New Frontier’s Gun & Western Collectible Show & Auction
August 26-28
Event Center at Archer Cheyenne, WY
www.NewFrontierShow.com
newfrontiershow@gmail.com
913-406-8057

CHEYENNE, WYO. — No movie character played by John Wayne was ever accused of being “all hat, no cattle.” Whether playing a cattle baron in The Cowboys and Chisum or portraying such unforgettable characters as True Grit’s Rooster Cogburn and Alamo hero Davy Crockett, Wayne always delivered onscreen credibility. His decades-long career and signature persona made him one of the world’s most admired Western stars. New Frontier Auctions, as a featured highlight of its August 27 auction at the Cheyenne Firearms & Western Collectibles Show, will offer eight special items screen-worn by “The Duke.”

All of the items are from a single-owner private collection and have been “heavily vetted,” said New Frontier owner Scott Tarbell. “Each John Wayne lot comes with affidavits and letters of authenticity from Boyd Magers, the number one authenticator of Western film memorabilia.”

Hats always “made the man” in golden-era Westerns, and few are as instantly identifiable as the silver-banded hat worn by John Wayne in the 1948 Academy Award-nominated film Red River. The American Film Institute named Red River the fifth-greatest Western of all time, but the hat took on a life of its own. Entertainment Magazine called it “one of the most iconic hats in film history.” New Frontier’s experts believe it will hammer $10/30,000 at auction.

Two now-classic wardrobe items from the 1960 historical war epic The Alamo will be sold. Each has two collar tags — one from United Costumers and the other from Wayne’s own production company, Batjac, identifying the film and actor. One lot is the actual fringed buckskin jacket Wayne wore as Colonel Davy Crockett, the one-time Tennessee Congressman who fought in the Texas Revolution and died at the Battle of the Alamo ($8/15,000). Another is the highly recognizable coonskin cap that Wayne wore while filming The Alamo ($10/30,000).

Other John Wayne items include the US military tunic and dress kepi worn by the actor in She Wore A Yellow Ribbon (each $8/15,000); the cowboy hat owned and worn by Wayne as the title character of the 1973 film Cahill US Marshal ($10/30,000); and a second coonskin cap, which was personally owned by Wayne and which he wore at PR engagements and photo shoots promoting The Alamo ($8/15,000).

The sale includes a mix of historical relics, bronzes, paintings, textiles, saddles, boots and more, with an emphasis on real-life “cowboys and Indians.” One of the earliest Native American items is a fitted circa 1860-1870 fringed buckskin frontier shirt featuring a densely hand beaded yoke and artistically decorated pockets ($2/4,000).

A Crow Indian child’s outfit consisting of a buckskin shirt and pants that is fringed throughout and accented with red tradecloth and translucent cobalt and robin’s-egg blue beads ($2/4,000). Another work of art is an oversized Plains Indian pipe bag, ochre with long fringe and a multicolor design that incorporates red, green, cobalt and robin’s-egg blue beads against a white beaded ground ($2,5/3,500).

Firearms collectors who seek the unusual will find it in a Colt .45-caliber single-action Army revolver with two-piece carved bone grips ($2,5/5,500). It is marked “101” on the frame and “7” on the opposite side and is attributed to the famed 101 Ranch of the Oklahoma Indian Territory. It is on that vast property that the Miller Brothers started their Wild West Show featuring many trick shooting and Western frontier acts.

The auction includes 78 lots of spurs representing such revered artisans as Buermann, J.O. Bass, Kelly Brothers, Crockett and Mike Morales. Highlights include a pair of Buermann single-inlaid spurs with cut-out snake heel bands, deeply chased iron offsides and a very early AB (August Buermann) star mark ($3,5/5,000); and a pair of Mike Morales extra-large single-mounted spurs with cut-out heart heel bands, elongated and rounded silver candy-striped shanks, massive rowels and flower-tooled dove-wing straps ($1,5/2,500).

An unusual Deer Lodge, Mont., prison-made horsehair bridle has a rarely seen orange background with a finely detailed nose and browband design. It is complemented by hitched glass rosettes and brilliantly hued tassels ($3,5/4,500).

The auction will start at 4 pm MT/6 pm ET. Preview in person at the Cheyenne Firearms & Western Collectibles Show on Friday, August 26, from noon to 5 pm and on auction day, August 27, from 9 am to 4 pm (local time). The show and auction venue is at the Laramie County Events Center at 3801 Archer Parkway. For information, www.newfrontiershow.com or 913-406-8057.