vmicraig
Sergeant
- Joined
- Mar 12, 2018
- Location
- Midlothian, VA
I posted a couple threads awhile back about ACW guns that ended up in the studios as props. Despite lacking any collector value as a firearm due to their alterations, I was still fascinated by the various props that came up for auction recently and thought to myself, "I wouldn't mind owning one, if only for the conversation it evokes." I decided to buy the M1851 cadet. It's got an interesting back story.
According to studio expert Joseph Musso, this particular cadet musket was purchased by Fox Studios for use as a movie prop sometime in the 1920's as part of a larger group of guns, most likely from Stembridge Arsenal, a privately owned company formed by James Stembredge sometime between 1916-1920. As the story goes, famed movie director Cecil B. DeMille hired Stembridge to coach actors on how to act like soldiers and emulate their habits. This led to some steady work for Stembridge, and sometime after 1916, they recognized the need to accumulate a stock of firearms that could be used as movie props. At that time, surplus Civil War weaponry was available for pennies on the dollar, with cadet muskets typically selling for prices between $1.00 - $5.00 each, complete with accouterments including belt, cartridge box, bayonet and scabbard for and additional .75 cents. Thus was the beginning of the Stembridge gun arsenal. Stembridge guns were ultimately used in many famous movies, including Gone with the Wind, Northwest Passage, Across the Wide Missouri, Unconquered, and theRed Badge of Courage.
Regardless whether Fox Studios acquired the gun from Stembridge or another surplus dealer such as Bannerman's, it was subsequently stamped with serial number A52, a 20thCentury Fox Studios prop house ID number similar to numbers assigned all props stored in Building 41 (aka: the Tom Mix barn) aboard the studio grounds. Building 41 housed an arsenal of weapons featured in various Fox films over the years. Unfortunately, nearly all of the historical records identifying the props and their associated films were accidentally destroyed, thus the specific films in which 'prop A52' was used are not documented, according to Fox archivists. However, it is believed that due to it's uniquely carved stock, the musket was specifically altered for the 1930 John Wayne breakout film, "The Big Trail."
The stock of this particular gun, as well as an untold number of others, was carved in an intricate pattern described as "Indian design." This particular musket is carved nearly identically to a M-1861 Remington carried by John Wayne in his breakout role as Breck Coleman in Fox Studio's "The Big Trail." Studios often had back-up guns available for use during filming in the event a prop gun malfunctioned or was broken during filming. Although smaller than the full sized M-1861 carried by Wayne throughout the film, the specific pattern and design of the carving suggests it was indeed carved for "The Big Trail," perhaps as the original prop for use in the film. However, due to its relatively dimunitive size compared to the M-1861, especially in the hands of the 6'4" lead actor, it is surmized that the M-1861 was subsequently carved and chosen for Wayne to carry, leaving the smaller cadet rifle unused in the film. It is unknown if it was used in other films, although the likelihood is high since Fox produced dozens of westerns between the 1930's-1960's wherein this gun would likely have been carried by an actor or supporting actor, particularly in scenes involving American Indians or trappers. Many of the Fox Studios prop guns were sold off in 1988, including this example, eventually ending up in the collection of Walter J. O'Connor, whose priceless collection of militaria, firearms and artifacts were posthumously auctioned in September, 2018. O'Connor was a preeminent firearms appraiser, known best for cataloguing the entire Stembridge antique weapons collection in 1967, followed by the entire Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios collection in 1970.
It's not in great shape, but I didn't buy it for its collector value. Missing the nipple and hammer screw; has a replacement ramrod; but it was cheap! I think it'll be a great hanger with a cool back story. Time to break out the Kramer's Best.
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