When
John Schneider and Tom Wopat abruptly left the show over a merchandising
dispute (which Mego was obviously a part of), the network scrambled
by having their cousins Coy and Vance
replace them. Coy was played by then well-known actor Byron Cherry
(insert sarcastic tone), while Christopher Mayer who was just as
famous, played Vance. Mego also responded by designing new head-sculpts
for both characters. New heads were sculpted, but the outfits and
packaging remained the same. Since Coy and Vance came on Bo and
Luke cards, no unique item numbers were assigned for the figures.
In addition to the 8" figures, Mego also produced 3-3/4"
Coy and Vance figures. No "changes" were made with the
only difference being the chest portions of the shirts for Bo and
Luke were swapped. A 3-3/4" Coy had blond hair, wore a blue
shirt, with blue pants. A 3-3/4" Vance had brown hair, wore
a tan shirt with blue pants. The 3-3/4" Coy and Vance are much
rarer than the 8" versions and just about non-existent.
Mego never bothered to print new cards reflecting their names so
Coy was packaged in Bo’s card and Vance was packaged in Luke’s card.
This makes it somewhat difficult to identify a carded Coy and Vance
without a decent picture. It also can help in snagging a carded
Coy or Vance for a bargain.
It is also interesting that unlike the 8" figures, Mego decided
to sticker the blister cards for the 3-3/4" Coy and Vance to
reflect the proper names. A small sticker bearing the Coy or Vance
name was placed over the existing name. The sticker had a blue background
to match the card color and the white text reflecting the figure’s
name.
Both but can still be found. Luke and 8" figures were produced
in much smaller quantities and are much more difficult to find compared
to Bo and Luke, Bo worked out whatever monetary issues they had
and quickly came back to the show. Coy and Vance were gone as quick
as they came. It would make sense that both were packed at the same
ratio within a case, but for some reason Vance is much more difficult
to find than Coy.
With Coy and Vance’s fast entrance and exit, it is difficult to
pinpoint the exact timing. There are a few things that can generalize
the timing based on relative changes. Coy and Vance only came packaged
on 1981 cards. Coy and Vance should only appear wearing the short
sleeve shirts since they were introduced after the long sleeve shirts
with pocket were phased out.
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No Coy and Vance figures have been confirmed with gray heads,
so they were most likely introduced after the particular resin that
discolored to a "gray" color was used. A gray Coy and
Vance head if confirmed, would be very rare, but not the rare you
want. Maybe someone will now concoct a method for turning heads
gray? Coy and Vance can be found with metal and plastic
snaps on their shirts and pants. Evidence suggests that the transition
from metal to plastic snaps for the Dukes was not absolute and it
is very possible that metal snaps were used after plastic snaps
were already introduced. The majority of Coy and Vance figures will
contain plastic snaps, but Coy and Vance with metal snaps do exist
and are much more difficult to find. Pictured is a carded Coy with
metal snaps.
This may sound like a tongue twister, but here
is why components were most likely not completely exhausted before
their replacement was used. A Bo Duke can be found on a 1980 card
with short sleeves and plastic snaps. A Coy Duke can be found on
a 1981 card with short sleeves and metal snaps. If metal snaps preceded
plastic snaps and 1980 cards preceded 1981 cards, something had
to be re-introduced in order to have both combinations listed above.
Confused yet? The bottom line is,
aside from the long sleeve shirts and baggy Luke pants, all the
variations found on Bo and Luke figures can also be found on Coy
and Vance figures The Coy and Vance figures are unique in
the fact that they were two temporary additions to the 8" Dukes
of Hazzard line. With no Coy and Vance item numbers, no packages
reflecting their name, and no appearance in the retail catalogs,
it almost seems like they never really existed. Coy and Vance are
the scarcest and most limited from a production quantity standpoint.
Coy is much easier to find, but Vance is probably the toughest figure
of all the 8" Dukes figures to find loose and carded.
The Duke Boys wear boots that can also be found on the Fonz from the Happy Days line, Huggy Bear from Starsky and Hutch and sometimes on Hutch himself. These boots have been reproduced by CTVT. The reproductions, while the same height are thicker with a wider foot opening. They have a rough texture to them as well. They are unmarked.
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