Elvis Presley was a gun enthusiast and Hollywood movie actor in addition to being a Rock and Roll star. While he was working on the Western movie “Charro” he was presented with an 1896 manufactured Colt Single Action Army revolver in .38 W.C.F. with an Alfonso fast-draw holster rig by Rodd Redwing who was training him in Western gun handling.
Fast Facts
- Elvis Presley was a gun enthusiast and for his movie roles he was given firearms training by famous Hollywood trainer Rodd Redwing.
- Rodd Redwing presented Elvis with an original 1896 manufactured Colt Single Action Army revolver complete with a fast-draw belt and holster rig made by Alfonso Pineda during the filming of the movie “Charro”.
- That revolver and fast-draw rig are up for sale by Heritage Auctions at time of publication.
Although most people consider Elvis Presley to have primarily been a rock and roll performer he was also an actor: and an actor with talent that could have been developed but which was overshadowed by his rock and roll career and the fame that came with it.
Elvis Presley was also a gun enthusiast who enjoyed the guns he owned, and he was blessed with a generous aspect to his character, he is well known for giving guns to friends and family.
Elvis’ acting career and his interest in guns both served to bring him into contact with some of the core gun professionals involved in the Hollywood movie industry, best known and perhaps most influential of these being Rodd Redwing.
Rodd Redwing and Elvis Presley worked together on the movie “Charro”, Elvis as one of the stars of the movie and Redwing in his role in managing the guns being used in the movie, and as the trainer for the actors so that they could handle the guns needed for their roles not only safely, but with a high degree of credible competence.
Its worth remembering that a significant percentage of the people who went along to watch Western movies were themselves familiar with guns, including the guns of the old West, and often quite expert in their use. So in making a movie believable not only did the guns need to be correct but the way they were used needed to be believable also.
During the filming of “Charro” Rodd Redwing gave Elvis Presley a Colt Single Action Army revolver that had been manufactured in 1896 – so this revolver was period correct in having been made in the Wild West era, and it was chambered for the 38 W.C.F. (i.e. Winchester Center Fire, also known as the 38-40) cartridge, which was also correct for that era, having been introduced in 1874.
Rodd Redwing also fitted the revolver with a pair of stag grips which he had made himself.
But the gift did not stop there: a Western hero also needed a suitable gun-belt and holster and Rodd Redwing presented Elvis with a custom gun-belt with holster that had been made by Alfonso Pineda, the man responsible for a great many of the gun-belts and holsters of Hollywood stars.
This holster rig was specially fitted for quick draw action and featured a steel insert, the purpose of which was to make it possible to shave tenths of a second off the draw time, and to enable easy re-holstering of the revolver making the holster receptive to the twirl holstering method which involves the shooter twirling the revolver by placing the trigger finger into the trigger guard and twirling it back into the holster.
Alfonso Leather nowadays make a range of leather goods including holsters for quick draw action and among their offerings are holster rigs with steel liner which you will find if you click here.
Elvis kept the revolver and holster rig until the 1970’s when he decided to give it to his father Vernon, who kept it until he passed away.
The revolver and holster rig then went into the ownership of Sid Doen who purchased it from the estate of Vernon Presley in the 1980’s.
The revolver and holster rig then passed into the hands of Chris Davidson and was placed in the ELVIS-A-RAMA Museum.
This revolver and fast-draw rig is up for sale at time of publication by Heritage Auctions and comes complete with the Letter of Authenticity from the ELVIS-A-RAMA Museum, a letter from Colt confiming its manufacture and factory shipping date and details, and the letter from Sid Doen requesting that information from Colt.
This is a very interesting offering, quite unique, with links not only to Elvis Presley but also to Rodd Redwing, a man who was a colorful Hollywood character, a man who provided firearms training to many Hollywood stars, one of whom was the 40th President of the United States, Ronald Reagan.
Picture Credits: All pictures courtesy Heritage Auctions, HA.com
Jon Branch is the founder and senior editor of Revivaler and has written a significant number of articles for various publications including official Buying Guides for eBay, classic car articles for Hagerty, magazine articles for both the Australian Shooters Journal and the Australian Shooter, and he’s a long time contributor to Silodrome.
Jon has done radio, television, magazine and newspaper interviews on various issues, and has traveled extensively, having lived in Britain, Australia, China and Hong Kong. His travels have taken him to Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan and a number of other countries. He has studied the Japanese sword arts and has a long history of involvement in the shooting sports, which has included authoring submissions to government on various firearms related issues and assisting in the design and establishment of shooting ranges.
