TLC will be reviving their long running show American Chopper despite the feuding between Paul Teutul Sr. and his son Paul Teutul Jr. This volatile relationship was the focus of the sixth and what was billed as the final season of American Chopper. The season concluded with the departure of the two sons (Paul Jr. and Mikey) from their father’s shop; Orange County Choppers.
Teutul Sr. and Jr. have been estranged for over a year and are still embattled in court proceedings in which Paul Sr. is demanding the return of the 20% stake Paul Jr. has in Orange County Choppers. As of this report there is no foreseeable conclusion to the case. Paul Jr. has waited out his one year no-compete clause and has opened his own shop called Paul Jr. Designs.
Both Teutul Sr. and Jr. made comments to the The New York Post in regards to the deterioration of their relationship.
Jr. “I’m always hopeful for a reconciliation, but sometimes these things happen for a reason. Even though you never want dissension in any family, especially with your father, this has allowed me to break out and do things on my own.”
Sr. “Junior seems to say all the time he’d like to reconcile, but the thing of it is, he’s never come to me with that. I’m happy he’s making an attempt to go out on his own, but I don’t feel he’s ever really followed through with anything in his life. But this way, if he fails, he can’t say, ‘My dad made me fail.’ “
These are pretty harsh words between a father and son. It is possible that this is just a ploy to promote both of their endeavors and to increase interest in the upcoming show but the previously mentioned legal battle and abrasive relationship that is well documented from the American Chopper TV series makes me believe the split is, at least in part, real.
Here is a clip of the most explosive conflict from the previous season of American Chopper (be warned this is a bleeping bleep fest).
The new show will be called American Chopper – Senior vs. Junior. The show’s production is set to begin filming next week with the show set to premier in August. No post about American Chopper would be complete without at least one photo of the beautiful work these guys do on a daily basis. The bottom line is that these bikes are incredible.
That’s a bleeping masterpiece!
