I just bought this extremely tooled fancy Alfonso rig. It was tooled by Alfonso himself and signed by him. It belonged to actor/musician Frank Stallone and stamped that way. He's the guy Val Kilmer stabbed at that card table near the beginning of Tombstone. I don't know how the provenance of Sylvester Stallone's brother effects the value, but it's a very elaborate piece. It came with a signed letter (a copy it looks like) from Stallone. He was a very successful musician which is something I never knew until reading his bio online. He also collects guns and guitars and shoots a lot. Note that the inside of the holster is tooled, too.

Impressive! He also wrote and performed the song that plays during the end credits of "First Blood."

Wyatt, that's incredible. The value of the Stallone connection is difficult to assess but that rig stands alone on its own merits. Absolutely beautiful and unique.
Regards,
turnerriver

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turnerriver

This might help determine if Sly's brother helps the value.

A down on his luck movie producer was trying to get financing from an investor for a film. The investor asked who was directing it. He said Spielberg. "You got Steven Spielberg?!" No, I got his cousin Ernie Spielberg, but he's very good.

Well who do you have on camera? "The producer replied,Gordon Willis." You got Gordon Willis, he's the greatest cinematographer of all time!" No, he just died...but I got his nephew Vinny Willis....he's pretty good too.

OK...well, I guess the big question is who is starring in it. "I got Stallone."

You got Frank Stallone?" Yep.....

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

Very true. In fact I just had a boat built by Noah. Noah Magilacutty, that is. But since Frank Stallone was well know in music in the 80s, maybe that enhances the interest in this gun rig. I saw him on You tube and he's really good. If Ernie Spielberg was the inventor of the solar powered disfonificator and I knew that a few disfonificator engineers were also holster collectors, well, I might get a few extra bucks selling this to one of those guys later on. But as far as your point goes, a friend of mine went to Vegas and told me how excited he was to get the autograph of.....Quentin Tarentino's dad!

I still kick myself for passing up an opportunity to visit the Alfonso's shop when I lived in L.A. years ago. At the time, I wasn't familiar with vintage leather, Hollywood cowboy stuff or anything like that and happened to be going to some other business a couple buildings away and as my wife and I were walking down the street, we both noticed a non-descript storefront with a sign reading only Alfonso's of Hollywood Leather with no clue as to what type of outfit it is. I distinctly recall smiling, nudging her and making some kind of remark about it probably being some kind of, uh, "alternative" adult business, considering the area and all.

They've since remedied any potential confusion with newer signs providing info as to what the place is about:

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SWHF #448

Had no idea that was Frank Stallone, but that card game and subsequent stabbing is one of my favorite sequences in Tombstone. And that's a beyond-impressive piece of leatherwork. I wonder how long it took to make it. Any idea?

I have no idea how long it would take to make. I get a migraine just thinking about it. The original ad said it was taken into Alfonso's current shop run by his son now and that it would cost $1200 to make today. This one was tooled by Alfonso ten years before his death so that adds some to those who collect holsters of this type. And as mentioned, who knows what the Stallone angle adds to it. I'm just really amazed that he sold it and I'mvery proud to own it.

Thats a beautiful rig even without the provenance! Alphonso made some fine leather. I have a vintage .22 rig done on the same pattern, no tooling though. They are quality leather for sure!

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Even older, even crankier....

The liner tooling puts it over the top for me, thank you for sharing it with us!

A good thing old Alfonso was a better tooler than a speller. JK.

He was from somewhere in South America I think and didn't speak English until way after he got here. An older gent I know was great friends with him since the late 50s and says he didn't speak fantastic English later either. So that misspelling kind of makes sense. BTW, this is the only Alfonso rig I've ever seen even in pictures that doesn't have square end billets where they stitch on. This one has an oval with a pointed end.

I know a lot of people like black leather. They just do for some reason.The thing I think of when I see black dyed tooled leather is the thing my Dad told me when I was a kid about replacement shovel, pick and hoe handles. The hardware store had the higher quality wood handles that you could plainly see the grain and pick out a straight grained handle. Then they had the cheaper, painted handles that you couldn't see the grain. They all worked for a while I guess.
I know that shovel handles aren't belts or holsters, but I can't help but think of it.
Sometimes a police dept. required black or brown or cordovan for leather, and I understand, but old time leather guys told me they loved getting rid of their lower grade leather by dyeing it black. JMHO
Edited to add that the above gunbelt is obviously not inferior in ANY form or fashion. I would be proud to own it myself. I did not mean to infer that in any way.

Frank Stallone was absolutely fantastic as the bartender, Eddie, in the film, "Barfly" starring Mickey Rourke and Faye Dunaway.

That gunleather is outstanding! I've long suspected that Frank had good taste, and that rig would suit him right down to the ground. Thanks for the great pics!

I can't post a "Barfly" scene here for fear of getting banned again because of the language, but he does look great in that scene. So here's him goofin' on the guitar...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blePeLDP9tE

Like the tooled leather a lot -

Not a Stallone but an Alphonso's, I had this one (James Arness rig) made around 1973 for a Ruger SuperBlackhawk 7 1/2". Altho playing fast-draw was fun, got tired of the weight & started using something a bit more portable. Still have the holster but, no gun - rig is up for sale.

It's a great looking Alfonso you have there. Is it in the classifieds here? My black tooled rig has the slots in the back of the holster skirt for the additional belt tie down but no belt came with it when I got it like yours did. Your rig has the Alfonso double stitching, too.

And where did Alphonso get his start? Working in Arvo Ojalas shop, and now that Ojala has passed Alphonso produces many similar rigs.
Here's one of my favorite Ojala rigs made by his son Erik. Anyone who grew up in the 50s/60s watching Warner Bros westerns should be familiar with these rigs. I'm glad Alphonsos is keeping the tradition alive, you have a great rig there.

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Wyatt -
No, not listed now. I've listed it here before but, due to the 32" belt length (I was a 28" at the time I bought it), there was never any interest.
Does your rig have the steel inner on the holster?

Bruce

Yes. While my two Ojala rigs have metal inserts between the leather that goes half way down the holster, the entire Alfonso holster is metal lined. Here's a black Ojala I ordered new in 1985 for $200 shipped which was a major purchase for me back then, along with a mini Ojala I made for my son when he was around four or so. Yeah, he's a lefty, too. Then a couple years ago I found a beat up brown lefty Ojala on Gunbroker for $16, won it, cleaned it up, and made a matching belt for it. That's it on the bottom here.