- American Chopper
infobox television
show_name = American Chopper: The Series
caption = "American Chopper: The Series" logo
format =Reality television
picture_format =1080i (HDTV )
runtime = 60 minutes
rating = TV-PG
creator =
developer =
starring =Paul Teutul, Sr. Paul Teutul, Jr. Michael Teutul
Rick Petko
Jason Pohl
Mike Rowe (announcer)
executive_producers = Craig Piligian Sean Gallagher Mark Finkelpearl Judy Plavnick Christo Doyle
country = USA
network =Discovery Channel (2003-2007) TLC(2007-)
first_aired = 2003
last_aired = present
num_episodes = 120
num_seasons = 5
website = http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/amchopper/amchopper.html
imdb_id = 0364779"American Chopper: The Series" is a
Learning Channel reality television series produced by Pilgrim Films & Television Inc. The popular series is based around the founder of the company,Paul Teutul, Sr. , and his son,Paul Teutul, Jr. , also known as "Paulie" or simply "Junior", as the two run a business creating custommotorcycle s in theirworkshop ,Orange County Choppers . The workshop is based in Montgomery,New York .The contrasting attitudes of the men and their propensity for sulking often lead to fiery but humorous verbal exchanges as they meet unusually short schedule deadlines for building distinct custom choppers.
Originally a show on the
Discovery Channel , the series moved to Discovery's sister channel, TLC, onDecember 28 ,2006 , starting off with an 18-hour marathon. Its first season on TLC premiered on January 18, 2007.Featured staff
Typically Paul Jr. works alongside fabricators and mechanics such as Rick Petko, Nick Hansford, Christian Welter, and former employees
Vincent DiMartino , also known as Vinnie, (who left OCC to start V-Force Customs in 2007) and Cody Connelly (a BOCES student intern who has joined DiMartino's business), to create dozens of custom motorbikes. Paul Sr. supervises the builds and has built motorcycles himself.Michael Teutul , commonly referred to as "Mikey", serves as the shop's custodian and webmaster, and provides comic relief to the show. He has been seen doing metal work occasionally, as one of his early jobs was working at Orange County Ironworks.The show also documents their personal and promotional activities ranging from magazine photo shoots to family holidays and custom bike shows.
Video games
Due to its popularity during its first seasons, "American Chopper" inspired two video games, including "" for the
Nintendo GameCube ,Sony PS2 , and theXbox .FANtasy Bike Contest
During 2005,
Discovery Channel sponsored a [http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/amchopper/fantasybikes/fantasybikes.html contest] in which four finalists won OCC motorcycles. Bike features were specified by the winning fans, who sent in videos expressing their reasons for wanting a bike. The contest winners were (in episode order): Jeff Clegg ("Corporal Punishment"), Susan Morisset ("Female Snake Bike"), Joseph McClendon ("Custom Hog"), Bryan King ("Vertebrate Trike"). Each winner's bike appeared in a single episode, since each build took only 2 days.easons
Parodies
"
American Body Shop ", an improvisationalcomedy shown onComedy Central , is a parody ofAmerican Chopper , as well as other similar shows, such asMonster Garage andAmerican Hot Rod . [ [http://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/American-Body-Shop.html American Body Shop - Television Review ] ] [ [http://www.tv.com/story/9844.html TV.com: Body Shop creator makes dent with DIY gambit ] ]References
External links
* [http://www.orangecountychoppers.com/ Orange County Choppers] website.
* [http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/amchopper/amchopper.html Discovery Channel's "American Chopper"] website.
* [http://www.orato.com/lifestyles/2008/06/19/orange-county-choppers-are-my-life Exclusive Interview With Paul Teutul Jr.]
* [http://www.vforcecustoms.com/ V-Force Customs]
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