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Author
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Comment
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Eien
Unregistered User
(7/14/06 9:16 pm)
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Legendary guns?
I was wondering if there are any characters from any folklore or recent fables that happen to be gunmen, or if there are any stories that feature a legendary gun.
I know there are such stories with swords and bows and arrows (I think), but I don't think I've ever heard of a legendary gun.
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Writerpatrick
Registered User
(7/15/06 6:08 am)
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Re: Legendary guns?
Westerns are filled with stories about guns and gunfighters. There's even a few movies about guns themselves such as Winchester 77 and The Mexican. And there was the TV series Gun which was an anthology with a gun as the common character. Though the stories tend to be more about the man than the tool.
Since the gun itself is a relatively modern invention, any stories relating to it would also be modern. As such, it's uncommon to find any stories involving guns with magical properties. It tends to be the technology of the weapon that's impressive.
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Random
Registered User
(7/15/06 11:10 am)
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Re: Legendary guns?
I'm not so sure about the modernity of guns (this site shows a fairly long history) but I guess that's a matter of perspective.
There are at least a few fairy/folk tales that involve (or can involve) gunmen, but the guns themselves are not usually the focus of the stories.
One of the stories is the Grimms' the Two Brothers, about two hunters.
Another is the Great Selkie of Suleskerry, in which the girl marries a gunner.
Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle also had a gun, whose rusting was one of his first clues that everything wasn't right.
Hans Christian Andersen also wrote a story about an Evil King with a gun.
Finally, though this is not reliable, there is the speculation that the rhyme about Humpty Dumpty was originally written about a particular cannon.
Hope this is useful!
Edited to add: Here are two more Grimms' fairytales with gun-toting
hunters/sharpshooters: How
Six Men Got on in the World and the
Skilful Huntsman. This last one is especially good, because
the gun in it has magical properties - it will automatically hit
whatever the huntsman wants. I suspect there are more Grimms' stories
with guns in them, but I can't seem to find a searchable online
collection that would make it easy to find them. As it is, I just
picked some likely looking ones and searched for the word "gun"
in them.
Edited by: Random at: 7/15/06 11:32 am
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Eien
Unregistered User
(7/15/06 12:35 pm)
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Thank you!
Thank you very much for all the suggestions. I'll take a look at them as soon as I can.
I'll admit, I've been coming up with ideas for a "fractured crossover fairy tale", a bit of a Shrek that focuses more on stylized action than humor. My main character was one of my own creations, who happens to be something of 19th Centuray gunman, so I was wondering if their were any folklore featuring anyone close enough for my character to "play the part of".
Again, thanks for all the suggestions!
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Random
Registered User
(7/15/06 1:15 pm)
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Re: Thank you!
You're very welcome! I hope the story goes well.
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Eien
Unregistered User
(7/15/06 1:42 pm)
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You wouldn't happen to know...
...Of any other Western folk heroes?
The thought came to mind that, with some some heavy altering, I imply my original character is a take on Pecos Bill, but I wonder if their are any other such characters.
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Monika
Registered User
(7/15/06 8:20 pm)
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Re: Legendary Guns
There's also the opera Der Freischutz (German legend, not a Western):
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Der_Freischutz
Incidentally, Tom Waits and Robert Wilson recently did a theatre piece based on this - The Black Rider. Haven't seen or heard it though so can't comment.
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Eien
Unregistered User
(7/16/06 3:48 pm)
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That's perfect!
I already had an idea for my character to use a custom seven-shooter revolver as a weapon, and seven magic bullets would be perfect for it.
Hmm...perhaps I should imply the character is the son of Max and Agathea...
Thank you very much for that story!
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Storygirl
Unregistered User
(8/7/06 9:00 pm)
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guns in stories
"The Gunslinger" by Stephen King and its sequels came
to mind...as did ( :o ) Army of Darkness.
Don't know if these would help...but Army of Darkness is always good for a laugh!
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AliceCEB
Registered User
(8/8/06 7:00 am)
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Re: guns in stories
Another tale that involves guns, although not in a magical way, is PETER AND THE WOLF: the hunters use guns to kill the wolf.
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