It's hard to imagine Catherine Bach as anything other than the stunning cousin Daisy Duke in her signature cut off shorts on The Dukes of Hazzard. Outside of watching the Dukes get into trouble in their Dodge charger, she was one of the main reasons people loved tuning in for the classic show. She's also the reason the nickname for denim cutoffs, "Daisy Dukes," has stuck to this day.
Videos by Wide Open Country
Bach (born Catherine Bachman) grew up in South Dakota before moving down to Hollywood to study drama at UCLA. She supported herself by making clothes for her theater groups and friends before she landed her big onscreen debut in The Midnight Man starring Burt Lancaster in 1973. The following year, she landed Thunderbolt and Lightfoot opposite Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges. A couple more small film appearances followed before she landed the audition of a lifetime.
While married to first husband David Shaw (Angela Lansbury's step-son), Bach heard about an audition for a show called The Dukes of Hazzard. As soon as she showed up to audition, she realized they were in the market for a Dolly Parton lookalike, and she obviously is a brunette. Regardless, Bach rocked the audition and immediately knocked the competition out of the water. Producers offered her the role right there.
Daisy Duke wouldn't have been the same without her signature outfits, but did you know that was all thanks to Bach? Producers initial idea had Daisy wearing a tight turtleneck and go-go boots. Yikes. Bach politely asked if she could bring her own outfit instead and showed up wearing denim shorts, heels and a t-shirt. She made herself into an icon literally overnight.
Credit: 2096444Globe Photos/MediaPunch /IPX
What's wild is that her incredible legs became so integral to the show, they were insured for $1 million. The TV series, also starring Tom Wopat, John Schneider and James Best, was a major hit off the bat. The Dukes of Hazzard ran for seven seasons on CBS but that wasn't the end of Bach's television career.
Read More: Donna Douglas: The Real Elly May Clampett Left Hollywood to Sing Gospel Music
Bach starred in the Canadian series African Skies and appeared in Monk, Hawaii Five-0 and Almost Royal. She's also been a recurring member of the soap opera The Young and the Restless since 2012 in the role of Anita Lawson.
After five years of marriage, Bach and Shaw called it quits. She married entertainment lawyer Peter Lopez in 1990 and they had two children together, Sophia and Laura. Sadly, after 20 years of marriage, Lopez died in 2010 from suicide. Bach spent the years that followed concentrating on being there for their two girls and grieving, but she's still busy as ever.
Outside of acting, Bach opened up the Nashville store Daisy Country in 2016. Not only does it include Daisy Duke themed items but Bach's personal clothing and jewelry lines. Following the grand opening, she spoke with Sounds Like Nashville about how special it is connecting with fans of the show.
"It's a show that everybody can sit around the television and watch together. It wasn't something that you would have to keep your children away from. I have people from 3 to 103 that come to see me, and I really appreciate that. People will tell me about how they've had these seminal moments that occurred while watching The Dukes Of Hazzard. Maybe they watched it with their grandpa, and now he's a dad, and he's got he's little ones."
Now Watch: Stroll Through the Real Mayberry from 'The Andy Griffith Show'
https://rumble.com/embed/u7gve.v6euj7/
