A vintage pistol that was once owned by legendary performer, gun enthusiast and quick-draw artist Sammy Davis Jr. was among 791 guns that the Los Angeles Police Department collected during a weekend gun buy-up program in early May, according to city officials quoted by the Los Angeles Times.
The Rat Pack member’s 1911 .45-caliber pistol was one of the guns weapons turned in for $50 Ralph’s grocery store gift cards during the events held in Mission Hills and South Los Angeles.
No details were available about who donated the gun or its origins because such civic buy-up program are traditionally anonymous.
Davis was an enthusiastic shooter and gun owner. He participated in fast-draw competitions; Johnny Cash recalled that Sammy was said to be capable of drawing and firing a Colt Single Action Army revolver in less than a quarter of a second. Davis was skilled at fast and fancy gun twirling and reholstering, and appeared on television variety shows showing off this skill. He appeared in Western films and as a guest star on several “Golden Age” television Westerns.
Typically such 1911 pistols cost more than $350.
Considering the fame of the Rat Pack owner, one can only assume the person who traded in the gun for groceries was either unaware or uninterested in its provenance.
