Recently I've been watching reruns of Peter Gunn, the late '50s detective show. He, and other characters in the show like his cop pal and the BGs, wear crossdraw holsters. Maybe I'm just flaggin' on it but it seems to me to be (near?) universal on the show.

They seem to be worn close to 10 or even just forward of 9 o'clock, which seems pretty far over there to get to. (While I've never worn a crossdraw, seems to me close to 10:30 or 11:00 would be about right, for a right-handed man.

Further, it looks to me like these holsters have very little, if any cant.

Were these types of holsters popular in the fifties? What was the rationale for cross draw instead of strong side? I think the rationale nowadays is usually easier access if sitting, but these guys are running around on their feet most of the time.)

Or, maybe these guys are just wearing their strong-side holsters on their off side as a practice similar to wearing one's wristwatch with the watch face facing down, on the bottom of one's wrist, buckle at the top of the wrist, as was a custom among some, for a time?

Ya know, I bet that's it. They're just wearing strong-side holsters crossdraw 'cause they're too dang cool to wear 'em the regular way. That would explain the lack of cant, too!

(The show is on Amazon Prime, by the way. Very soothing half hour of before bed watching.)

That always bothered me back in the day those shows were on TV.

Dragnet and Highway Patrol with Broadric Crawford used the same odd cross draw holsters.

I suspect these holsters just came out of the prop department with Hollywood’s lack of understanding of all things guns.

This is an LAPD homicide detective from the 1950s. This is either a left handed cross draw or a strong side cavalry draw (or a reversed photo).

I do think cross draws were much more popular “back in the day” than they are now.

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Surprise, surprise! They didn't care!
Seriously, the only people who would care were such a small fraction of their viewers, who had limited means of venting their frustrations, that they didn't care. What mattered was did it work for the production. And actors sit around alot. Comfortable actors make better shows. So if an actor pushes his holster farther over so it's more comfortable, great.

Jack Webb cared a lot about authenticity, and had LAPD technical advisors on set. When LAPD switched from 6” Model 14s to 4” Model 15s, Adam-12 did, too. They also switched from pouch type holsters to clamshells.

When Reed and Malloy are off duty, they also carry their snubbies in crossdraw holsters.

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I moved to the Denver area in 1984. Got to know a few guys on DPD, we would meet for lunch or coffee now and then. At the time a few of the longer term patrol officers carried revolvers in cross draws. If I remember right they were grandfathered in for a few years before they went away all together.

Back to the topic I find it funny to see how the costumer on shows has many tv cops carry their guns. Just another day in Hollywood.

Actually the crossdraw holster was quite popular with plain cloths cops in
the 50s, 60s, and up into the 70s.

One of the most popular at the time was the Lewis spring type crossdraw
shown with my S&W Model 10 with 2" barrel.

I think the reason the crossdraw was popular was because the
plain cloths cops were in and out of their car almost all of their
shift.

Next time you watch Dragnet, you might see Sgt. Friday wearing his
with his S&W M&P with 2" barrel. You also might notice on his right
side he is carrying a 2x2x2 ammo pouch. The pouch I show in the
photo below carries a Bianchi speed strip.

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I was referring specifically to the placement of the holster on the belt not the holster itself.

Maybe they didn't have the modern advantage of "professional" gun media types telling them how it is neccessary to draw so fast lightning can't touch 'em. Maybe they knew that if you felt the neccessity to have a gun out, the place for it to be was in your hand, not to have your hand poised over a fast draw holster.

Or perhaps I'm just an innocent among the cognoscenti.

sigp220, I think that homocide detective you show above has learned
that carrying his revolver that far back, looks to be about 5pm, it is
easier to use the Cavalry draw.

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I think strong side cavalry draw. That's a large revolver — we need T-Star to ID it for us, dang it... — and I bet he carried it there so he could sit down more comfortably. It's behind his hip. No way he's grabbin' that with his left hand...

Or his right:



I see Phil beat me to the punch there.

Re revo, I'm gonna guess a Colt New Service.

Cross or Cav, looks like a nightmare from a weapon security point of view. Different times.

I think we could call it the Barney Miller carry.

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It looks to me like it would be easy to draw. Just take your right hand, palm out, and slide it between your back and the grip.

Looks comfortable to me.

Comfortable for cavalry draw, as you describe, sure. But not for standard, reach across the abdomen cross draw.

But how about all those no cant (cantless?) holsters? Are they wearing strongside holsters cross draw? (Phil's example excepted.)

Peter Gunn was a cutting-edge series for its time! Henry Mancini did the sound track and there was action, suspense, smarts and babes. I love it!

Craig Stevens played the part well. I don’t know what type of holster he wore, since his S&W 2” M&P magically appeared in his hand whenever he needed it.

This is the only photo of his holster I could find and it’s a screenshot from a clip. The classic cross draw holster of the day was a Lewis, but they didn’t ride this low or have a cant. Peter usually wore Sans-A-Belt slacks, so that rules out a belt holster! Probably just the magic of TV!



This thread needs music!

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IIRC the Bruce Nelson 55 (better known as the Milt Sparks) was originally conceived as a concealable cross draw

Chad, I'll try to grab some holster photos, too. I note in your pic, the grab is from a 1967 revival (?) of some sort. I think original show ran from about '58 to '61 or '62 or so. I think that cant is a later variation 'cause what I've been seeing sure looks cantless to me.

(I'm still on season 1. A lot of fun. All in black & white, most action taking place at night, frequently on the waterfront, on simple sets with straightforward plots, al, ending neatly resolved in half an hour. The atmosphere really makes it. His jazz singing girlfriend, such an innocent sweetie.... but somethings gotta be going on back at his apartment on that couch at 2 AM or whatever. I like the club where he hangs out... Great stuff! He kinda comes off like a tougher version of Cary Grant. There are all the typical gun handling mistakes, of course, but it is great fun. I sleep well after!)

It's easy to mistake the popular Lewis, on the right, with Bucheimer
-Clark Sheriff Model, on the left. Note that the spring goes up full
length of the cylinder on the Sheriff, but only about
half way on the Lewis.

Red Nichols has theorized that Lewis and Clark
might have been one and the same person. Their places of business were
only a block away. Clark became the Clark in Bucheimer-Clark. BTW both
the Lewis and the B-C are neutral cant.

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Peter Gunn, Dragnet and Mr Lucky were some of my favorite shows as a kid. My wife and I still love watching them.

Edit: another show that came along later but was Mike Hammer. Hammer carried a 1911 but the directors representation of the 1911 was unrealistic the way Hammer handled it. You’ll catch a lot of mistakes. The theme for Mike Hammer was Harlem Nocturne another great theme.


The theme to Mr Lucky is outstanding and another Henry Mancini piece.

I recall that a number of the detectives I knew as a kid carried their revolvers cross draw, but I don’t remember too many after the early 80’s.

When I started work in ‘97 I carried my Model 36 back up in a old cross draw holster I got from the box of $5 used holsters at a gun show. I wore it about 8 o’clock, figuring that reduced the chances of it getting snatched. I practiced drawing it cavalry style with my left, instead of cross draw with my right. At some point in the early 2000’s I switched to a left hand 5BH.

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As a practical matter, it seems like it would be very easy to unintentionally "sweep" a large piece of real estate when cross drawing. Maybe that's the cause for the cross draw's current lack of popularity?

You wear your watch with the face down for a number of reasons. One is to minimize the risk of the sun reflecting off the face and giving away your position. Another is to help protect the watch face from being banged on something and damaged. Also, if the face is down and you are holding a cup of coffee in the hand your watch is on and someone asks you what time it is, when you look at your watch, you spill your coffee on them instead of yourself.

During my LEO days in Colorado, the CHP were issued and required to carry their Pythons in a cross draw holster. Several of our detectives also used a cross draw holster. I didn't like them at the time, but I've been reconsidering that the last few years for my daily wear revolver.

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- What was the rationale for the requirement for cross draw?

- Was it that officers should have ready access when seated?

- And, why did the requirement change? (I'm assuming the CHP Colorado no longer has the requirement.)

As Father Joe notes, sweeping of bystanders is a common concern raised with cross draw. As is the concern that, unlike drawing from the hip, there is a tendency to over travel laterally when aiming. (I've heard the arguments against this concern, too.)

But I am curious why the popularity of cross draw — now that we have established that it was popular, and not only in Hollywood — faded.

I guess it was that the revolver was readily drawn when seated.

They now use a strong side holster the last time I noted.

I will note that many experienced horseman and packers in Wyoming bear country prefer the cross draw holster when around the very aggressive grizzlies there, particularly when they have an elk down. I prefer a muzzle down shoulder holster for my 41 when in that country thinking that is my fastest draw option when worn over a jacket.

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For woods carry, I find the crossdraw to be the most comfortable for me. Shoulder holsters get caught in rifle slings and pack straps. Strong side holsters are either behind your hip, and usually under your pack, or on it to catch on brush and bash into trees and rocks. Crossdraw is accessible to both hands and isn't covered up by alot of gear.

Yeah, I wore em.
That wide elastic waistband solved holster problems. I could carry a 4" Model 10 stuffed in that waistband and it never went anywhere.

Looking at my physique today?
I'd probably have to supplement that elastic with a pair of suspenders to keep it from rolling over due to the overhang.
Otherwise it would look like a blown out whitewall tire.

The Original Sansabelt |35,000 pair in stock|Waist Sizes 30-70 - SANSABELT.COM

I resemble that remark! When I was a young pup with a body that didn't resemble a plastic bag of jello, I used to wear my jeans so tight that ANYTHING I stuffed in them wasn't going anywhere.
Unfortunately I do mean ANYTHING.

I'm with ya, fellas!

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As for plainclothes cops fifty years ago, crossdraw holsters weren't real popular. Perhaps 10%-15% at best carried handguns in this manner. Looks impractical to me, though it may have actually worked well for some. I'm not much of a holster fan either way.

Cross Draw Holsters were popular in the days before patrol vehicle had cages between front and back seats. One officer cars the prisoner rode upfront on the passenger side. The officer's weapon would be away from the prisoner. (days before handcuffing behind the back was used.) Two officer cars the second officer rode in the rear seat behind the driver. Prisoner rode rear seat behind passenger front seat. Also when taking notes with a suspect the weak side elbow covered the weapon

+1. I'm not knocking the combination lock holsters that have become a practical necessity today, but our weapon retention system consisted of a thumb strap and situational awareness. If an officer lost control of his sidearm it was more likely due to failure of the latter than the former.

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One of the largest surges in Officer Survival training came about shortly after the loss of 4 CHP Officers in a OIS known as the Newhall incident.

Many tactics and equipment issues were looked at with regard to better Officer safety.

Cross draw holsters provided a strong and easy temptation to criminals bent on violence toward Officers.

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Interesting comments, Jimmy, and new to me. Thanks.

I carry my 5-1/2” Blackhawk cross draw in the woods and dare I say I shoot it single hand, something else that used to be popular.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

There's a video on YT (that has been linked on this forum more than once), showing the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Gun Club range in the 1930s'. It's silent but in color(!). It covers a variety of subjects, but in one scene (if I recall correctly), you can see plainclothes/detective types practicing quick draw double-action shooting from a cross-draw holster with a four or six inch barreled revolver. The revolvers that I could identify in the video appeared to be Colt Official Police. I also recall someone commenting that at that time detectives in some departments in the area did, in fact, carry the long barrels and often did so in cross draws. Fun video (and definitely frowned upon by OSHA today!).

1938 L.A.S.O:
1. Full Flap Holster
2. Colt O.P. 6" .38
3. 50 rounds .38 reloads-$5.50
4. Firing is S.A.
5. Plainclothes Officer training crossdraw w/ 6" revolver

While strong side carry was mandated for Patrol officers during my time in the Jurrasic era, I routinely wore shoulder holster after moving to Investigations.

Same process as crossdraw, just higher. Main reason is it's more accessible while seated in a vehicle, it's more comfortable during 10-12 hour (or longer) shifts, and it has its own set of retention drills.

Worked for me and many others. "Sweeping " wasn't a thing, and it's not if you train to not put your finger on the trigger as soon as you grip. Those I pointed it at I wanted to be nervous. The more nervous the better.

Here's a thread on Peter Gunn from ten years ago. T-Star ID's the gun as a Chief's Special: Peter Gunn's Gun? (JcMack says someone else ID's it as clearly a Detective Special. My guess is the the gun changes over time.) Some discussion of cross draw, too.

I am old enough I remember when the cross-draw was very popular, especially with detectives or off-duty officers with snubnose revolvers. They finally got away from it when they realized that it is easier for the bad guy to grab your gun than it is for you to grab your gun.

Craig Stevens (Peter Gunn) passed away in 2000 at age 81. RIP Craig.

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Even Raleigh, NC required a cross draw back in the day . . .

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Wonder if they let Barney carry 1 cartridge in that holstered crossdraw?

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This spring type crossdraw holster was popular back in those days.
This one by Brauer Brothers, but almost every other maker made them.

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Yeah, I too remember the Peter Gunn show, his sidekick Andamo, and the other detective shows. Plus I had a Fanner 50 six gun, and like Paladin, a little belt buckle that popped out a derringer if I could puff out my stomach enough. I don't watch much tv anyone, mostly stuff pretty unrealistic. to me.

All the best, and stay safe. SF VET

First comment, television and movie productions require dramatic effect more than anything else. Reality has little to do with directors' decisions.

Second comment, prior to about 1960 or so men's fashions differed from what we are accustomed to today. Trouser belt lines were typically above the navel, so today's high-ride strong-side holster would have been somewhere near the armpit. Suit coats were worn buttoned up, at least one button and more frequently the top two or all three buttons fastened. Walking around with your jacket open at the front was almost unthinkably trashy behavior in polite society.

Cross-draw holsters and shoulder holsters were commonly used so that the weapon could be reached without having to unfasten the jacket or dislocate the shoulder and elbow to draw from a strong-side belt holster.

When I was a teen ( I was 13 in 1958) my next door neighbor was a Sgt Homicide Detective in Seattle PD. He did not use a cross draw holster. He and his cop buddies would come over to our house to play ping pong in our basement and I don't remember ever see them use a cross draw holster.

When I was on the security force at Coast Guard Base NY (GINY to any Coast Guard people out there), we normally were not armed but if we had to go off base to pick up a prisoner or guard bank personnel (we had a bank on the base) carrying large amounts of cash, (those days are gone), we were armed with 1911s. Whoever was driving was told to switch the firearm to the left side when escorting a prisoner. That was rather awkward but doable.

Al Pacino in "Heat" liked the Cross-draw holster too. And in some shots, the holster is canted more horizontal than vertical.

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