IMFDB/Golden Closet deal - more screen-used guns!
 

Hi, guys. I apologize for how busy I've been lately and how little time I've had for IMFDB. 2nd year of grad school is starting soon.

Anyway, earlier tonight, I talked to Breanna Livie, who is the CEO of the Golden Closet. They specialize in appraising and selling screen-used props from movies and TV shows. Their web site is here:

http://www.thegoldencloset.com/

Breanna has agreed to provide us with pictures of new screen-used prop weapons that her company has acquired, including some weapons from classic movies. In exchange, we'll promote the Golden Closet and link to their pages for the weapons. She can also provide us with documentation. So far, she's already been able to correct us on some mistakes for certain pages: She's told me that "Scarface" used a Beretta 81 (not an 84 BB, as we said previously), and that the fake M203 in that movie (which she is selling) was also used on "Predator".

I'll have updates soon, I hope.

Rock on Matt, rock the heck on dude.

Now that's some good news to the rest of us. Basically it means that the efforts of those of us who want the best informational firearms and film site on the web have gotten a major boost. What's next someone asking us on advice on a show about Firearms in film throughout the previous century or so?

There seems to be some kind of inconsistency with this. It states on the Mossberg 500 entry on the Predator page that the faux M203 doesn't open in the same manner as the real M203, yet Tony is repeatedly shown opening, loading, and closing his M203 which is supposedly the same type of launcher. So either the Predator page is wrong or that isn't the launcher used in Scarface.

Well I certainly didn't write that excerpt on the Mossberg 500 section of Predator. And I kinda don't know what in the world they are talking about.

Those launchers OPEN and SHUT like the real thing. But the mechanism is a custom job and looks very different from the REAL McCoy (M203). I know I handled it when I took a photo of the launcher for IMFDB. Also the launcher that this props store has is one of SEVERAL that could have been used in each film. Multiple launchers were made and used in each production. I was the one who wrote that per screenshots, it is clear that several launchers are used being that their paint, scuffs, wear areas and marks change from shot to shot. I know ONE of them was in CW's case.

Edit: Did you guys notice the weird comment on their site about swapping out the AR-15 from the M16 because they could synchronize it to the movie camera better? WTF? All the weapons were full auto. A converted AR-15 is pretty much the same mechanically as an M16. Back in the day, they would have electronic solenoid triggers that would synchronize a gun flash with the shutter of a movie camera. That way they were guaranteed that every flash was caught on film. It was complicated and a total pain in the ass. But the paragraph on the page, seems to imply that an full auto converted AR-15 was a totally different weapon design than an M16, which it is not. Anyone else think that was a weird comment?

I've been told that there was four fake M203s built. I'm guessing that none were exactly alike. But according to her documentation, it looks like at least some of those launchers (which were originally made for "Scarface") got rented out to "Predator".

I'll be receiving the documentation on the "Scarface" weapons soon, so I can tell you more. But according to her, the "Scarface" M16 was a converted AR-15. Keep in mind that she's not exactly a gun expert (her family business is actually costuming, though she's very well-connected and has access to almost everything).

Those launchers were the only game in town for most of the 1980s, until Cobray ramped up with their CM203/CM2037 Imp Launchers. I am sure that multiple productions used that batch of custom built M203s. Now I never used them, but obviously I've spoken to people who did so any details listed were taken from comments/verbal quotes on the launchers. I DO tend to prefer official records (which is good that she keeps them handy) rather than the memory of industry professionals (many of which are getting up there in age ;) )

Nice job on that mt2008.

Good Job Matt.. :)

Oops, sorry, almost forgot. Thanks for the help*. ;)




*understatement of the decade

Alright, for those who haven't seen 'em yet, check out the pages for "Salt" and "Scarface". I have new screen-used gun images from those movies which I just uploaded.

The "Salt" guns are all ones that GC is selling, while the "Scarface" Beretta pics are exclusive to us. :D

That's good stuff Matt.

Have you thought about asking Prop Store and Long Mountain about using their photos too? We've already used several of their images.

I'm a little worried about what would happen if I did. We posted those pics without their permission (even though we did credit them). In retrospect, I never would have posted any (or allowed others to post them) if I'd appreciated the potential consequences. I'm actually wondering if I should take them down, except that there are so many up at this point that I couldn't even begin to get to them all.

In other news, I just received a picture of Jack Bauer's USP Compact from "24" (the live-fire one, not the rubber one that GC is selling). I'll post it later.

I think we should take them all down and then ask if we can use them. I mean what sense does it make when we tell other sites they cannot use our images w/o permission when we do the same thing to others.

Problem is, that's a lot of images. Off the top of my head, I can't even begin to think of all the pages that feature images jacked from PropStore and LMO.

Also, the USPC from "24" is now on the pages for Seasons 3-8 (Breanna tells me it was one of two such guns used on the show). Hope you "24" fans like it, even though I realize it doesn't look any different from a typical USPC.

Should we just have a policy of deleting them whenever we come across them?

I would just leave them for the time being. I know the guys at Propstore and LMO so I will check if it's okay.

how many LMO shots are left? I've been trying to replace ALL of the guns (some I can't unless I track down the new owners of the NFA guns LOL) on IMFDB. I'm pretty sure I've replaced 90% of the LMO pics. Which ones are left?

Here are two I uploaded.

This one to show that it was a M1911 not an A1
http://www.imfdb.org/index.php/Image...he_Getaway.jpg

To show that it was a Diamondback not a Python.
http://www.imfdb.org/index.php/Image..._Brannigan.jpg

We also have that picture of Denzel Washington's SIG 228 from "Virtuosity" (the one that Pamela Anderson also used in "Barb Wire"). Steve, do you know who has those now?

I've got a whole bunch of live-fire weapons from "The Sopranos" I plan to post soon (the first one's up now...a SIG 226 that Tony Soprano used). Unlike the "24" USPc, most of these are being sold by GC on their site, but a few are exclusives (including a suppressed two-tone SIG 228 used by Paulie in one season).

Check out the pages for "The Sopranos" and "In the Line of Fire". I have pics of screen-used guns from those movies up now.