Sadly, the world lost Sean Connery in 2020. Of course, the world-renowned star first became a household name as the legendary spy James Bond. Now, his pistol prop from the movie Dr. No has sold at auction for an incredible amount: $256,000!
The History of the “Dr. No” Pistol
As you might imagine, this prop pistol has quite the history behind it! Dr. No, the first James Bond movie, changed spy movies forever. It also launched Sean Connery to international stardom. So, it’s not hard to see why Dan Lanigan, a massive James Bond fan and the man behind the Disney Plus show Prop Culture, wanted it in his collection. “I picked this amazing piece 15 years ago when I was relatively early in my collecting,” he said. He became the first owner of the non-operational gun, picking it up at a film auction by prop company Bapty in 2006.
Believe it or not, there’s more than one reason this prop pistol became famous. It’s the source of a legendary movie mistake as well! The prop, modeled after a Walther PP, is incorrectly referred to as a “PPK” in Dr. No. “I tried to get to the bottom of that, but couldn’t get a real answer,” Lanigan explained. “Most people wouldn’t know the difference.”
Now, Lanigan has decided the time has come to let another fan treasure it for some time…
From Sean Connery to Lucky Fan
Why did a massive James Bond fan like Lanigan decide to sell his beloved prop pistol from Dr. No. Well, it appears his interests have simply changed! “My collecting has changed and so have my interests [over the years]. It needs to find another home and be with someone who gives it the love it deserves,” he stated. It might also have to do with the fact that Lanigan has a rather unpopular James Bond opinion: he does not think Connery was the best Bond! He prefers actor Roger Moore! Still, Lanigan cannot deny the prop pistol’s appeal. “This is the tool that he uses to define who he is as a secret agent, and that was interesting and iconic,” he said. As such, Lanigan says that parting with the gun was one of the hardest decisions of his entire life.
When the day of the auction arrived, Lanigan was nothing but nerves. Thankfully, Julien Auctions in Beverly Hills took excellent care of him. “I don’t want to profit off his death and I got nervous about it, but the auction house said this stuff happens all the time. I felt weird about it and considered pulling it at one point,” the film producer said. However, he did not. In the end, a delighted, private owner paid a whopping $256,000 for the prop pistol!
While the winning bidder decided to stay anonymous, Lanigan wants Bond fans to know the prop pistol is in good hands: the owner is “an American who has seen every James Bond movie with their children.”