, the Hansons played a total of 34 years in professional hockey and brought those experiences to the movie.
The Charlestown Chiefs are a fictional team but their story is based on fact. The screenplay was written by Nancy Dowd, sister of Johnstown Jet player Ned Dowd, and incorporated many true stories and characters from the gritty minor league hockey circuit in New York State and Pennsylvania.
A fan favorite is a fight that breaks out between the brothers and their opponents before the game starts. It’s based on an actual 1970’s Jets playoff game where Steve, Jeff and Dave tangled with the Buffalo Norsemen during warm-ups over a racial slur. During the fight, a Buffalo player tried to escape into the stands only to be pushed back onto the ice by Jets fans.
According to a 2007 Sports Illustrated interview, Jeff Carlson once pounded a particularly annoying opponent on the head with the announcer’s microphone. “All the crowd could hear was poom, poom poom!,” he said.
Today the Hanson Brothers make about 25 celebrity appearances. Many of the appearances are fundraising events where the brothers have raised over $14 million for various charities over the past 30 years, according to Steve.
They received a warm reception as they dropped the puck at the November 19 Allen Americans game and graciously entertained several hundred fans who waited for autographs and photos.
“We have been fortunate that the movie has such longevity,” said Jeff. “Its popularity just keeps going and going and going.”
“We were hockey players and not actors when this all started,” added Steve. “Once it took off we needed to make a decision about a career in hockey or sign a movie contract. The two didn’t fit together so we went with the movie.”
The original Slap Shot movie is rated among the top sports comedies and led to two sequels over the years.
I think that Dave may have hit it on the head when he tried to explain the appeal of the movie. “The humor is pretty crude, the dialogue is often politically incorrect and it’s a violent movie.”
Fans of the movie Slap Shot will have no trouble finding more information on The Hanson Brothers in Wikipedia and favorite scenes are all out there on YouTube. Just don’t try the stunts at home!
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