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View Full Version : Did you know many celebrities were quick-draw experts?


lspencer534
03-09-2012, 5:18pm
Yep. Here's one you probably didn't know about, Sammy Davis, Jr.:

Alamo Fast Draw and Sammy Davis Jr. - YouTube

And Chuck Connors ("The Rifleman") [Not a quick-draw scene, but he was handy with a rifle]:

How many times did the Rifleman shoot? - YouTube

Remember the spaghetti westerns with Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef? Here's a recollection of how fast they were:

"Back in 1971 I was living in Texas and attended the University of Dallas. A friend and fellow student, Mark, had an actual fast-draw gun and holster (a "rig"). Trick shooting was a bit of a hobby and he was pretty darn fast on the draw. One day he and I got to talking about Leone and SW in general (and remember, this was at the height of the SW cycle) and he said, "Did I ever tell you about meeting Lee Van Cleef?" I said, "No! But you damn well better..."

So the story goes that about a year prior to that, Mark's next-door neighbor in Ft. Worth came by and said, "Do ya wanna meet Lee Van Cleef? He's my cousin and he's over at the house for a visit. Bring your rig." So Mark went over and met Lee and after chatting for awhile, the challenge of a mock shootout came up. Apparently Van Cleef's rig travelled with him in those days, or perhaps had it with him on the way to a film location (I can't remember which), but in any case, he had it. So the two of them checked their guns to be empty, then squared off in the back yard.

Imagine it-- a real-life showdown with Lee Van Cleef! So, was Lee fast? As Mark told it, he (Mark) never once got his gun out of the holster. Lee beat him every time, and it seemed like Lee's gun was out and "firing" in a heartbeat. [Edit: Lee could draw, ****, and fire in three frames of film--an eight of a second]

Now the footnote to all this was that after they finished up and were putting away their guns, Mark was expressing his amazement at how fast Lee had been. And Lee responded, "Well, if you think THAT was fast, you should see Clint. NO one beats Clint..." And Lee basically confirmed that what we see on film is not the result of clever editing or stand-in quick draw artists or anything else. It's all Clint, and it's all for real."
Quickdraw (http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/index.php?topic=2543.0)

The Good, The Bad And The Ugly - Showdown - YouTube

BuckyThreadkiller
03-09-2012, 5:20pm
Practice, practice, practice.

MrPeabody
03-09-2012, 5:23pm
I've seen video of Sammy Davis doing some trick gun handling.

As a sidebar, I always heard that Jackie Gleason did all his own pool shooting in The Hustler and they seldom needed a second take.

lspencer534
03-09-2012, 5:29pm
I've got the correct video of Sammy Davis, Jr. up now. Yep, Mr Peabody, I did know that Jackie Gleason did his own pool shots in The Hustler. I wish that I could find the story about him wanting to play the real Minnesota Fats in a game of pool.

MrPeabody
03-09-2012, 5:33pm
I've got the correct video of Sammy Davis, Jr. up now. Yep, Mr Peabody, I did know that Jackie Gleason did his own pool shots in The Hustler. I wish that I could find the story about him wanting to play the real Minnesota Fats in a game of pool.

I think that's what a black man had to do to get a job in a cowboy movie back then, and I'm not joking.

lspencer534
03-09-2012, 5:36pm
I think that's what a black man had to do to get a job in a cowboy movie back then, and I'm not joking.

You're likely correct. Did you know that Sammy Davis, Jr. was in an episode of The Rifleman?

MrPeabody
03-09-2012, 5:40pm
You're likely correct. Did you know that Sammy Davis, Jr. was in an episode of The Rifleman?

No, I did not. For some reason I didn't watch The Rifleman much when I was a kid.

jaxgator
03-09-2012, 5:45pm
:cool1:

'Scuse me while I whip this out.

pappytinker
03-09-2012, 5:47pm
The comedian Buddy Hackett was also a quick draw artist, I believe.

BuckyThreadkiller
03-09-2012, 6:12pm
You're likely correct. Did you know that Sammy Davis, Jr. was in an episode of The Rifleman?

Ahhh, yes the infamous "Lucas McCain meets the King of the Jewish Negro Singing Cowboys" episode.

lspencer534
03-09-2012, 6:36pm
Ahhh, yes the infamous "Lucas McCain meets the King of the Jewish Negro Singing Cowboys" episode.

I remember it well...:rofl:

ApexOversteer
03-09-2012, 6:48pm
One of those great Hollywood crafts that has disappeared. Nobody becomes a swordsman anymore, or a gunslinger. It isn't the 50's when movies that used those skills were the mainstream.

Now they just get taught the moves they need. No theory, no background.

78SA
03-09-2012, 7:53pm
You're likely correct. Did you know that Sammy Davis, Jr. was in an episode of The Rifleman?

It was on the other day. :seasix: