This Academy Award-winning actor is listed as one of the American Film Institute’s 25 greatest male stars of Classic Hollywood Cinema. He was a household name from the 1950s through ’70s, appearing in blockbusters such as “Sunset Boulevard,” “The Wild Bunch” and “The Bridge on the River Kwai.” He also served as best man in Ronald Reagan’s wedding.
In the latter half of the 1900s, following a trip to Africa, the actor cultivated an interest in hunting and wildlife conservation. He founded the Mount Kenya Safari Club in 1959 and, later, the Mount Kenya Game Ranch. A wildlife foundation bearing his name was created in his honor posthumously.
The safari rifle shown above is one of the actor’s guns, but it was unfinished at the time of his death in 1981. Click here to learn what illustrious actor was its owner, and what happened to the firearm after his death.
