Not only is the Chevrolet Suburban the longest-running automotive nameplate in America, it’s also the only vehicle to have its very own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. That’s right, the humble Suburban got a star before other iconic cars from movies and TV like the DeLorean, any of James Bond’s Aston Martins or the Ford Mustang from “Bullitt.” I promise you though, this reward isn’t without merit.
The Suburban first made its on-screen debut as a background vehicle in the 1941 movie “Nice Girl?” according to my favorite website, the Internet Movie Car Database (IMCDB). A quick look at the website shows 122 pages worth of Suburban acting credits. It accounts for 3,658 different times a Suburban has shown up in a movie or TV show. Of course, there are plenty occasions of multiple Suburbans showing up in the same film or show.
As of 2019, the Suburban had been in over 1,750 movies, according to Car and Driver. It has also been in at least one TV show every year since 1956 and at least one movie every year since 1960. That’s better longevity than Lebron James. On top of that, it has been in at least 30 award-nominated movies.
A Suburban ceremony
At the star’s unveiling in 2019, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce said there was “really nothing else like the Chevrolet Suburban in this business” because of its versatility, adding it is “able to fit with any type of character,” according to the Detroit Free Press. That definitely rings true to me. I mean, a Suburban looks just as appropriate for driving kids around in some sort of family rom-com as it is being used as a government vehicle in some sort of crime procedural. If you drop a Suburban into any setting, it looks pretty damn correct.
“When a convoy of black Suburbans appears on screen, you know that’s not the time to leave your seat to buy popcorn,” Dennis McCarthy, a Hollywood car coordinator, told Freep.
This run gets even more impressive when you factor in the Suburban’s little brother: the Tahoe. If you combine the two, they’ve appeared in over 2,500 movies and TV shows. Since it was introduced in 1995, it has shown up in at least one show and one movie every year. That’s sort of wild to think about.
If you want to check out the Suburban’s star, head on over to Hollywood Boulevard and Highland under the Dolby Arches in an area adjacent to the Walk of Fame. If anyone ever asks you if you’ve met a celebrity, just tell them you’ve met the Suburban. It counts, trust me.
