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  #1  
Old 04-13-2009, 07:23 PM
BullseyeJC BullseyeJC is offline
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Default John Wayne in "The Shootist" - El Paso Saddlery rig doesn't quite match....

I know many on this board are John Wayne fans and I thought this might lead to an interesting discussion.

El Paso Saddlery advertises a western holster rig in a style which they claim to have made for John Wayne to wear in his 1976 movie, “The Shootist”. I’m in the market for a new western rig and I happened to be watching this movie the other day. I noticed that John Wayne wore a holster and belt that was nothing like the rig that El Paso Saddlery claims they made for the movie. The picture below shows the El Paso “#44” rig along with a description from their website.


From El Paso Saddlery………“The half-breed style holster and rough out moneybelt we made for John Wayne for use in the 1976 movie, The Shootist.”



Next, you will see some screen shots from The Shootist. Notice that Wayne wears a holster with no loop which has a full flap in the back resting against his thigh. Also, you will see that his belt looks like a 3” or so wide single piece of smooth brown leather and looks nothing like the suede money belt advertised by El Paso Saddlery. What gives?


Screen Shot 1


Screen Shot 2
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Old 04-13-2009, 07:23 PM
BullseyeJC BullseyeJC is offline
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Old 04-13-2009, 07:50 PM
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Maybe they made the holster for the movie but it wasn't used. If so, it's a bit deceptive.
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Old 04-14-2009, 03:45 AM
Joni_Lynn Joni_Lynn is offline
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It sounds like there's something they're not telling.
Or maybe it's just deceptive marketing.
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Old 04-14-2009, 04:36 AM
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JW wore the so-called "half breed" in nearly all his pictures from the 1950s on EXCEPT in "The Shootist."

The El Paso Saddlery style is JW's most famous although made by different makers through the years. If you recall, JW gained and
lost weight a lot and new belt/holsters were
required.

See "Hondo," "Rio Bravo,""The Comancheros," "The Cowboys", "True Grit" etc. I think El Paso just got its signals crossed on JW's last picture.
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Old 04-14-2009, 04:43 AM
BullseyeJC BullseyeJC is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by danski View Post
JW wore the so-called "half breed" in nearly all his pictures from the 1950s on EXCEPT in "The Shootist."

The El Paso Saddlery style is JW's most famous although made by different makers through the years. If you recall, JW gained and
lost weight a lot and new belt/holsters were
required.

See "Hondo," "Rio Bravo,""The Comancheros," "The Cowboys", "True Grit" etc. I think El Paso just got its signals crossed on JW's last picture.
You are correct. Wayne did wear the El Paso #44 style rig in his earlier pictures. I was just curious why they chose to advertise that he wore it in The Shootist when it's obvious he did not and thought someone might have some trivia. Sounds like it's just a goof on the part of EPS.
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Old 04-14-2009, 05:13 AM
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Both look like very nice rigs, but certainly the fully exposed trigger guard in The Shootist grab is very different from the EPS JW rig.

You oughta drop EPS a line and let 'em know. Lotta JW movies. Probably an honest mistake.
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Old 04-14-2009, 07:12 AM
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It is my understanding that the holster and belt rig used by John Wayne in the 'Shootist" was a very simple Hunter Brand rig. The Old El Paso rig is not unlike the style he commonly wore for many of his other Movies but he also required at least two different belts and usually three different "sets" of outfits, for most of his movies because of his up and down weight problems.

I know Old El Paso has been called about this particular "Issue" but they don't seem to care enough to fix the problem. There are and have been up to their eyeballs for some time building rigs for people. If you're expecting "Truth in Advertising" then you're living on the wrong Planet.
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Old 04-14-2009, 08:41 AM
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I agree. Looks like a Hunter Model 1060 Frontier to me.
http://www.huntercompany.com/western.html
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Old 04-14-2009, 10:15 AM
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It's been a while since I watched The Shootist but I think at the beginning of the movie there is a narrative of the character's (JB Books) past. While this short narrative is occurring clips from some of JW's earlier movies are shown. Perhaps in some of these clips he is wearing the El Paso rig? If so it could be said JW wore the rig in The Shootist when his history had been depicted.
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Old 04-14-2009, 10:51 AM
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This may be true because he is shown in clips from a number of his earlier movies at the beginning but at best I would say that they are "Stretching the Facts" if that is the case.
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Old 04-14-2009, 05:07 PM
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It's still a great rig.
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Old 04-14-2009, 05:19 PM
Joni_Lynn Joni_Lynn is offline
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Yes it is, it looks to be quite nicely made and good looking.
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Old 04-14-2009, 05:41 PM
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Never said they didn't do very nice work. I own a couple of there holsters but most of them are simply outside my budget.
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Old 04-14-2009, 06:04 PM
gerhard gerhard is offline
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I bought the El Paso "John Wayne Rig" a couple of years ago for my Single Action .45...and wore it a number of times while working on an old Ranch near the Mexican Border..went there 4 or 5 times...wore it almost 20 hours a day....Very Comfortable...no problems with it at all...And the Quality of it is Excellent.!!..its the old saying..."Made to last a Lifetime"........Hans "Cowboy" Fischer
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Old 04-14-2009, 06:19 PM
BullseyeJC BullseyeJC is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gib View Post
It's still a great rig.
I agree it's a great looking set up and I might end up getting one. I just wondered why I couldn't find it in The Shootist. But, like others have said, it looks to be the exact rig Wayne used in his earlier movies.

When did you order yours? I think I read somewhere that the current suede money belts are not as light colored as the earlier ones.
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Old 04-14-2009, 08:32 PM
gib gib is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BullseyeJC View Post
When did you order yours?
About four years ago.
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Old 04-14-2009, 08:54 PM
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I'm sitting here looking at the El Paso Saddley catalog.

PAGE #2. "DUKE" Outfit
A faithful rendition of the rig The Duke wore in most of his movies.
. lined holster (lined using "roll over" method for easy reholstering)
. open muzzle and hammer thong standard (leg thong on request)
. 2 1/2 wide roughout moneybelt
. cross draw available.
Available for most Single Actions and Double Actions (3" to 7 1/2" barrels)

No where in my catalog does it claim that it was used specifically for the "Shootist".

????

I bought mine years ago and the holster for 4" "N" frames.


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Old 04-14-2009, 09:05 PM
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I have a "Duke" double rig that I use for CAS. They are great leather, well made and durable.

Also bought a moneybelt that someone had outgrown but fit me and got a crossdraw holster for it. Eventhough the holster is slightly long, originally for my 4 5/8" Blackhawk, it makes a dandy field outfit for the 45 Colt Birdshead Vaquero! (the holster got tilted straight in this photo)

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Old 04-15-2009, 05:52 AM
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Kirkpatrick Leather and a few others make a belt and holster that looks almost exactly like that they call the "John Wayne" or the "Duke". I don't know about the "Shootist" but it looks like a very practical western leather rig.
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Old 04-15-2009, 08:56 AM
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I also have a duke rig. I ordered the lighter colored belt because it did match the look of the rig Wayne wore in some of the earlier movies. I am very happy with it and it is very comfortable. Mine is for a ruger vaquero in 44 mag at 4 5/8 bbl.
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Old 04-15-2009, 09:15 AM
Muley Gil Muley Gil is offline
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I have five EPS Duke holsters, straight and crossdraw. All were bought off of the SASS site or e-bay, at less than retail. Some were new.
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Old 01-26-2012, 06:25 PM
warbirdfan warbirdfan is offline
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Here's the answer, straight from Don at El Paso Saddlery: "Ok, I got this straight from the boss, it was made for John Wayne to use in the film but at the last minute because he lost so much weight, he could not use it so another actor in the film wore it. But it was resized for John and it was sent back to him to keep. Hope that helps, Thank you."
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Old 01-26-2012, 06:50 PM
Wyatt Burp Wyatt Burp is offline
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His rig in The Shootist was made by Hunter. It's a straight belt slightly tapered at the buckle. The seperate steel lined pouch is screwed onto the heavy backskirt which then folds over and the belt can be slid through it. There is no cant, or angle, like on the rig we usually associate with him and so many of you have pictured here. My first rig, modified with a new steel lined pouch (but laced, not stiched) was a Hunter outfit my dad made me when I was a kid. See how the holster compares with J.B. Books rig. John Wayne used the most generic rig possible for his last film. Maybe he had to get something quick if he was indeed losing weight at the time and these were accesible fast. Whatever the case, it looked fine in what might be arguably (Sorry, Eathan Edwards) his best role.



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Old 04-15-2012, 11:15 PM
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Default John Wayne's Holsters

One of the most famous western rigs of our time. Later after the "B" westerns, John Wayne wore rigs by Bob Brown (former LA County Deputy Sheriff) if memory serves me right. Duke also wore rigs from Andy Anderson's Gunfighter Gunleather as well as Alfonso's of Hollywood and John Bianchi made him a rig at some point. The rig on display at the Oklahoma Cowboy Hall of Fame Western Heritage Museum in Okla.City is an Alfonso Pineda rig (Alfonso's of Hollywood) that was donated by the Duke himself.

I verified this thru Richard Rattenbury that wrote the famous "Packing Iron" gunleather book. Richard was the curator of this museum for a few years. Several of Wayne's personal guns are on display as well and the two Great Western Arms SAA revolvers that he carried in the movie
"The Shootist" are there.

The rig that John Wayne wore in "The Shootist" was indeed a Hunter #1060 holster with a narrow belt with bullet loops added. El Paso Saddlery may have made a rig for Wayne (or more likely the former owner S.D. Myers) The rig Wayne wears in the movie "The Cowboys" appears that it could be such a rig or possibly the John Bianchi rig. So many have offered their renditions of this rig thru the years.

The yellow colored grips were made of "Catalin" a resin based almost bakelite type material that was man made. I have seen some exact copies on other old Colt SAA revolvers at gun shows thru the years. The "Catalin" grips on his donated Colt SAA revolver at the museum seems to have "shrinkage issues" from age. As I said earlier, the holster was an Alfonso
A11 "Old West" with the rough-out belt with thirty (30) 44/45 caliber loops. I hope this helps !
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Old 04-16-2012, 03:47 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BullseyeJC View Post
I agree it's a great looking set up and I might end up getting one. I just wondered why I couldn't find it in The Shootist. But, like others have said, it looks to be the exact rig Wayne used in his earlier movies.

When did you order yours? I think I read somewhere that the current suede money belts are not as light colored as the earlier ones.
The rigs with lighter belt that match what you see in all his later movies (except The Shootist) were made by John Bianchi who helped Wayne match the details and holster butt forward cant angle of the very first rig of unknown maker to this day. The Bianchi copy rigs were most used by him and are the ones copied by many today. Bianchi made 250 exact reproduction commemorative sets in the 1960s. Regular production Bianchi Wayne holsters are not exact reproductions of their Wayne model which has a shorter 'drop' and a half back flap.

The Bianchi rigs and the original for Wayne are not a money belt but sewn all the way around both ends without leaving one end open in the traditional money belt style of the 1800s.

The 20 year older production El Paso belts I have are lighter than their current production and are true money belts.

The belts are not suede which is a very thin and delicate processed leather; it's just "rough side out". It is made by doubling over one piece of leather with the smooth side in.

Bianchi had sold his company by the time of the making of The Shootist and I do believe he went to El Paso for his final rig which as was said had to be replaced by the Hunter rig on short notice.

The maker of the Duke's original holster rig of this style remains a mystery and can be seen at the link below. You'll notice it's similar but slightly different from most all those we saw in his movies or see reproduced today.

7/23/12 Update: I neglected to include that the original 250 sold out quickly and the issue was raised to 3000 sets.

John Wayne - American - One Colt Became A Trademark
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Last edited by Hondo44; 07-24-2012 at 02:12 AM. Reason: Correction: thanks to Cremony who discovered my 1960s typo which should be 1980s.
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Old 04-16-2012, 10:56 AM
forresth forresth is offline
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That level of deception in advertising would get me to shop elsewhere, no matter if he was supposed to were it, no matter if its a fine set-up, it still stinks!
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Old 06-01-2012, 11:21 AM
okfive-o okfive-o is offline
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Default John Wayne's Gun Leather

The commemorative Bianchi John Wayne rigs were made 1980-81 time frame. I have one still wrapped in the original box,complete. Bianchi didn't sell his interest in Bianchi International until the 1990's.
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Old 07-23-2012, 10:00 AM
Cremony Cremony is offline
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Lightbulb Hess rig Anderson made..

Quote:
Originally Posted by Wickahoney
PAGE #2. "DUKE" Outfit
A faithful rendition of the rig The Duke wore in most of his movies.
lined holster (lined using "roll over" method for easy reholstering)
What is the "roll over" method, and how is it used?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hondo44
John Bianchi ... helped Wayne match the details and holster butt forward cant angle of the very first rig of unknown maker to this day ... Bianchi made 250 exact reproduction commemorative sets in the 1960s. Regular production BianchiWayne holsters are not exact reproductions of their Wayne model which has a shorter 'drop' and a half back flap.

The maker of the Duke's original holster rig of this style remains a mystery and can be seen at the link below. You'll notice it's similar but slightly different from most all those we saw in his movies or see reproduced today.
So are you saying that the "half-breed" holster given to Hess shown in that article is the original used in Hondo?


Quote:
The rig is obviously hand-made, but no maker's mark could be found. After seeing detailed photos, holstermaker Jim Lockwood of Legends in Leather believed it could have been made by the late Andy Anderson. Eddy Janis of Peacemaker Specialists agreed … Anderson's partner, Victor Perez, reports that the first rig Anderson made for Wayne was in 1969. John Wayne: American - Oneliners, Stories, etc.
The Dukes old rig given to Hess by Wayne, could have been made by Anderson as these experts say, but if it was, it was not the original rig used in Hondo (1953). Andy Anderson did not move from Arkansas, to Los Angeles until 1958. Five years after Hondo was filmed.
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Old 07-24-2012, 02:41 AM
Hondo44 Hondo44 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cremony View Post
[COLOR="White"][FONT="Georgia"]What is the "roll over" method, and how is it used?

So are you saying that the "half-breed" holster given to Hess shown in that article is the original used in Hondo?
Hi,
The roll over method on the El Paso rig refers to the way the pouch lining is actually sewed on the outside top edge of the pouch then rolled over the edge and sewed inside. It's about the only feature not authentic to the Wayne rig but an attractive trademark of EP's holsters.

I do believe the original holster given to Hess was 1st used in Hondo.
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Old 07-24-2012, 07:00 AM
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Lightbulb Bianchi Shootist belt


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Originally Posted by BullseyeJC View Post
El Paso Saddlery advertises ..“The Shootist."
Antiquities International has a John Bianchi Shootist belt, owned by John Wayne. It is framed with a signed photo of Wayne as John Bernard Books, and letter of provenance from the family to whom John Wayne gave the belt to.
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Old 04-05-2014, 03:11 AM
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Default John Wayne's rig.

I've seen any number of rigs over the years identified as having been worn by John Wayne in his many western films. The Duke, of course, wore a number or rigs over his long career, as his fans are well aware, and certainly the best known of those is the rough out suede belt and the Halfbreed holster. Many years ago I saw one version of that rig on display at the Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, and I believe when the Duke wore that one out, John Bianchi fashioned another, newer version of the same rig, one that is now offered commercially by that firm, and in my opinion closest to the one actually worn by the Duke. In the last film made by John Wayne, "The Shootist", he is seen wearing a standard, off the shelf, Hunter 1060 holster, and cartridge belt. Today it seems that almost every commercial leather maker offers a version of the "Duke" rig, with the rough out belt, and several claim to have made the one he wore in his films. Depending on your passion for historical accuracy, I would take all of these claims, save Mister Bianchi's, with a grain of salt. I don't honestly know who made the original rig for John Wayne, the so called "Hondo" rig, although I suspect it was supplied by one of the prop houses in widespread use at the time. True collectible John Wayne memorabilia, will no doubt continue to be treasured by his many fans, although I noticed not long ago with a touch of sadness that Roy Rogers Pistols and Buscadero rigs, or some of them, had been sold off, when his store in Branson closed down for lack of business. Old cowboys, my generation, are dying off, but if anyone has a chance of remaining forever in the hearts and spirits of his fans, I think it will be the Duke.
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Old 04-05-2014, 04:32 AM
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PAULEM,

Welcome to the forum.

I just realized that the gun pictured in the original rig above is the Duke's 4 3/4" Colt. The Bisley trigger guard is the "dead giveaway".

His 5 1/2" 38-40 Colt used in earlier films was a standard Colt.

The 4 3/4" Colt was made up for him (and his large trigger finger) is a Bisley Colt with the trigger guard fore strap shortened and a standard 'plow handle' style back strap replacing the Bisley back strap.

The Bisley used a different cyl frame with a taller grip frame rear mounting surface around the base of the hammer. It can be seen sticking above the back strap if one looks closely at the gun above.
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Old 04-05-2014, 06:35 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cremony View Post

Antiquities International has a John Bianchi Shootist belt, owned by John Wayne. It is framed with a signed photo of Wayne as John Bernard Books, and letter of provenance from the family to whom John Wayne gave the belt to.
I'm confused; I understand that his name was "Books" in the movie yet its spelled "Brooks" in this wall board with holster provenance. Somebody' mistake? Or something else entirely?
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Old 04-05-2014, 09:06 AM
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In motion picture production a huge amount of effort can be required to create, organize, and manage all of the equipment, costumes, and props required. Individual items might require multiple pieces for use during filming, both by the principal actors as well as by stunt men and stand-ins; this would include clothing, gun belts, holsters, and everything else involved.

When movies are successful at the box office, and especially when top-name actors are involved, the props and other items used in the film become very desirable as collectors' items. Frequently the individual actors are given some items used in the film as momentos. Sometimes the pieces will go to charity auctions. Some may go to producers, directors, and studio executives for display in offices or homes.

I suspect that in the movie "The Shootist" any number of stand-ins and stunt men were involved, so a large number of outfits were used, and not all of them by the Duke personally.

As noted by another forum member, Wayne's health was in decline at the time this film was produced and his weight was dropping considerably. Given the budgetary and time constraints involved in production it would be perfectly understandable to have some items substituted in order to proceed on schedule.

Given the enormous popularity of "The Shootist" it can be easily understood that there were lots of products made to commemorate the movie and John Wayne himself. Holsters and belts were (and are) certainly some of those. I've even made a few myself at the request of customers. I even have a new product line just about ready to offer (not direct copies, but certainly reminiscent of The Duke style).

Ah, crass commercialism. How very gauche.
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Old 04-05-2014, 05:55 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BullseyeJC View Post
I know many on this board are John Wayne fans and I thought this might lead to an interesting discussion.

El Paso Saddlery advertises a western holster rig in a style which they claim to have made for John Wayne to wear in his 1976 movie, “The Shootist”. I’m in the market for a new western rig and I happened to be watching this movie the other day. I noticed that John Wayne wore a holster and belt that was nothing like the rig that El Paso Saddlery claims they made for the movie. The picture below shows the El Paso “#44” rig along with a description from their website.


From El Paso Saddlery………“The half-breed style holster and rough out moneybelt we made for John Wayne for use in the 1976 movie, The Shootist.”



Next, you will see some screen shots from The Shootist. Notice that Wayne wears a holster with no loop which has a full flap in the back resting against his thigh. Also, you will see that his belt looks like a 3” or so wide single piece of smooth brown leather and looks nothing like the suede money belt advertised by El Paso Saddlery. What gives?


Screen Shot 1


Screen Shot 2
The holster worn by the Duke in The Shootist is an off the shelf Hunter, a relative inexpensive rig, and nothing like the one shown on the e.p. Saddlery website. Their rig is a close copy of Duke's most popular rig, the rough out suede belt, and clearly not the one he wore in his final film. E.P. Saddlery makes good leather, I have several of their rigs, and can't account for their confusion on this matter, having brought it to their attention on a previous occasion myself.
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Old 04-05-2014, 06:22 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PAULEM View Post
The holster worn by the Duke in The Shootist is an off the shelf Hunter, a relative inexpensive rig, and nothing like the one shown on the e.p. Saddlery website. Their rig is a close copy of Duke's most popular rig, the rough out suede belt, and clearly not the one he wore in his final film. E.P. Saddlery makes good leather, I have several of their rigs, and can't account for their confusion on this matter, having brought it to their attention on a previous occasion myself.
There's a simple explanation which once agaian proves truth is stranger than fiction:
El Paso's advertising claim that they made the Duke rig for the movie 'The Shootist' is indeed true. But due to his cancer, Wayne had lost so much weight by the time they started filming, that it was too big, so props ran out and acquired the 1st thing off the rack they could find, that's why he wears....sheesh....a Hunter rig in the movie.
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Old 04-05-2014, 06:35 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jessie View Post
I'm confused; I understand that his name was "Books" in the movie yet its spelled "Brooks" in this wall board with holster provenance. Somebody' mistake? Or something else entirely?
Most likely misunderstood. Brooks is clearly a misspelling of Books.

But CREMONY was merely posting something that does exist without making any claim of it being the one used in 'The Shootist' by Wayne.

As someone else above said, probably a prop that Wayne acquired used by another actor or 'Extra' in the film.
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Old 04-05-2014, 06:37 PM
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Well, it only took 5 years to get to the bottom of this!
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Old 04-05-2014, 07:15 PM
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Almost, the rest of the story:



The provenance of this original above rig at least in my opinion is absolute and used in HONDO and THE SEARCHERS.

On page 136 of John Bianchi's book there is a picture of the supposed "original" Duke rig: [img width=750 height=354]http://media.liveauctiongroup.net/i/10387/11028099_3.jpg[/img]
It's an original but with its sewed around toe, not "THE" original.

I was a Bianchi holster dealer and asked John Bianchi prior to his book about the 1st one. He told me that to the best of anyone's knowledge, it was that Bob Brown* made the original, the unsewn toe of which shown above was his style and he used a standard square ‘Anchor’ brand cast buckle, followed by copies from Alfonso, and El Paso made the final one to be used for a MOVIE, 'The Shootist', which as noted above could not be used by the Duke. Later Bianchi did one in the late 1970's at the request of the Duke who of course didn't know at the time he'd never get to use it in a movie.

*Wm. Brown Holster Co., Tombstone, Arizona says John Wayne's gun belt was actually a non-functional money belt, originally made by the artist Bob Brown of Hollywood. John Wayne is listed #71 for boot tops, holster and belt on Brown's celebrity customer list here: http://www.geostan.ca/brown.html

John Bianchi was friends with the Duke and was given the job to make the "final" Duke rig for the Duke followed up by the original commemorative rigs* Bianchi made that were very close to that final rig. And as said, too late to be used in any movie.

*They were not an "exact" copy on purpose, according to Bianchi. Some differences were minor construction details for mass production efficiency. In reading Wayne’s letters to Bianchi again about Wayne wanting less cartridge loops I remembered another difference from Wayne’s original and the Comm Sets. The sets all have the Bianchi standard # of cartridge loops, 24 on the smaller sizes and 30 on the waste sizes 36” and above.

According to John's daughter, our salesperson that visited us periodically as a Bianchi dealer, the commemorative sets would have the Bianchi designed Gunfighter buckle. They are an actual rendition of a 19th century style buckle that are wider than the anchor buckle. I have one original which is sterling silver plate with a brazed on loop and tongue. After a short time of selling those with his belts, they were too expensive so he switched by the time the comm. sets were produced, to a cast, nickel plated brass copy of the same size with his name cast in, a regular catalog item to this day.
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Old 04-07-2014, 03:01 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hondo44 View Post
PAULEM,

Welcome to the forum.

I just realized that the gun pictured in the original rig above is the Duke's 4 3/4" Colt. The Bisley trigger guard is the "dead giveaway".

His 5 1/2" 38-40 Colt used in earlier films was a standard Colt.

The 4 3/4" Colt was made up for him (and his large trigger finger) is a Bisley Colt with the trigger guard fore strap shortened and a standard 'plow handle' style back strap replacing the Bisley back strap.

The Bisley used a different cyl frame with a taller grip frame rear mounting surface around the base of the hammer. It can be seen sticking above the back strap if one looks closely at the gun above.
Jim, Thank you. I did not know until I read your post that the trigger guard on his Colt had been altered; always assumed it was a standard first generation Colt. Interesting piece of information. I have seen pictures of that 38-40 with the five inch barrel that he carried early on, and if I recall it had a nice set of bone grips, but I guess the .45 bore with the shorter barrel proved more comfortable to carry, so he stuck with that one. I've seen debates elsewhere about the material used in the "yellow" grip on that Colt, and I'm still not sure what it was. I saw the Duke once, back in the sixties, when he was filming overseas, at an Air Base where I was stationed. He was striding down the concourse in combat fatigues and a beret. Would know that walk anywhere. A favorite memory.
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Old 04-07-2014, 04:37 AM
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PAULEM,

I'm quite certain it was Catalin, a plastic not unsimilar to Bakelite, but not the same either.
Bakelite & Catalin: All you need to know + Testing | eBay

He had them cast in white then he would soak them in tea until he got the color amber we are most familiar with from his movies. I've read this in a couple of sources.
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Old 04-07-2014, 07:57 AM
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I've got one too. I ordered it with a strong side and cross draw holster. The old saying holds true, "buy the gun not the story". Or holster rig in this case.
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Old 04-07-2014, 10:04 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hondo44 View Post
PAULEM,

I'm quite certain it was Catalyn, a plastic not unsimilar to Bakelite, but not the same either.
Bakelite & Catalin: All you need to know + Testing | eBay

He had them cast in white then he would soak them in tea until he got the color amber we are most familiar with from his movies. I've read this in a couple of sources.
Jim, I'm almost positive the tea-staining part of the story is myth. Wayne's famous grips were produced by Maurice Scharlack, who made only yellow catalin grips. Not only that, but tea-staining a white plastic, had that been the case, would not produce a deep golden color but rather a mere "dirty white" surface color.

Wayne's grips:



Other catalin/Scharlack grips:





You can go to Google Images and search for catalin and/or Scharlack grips and every set you'll see is the same yellow/gold color.
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Old 04-07-2014, 01:32 PM
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"Cochise Leather" makes very good western rigs.
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Old 04-07-2014, 05:30 PM
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Thx DB,

That's pretty convincing. Google had nothing for Scharlack grips but no doubt he's been out of business for a long time.
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Old 04-08-2014, 01:32 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BullseyeJC View Post
I know many on this board are John Wayne fans and I thought this might lead to an interesting discussion.

El Paso Saddlery advertises a western holster rig in a style which they claim to have made for John Wayne to wear in his 1976 movie, “The Shootist”. I’m in the market for a new western rig and I happened to be watching this movie the other day. I noticed that John Wayne wore a holster and belt that was nothing like the rig that El Paso Saddlery claims they made for the movie. The picture below shows the El Paso “#44” rig along with a description from their website.


From El Paso Saddlery………“The half-breed style holster and rough out moneybelt we made for John Wayne for use in the 1976 movie, The Shootist.”



Next, you will see some screen shots from The Shootist. Notice that Wayne wears a holster with no loop which has a full flap in the back resting against his thigh. Also, you will see that his belt looks like a 3” or so wide single piece of smooth brown leather and looks nothing like the suede money belt advertised by El Paso Saddlery. What gives?


Screen Shot 1


Screen Shot 2
Ive got a great movie still of him from said movie--that shows him wearing that rig. Its in one of the movie stills threads here. When ive time? ill try to remember to find it and post it for you.
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Old 04-08-2014, 01:36 AM
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OOps, never mind. Didnt realize this was a super old thread.
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Old 04-08-2014, 03:47 AM
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OOps, never mind. Didnt realize this was a super old thread.
It's super new thread since post #32!
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Old 04-12-2014, 09:36 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by -db- View Post
Jim, I'm almost positive the tea-staining part of the story is myth. Wayne's famous grips were produced by Maurice Scharlack, who made only yellow catalin grips. Not only that, but tea-staining a white plastic, had that been the case, would not produce a deep golden color but rather a mere "dirty white" surface color.

Wayne's grips:



Other catalin/Scharlack grips:





You can go to Google Images and search for catalin and/or Scharlack grips and every set you'll see is the same yellow/gold color.
Wonder if anyone is offering a commercial version of the yellow Catalin/Bakalite grips that the Duke used on his sixgun?
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