Handguns of Hollywood & Television

["DoubleAction"]

No doubt about it, people are influenced by the illussion of the big screen and television. Hollywood & Television has been sources for popularizing certain models of handguns since the early beginnings.
Clint Eastwood's role as Dirty Harry did more for the S&W Model 29 than any other marketing source available to the general public.
The movie "Tombstone" gave new life to the Single Action Cowboy revolvers, accelerating the market for these guns like none has seen since the fifties and sixties.
When Bruce Willis's Die Hard II character gave mention of the Glock as being invisible to airport X-Ray, many truly believed what they heard.
Everytime a shoot up movie comes out, it is important to see what gets top billing in the role of the handgun.
Robert Deniro has been in roles where he has used Sig Sauers, Al Pacino's characters have used 1911s in a couple of movies, and Sylvester Stallone' character reached in the frig to retrieve his cleaning kit, from an egg carton, for his Colt Govt Model in " Cobra".
Some things appear far fetched on the Big Screen and television, but there are those movies which truly immortalizes a gun's image in the imagination of an ordinary person.
While enthusiasts of the handgun recognizes flaws in the artificial celluloid illussion, others walk away with different impressions.
For myself; I have always been attentive at how the gun is worn, from the early episodes of The Untouchables, to the Buscadero Rigs of the Hollywood Westerns. One of my all time favorites was a movie called "The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond", where Jack Diamond fashioned a double rig with matching double action round butt revolvers , set in the Chicago gangster era.

[9mm]

Then there's always Angelina Jolie, with her curvy tactical Tomb Raider thigh holster. Makes me shudder. ;D. And drool.

I love my x-ray invisible 100% plastic Glock. It was invented by alien technology, I tell 'ya. My stainless Sig can also be used as a power plant capacitor in a pinch. Its metal is super conductive, 'cuz its shiny like that.

But the most Hollywood of handguns award has to go the M9/Beretta 92. Nice, but a big, overweight large-gripped turd in my relatively inexperienced opinion.

["DoubleAction"]

The X-Style Harness that Sonny Crockett wore in Miami Vice gave Galco a giant step forward in sales and exposure. At the time I would go to the gun shops to find alot of counter guys sporting their Miami Classics. ;D

["DoubleAction"]

The Movie Tombstone had an effect on alot of people; It showcased the Colt S.A.A. Revolvers with Ivory, Silver Studded leather Mexican Loop holsters, Nickel Plating, Birds Head Grips, and an entire collection of authentic reproduced wardrobe costumes. What a display!!!

[Fobos]

The film industry has also done a lot for the Desert Eagle.

Wasn't there a version of the early Glocks that had some kind of synthetic (porcelain???) slide?

["DoubleAction"]

Fobos; I think it was Bruce Willis's character, Sgt. McClain, who referred to the Glock as having a ceramic barrel.
Robo cop had a Desert Eagle, and in Robo Cop II it was the Barret Magazine fed .50 BMG which took the top billing, in the Auditorium fight with the sinister robot.

[Oregunner]

Don't forget Death Wish 5, or whatever number, with
Charles Bronson and I believe a .475 Widley magnum.
That epic movie must had led to the sale of 4 or 5 of
those pistols. ;D

["DoubleAction"]

Oregunner; One of our members, Arclightstrikes, has a Wildey .45 Winchester Magnum.

groups.msn.com/HANDGUNS/arclightstrikesarmory.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=294

[Tdrake2]

One of the best movies for handguns is LEthal Weapon -- With the old timer using his 4 inch Smith and Mel using the Beretta 9mm. They had lots of range scenes and Mel Gibson made that beretta 92 look awesome.

my .02 cents

Tdrake

[NButler]

In Boondock Saints the russian mob had DE .50AE's and the two Irish brothers had silenced Beretta 92's. and lets not forget in Ronin where DeNiro has a govt model 1911, because "it served my country well"

[MLB]

Hard to believe that no one has mentioned the handgun with the most sales due to TV/movies.

I can't imagine that the Walther PPK would have half as many sales if it weren't for Ian Flemming's James Bond.

Many are also influenced to purchace the newer P99 as it is the current Bond gun. (This is a foolish reason to base your decision though, imo)

["DoubleAction"]

I was in the early sixties, sitting in a grand old theatre, when T Branch issued 007 the Walther PPK, to replace his Beretta .25. Bond preferred to pack light in a handgun.
The one thing I cannot seem to find, that all the hollywood double action revolvers seem to have, is a cylinder that clicks after you swing it open and spin it. Try it with yours, open the cylinder, spin it, and see if it clicks. You See what I mean? It always clicks with the hollywood revolvers, It did with Mel Gibson it "Payback", and many more.

[BlackDog]

I like it when characters in movies cock a gun for effect. Unfortunatley that cocking sound is usually dubbed in and the character is holding a Glock. Oh well.

However, that does remind me of a GREAT movie line from 'Phonebooth.'
Kiefer Sutherland says to Collin Farrel (as he chambers a round in his ".30 caliber bolt action 700" ) "Ever wonder why, in the movies, they always cock the gun just before they're about to use it? Why wasn't it already cocked? ................. They do it because that sound is scary."
I don't remember it verbatim, but it was something along those lines. It sounded a lot cooler when Kiefer Sutherland said it, but you get the idea.

["DoubleAction"]

Racking the slide on a Carbon Steel 1911 has a very good sound, but Hollywood seems to add a few more sound effects to the event.
The Ruger Vaquero's Cylinder spins, making the fine clicking as the locking notches pass over the locking lugs; Alot of people I've shown my Rugers to really get off on that, and most are not into guns at all.
The mechanical sound, that moving parts emit from a firearm, produces an effect which might be intimidating to some.

[BlueSteel]

If any of you have seen Romeo and Juliet you know about those beautiful beretta's

Drool

[KrustyBurger]

I laugh at every scene where characters threaten people with SA 1911s that aren't cocked. You know that if some stupe did that to you in real life, you'd kill him while he futilely pulled the trigger. Robocop's first pistol was a compensated slide, custom-made Beretta with 3-shot burstfire.

[Misfit]

The biggest Hollywood-ized handgun is undoubtedly the Desert Eagle. It's a big, bad-ass-looking gun that looks terrifying in an actors hands. Unfortunately, it's screen rep and reality are wholly at odds.

[liquified56]

anyone know what gun I am seeing in a couple movies (national security, the medalion) looks like a .40/.45 frame but is fully auto with a crazy extended mag.

[NButler]

probobly a glock 18, full auto, with a big mag

["DoubleAction"]

Glock did, at one time, have an auto pistol. One of the most popular auto pistols is the Ingram Mac 10; I've seen this one in several movies, including "Escape From New York" .