Gunsmoke Observation

Hollywood "clips". If you watch Underworld a movie about vamps & werewolves, the main protaganist shoots, i think a pair of 9mm Walthers, in a circle on the floor so she can drop down a floor. They are full auto and she must have shot 30 or 40 rounds out of each with flush mags... gotta love it

Lots of fantasy in how they are used without mag reloads.

I think some of the suppliers of prop guns have some interesting things in their arsenals.

borrowedtime69 said:

Hollywood "clips". If you watch Underwood a movie about vamps & werewolves, the main protaganist shoots, i think a pair of 9mm Walthers, in a circle on the floor so she can drop down a floor. They are full auto and she must have shot 30 or 40 rounds out of each with flush mags... gotta love it

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Yes but Kate Beckinsdale is DELICIOUS!!! That being said, you are correct there was some crazy gun stuff in all of those movies. Interestingly the actor who played Viktor is also the voice of GOD in my audible Old Testament

Steel Horse Rider said:

Since my wife had her knee replaced the first of December we have been mostly housebound and since there is mostly just excrement on the television we have been watching a lot of old westerns on INSP. While watching Gunsmoke Episode #354 titled "Aunt Thede" they had the lead guest character carrying a Colt Model 1855 revolving rifle. She was a Hagen so in the 1870's a hill person would probably own something obsolete but I thought it was interesting that they would have such an unusual and valuable, if it was an original, weapon on the set. Just wondering if anyone else notices these things.

The other recent oddity was the gatling gun in the movie "The War Wagon" manages to be repeatedly fired without a magazine in place.

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There have been several magazine articles about a Hollywood prop shop that has, like millions of dollars, of antique weapons. The article I read, they still had the rifles used in Charlie Chaplin's 1918 movie "Shoulder Arms". At Martin Redding's store in Culver City Ca, there were a couple of "flintlock" prop guns, with some studio property marks. The barrels were more or less, tubes, the stocks and locks cobbled together, I don't remember them as vintage European. In a black and white silent film, they would be good to go.They probably were in pirate movies, Napoleonic battles, and in American Revolutionary films.

Anyone remember the rifles the "Union" soldiers used in Buster Keaton's movie "The General"? It was supposed to be a Civil War movie, and the Union soldiers were armed with trapdoors.

The locomotive crash is still a classic.

I've gotten to the point of being impressed when they actually get something right.
I don't mind repeating single shots or million round magazines.
I can't stand when they have the actor spew lies about guns. To me: if you're going to actually speak about it. Spend a little time to get it right.

I look at it for nothing more than entertainment . Some modern special effects are so unbelievable that it takes away from a movie . I guess the same can be said about getting a firearm wrong for some enthusiasts . There have always been revolvers that never have to be reloaded in westerns .

Steel Horse Rider said:

Since my wife had her knee replaced the first of December we have been mostly housebound and since there is mostly just excrement on the television we have been watching a lot of old westerns on INSP. While watching Gunsmoke Episode #354 titled "Aunt Thede" they had the lead guest character carrying a Colt Model 1855 revolving rifle. She was a Hagen so in the 1870's a hill person would probably own something obsolete but I thought it was interesting that they would have such an unusual and valuable, if it was an original, weapon on the set. Just wondering if anyone else notices these things.

The other recent oddity was the gatling gun in the movie "The War Wagon" manages to be repeatedly fired without a magazine in place.

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In one scene in Zulu, "Battle of Rorque's Drift" one of the British soldiers can be seen wielding a lever action rifle of some kind. Gunsmoke, is one of our favorite shows. I always think how tiring it had be for the Indians to ride always carry their rifles, if they had one, in one hand.

Someone here recently mentioned a scene in either "Yellowstone" or "1883" with a 3 shot SxS shotgun.

Must have made 'em differently back then.

one of the reasons i love "lonesome dove", i don't think there are any anachronisms in it at all.

Steel Horse Rider said:

While watching Gunsmoke Episode #354 titled "Aunt Thede" they had the lead guest character carrying a Colt Model 1855 revolving rifle. She was a Hagen so in the 1870's a hill person would probably own something obsolete but I thought it was interesting that they would have such an unusual and valuable, if it was an original, weapon on the set.

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Iffin I remember correctly, those rifles did not meet with excitement from those they were intended for(soldiers). They were discontinued because of serious design flaws that had led to a common occurrence of "chain fire", that resulted in an overall distrust of the cute little carbines. While they are considered "unusual and valuable" nowadays, they were not thought of like that back then and because of this, they ended up in the hands of folks that otherwise could not own any relatively decent firearm.

Bfh_auto said:

I've gotten to the point of being impressed when they actually get something right.
I don't mind repeating single shots or million round magazines.
I can't stand when they have the actor spew lies about guns. To me: if you're going to actually speak about it. Spend a little time to get it right.

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Gah, I can't ever get over the Glock 17 being a "porcelain gun" in Die Hard.

Just to say, there were 636 episodes of Gunsmoke. That's when TV actors had to work for their salaries. Not like today, when ten episodes qualifies as a "season". And OH, was Amanda Blake as Kitty gorgeous?

beag_nut said:

And OH, was Amanda Blake as Kitty gorgeous?

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Amanda Blake WAS Kitty!

Someone here recently mentioned a scene in either "Yellowstone" or "1883" with a 3 shot SxS shotgun.

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They showed 3 shots with no visible reload. But there was a substantial amount of time between shot #1 and shot #2 as well as between shot #2 and shot #3 while the camera made several cuts to different characters. Just because they didn't show a reload does not mean one didn't happen. I didn't have a problem with that scene. Had all 3 shots been in one unbroken scene it would have been different.

Just keep in mind it is all entertainment; there is no claim that it is an accurate historical documentary. One major flaw with virtually all Westerns are the dance hall girls and gamblers in a saloon. Women were not allowed in a saloon, nor was gambling. There would have been 3 different establishments for drinking, gambling and loose women. But for simplicity's sake all 3 activities are condensed into one place in virtually all Western movies.

Steel Horse Rider said:

Since my wife had her knee replaced the first of December we have been mostly housebound and since there is mostly just excrement on the television we have been watching a lot of old westerns on INSP. While watching Gunsmoke Episode #354 titled "Aunt Thede" they had the lead guest character carrying a Colt Model 1855 revolving rifle. She was a Hagen so in the 1870's a hill person would probably own something obsolete but I thought it was interesting that they would have such an unusual and valuable, if it was an original, weapon on the set. Just wondering if anyone else notices these things.

The other recent oddity was the gatling gun in the movie "The War Wagon" manages to be repeatedly fired without a magazine in place.

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Here is my Great Grand Uncle with a similar rifle. This photo was taken in 1869 near Alexandria Minnesota.

gobsauce said:

Gah, I can't ever get over the Glock 17 being a "porcelain gun" in Die Hard.

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There was one movie featuring a metal detector proof "plastic pistol" that showed a 1907 Savage painted brown. At least they showed some thought in their prop selection.

jmr40 said:

They showed 3 shots with no visible reload.

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Robert Duval said that his reload in 'Open Range' ended on the "cutting room floor."

crstrode said:

Here is my Great Grand Uncle with a similar rifle. This photo was taken in 1869 near Alexandria Minnesota.

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Might be a studio prop. Lots of old pictures of soldiers and frontiersmen with guns, swords, and knives just kind of casually disposed about their persons, not in a usual mode of carry.

The strangest thing I ever saw was Rock Hudson in 'Seminole' with a Colt cartridge conversion revolver. The story was set while Sam Colt was just setting up in Paterson but at least it was not as obviously anachronistic as SAAs and Winchesters shown all over the place before 1973. But why did they bother?

Steel Horse Rider said:

Since my wife had her knee replaced the first of December we have been mostly housebound and since there is mostly just excrement on the television we have been watching a lot of old westerns on INSP. While watching Gunsmoke Episode #354 titled "Aunt Thede" they had the lead guest character carrying a Colt Model 1855 revolving rifle. She was a Hagen so in the 1870's a hill person would probably own something obsolete but I thought it was interesting that they would have such an unusual and valuable, if it was an original, weapon on the set. Just wondering if anyone else notices these things.

The other recent oddity was the gatling gun in the movie "The War Wagon" manages to be repeatedly fired without a magazine in place.

Click to expand...

There are the typical anachronisms on the old Hollywood western TV shows and movies but the gun in that situation was not one of them. The men's clothing was as it's mostly early 1900s clothing and Gunsmoke was supposed to take place in the 1870s. Even the holster James Arness wears is 1930s when that style of drop holster was invented.
Heck in most of the old John Wayne westerns (set just post Civil War and 1870s) he's dressed in 1940s/50s western wear carrying guns that weren't even invented during that time period. In the Horse Soldiers the Union cavalry are using 1873 Springfield Trapdoor carbines........... About the most accurate one he ever did was The Rio Grande, correct weapons, correct clothing, correct fort, correct McClellen saddles, etc.
I watch these old shows for their entertainment value not for their historically correct value which is mostly non-existent.

Yeah, happens a lot in Hollywood. One of my favorites is the seemingly endless magazines of Bruce Willis’ 1911s in Last Man Standing, yet I still enjoy that movie. Probably because I like Yojimbo and A Fistfull of Dollars plus I love rum runner gangster movies.

borrowedtime69 said:

Hollywood "clips". If you watch Underwood a movie about vamps & werewolves, the main protaganist shoots, i think a pair of 9mm Walthers, in a circle on the floor so she can drop down a floor. They are full auto and she must have shot 30 or 40 rounds out of each with flush mags... gotta love it

Click to expand...

wvfarrier said:

Yes but Kate Beckinsdale is DELICIOUS!!! That being said, you are correct there was some crazy gun stuff in all of those movies. Interestingly the actor who played Viktor is also the voice of GOD in my audible Old Testament

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oh yeah Kate Beckensdale in that outfit gets a lot of leeway in my book.

gobsauce said:

Gah, I can't ever get over the Glock 17 being a "porcelain gun" in Die Hard.

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Well, he did call it a Glock 7. So maybe its a fictional Glock in their fictional world that IS made of porcelain and costs more than that cop makes in a month and not a typical Hollywood gun blunder … nah

The thing about TV shoes, movies, and novels is that it is fiction and supposed to be entertaining. Being perfectly correct doesn't compute and most people don't care even if they know what is wrong. I gave up long ago and watch and read for the entertainment and gloss over the incorrect instances.

doubleh said:

The thing about TV shoes, movies, and novels is that it is fiction and supposed to be entertaining. Being perfectly correct doesn't compute and most people don't care even if they know what is wrong. I gave up long ago and watch and read for the entertainment and gloss over the incorrect instances.

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Watching I can handle the blunders, but once I started reading fiction by folks who either know the subject well or have “been there done that” it’s so hard to go back to some pulp author who has no idea how a SF operator or detective or whatever would actually do things.

And not using proper nomenclature in a book regardless of the subject is just so lazy it annoys me. The author is telling a story with words, at least use the right ones

JR24 said:

Watching I can handle the blunders, but once I started reading fiction by folks who either know the subject well or have “been there done that” it’s so hard to go back to some pulp author who has no idea how a SF operator or detective or whatever would actually do things.

And not using proper nomenclature in a book regardless of the subject is just so lazy it annoys me. The author is telling a story with words, at least use the right ones

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Ive stopped reading in the middle of books because I couldnt get past some of the poorly researched firearm/military/leo information. Most recently I quit 2 chapters into a book because the protagonist was "Delta" but went around firing 2 Detonics 1911s, one in each hand while spouting the typical military one liners.

Im a huge Mark Tufo fan but in his Shrouded World book the main character has the buttstock on his old school M16 broken off but continues to fire it (ummmm). I asked Mark about it (we correspond) and his reply was "Dang it, I hoped no one would notice that )

Steel Horse Rider said:

but I thought it was interesting that they would have such an unusual and valuable, if it was an original, weapon on the set. Just wondering if anyone else notices these things.

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I have seen lots of quite valuable and rare things not just used but destroyed in film. Some of it was common and not valuable at the time and others, just the cost of production and not a “drop in the bucket” or inconsequential, when the first weekend makes hundreds of millions of dollars. Makes me feel better knowing they mostly just dress up otherwise junk, make props and these days use mostly CGI.

I hope your wife gets to feeling better and good you two are spending time together.

If I pointed out all the consistencies in TV shows/movies about guns, I would never be able to watch anything. For one, it would take forever. And two, my wife would probably feed me through a wood chipper for ruining shows.