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Johnny Peppers · 06-09-2002, 02:19 PM

Joe,
The .45 Luger is indeed on display at the Norton Gallery in Shreveport, Louisiana. Reportedly the pistol came out of Canada, and was to be purchased by Carl Wilson who once owned the only known "Baby" Luger. This was in the early 1960's when you could still fly with a firearm, and when Carl met the owner of the .45 Luger to close the deal, the owner had gone up $1000 on the agreed upon price which was either $4000 or $5000. Out of principal, Carl did not take the pistol, but later admitted to the late Pat Redmond that it was the biggest mistake of his Luger collecting career. The pistol was then bought by Harry Jones who within the month had sold it to Mr. Norton for $10,000. There was an engraver in Shreveport by the name of Prudhomme, and Mr. Norton admired his work. Several very collectible firearms were engraved by Prudhomme for Mr. Norton, and it is lucky that he never had the big Luger engraved.
The .45 Luger in the Norton gallery is thought to have remained in the DWM factory as either the prototype or backup to the two sent to the US, and was probably sold at some later date as it is nitro proofed.
The history of the Norton Gallery .45 Luger was related by the late Pat Redmond, who later bought the "Baby" Luger from Carl Wilson.

06-09-2002, 02:19 PM	#3
Johnny Peppers User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Calion, Arkansas Posts: 1,042 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Joe, The .45 Luger is indeed on display at the Norton Gallery in Shreveport, Louisiana. Reportedly the pistol came out of Canada, and was to be purchased by Carl Wilson who once owned the only known "Baby" Luger. This was in the early 1960's when you could still fly with a firearm, and when Carl met the owner of the .45 Luger to close the deal, the owner had gone up $1000 on the agreed upon price which was either $4000 or $5000. Out of principal, Carl did not take the pistol, but later admitted to the late Pat Redmond that it was the biggest mistake of his Luger collecting career. The pistol was then bought by Harry Jones who within the month had sold it to Mr. Norton for $10,000. There was an engraver in Shreveport by the name of Prudhomme, and Mr. Norton admired his work. Several very collectible firearms were engraved by Prudhomme for Mr. Norton, and it is lucky that he never had the big Luger engraved. The .45 Luger in the Norton gallery is thought to have remained in the DWM factory as either the prototype or backup to the two sent to the US, and was probably sold at some later date as it is nitro proofed. The history of the Norton Gallery .45 Luger was related by the late Pat Redmond, who later bought the "Baby" Luger from Carl Wilson.