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Outfit | The Guns | The Spurs & Straps | The Makers | Information | The Children |

Legendary western entertainer Roy Rogers, star of radio, film, records, television and personal appearances, was a hero to millions of fans from the Saturday matinee era of the 1930’s and ‘40’s throughout the television era.  The name Roy Rogers is synonymous with the values, tradition and spirit that are at the heart of our rich American Heritage.  He was a superstar who consistently delivered a wholesome brand of honest entertainment suitable for the entire family. 

Roy loved children and spent a lifetime devoted to children and children’s charities, including the Happy Trails Children’s Foundation for abused and neglected children.  Roy was a patriot who loved his flag and country.  Roy sold millions of dollars worth of War Bonds during World War II and made numerous USO tours of military bases with Trigger. 

Roy was a firm believer in our 2^nd Amendment Rights, and in fact appeared in TV commercials as an NRA spokesman, opposing a proposed gun ban in California.  He was an outstanding citizen and was asked to run for Congress on the Republican ticket at one time.  His reply, “I have both Democrat and Republican fans and I can’t afford to lose any of them!”

Roy’s films were based on a formula that included action, romance, and comedy.  They had something for everyone.  His pictures contained some of the most innovative action sequences ever recorded on film.  None of the major studios at that time could even come close to capturing on film the exciting action that was a part of every Rogers film.  The musical production numbers in some of his films rivaled those of MGM. Roy’s screenplays were well written and always had a moral lesson for the legions of boys and girls who saw his films.  Off screen, Roy lived by the same high standards and moral code he portrayed on screen.  He had a more positive influence on the lives of boys and girls growing up in America in the 40’s and 50’s than any other single individual.  Roy Rogers was one of the most loved, respected and honored men of the 20th century.

Roy was a man’s man!  He was a man of many talents and interests and he had the time and money to pursue his varied interests.  He had a great sense of humor and he was an outstanding athlete.  Making westerns is a physically demanding job, and Roy performed many of his own stunts.  He had superior hand/eye coordination and was an excellent marksman, with handguns, rifles, shotguns, bow and arrow, and even a slingshot.  He became a superb horseman, perhaps the best of all the leading men in Hollywood, and he had the good fortune to own and ride the greatest horse to ever appear in motion pictures, Trigger.  He was a rancher, horse breeder and trainer.  He was a sportsman, outdoorsman, hunter, gun collector and fisherman.  He loved to shoot trap and skeet and he hunted trophy game all over the world.  He was an avid bowler and an occasional golfer.  Roy was a motorcycle riding, speedboat racer. He was a baseball fan and football fan, with a large collection of autographed sports memorabilia.  He was a successful businessman and entrepreneur, restaurateur, and real estate developer.  He was a philosopher, philanthropist and raconteur.  He had a way with animals and owned 37 coon dogs when he and Dale got married.  He raised and raced Thoroughbred horses for a while and even raised racing pigeons.

The Happy Trails Children's Foundation is proud to honor Roy’s Centennial this year, 1911 – 2011, with Silver Screen Legend XIV.

 THE OUTFIT

Ed Gilmore, a skilled saddle maker and leather craftsman, opened a shop in North Hollywood in the early 1930’s.  He operated the business till he was murdered in 1940, at which time the business was sold to Hollywood Saddlery.  Gilmore did a lot of work for movie stars including Gene Autry and Roy Rogers.  In 1938, Gilmore craftsman Hollis Deery made Roy’s unique hand carved and sterling silver mounted double holster rig.  This was Roy’s first holster rig and he used this outfit throughout most of his movie and TV career.  The original gun rig defined the Roy Rogers “style” and sold at Brian Lebel’s Old West Auction in Denver, CO in June 2010 for $103,500.00 with a pair of Colt six-shooters.

SILVER SCREEN LEGEND XIV is an exacting replica of this famous outfit, fully lined, hand stitched and hand carved using the identical carving pattern and hand crafted and engraved sterling silver spots and buckle sets. This is a magnificent legendary outfit in the outstanding Roy Rogers' tradition.  Painstakingly researched by Jim Lockwood, this fancy two-gun outfit, made famous in the movies, looks, feels, and fits just like the original.  It is truly a museum quality cowboy collectible.

THE GUNS

At one time or another in his long career in front of the cameras, Roy used a variety of Single Action Army Colt’s as movie prop guns in various calibers that would chamber the famous 5-in-1 movie blanks, in blue and case hardened or nickel finishes, in 7 ½”, 5 ½”, and 4 ¾” barrels.  The SILVER SCREEN LEGEND XIV guns donated by Colt’s Manufacturing Co., LLC this year are truly spectacular, perhaps the finest we have offered in the fourteen-year history of this project. They are a matched pair of .45 caliber Single Action Army Colt’s with consecutive serial numbers, 5 ½” barrels, and sterling silver plated.  In honor of Roy’s Centennial, Master Engraver, Conrad Anderson, has exquisitely engraved them.

The right side of the barrel has Roy Rogers on one line, Centennial 1911 – 2011 on the second line, and Happy Trails on the ejector rod housing. Roy’s signature is engraved on the side plate under the right side of the cylinder.  The left side of the barrel is engraved King of the Cowboys.  The cylinder is engraved with Trigger, Smartest Horse in the Movies; Dale Evans, Queen of the West; and the Happy Trails logo.  The top of the backstrap is engraved with Roy’s Double R Bar brand, and down the backstrap is SILVER SCREEN LEGEND XIV. In addition, there are scrolls, cross hatches, sunbursts and stars engraved in the appropriate places.  These gorgeous guns have instantly become highly collectible and valuable, a tribute to Roy’s Centennial.

Nearly all the guns Roy used in his movies and TV episodes had faux stag grips, made by a company known as Franzite.  Most of the cowboy stars used Franzite plastic grips on their guns.  When asked why, Roy stated that grips were continually getting broken in the course of moviemaking from dropped guns etc. and Franzite grips were inexpensive and easy to replace, and they looked good.  Franzite (no longer in business) made a variety of grips used by the prop departments of all the movie companies.  The SILVER SCREEN LEGEND XIV guns have attractive imitation stag grips just like Roy’s, made and fitted by Bob Leskovec.

THE SPURS

       Again this year we are very pleased to include a unique and highly collectible set of Damascus steel western spurs.  Internationally known knife and spur maker Charles Sauer has again given generously of his time and artistry to produce this incredible set of one-of-kind spurs.  These gorgeous one-of-a-kind spurs are an extremely valuable collector's item.

THE SPUR STRAPS

       Your can't wear spurs without straps! Jim Lockwood of Legends in Leather and superb silver craftsman Michael Ekstrom teamed up to produce this incredible set of gorgeous spur straps.  Like the originals made by Bohlin and worn by Roy Rogers, this year's spur straps replicate the originals both in design and hand made sterling silver with engraved conchas, spots and engraved silver buckle sets.

THE MAKERS

            Extra special thanks and appreciation go to General William Keys of Colt’s Manufacturing Company, LLC and the great people at the Colt Custom Shop, who created and donated these pistols. It is because of their long-term support and generosity that this annual project is possible.

            The original concept, overall theme, coordination, and design of the SILVER SCREEN LEGEND XIV were provided by Jim Lockwood.  He has also personally hand crafted all of the leather in his Prescott, Arizona, shop.  The handmade sterling silver buckle sets and spots, the exquisite hand engraving on the pistols, and the special custom tuning of the guns were provided by Conrad Anderson, Rocktree Ranch, Kingston, Idaho.  The unique faux stag grips were hand crafted by Bob Leskovec, Precision Pro Grips, Gibsonia, Pennsylvania. The hand polished .45 prop cartridges were made and donated by Ron Love, Prescott, Arizona, (928) 771-0788.

            The unique Damascus steel spurs were handmade by Charles Sauer of Sauer Custom Knives and Spurs, and Michael Ekstrom of Custom Jewelry by Michael and Naomi Ekstrom, crafted the sterling silver spots, conchas and buckle sets on the spur straps.

Jim Lockwood, Jr., Legends In Leather

            Legends in Leather was founded in 1991 by Jim Lockwood, Jr., an outgrowth of his on-going love affair with the American West, both historical and fictional.  His roots are in the 1940s, the Golden Age of the Hollywood western, where Roy, Gene, Hoppy and Durango reigned supreme.

            He began collecting material from western movies and TV shows at an early age, but there always seemed to be one item missing - the famous silver-mounted, fancy-carved gun belts and holsters that became the trademark of the western movie star.  These one-of-a-kind gun rigs were usually made specifically for a particular actor by well-known Hollywood leather crafters and silversmiths such as Edward Bohlin and Ed Gilmore or, later on, Arvo Ojala, Andy Anderson and Rodd Redwing. Over the years, these famous outfits have either been lost, stolen, destroyed or are in private collections or public museums. Lockwood decided that the only way to own reproductions of these famous rigs was to make them himself!

            All of Lockwood’s work is designed and crafted by hand in his Prescott, Arizona shop.  Legends in Leather gun leather must not only look like the original when on display, it must also fit and hang like the original when worn.  The level, angle and placement of the holsters are as critical as the correct number of bullet loops, color and thickness of the leather. Each outfit is individually handcrafted to reach this goal.

            Lockwood is a benefactor member of the National Rifle Association, life member of SASS (#710, alias “Billy Old”) and the Citizen’s Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.  He is a member of the Colt Collectors Association and World Fastdraw Association.

Conrad S. Anderson, Rocktree Ranch

            While growing up, Conrad’s interest in firearms coupled with his love of western movies and respect for the American west learned from his grandfather seemed to naturally point him toward a career in law enforcement.  When off duty, he began to learn pistol-smithing, repairing and tuning firearms for fellow officers and friends. But just fixing and tuning was not enough, so Conrad turned his skills to firearms engraving, earning a scholarship from the Engravers Guild of America to study advanced engraving at Lassen College in Northern California.  His work has become highly acclaimed to the point where he’s received mention in R.L. Wilson’s book, Steel Canvas.

            Searching for a fancy silver mounted saddle and double gun rig like those used by his all-time favorite, Clayton Moore as The Lone Ranger, he soon discovered that companies such as Bohlin were either gone or didn’t make products like this anymore.  The solution seemed simple. If Conrad could make metal gun parts and engrave, why couldn’t he make silver conchas, spots and buckles and engrave them?  From the beginning, he has spent countless hours in research to produce exacting reproductions of the famous silversmiths of early 20^th century Hollywood.  Over time, special dies and molds have been created that produce virtually any of the famous “signature” silver worn by such favorite western stars or characters as Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, The Lone Ranger, Gene Autry, Shane, Tim McCoy, Ken Maynard, Paladin, Matt Dillon or The Virginian.

            In 1997, Conrad joined with Jim Lockwood to create the Silver Screen Legend project for Happy Trails Children's Foundation.  His many other contributions to the foundation include the Dale Evans, Queen of the West project, silver mounted bridles and breast collars as well as a complete silver mounted saddle outfit exactly like Roy’s.

            Conrad is an avid western movie memorabilia collector, an NRA Life Member for over 30 years, and also belongs to SASS (#10,881, alias Silver Swede) and the Engravers Guild of America.

Bob Leskovec, Precision Pro Grips

            Bob Leskovec and his Precision Pro Grips are another example of a craftsman born of necessity.  Not satisfied with the standard or custom grips available, Bob decided to create his own at age 15, when he purchased his first Colt 1860 Army replica.  Inspired by the then hugely popular “spaghetti” westerns of Clint Eastwood, Bob became aware that a set of special grips changes and personalizes a handgun and creates a “signature” for its owner.

            Encouraged by friends and a few firearms industry acquaintances that were privileged to see his work, Bob founded Precision Pro Grips in 1994.  Using only the finest, exhibition grade, hand selected materials ranging from genuine ivory, stag, buffalo horn, exotic hardwoods or special simulated ivory and stag, Bob handcrafts smooth, checkered or hand carved grips (on one or both panels), which can include sterling silver or scrimshawed ivory inlays.  All grips are custom fitted to your gun.

            Bob’s special talents are two-fold, as he produces one-of-a-kind grips designed and personalized to a customer’s individual desires or crafts wonderful “replica” grips featuring the exact designs made famous in western movies or on TV.  For the Hollywood western collector or B-western oriented cowboy shooter, Precision Pro Grips is the place to find exact reproductions of grips made famous by Clint Eastwood, John Wayne, Hoppy, Roy, James Arness or any other of your favorite western stars. In the case of Wild Bill Elliott, famous as Red Ryder, Bob’s reproductions are made using an actual set of grips that once graced a Colt carried by Elliott in his old Columbia days.

Charles Sauer, Sauer Custom Knives and Spurs

World-famous knife and spur maker, Charles Sauer, created the incredible and totally unique Damascus steel spurs.  Charles has done just about everything - from being a successful bull rider, a mountain man re-enactor, a soldier and a blacksmith to knife and spur maker. What started out as a hobby has turned into an endeavor to create works of art. His Damascus knives are internationally collectible and his work is a favorite of Purdey Firearms in the UK and Sauer Guns in Germany.  Although still producing his specialty Damascus knives, Charles is now concentrating on creating beautiful and functional Damascus spurs in a variety of patterns and finishes from different historical periods.

Mike Ekstrom, Custom Jewelry by Michael & Naomi Ekstrom

After serving his country in Viet Nam, Mike Ekstrom was a working cowboy.  He became interested in silversmithing and engraving.  When he gave up nursing cows he studied engraving and silver casting. Over the years Mike has developed a line of reproductions from the 19^th century and, more recently, the early 20^th century masters like Edward H. Bohlin.  He specializes in exquisite jewelry, Western conchas, buckles, keepers and tips, and can even reproduce your favorite family heirloom.

All of these wonderful people and companies are enduring examples of that very special American spirit known as “the cowboy way.” The members of the SLVER SCREEN LEGEND TEAM welcome any and all inquiries concerning products available from their shops. Please check out their web sites.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

The Colt Custom Shop,

P. O. Box 1868, Hartford, CT 06144

(800) 962-COLT.

www.coltsmfg.com

Jim Lockwood

Legends in Leather

8100 N. Red Oak Road, Prescott, AZ, 86305

(928) 717-2175

www.legendsinleather.com

Conrad Anderson

Rocktree Ranch

9486A Coeur d'Alene River Road, Kingston, ID 83839

(208) 682-2562.

www.rocktreeranch.com

Bob Leskovec

Precision Pro Grips

5142 Hardt Road, Gibsonia, Pennsylvania 15044

(724) 449-8360

www.ProPistolGrips.com

Mike Eckstrom

Custom Jewelry by Michael & Naomi Ekstrom

P.O. Box 4167, Chino Valley, AZ 86323

(928) 636-1536.

Charles Sauer

Sauer Custom Knives and Spurs

801 S. Yuma Road, Prescott, AZ 96303

(623) 606-6442

www.sauerknives.com

The Children

            Legendary western entertainers Roy Rogers and Dale Evans spent a lifetime devoted to children and their support of children-at-risk is well documented.  The Happy Trails Children’s Foundation is proud to carry on the work with abused children who were so important to Roy and Dale.  However, we need your help!

            As a result of our association with Roy and Dale, and the positive and wholesome family values they represented, the Happy Trails Children’s Foundation is the only known children’s charity in the country today that actively supports shooting sports, Second Amendment Rights and responsible gun ownership, and is in turn supported by generous contributions from shooters, collectors, organized shooting sports and the firearms industry!  We are proud of this unique partnership!

Opportunity Drawing

The drawing will be held December 17, 2011 in Victorville, California.  YOU DO NOT NEED TO BE PRESENT TO WIN! The winner will be notified by phone.  You may check our web site for the winner's name, after the drawing. 

             The total proceeds of this drawing benefit the Happy Trails Children's Foundation for abused children. The Happy Trails Children's Foundation is a charitable non-profit organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. All donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. You may order tickets by phone (760) 240-3330, or online. American Express, Discover, MasterCard and VISA accepted. Or you may send your check to:

Happy Trails Children's Foundation

Silver Screen Legend XIV

10755 Apple Valley Road

Apple Valley, CA 92308

(760) 240-3330

www.happytrails.org

Silver Screen Legend XIV  Ticket Order Deadline - 12-17-2011  @ 12:00 PST

AMERICAN EXPRESS, DISCOVER, MASTERCARD & VISA

Or you may send your check or money order to:

Happy Trails Children’s Foundation
Silver Screen Legend XII
10755 Apple Valley Road
Apple Valley, CA 92308
(760) 240-3330