Blade Runner, Take Five, the WorldCon Model

Pictures by Karl Tate

The REAL Blade Runner prop!

It was a quiet Saturday on 8/26/06 at 2:14 PM when I checked my e-mail to find an e-mail from Karl Tate saying -- "Look at this: this the real prop from Blade Runner."

As I opened it and looked at a couple of pictures he had sent I knew they showed the real prop. It was no longer a quiet day. A few email exchanges later I am packing an overnight bag and some munchies, and I drove overnight to get there for the last day of the convention in the hope it would still be on display.

AND IT WAS! I arrived first thing Sunday morning and was looking at the gun in the display case when Karl found me. A minute later a friend of the owner walked up to the display case and let us see the gun outside of the case and take pictures.

Here is one of the few pictures of me with the gun. I was so excited to see it I never even considered a "proof" shot of me with the GUN.

Picture by Karl Tate

No longer the thin trim guy I used to be, I call this "the Shatner look." Funny how many of us get rounder as we age. But I am in good company. (And thank god at 59 I still have hair on my head...a little thin but still there)

What really locked it in for me as the real prop were the wires on the side of the side cover. Those had bugged me for years when studying the film. They are in the shot of the gun along the wall when Deckard is hunting Batty.

I had thought the line might be the edge of the front of the side cover, but it did not look like the front end.

Phil and I have argued over the pistol grip's true color. Phil saw a silver metal frame and I saw a black one. We were both right, it was painted black with some silver showing near the butt plate seemingly from sanding the paint off the butt plate sides.



Picture by Karl Tate

This was one of those really special days, the kind you remember forever, and I owe it to Mr. Karl Tate for emailing me and sharing this find.

How many fans walked by this small case and did not see this amazing reveal? or did not believe it to be true? Even Karl said it was only on the fourth day of this five day convention did he look closer and read the place card. The rest is history.

I was too excited and too tired from the overnight drive to take pictures, I set up my film camera wrong, and my little digital camera couldn't compare to Karl's.

All Blade Runner fans owe Karl for spotting this and for sharing it and for taking all these great pictures.

On to Page 2 for the details of the changes...

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