How do you wear out a compact disc of the 1996 blockbuster movie Twister?
It’s a one-word answer for Jessica and Tim Stegner.
“Research,” said Jessica.
The Guthrie couple are owners of one of two remaining trucks used in the original movie.
“I don’t know how many times for sure we watched the movie but we wore out the first DVD. I tried to play it a few months ago and it would not work,” said Tim.
The 1984 Jeep J10 Honcho was in El Reno for the special screening of Twisters, the long-awaited sequel to the original action flick.
While the Jeep did not appear in the current release, the Stegners were asked by Victoria Lee of the El Reno Film Commission to bring it for photos with the Heritage Express Trolley and then at Reno 8 Cinema, where the premiere was shown.
The trolley, and a duplicate made for action scenes, appears in Twisters.
“We just go have fun taking it to places people want to see it (Jeep). We sometimes drive it around town when it storms and it freaks people out. We will see what happens but we have not made any plans beyond this right now,” said Jessica.
The Stegners, owners of an auto body shop, say the truck is about 95 percent restored and got a stamp of approval from Helen Hunt, one of the stars of the original film, at a guest appearance.
“Helen Hunt signed the glove box door. She was worn out after signing autographs all day long. She was in and out pretty quick and we only talked to her for a few seconds but she did say it was cool to see the truck again,” said Tim.
Road from Hollywood to Guthrie So how did the Stegners come into possession of a piece of Hollywood history?
That path started when filming on Twister, shot in Oklahoma, wrapped. According to Jessica’s research, there were four complete trucks and a cab mounted on a trailer (for interior scenes) used in the production. Two of the Jeeps and the cab were destroyed during filming.
“There is another surviving truck in the Hollywood Star Cars Museum in Gatlinburg, Tenn., but I don’t think there were any exterior shots made with that truck. This is the most filmed truck that exists. There were several others made for the movie but they were either destroyed in filming or sold off for scrap,” said Tim.
When filming ended, records show someone drove the Jeep back to California and used it before putting it up for sale on eBay. It was purchased by another Oklahoman going by the name of “Gemini,” who later sold it again.
The Stegners said the same person bought the Jeep back and kept it before an ill-fated event put the truck and the couple on a path to ownership.
“He drove it before it was stolen from his place of work. It was recovered sometime later and he drove it but could not keep it,” said Tim.
The couple purchased the Jeep for a “small sum” despite it having no wheels, tires, blown motor and transmission as well as rusted paint and body panels.
“It was in pretty bad shape. I knew it was special to me because I’m the Jeep guy in town. When I was younger, I would come up to see the movie being filmed.
“I would go get lunch at Sonic and try and see whatever scenes I could. I had the opportunity and I bought it,” said Tim.
Restoration did not take place immediately.
“I put a salvage yard motor and transmission in it. Someone gave me a set of tires that had been out of production but fit, so we bolted them on the truck and it drove awful.
“So it sat in the yard for three or four years because I thought it needed too much to rebuild,” said Tim.
He didn’t think anyone cared about the Jeep, which stalled the restoration.
“I had it for a while before I realized anyone else thought it was cool. The lady from the Twister museum in Wakita called me and asked me if I had it and I said yes.”
News of the sequel being green-lighted by Universal put the wheels in motion.
“We had a plan to restore it the whole time, but it really kicked off when we knew they were filming the sequel in Oklahoma. We didn’t know if it was a spinoff or a sequel, but that’s about the time we really started fiddling with it,” said Jessica.
The process was monumental.
“The truck was rusted all the way through. I had to cut and bend sheet metal because they don’t make accurate replacement parts for it. So I had to make those parts myself but that’s what we do and it was right in my wheelhouse,” said Tim.
Watching the original movie over and over was critical to the rebuild.
“I made it as accurate as possible. I stenciled in part of the pin striping and worked to put all the imperfections back into it. We watched the movie over and over and paused it to find all the flaws and get them back in the truck.
“ The interior is still original but we had to have the dash rebuilt and we replaced the cloth in the door panels. My upholstery guy found the exact cloth so those are as original as possible,” said Tim.
How much did the restoration cost? That’s a question the couple is hesitant to disclose.
“I don’t think I’ve done the math. I learned a long time ago that when I start figuring how much I’ve spent, I lose interest,” said Tim.
Completing the look With the truck being close to original, the Stegners knew it needed something to complete the overall look. It needed Dorothy, the round metal tornado detection device that the movie’s story line said would detect the inner workings of a twister.
“I’m not sure how many there were. I’ve seen where there were five variations but only four for sure were numbered. Many of those were just left outside to rot until someone got them. All but one is very weathered,” said Tim.
He came across one of those weathered devices via Planet Hollywood.
“The one I got came up for auction. We were wrapping up the preservation of the truck and I was informed of an auction in Texas and the one there (Dorothy II) was from a Planet Hollywood in New York.
“It had been hanging in the ceiling there for years. Luckily they had been closing down locations and selling stuff off,” said Tim.
Dorothy II’s makeover is currently ongoing as it needs lights and other pieces.
“It’s about 80 percent complete,” said Tim.
Both truck and cargo are documented to have been in the original movie, thanks to a worn-out compact disc, said the Stegners.